The Synod of Syn-naughty-ness

It seems lately like almost every day I hear or read about something related to the Synod on Synodality (Synod of Synods, Synod of Synodissity? Synodality of Synodissed? Synodical Synodissy? Maybe just Sin-Odd?). It is getting old (and maybe a bit obsessive compulsive) to hear it being pushed on us over and over and over, ad nauseam. The most annoying thing about it is that I feel the need to respond to guide my people on how not to be taken in by it.

One of the most heavy emphases regarding the synod is to remind us (continually) that it is all about Rome and Pope Francis being willing to listen to the people (the Holy Father calls it being a "listening Church"). I guess he thinks that the Church did not listen in the past. Maybe he is aware of something not mentioned in any Church history book I have ever read (?). I have always taken the perspective (which I have found in many priests of the past) to tell my parishioners "I will always listen to you; I may not agree with what you say, but I will always listen." This means clergy are not supposed to follow bad ideas that lead away from the faith. It worked for the previous 2000 years; just sayin'...

Hence, in the effort to accomplish this new method of action in the Church, Pope Francis wishes to listen to anything and everything that the laity think; apparently even things that are immoral and contrary to faith (as long as it is not about anything that happened before 1965, or is spoken by a layperson who happens to like anything that happened before 1965). I am trying to wrap my mind around the idea that to be "listening" means to "listen selectively". I have raised 5 children, and I have seen more than one instance where a child chooses to "listen selectively"; we usually refer to that as "willfully stopping one's ears" and it counts as self-minded rebellion. I pray that is not what the Holy Father is doing right now (but it really looks like it is).