What was the Second Vatican Council Church?
The second vatican council was the 21st representative of different catholic churches recognised by the Roman catholic church. It was organised by Pope John the thirteenth on January 25, 1959 in Saint Peter’s Basilica, Vatican city, Rome and existed until 1965. It’s purpose was to renew the spiritual relations of the church so that they may reconsider the church practises and also pray with other denominations (A religious denomination is a secondary group within a certain religion that abides under a common name, tradition, and identity). The Second Vatican council was extremely important as it offered change to the churches which allowed it to evolve and grow with the world. Many documents had to be signed by an assembly of Roman Catholic church leaders.
The Vigil (aka Wake)
Before Vatican ll, the Vigil, commonly known as “wake” is a holy day when the family of the deceased or others that were close, gathers around the dead one to pray for that person, remember their loved ones life and comfort one another. It is an occasion of religious observance where the family of the dead stays up during the night rather than sleeping, to keep watch on the deceased. However, after Vatican ii came into play there were many changes to be made. These changes meant the following: the Vigil could be informally arranged anywhere the family wanted it to be, as long as the place was respectful. The church recognised that it was upto the family to
This was agreed on the 20th July through the Concordat agreement between state and Vatican. Their actions in the end, regarding the Church, proved to be effective indeed for he obtained his ultimate goal – eliminate political opposition – by granting something that didn’t carry substantial drawbacks itself.
The essence of the contribution made by Pope John XXIII was his calling together of the Second Vatican Council that aimed to address modernisation of the Catholic Church,
The Council of Trent was initiated by Pope Paul III. The council met in Trento, Italy in December 1545 and they met two more times in May 1551 and January 1562 and ended in December 1563. This council was created to identify the abuses within the Church and to clarify Catholic doctrine and reaffirmed the Pope to be the head of the Church (Bruening 161-3). The council declared anyone who did not agree with all the seven sacraments, they would be denounced and excommunicated.
As means to start such reform, Pope Paul III, initiated The Council of Trent. The gathering amongst high-ranking churchmen took place from 1545-1563 and was held for two primary purposes. The council was mustered to determine a plan to combat Protestantism and how Catholics would compromise with them and to reform the Catholic Church by clarification of the doctrine and define the central articles of faith. Through The Council of Trent, the strength of the Catholic doctrine increased, and there became a higher stress placed on the importance of the visual arts. The council was successful in developing a doctrine that outlined the difference between Protestantism and Catholicism and created
Furthermore, all Catholics were required to understand and believe in the teachings of the church, accept the supreme authority of the church and develop his or her inner life. In other words, it was required that devout Catholics adhere to all decrees issued by ecumenical councils. Accordingly, at the Fourth Lateran Council the Catholic Church the following decrees were issued. 1) The Catholic Church is the one universal church and no one outside of the church can be saved, 2) Jesus’ body and blood is contained in the sacraments, 3) Only ordained
The Second Vatican Council, or Vatican II as it is often called, was an Ecumenical Council, (which means it affected the worldwide Christian community) of the Roman Catholic Church. It began on October 11, 1962 under, Pope John XXIII with over two thousand attendants (Hollis 23). The council ended on December 8, 1965, with Pope Paul VI presiding over the council due to the death of Pope John XXIII in 1963. The council consisted of four different sessions convening in the fall of the four years during which the council took place. Topics discussed and debated throughout the council were issues concerning the church, the liturgy, revelation and scripture, and the clergy.
As time constantly presses forward and the earth continues to revolve, the world will never stop progressing and adapting to better suit the needs of mankind. The evolution of religion has greatly enhanced the quality of life for humanity by providing individuals with a strong belief system that is now the foundation of many peoples’ core values. One universal religion that has undergone extensive amounts of reform is Christianity. In particular, the Catholic church is well-known for the development of their famous ecumenical council meetings that help determine the future of the church. Numerous Councils have been conducted throughout the course of history, but none more significant than the most recent, the Second Vatican Council or Vatican II. The Catholic church was operating as if it was still the medieval period and desperately needed to be modernized. As a result, every Roman Catholic Church official was gathered to meet and devise a plan for how to introduce the church to the modern world. Consequently, the following will reveal the Second Vatican Council and the ramifications of the agenda, history and theology evolution, significant texts, and new developments.
Mary Jo Weaver writes about American Catholics in the Twentieth Century. According to Weaver, Catholics on the 20th Century faced a tough challenge adapting to the new changes after Second Vatican Council. Catholics were a close circle and were forced to accept the new changes such as democracy and pluralism. The dialogue with other religions such as Jews and Protestants were more acceptable. Mary Jo Weaver concludes that the Second Vatican Council was to address pastoral problems, which was a big deal with the Catholic Church. Catholicism needed a new attitude towards their beliefs. The ghettos were no longer a closed circle for Catholics; they began to become more integrated in society. The hierarchal authority also changed, power move to
On the tenth day after the pope’s death they were to assemble and remain absolutely locked away from the rest of the world in “conclave”. Cardinal's meetings with the pope were called consistories. The clergy worked to promote the people’s
The Second Vatican Council contributed many changes to the Catholic Church in order to freshen and modernise their thinking and practices. One notable change being the contribution of the lay people in the celebration of the mass. All baptised Catholics have a purpose to fulfil therefore have the authority to contribute through responses, hymns and prayers. Each church formed lay ministers to assist in the clergy and further the involvement of the congregation. Another significant change was the removal of the Latin language in the mass. So that people could understand and interpret the teachings of the scriptures the mass was said in vernacular languages which were coherent to society and people could now act out Jesus’ teachings in their
to date,” was one of the key words used by bishops, clergy, and media attending the
Pope Pius IX called the First Vatican Council in 1868. It was the Roman Catholic Church’s twentieth ecumenical council. It was held in the Vatican City. The purpose of this council was to attend to issues such as secularism, rationalism, and materialism. This council explored the principle of papal infallibility as well.
The Second Vatican Council was called by Pope John Paul XXIII in 1959 but wasn’t open until 1962. Pope John Paul XXIII felt the need to call the council to bring the church up to date. It was known as the reformation of the church. The Second Vatican Council was the 21st ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church, only that its members weren’t limited to European based bishops. The council held four sessions between the years of 1962-1965. These sessions were held in St. Peter’s Basilica by two popes: Pope John Paul XXIII and Pope Paul VI.
Success of the Council of Trent in the years 1545-1563 in Tackling the Problems Confronting the Catholic Church
The Papacy is the office of the Pope. The word pope comes from the Latin form of the word “Papa” which means father. The office of the Pope or rather the papacy is responsible for a wide variety of things. Specifically the Papacy’s main responsibility is the spiritual well being of the members of the Catholic Church. The Roman Catholic Church rose to power in the 6th century and lasted throughout the 9th century. There were several different circumstantial and also coincidental factors that contributed to the high regard of the church by the 6th century. The beginning was the church’s unsolicited popularity. This could be linked to its relationship with the early apostles. The Roman Church was the first in the empire