Module 3 - SIGNIFICANT EVENT Flashcards
What was the context of the time period in which the second Vatican council was called?
20th century
- Fight for knowledge and competition to gain economic power
- pivotal period in history because of great economical, social, and cultural shifts in the world
- dominated by war - WW1, WW2, CIVIL WARS
- continually shifting balances of power
- TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENTS
- automobile, radio, and the airplane
LEADS TO GLOBAL COMMUNICATION - THIS INTERCONNECTION = GLOBALISATION
POLITICS
- women’s suffrage (right of women’s bodies and going against standards, expectations, and stereotypes)
- Civil right movements
- the environmental movement
IMPROVEMENTS OF LIVING STANDARDS, RIGHTS ACKNOWLEDGMENT, AND ADVANCEMENT OF SOCIETY COMMUNITY.
MEDICAL FIELD
- discovery of vaccines, antibiotics such as penicillin, contraceptives, psychiatric drugs,
- knowledge about hygiene and clean water
- improved health and decreased mortality rates, especially among infants and the young. INCREASED AVERAGE LIFE EXTPECTANCY.
CULTURE AND ENTERTAINMENT IN THE WEST
- Theatre Halls were numerous, and performances were regularly given by theatre troupes, ventriloquists, hypnotists, poets, comedians, choirs and orchestras.
- Circuses came to town and set up in parks and public places.
- There were fêtes, carnivals, art exhibitions and lessons in singing, dancing and cooking to attend.
OTHER CHANGES IN SOCIETY
- included Displaced populations and mass migration,
- Industrialisation and economic expansion,
- Rise of communism in Eastern Europe and Asia, inequalities in wealth distribution
- Development in the youth culture, and Increased secularism.
CHURCH
- was not advanced when comparing to all of this because it was extremely hierarchal,
- Rule oriented,
- Anti-world,
- Fortress mentality,
- Inward looking culture.
When did the second Vatican church occur?
What was the reason?
- announced by Pope John XXIII on January 25, 1959,
- It took place in Vatican City from October 11, 1962, until December 8, 1965.
- Vatican II was a monumental task.
- It took four years of preparations
- four sessions of debates over three years,
Who was involved in Vatican II?
Pope John XXIII convenes an ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church—the first in 92 years.
- Pope Paul VI completed the works of the Vatican 2.
- Almost 3000 bishops, cardinals, heads of religious orders, and theologians from all over the world participated in the council.
What was the reason for Vatican 2?
- it addressed the two main topics of completing the unfinished task of Vatican I and ecumenical outreach to address the needs of the modern world.
1. completion of Vatican 1. - the council was convoked to deal with the contemporary problems of the rising influence of rationalism, anarchism, communism, socialism, liberalism, and materialism. Its purpose was, besides this, to define the Catholic doctrine concerning the Church of Christ.
- means of spiritual renewal for the church and as an occasion for Christians separated from Rome to join in a search for Christian unity.
- To address modernity and Renouncement - to return to the sources.
- To teach a deeper and more balanced Ecclesiology and to highlight the work of the Laity. encourage holiness, to facilitate ‘Active Participation in the liturgy and reach non-Catholics.
- To obey the Holy Spirit, to preach the Gospel, and teach the faith
What was the significance of the Pope
Old but open-minded Pope
- He called the council saying “I want to throw open the windows of the Church so that we can see out and the people can see in.”
- Was thought to be a Pope for a short period / transitional Pope because he was old.
- First Pope to call an Ecumenical council in 92 years
- church at the time (majority) was against his wishes of change in power and customs/traditions
- Pope John the 23rd was canonized as a saint, based on his virtuous, model lifestyle, and because of the good which had come from his having opened the Second Vatican Council. John XXIII has only been credited with one miracle and instead, the decision to canonize him is based on his huge popularity, and on his role as the “founder” of the Second Vatican Council (Vatican II), according to experts.
Explain what was the preparation needed, major themes addressed at the council, the process of the Second Vatican Council, and who it involved.
- Cultural changes in the aftermath of World War II spelled a need to reconsider church practices.
- Pope John XXIII on January 25, 1959, as a means of spiritual renewal for the church and as an occasion for Christians separated from Rome to join in a search for Christian unity,
- however preparations for the Council took more than two years - bishops to submit their proposals for subjects to be raised in the Council sessions, all material was studies and summarised.
- Two themes were prepared for the submission and address of the council, the first one being the theme of Aggiornamento.
- This meant the “bringing up to date”, and it was one of the keywords used during the Second Vatican Council both by bishops and the clergy attending the sessions and by the media and Vaticanologists covering it.
- It was used to mean throwing open the doors of the Church metaphorically in order to open a dialogue with the outside world. - The second theme was the theme of Ressourcement which involves a “return to the authoritative sources” of Christian faith, for the purpose of rediscovering their truth and meaning in order to meet the critical challenges of our time.
- If Ressourcement is about revitalization, renewal, then the mentioned, but often misunderstood concept, aggiornamento is essentially a question of a new and wider contextualization, with the aim of finding new ways to rethink and reformulate the fundamental affirmations of the Christian faith in order to more effectively communicate the Gospel. - Consultation of science and other religious teaching traditions.
- Pope had to consult scripture and tradition. - It took place in four stages in the Vatican City from October 11, 1962, until December 8, 1965. It is regarded as a religious process, because it is a council of bishops ready to address a worldly issue when it becomes prevalent in society, according to the word of God, and it is organized through the traditional leadership of the catholic church. (magisterium)
- ASSEMBLY OF THE COUNCIL
The council called between 2,000 and 2,500 bishops and thousands of observers, auditors, sisters, laymen, and laywomen to four sessions at St. Peter’s Basilica.
- A number of senior members of other Christian denominations were invited to the Council as observers and were not infrequently valuable in private discussions. - They could not however join in Council debates or participate in the voting. Islamic, Jewish, and non-Catholic church heads and other religious people such as; Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Islam were present. - PRAYER FOR GUIDANCE FROM THE HOLY SPIRIT
- SUBMISSION, DISCUSSION, ADDRESS ISSUE AND CONSOLIDATION OF IDEAS, NEW FINDINGS, IMPROVEMENTS, CHANGES ECT. - Completion and publishing documents on the results of the ecumenical council.
Define ecumenical council
Ecumenism, movement or tendency toward worldwide Christian unity or cooperation. The term, of recent origin, emphasizes what is viewed as the universality of the Christian faith and unity among churches.
An Ecumenical Council (also sometimes Oecumenical Council) or a general council is a meeting of the bishops of the church of the whole world who have come together to discuss matters of Church doctrine and practice.
What were the new teachings/doctrines of faith/practices and documents of the church?
During Vatican 2, 16 new documents made:
- 4 which were constitutional documents (documents of the entity are the documents that define the existence of the entity and regulate the structure and control of the entity and its members.
- The precise form of the constitutional documents depends upon the type of entity),
- 3 that were Declarations (document a formal or explicit statement or announcement)
- 9 Decrees (an official order that has the force of law.)
EXPLAIN - CHANGES TO THE LITURGY
(Constitution on Sacred Liturgy) – Sacrosanctum Concilium
This is the one document which had the most immediate impact on Catholics and parish life at the local level.
It instigated a revolution in Catholic worship
The Mass, once celebrated in Latin, could now be celebrated also in the Vernacular (the language of the place where the mass was being celebrated)
Altars were turned around so that priests faced the people
Sacraments were updated and simplified
Men and women religious (priests, nuns etc..) adopted a more modern form of dress
Receiving Communion – changed from kneeling at altar rail and receiving on tongue, to altar rail being removed and the option to receive the host in the hand.
The involvement of women in the liturgy
Changes in musical styles and church architecture
Lay people actually being allowed up into the sanctuary space once reserved only for the priest and the altar servers.
This created a major shift in Catholic consciousness. For decades, Catholics had been obliged to attend Mass or to “hear” the Mass with many either saying the Rosary or following the liturgy in their missal.
Now the Council was saying that “the faithful should be led to take that full, conscious and active part in liturgical celebrations which is demanded by the very nature of the liturgy itself.
EXPLAIN -BIGGER ROLE FOR LAYPEOPLE
(Dogmatic Constitution on the Church) – Lumen Gentium
The laity became more empowered – baptised lay people were encouraged to exercise the faith in everyday life
The laity went from silent, passive “spectators” at Mass, to full, conscious and active participation.
Lay people gained a greater role in the celebration of the Mass, including distributing holy communion
Lay people put their faith into action – to work for peace and unity among ourselves and all Christian churches
Participation of the lay faithful through commentaries and the proclamation of the Word of God
It highlighted the unique and distinctive place of the laity in the Church by virtue of their baptism – universal call to holiness
EXPLAIN - OTHER RELIGIONS
(Dogmatic Constitution on the Church) – Lumen Gentium
Vatican II opened the gates of social activism, freedom of expression and conscience.
Freedom of Conscience and religious liberty identified respect for ALL – emphasising that human dignity, regardless of belief system, should be respected based on EVERY human being made in the image of God.
Respect for ALL other religions as well as other CHRISTIAN denominations
High regard held for members of both non-Catholic denominations and non-Christian religions
ECUMENISM / ECUMENICAL MOVEMENT – a new movement which came out of Vatican II in an effort to draw ALL Christians into UNITY
The restoration of Unity among ALL Christians was one of the principle concerns of the council
Attempt to minimise the divide between Protestants (Anglicans, Presbyterians, Methodists etc..) and Catholics (SECTARIANISM)
Complete change in the relationship with other religions – pagans/heathens (people holding religious beliefs other than the main religion) became people of other living faith and traditions.
Christians became ‘brothers and sisters in Christ’ – sharing of ecumenical services.
Gone was the prohibition on Catholics entering non-Catholic churches
Catholics were encouraged to pray with other Christians, discuss disputed points of theology, work together on common social justice projects and move towards dialogue with non-Christian religions.
Forming of the Pontifical Council for Dialogue with People of other Religions
(Inter-religious dialogue)
Engaging in the more open and honest dialogue between Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims.
World religions started to be taught in Catholic schools.
EXPLAIN - THE SCRIPTURE
(Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation) – Dei Verbum
Rediscovering and love of the Word of God – an opening up of the Bible – modern intelligent translations
Catholics encouraged to “read the scriptures”
Previously relied on priests and teachers to interpret it
This was a significant shift for the Catholic Church given that the bible was often the strict domain of the ordained and often associated with Protestant worship
Catholics encouraged to take up the bible, study scriptures, and use them as a source of prayer.
Following the Council, the Church introduced what we know as the three-year cycle of lectionary readings to broaden the use of scripture in Catholic worship and sacramental life whereas, before Vatican II, the same readings were used every Sunday, year after year.
Opened up for Catholics a better understanding of the bible in terms of ‘literary forms’.
EXPLAIN - PASTORAL OUTLOOK – SOCIAL JUSTICE
(Constitution of the Church in the Modern World) – Gaudium et Spes
Call for a faith that does justice
The Council deepened within Catholics a concern for social justice and an awareness of the cultural shift that was occurring in society related to world poverty, the threat of nuclear war, the changing place of women in society, raped changes to daily life such as the motor car, the telephone, the television and the dawning of space exploration
Catholic commitment to Social Justice eg: Caritas Project Compassion
Catholics are more inclined to support the disadvantaged.
Addressed issues occurring in society at the time ie; world poverty, human rights, social justice
Pope John XXIII wanted to enter into dialogue with the world and the rapid changes of the twentieth century in order to better assist the Church in its mission of salvation
What were the short-term effects for the church and the world?
- Initially negative responses from religious authorities, such as nuns moved from rigid, centralized systems into flexible groups that encouraged individual freedom and initiative.
- This is because Vatican II called for intense self-examination and renewal among the sisterhood. As a result, some religions quit their convents because their communities were changing too fast.
- Others in the laity have maintained that its reforms went too far, too fast, and due to that in the decades following the council, liberal and conservative Catholics were divided over the interpretation of its decrees.
- Although such disunity posed a real threat of schism, there were only a few group departures.
- The number of departures of individual members of the laity and clergy, however, was large enough to cause concern and remained an important matter for the church long after the council ended, because they said they have lost authority, control, and significance of the position job in church and in the public.
What were the long-term effects on the church and the world?
- updated the liturgy, gave a larger role to laypeople, introduced the concept of religious freedom, and started a dialogue with other religions.
- The most obvious shifts in Vatican II were the increasing role of laypeople in the church, the change in the language used in Masses from Latin to the vernacular, and the movement of the priest from turning his back to the congregation to facing toward parishioners, this led to a great increase in affiliation in certain regions of the world. - the openness of the Catholic Church following Vatican II took surprising forms in places such as Latin America, where many local church leaders supported liberation theology.
- people became more spiritual personally: because the church not seen as a mandatory chore – but a strong spirituality/ faith needs of the soul.
- Increase of charity because the church became more interconnected with the world and as the Catholic church established a vigorous presence in Africa and parts of Asia and became a more prominent and outspoken church in Central and Latin America.
