The speakers take a tour in the style of the disciples of Emmaus, who talk after their first-hand experiences as counselors of the Synod. Without wishing to soften their experience, they share the reality of what happened at the Synod in the midst of lights and shadows. Elements from the text of Emmaus are taken, such as the fact of walking together in confusion and discouragement, the burning heart or the recognition of the breaking of the bread, to make a theological interpretation of the experiences of the Synod. On the one hand, they recognize in the Synod the figure of Cleopas as the vivid “vision of Glory” and on the other, that of the nameless disciple who represents each person. Despite being a resurrection text, there is no shortage of moments of discouragement: the disciples of Emmaus walk away from an empty tomb but they are on the move (others are locked up), they let Jesus open their minds. They show the moments of the Synod in which they feel that they are asked: «what are you talking about?», without recognizing Jesus, and the moments in which they realize that it is God Himself. They explain to us the negotiation pedagogy of the Synod, whose conclusions lack the LGTBI acronym and the love and commitment of many people, also other discriminated groups, who remain in the Church against all odds, because they have discovered that the center of the life of faith is not the Church but Jesus of Nazareth.
Cristina Inogés is a Catholic and Aragonese lay woman, a theologian from the Faculty of Protestant Theology of Madrid. SEUT (United Evangelical Seminary of Theology). Expert in Institutional Relations (UNED) and with a Diploma in Social Leader and Management Skills (CAI-ASC Foundation). Synod Mother by direct appointment of Pope Francis in the Synod of Synodality 2021-2024. She has written numerous books such as Beguines. Wounded memory (ed. PPC), Whispers of waiting and hope (ed. St. Paul), God walks between dots and commas (ed. PPC), Charitas Pirckheimer. A candle burning against the wind (ed. St. Paul) or The song of songs. Gift, commitment and present (PPC ed.). She received the Arco Iris CRISMHOM 2023 award, shared with María Luisa Berzosa and Marisol Ortiz.
Maria Luisa Berzosa is a religious woman from the Congregation of the Daughters of Jesus (Jesuitinas), of Ignatian spirituality and dedicated to education. She was born in a small town in the province of Valladolid, the daughter of a teacher and the teacher of the same name. After finishing high school, she went to Madrid and, through competitive examinations for the Ministry of Information and Tourism, worked until joining the Congregation. She completed her initial studies in theology at the Pontifical University of Salamanca; later, she studied Philosophy and Literature in Valladolid; and in Rome, at the Salesian University, she studied Educational Sciences with a specialty in youth ministry. Upon returning to Spain, she trained in Ignatian Spirituality to become the Director of Spiritual Exercises and Personal and Group Accompaniment, to which she now primarily dedicates herself. She lived for many years in Buenos Aires, working in its schools and in the Popular Education Movement «Fe y Alegría» (Fe and Joy). For 11 years, she coordinated a school in Rome for migrants from Latin America. with the same program that allows them to study while working. She collaborates, offering formation and spiritual guidance, with the Sexual Diversity Collectives in Madrid, Monterrey, and Guadalajara (Mexico), as well as in Italy. She participated in the Synod on «Faith, Youth, and Vocational Discernment» in 2018, as part of the Commission of Experts. In May 2019, Pope Francis appointed her as a Consultant to the General Secretariat of the Synod, and in this capacity, she participated in the Special Synod for the Amazon (2019). She now lives in Rome and collaborates in the current synodal process within the Commissions for Spirituality and Communication. She has also served as a Facilitator of the roundtable discussions, by language, for group discernment at the two Assemblies of the Synod of Synodality. She received the Arco Iris CRISMHOM 2023 award, shared with Cristina Inogés and Marisol Ortiz.