The Second Vatican

Council and its

Significance for Inter-Church

Dialog

What is an Council?Definition:

Post-Reformation Catholic, with a Big C

A legally convened assembly of ecclesiastical dignitaries and theological experts for the purpose of discussing and regulating matters of church doctrine and discipline. 1

1 “General Councils.” New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia. (November 4, 2010). http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04423f.htm / This and the next two slides.

In other words: The constituent elements of an ecclesiastical council are the following:

A legally convened meeting

of members of the hierarchy,

for the purpose of carrying out their judicial and doctrinal functions,

by means of deliberation in common

resulting in regulations and decrees invested with the authority of the whole assembly.

OK, so what is the Ecumenical part?

Ecumenical Councils are those to which the bishops, and others entitled to vote,

are convoked from the whole world (oikoumene)

under the presidency of the pope or his legates,

and the decrees of which, having received papal confirmation,

bind all Christians.

Protestants mean something different by “Ecumenical.”

Catholics – the Catholic church throughout the world.

Protestestants -the church universal2

2 Margull, Hans Jochen, and Georg Kretschmar. The Councils of the Church; History and Analysis. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1966, 485.

How many Ecumenical Councils have there been?3

Catholic accounting – 21 Ecumenical Councils

Anglican and Orthodox accounting – the first 7 Ecumenical Councils

Protestants disagree– some accept the first 4, some 7, and many accept none

3 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecumenical_council

The first Seven Ecumenical Councils4

1) Niacea I (325)2) Constantinople I (381)3) Ephesus (431) 4) Chalcedon (451)5) Constantinople II (533) 6) Constantinople III (680-81)7) Nicaea II (787)

4 Bellitto, Christopher M. The General Councils: A History of the

Twenty-One General Councils from Nicaea to Vatican II. New York: Paulist, 2002, 17-33.

Medieval Councils5

8) Constantinople IV (869-870)Great Schism (1054)9) Lateran I (1123)10) Lateran II (1139)11) Lateran III (1179)12) Lateran IV (1215)13) Lyons I (1245)

5 Bellitto, Christopher M. The General Councils: A History of the Twenty-One General Councils from Nicaea to Vatican II. New York: Paulist, 2002, 33-34, 49-59.

Lateran Façade in Rome6

5 This and later pictures from http://saintpetersbasilica.org/index.htm

Lateran Cathedra

Lateran Choir

Lateran Nave

Lateran Floor

Medieval Councils (cont.)

14) Lyons II (1274)15) Vienne (near Lyons)(1311-1312)16) Constance (1414-1418)17) Basel-Ferrara-Florence (1431-

1445)18) Lateran V (1512-1517)Martin Luther’s Theses (1517)

The Council of Trent (1545-1563)

The Council of Trent (1545-1563)7

Papal Bull states the Council’s Purpose: “the extirpation of of heresies, reformation of ecclesiastical discipline, and the peace of the church”Church and Tradition interp ScriptureStrong reaction to lay involvement

7 McDonald, William J, ed. The General Council; Special Studies in Doctrinal and Historical Background. Washington: Catholic University of America Press, 1962, 91-109, and Bellitto, Christopher M. The General Councils: A History of the Twenty-One General Councils from Nicaea to Vatican II. New York: Paulist, 2002, 101-108.

The Council of Trent (1545-1563)cont.

Sacraments retained and strengthenedthe doctrine of transubstantiation was retained and strengthened

Retained the veneration of relicsRetained PurgatoryGave Pope authority over reform of catechism, breviary, missalDecision to teach in the VernacularFormulation of central office to explain Trent’s decisions

The Council of Trent (Conclusion)

A HARDENING OF POSITIONS

Vatican I (1869-1870)

Vatican I (1869-1870)8

1st in over 300 years5 years of preparation700 bishops5 volumes of recordsDei Filius against rationalism alone but

faith & reason are not incompatibleThe biggie: Papal Infallibility and

primacy of jurisdiction

7 McDonald, William J, ed. The General Council; Special Studies in Doctrinal and Historical Background. Washington: Catholic University of America Press, 1962 113-114, and Bellitto, Christopher M. The General Councils: A History of the Twenty-One General Councils from Nicaea to Vatican II. New York: Paulist, 2002, 108-119.

“The traditional opinion is that when the bishops of the world unite to define belief in the light of what they have received from their predecessors, God will protect them from error. This is a manifestation of the infallibility of the teaching church, and papal infallibility is compared to it in the definition published by the First Vatican Council.”3

3“Ecumenical Council," in The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th Ed., 2008. (November 04, 2010). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-council.html / This and the next slide.

Angelo Roncalli is elected Pope John XXIII

(1958)

Vatican II

Results of Vatican II

Liturgy – Mass in the vernacularRevelation – All truth found in the BibleSecular Media accepted with guidelinesThe church – always in need of reform,

she is the mystery of God and all are equal, diaconate can marry, doctrine of Mary is made part of the church

Ecumenism – the Church is guilty for separation, others are also Church

Results of Vatican II (cont)The E church is also church and has

right to appoint its own bishopsBishops of Dioceses are independent

of RomeGod is active in all religions. Jews are

Not collectively guilty for Jesus’ death. Anti-semitism must be rooted out.

There must be no restrictions to religious liberty

Laity are part of universal PriesthoodSeminarians need to be in the real

worldReligious orders are free to renew

themseles

Results of Vatican II (cont)Non-Christian religions must be

respected, we can learn from themThe Priest is to be the servant of the

people. The bishop is to be the servant of the Priests. Married bishops of the E are accepted and commended.

Catholic schools should accept non-Catholic students

War is criminal. Christians have an obligation toward the

weak.

The Reality

Many voices denounce Vatican IIThe Daily Catholic http://

www.dailycatholic.org/history/councils.htmcalls it the Great Apostasy, and the Abomination of Desolation and names the Pontificate John Paul II heretical.

The Hope

Is that there are voices of sanity within the Catholic church who are striving toward openness toward the world and a the Protestant church