Vatican II: Sixty years later

On Oct. 11, we marked the 60th anniversary since Pope St. John XXIII formally opened the Second Vatican Council. For most of us, this ecumenical council is a distant memory, or totally unknown. But Pope St. John Paul II, who attended the entirety of the Council, said it was the most significant event in the life of the Church for the past 100 years. Pope Benedict XVI was one of the principal theological contributors to the Council, and said recently that the Council was “not only meaningful, but necessary.”

So what was Vatican II, and what did it do? The Council was convoked by John XXIII as the first ecumenical, or general, council of the Church since 1870. All the bishops of the world participated in its four sessions from 1962 to 1965. In his opening address on Oct. 11, 1962, Pope John acknowledged the changing times and the need for the light of Christ to radiate more fully in the Church and in the world. He prayed that the Church would experience a new outpouring of the Holy Spirit, a “new Pentecost.” The Council was not called to cast aside the truths of our faith, but to proclaim them more generously and more effectively to a world that had grown more and more distant from God.

Perhaps the most immediate results of the Council were changes to the liturgy. The introduction of vernacular languages into the liturgy was most noticeable. The Council Fathers called for a renewal of the liturgy and, and in the Sacred Constitution on the Liturgy, they urged “full, active participation” of all the faithful in the sacred liturgy. This doesn’t mean everyone has a job in the sanctuary, but that all who gather are intentional and deliberate participants in the mystery, the sacrificial act of Christ himself. No one is to be a bystander. The Fathers reaffirmed that the Eucharistic liturgy is the “source and summit” of the Church’s life, the high point of our prayer as a Church and the font from which it draws its life. Despite certain aberrations, the Fathers made clear that no one—not even a priest—is free to take liberties with the liturgy. It is the prayer of the Church. And despite some common misconceptions, the Council did not abolish the use of Latin in the liturgy but actually encouraged it.

During the last century, the very concept of truth had become relativized, and there were voices that questioned whether truth can even be known. The truth of Christ as our unique Savior was called into question. But the Council reaffirmed that God has spoken the definitive truth to humanity, and that truth is his Son, Jesus Christ. The Fathers taught that Jesus must once again be placed at the center of the Church’s life and our lives as Christians. And the mission of the Church, which is the “great sacrament” of Christ, is to go out into the world with renewed evangelical zeal, eager to make Christ known to all peoples.

The Council strongly emphasized the universal call to holiness as an essential aspect of the Church’s life in this new era. The call to holiness is not limited to an elite few within the Church, but is offered to all the faithful. In other words, everyone is called to a life of communion with God, a life of holiness and virtue that is lived out in their particular vocation. The Fathers placed special emphasis on the apostolate of the laity, calling all the faithful to sanctify the world in their own spheres of life and influence: family life and marriage, business and commerce, politics, education, labor, culture, etc. As our Lord tells us in the Gospel, the laity are to be a leaven in the world, making the Kingdom of God present in their own specific ways.

Taking their lead from Pope John XXIII and Pope Paul VI, the Fathers also confirmed the missionary character of the Church. Just as Jesus had sent his own apostles out “to the nations,” so does he send the Church today to make him present to all the peoples of the world. The Council called the Church to engage the world rather than to hide from it. But the Fathers certainly did not call us to adopt the ways of the world, or to bend the truths of our faith to the whims of the times. Unfortunately, in a misreading of the Council’s intent, many have tried to accommodate the faith to the demands of the world, rather than living the faith to convert the world to Christ. Needless to say, there is much work still to be done.

In the aftermath of the Council, and in the turbulence of the world in the decades that followed, the Church experienced its own turmoil and struggles. Some tried to reinterpret the meaning of the Council, and construed its teachings in ways that were completely at odds with its actual teachings. A so-called “spirit of the Council” emerged, and the actual texts of the Council were often ignored. The implementation of the Council remained incomplete or was even distorted, and some have asserted that the Council was the cause of all the problems we face today. Others maintain that the Council texts are irrelevant for our times, and we shouldn’t be bound by them. But both of these attitudes are incorrect. The Council remains the most authoritative teaching event of the last century, and the Council documents are still a necessary guide for the Church as she continues on her way in this third Christian millennium. The Popes have all referred to the importance of the Council, and we as a Church would do well to return to the beautiful teaching of the faith that we find in the Council documents. As we look back to the Council on this 60th anniversary of its opening, let us recommit ourselves to living out its vision, and let us pray for the “new Pentecost” that Pope St. John XXIII hoped for.