Inculturation is a Roman Catholic concept. In this article it is advocated that Hindus accept some of the key concepts of Vatican II which was such a revolutionary step within the Roman Church in the last century. For instance, the article mentions the works of Fr. Adrian van Kaam within psychology. The value of this article can be seen by the fact that it has been republished by Indian Catholic Matters and also by ESamskriti. The latter shows the acceptance (...) of the author's position by devout Hindus. The article is preceded by a letter to the editor by the same author on the R.G. Kar rape and murder case. Indian Catholic Matters adds the letter after the article. ESamskriti does not refer to the letter. This document is, strictly speaking, non-philosophical in nature and is being put up here for the interested scholar and for archival purposes. Go to page 4 of The Herald for the letter and the article. (shrink)

Nolan, Ann MC In the past fifty years there has been a stream of commentary on the documents of Vatican II. Have we not had so much commentary, so much interpretation, that further commentary is unnecessary? Fifty years on, one might ponder how to interpret the sixteen documents for the church of our times, indeed to wonder whether they continue to have any relevance at all. Faced with this thought, we could turn to one scholar whose works span almost (...) the whole of this fifty-year period, yet whose thought in relation to the documents has not remained static: the renaissance historian John O'Malley SJ. (shrink)

Minns, Denis Review of: Vatican II notebook: A council journal, 1962-1963, by M.-D. Chenu, critical edition and introduction by Alberto Melloni, translated by Paul Philibert, Adelaide: ATF Theology, 2015, pp. xi + 163, hardback, $34.95, paperback, $29.95.

A propos de l’Histoire du Concile Vatican II, 1959-1965 réalisée sous la direction de Giuseppe Alberigo, P. Vallin apprécie les enjeux de ce Concile tels que le recul du temps et donc la distanciation historienne permettent d’en parler. Mais son analyse de l’œuvre va plus loin dans la mesure où il tente d’apprécier l’action historienne dans le travail même des historiens. En dehors du fait qu’ils ont le recul du temps, ils disposent d’un ensemble de documents et surtout d’archives (...) plus ou moins personnelles d’acteurs et de témoins qui posent la question de la « relecture » de l’évènement. A quoi s’ajoute la « construction du récit ». « Problème complexe, sur lequel tous les collaborateurs des entreprises d’histoire sociale, culturelle, voire politique, ne donnent pas les mêmes réponses ». Les auteurs de cette œuvre monumentale et tout à fait remarquable, n’échappent pas à cette question et à la multiplicité des réponses.Concerning the Histoire de Concile Vatican II, 1959-1965, written under the direction of Giuseppe Alberigo, P. Vallin evaluates the issues of this Council insofar as the intervening years, and therefore the historian’s perspective, allow one to speak of them. But his analysis of the work goes further, in so far as he attempts to evaluate the influence of the historian in the very work of historians. Aside from the fact that they have the benefit of distance in time, they have at their disposal a group of documents, especially the more or less personal archives of the participants and witnesses, which pose the question of a “re-reading” of the event. To this is added the “construction of the historical account.” “A complex problem to which all the collaborators of the undertaking of social, cultural, even political history, do not give the same answers.” The authors of this monumental and quite remarkable work do not skirt this question or the many possible answers. (shrink)

Face aux trois tentations majeures du catholicisme traditionnel, à savoir le particularisme absolutisé de la compréhension qu’il a de lui-même, le supranaturalisme de sa compréhension de Dieu, l’an-historisme de la théologie mystique, face ainsi à la théologie dualiste de la délimitation par rapport à ce qui n’est pas lui, le concile Vatican II représente, dans sa visée, l’ouverture au réel tel qu’il est, dans un esprit non de discrimination mais de discernement, avec la question : qu’est-ce qui dans le (...) réel est constructeur, qu’est-ce qui est destructeur? Il est mû par la conscience que Dieu est le Dieu du réel et la foi, foi au coeur du réel. Il marque l’ouverture à une théologie de la récapitulation selon laquelle toutes choses sont récapitulées par Dieu en Christ, et ainsi à une intégration critique du réel, dépassant par là l’exclusivisme du catholicisme traditionnel et accédant à l’exigence d’une théologie critique — exclusive et inclusive à la fois — de la catholicité. Over against the three major temptations of catholicism, which are the absolutized particularism of its autocomprehension, the supernaturalism of its comprehension of God, the nonhistorical character of mystical theology, then over against the dualistic conception of its distinction from what is different from itself. Council Vatican II stands for an opening to the real as it is, in a spirit not of discrimination but of discernment, with the question : what in the real is creative, what is destructive? It is motivated by the consciousness that God is the God of the real, and that faith is to be found at the heart of the real. It means the opening to a theology which recapitulates everything in Christ, that is, the opening to a critical integration of the real, according to the requirements of a critical theology of catholicity — at the same time exclusivist and inclusivist — over against the exclusivism of traditional catholicism. (shrink)

A priest's fifty years of stuggle to be faithful to the spirit of Vatican II, reminding us that the task of receiving Vatican II is far from complete.

This article presents the working hypothesis which guided my research on the Reception of the Second Vatican Council, based on the partial results published in a first volume and in anticipation of a second. The principal arguments supporting this hypothesis are presented and possible objections are entertained. Having accounted for the presentation of the results in two volumes, details about the underlying notions informing this overall approach to Vat II follow, including a treatment of the concepts “corpus” and “pastoral (...) style” — the notion of “the pastoral” (la pastoralité) being precisely the principle which allows us to bring together two different approaches to the Council, one inspired by the tenets of church historiography and the other by reception criticism. Given that the first volume is interested in the Council’s practice of hermeneutics, a description of the reception theory suggested by this hermeneutical practice is offered. From this vantage point the inner logic of the entire project should become clear. (shrink)

The present article provides an analysis of the way in which the Council Vatican u (1962-1965) understood and related to the human realms of Science and Technology. As one of the greatest events in the life of the Church in contemporary times, the Council Vatican II sought to meet the necessities of contemporary society, particularly its pastoral needs. By recognizing the importance played by the mathematical and the natural sciences in the formation of the contemporary human being, the (...) Council was led to produce some very important statements about Science and Technology. Thus, the article gives us a glimpse of the overall spirit that animated the Council and of the extent to which some of its special features played a major role in determining the attitude it took towards modern developments such as those related to the field of Science and Technology. Moreover, it also shows how Vatican u came to understand Science and Technology not as "devices of the devil", but rather as a real boon to humanity, recognizing in particular that they are ordained by divine dispensation. Finally, the article also elucidates how for the Council Religion and Science must preserve their autonomy and their distinctiveness, so that neither is Religion to be founded on Science nor is Science to be seen as an extension of Religion. Rather, each one of them should possess its own principles, its pattern of procedures, its diversities of interpretation and its own conclusions. /// O presente artigo oferece-nos uma análise do modo como o Concilio Vaticano II (1962-1965) compreendeu e se relacionou com esferas tão importantes da vida humana contemporânea, tais como a Ciência e a Tecnologia. Sendo um dos grandes acontecimentos na vida da Igreja, o Concílio Vaticano II procurou responder às necessidades da sociedade contemporânea, facto este que lhe imprimiu um carácter verdadeiramente pastoral. Com efeito, ao reconhecer a importância que hoje têm a matemática e as ciências naturais na formação do ser humano dos nossos dias, o Concâio fez questão de se pronunciar explicitamente acerca da Ciência e da Tecnologia. Assim, dando-nos uma impressão do espírito que animou o Concílio no seu todo, o artigo mostra-nos sobretudo o modo como o mesmo interpreta as realidades da Ciência e da Tecnologia não mais como "obras do demónio", mas sim como verdadeiros benefícios para a humanidade no seu todo, especialmente na medida em que também elas fazem parte da providência divina. Em suma, o artigo elucida-nos acerca do modo como o Concílio Vaticano II interpreta a relação entre Religião e Ciência, relação esta que para os Padres Conciliares deve estar assente no princípio da autonomia e da distinção de cada uma delas, de modo que nem a Religião se quer fundada na Ciência, nem a Ciência deve ser vista como uma extensão da Religião. Pelo contrário, cada uma delas deve estar orientada pelos seus próprios princípios, pelos seus respectivos padrões de procedimento, pela diversidade das suas interpretações e, obviamente, pelas suas próprias conclusões. (shrink)

Some forty years on from the great events of the Second Vatican Council, there is still much debate about the interpretation of the Council and its documents. In recent years there has been what might be termed a hermeneutical project: to develop an understanding of the complex processes involved in the genesis of the texts and to explore the interactions of the various individuals and groups that helped to shape the Council. What has emerged is a view of the (...) Council as something organic and dynamic. This article seeks to outline the questions that this hermeneutical project has raised; such as the various sources that can be used to interpret the Council, the impact of various theological strands of tradition present at the Council, the authorship of the texts and the methodologies adopted by the Council. It also provides a review of the work that has taken place with this project, especially in the last ten years or so. (shrink)

Rush, Ormond Vatican II still has a long way to go. Its vision is far from becoming a reality in the church. The council opened on Thursday 11 October 1962. As we celebrate the 50th anniversary of that day, it is an opportunity to recall the Australian participation in that historic event, to recall its vision, and for some self-examination as to how well we have received it.

Hunt, Anne The 1917 Code of Canon Law had only two general canons on the laity. It made a clear demarcation between the clergy and the laity. The clergy always have precedence over the laity. The laity cannot perform any act of jurisdiction or order. The Code reflects the ecclesiology of the post-Tridentine church, famously expressed by Pope Pius X who, in 1906, described the church as essentially an unequal society. That ecclesiology assumes a pyramidal model of church. The apostolate (...) of the church is basically that of the hierarchy. Ministries pertain to the ordained. Custodianship of revelation resides with the hierarchy. Lay people effectively have the status of dependent children: it is for them to submit to and receive from the hierarchy. The theology of the church's mission was also limited, with the work of evangelization considered to be that of missionaries and basically directed outside the church. The laity, it seemed, had no mission. While necessarily reflecting the ecclesiological and historical circumstances of its era, it was nevertheless a deficient ecclesiology in a number of ways. Even the language to describe the unordained faithful remained undeveloped with the term 'lay' in common parlance connoting the inexpert and unqualified in contrast to those with professional competence and authority, and as such inadequate to the ecclesial reality of the laity. (shrink)

This article is a critical investigation of the buildings and writings of Étienne-Joseph Gaboury, a prolific French Canadian architect who, in the 1960s, designed several modern parish churches and engaged with various liturgical documents issued in the context of the Second Vatican Council. How have the various calls of priests and theologians advocating for artistic and liturgical renewal—calls which became increasingly frequent in the North Atlantic world after World War II—been adapted and implemented in specific architectural landmarks by Gaboury, (...) such as his famous Précieux-Sang Church and Blessed Sacrament Church in Manitoba? I argue that Gaboury’s account of the origins of Christianity and his description of religious experience in both embodied and spiritual terms, found in his essay “Design for Worship”, can be understood not simply as an aggiornamento, or bringing the Church “up to date,” but also as echoes, in aesthetic and architectural terms, of some of the key tenets of the “new theology,” which were central to the changes put forth by the Second Vatican Council. I also argue that Gaboury’s interests in materiality and in the evocative power of light need to be read through the rise of phenomenology in postwar North American architecture. By looking at various archival documents, I propose that Vatican II was not a unilateral, top-down paradigm shift, or a rupture with tradition, but rather a complex and ongoing negotiation between the architect, ecclesial authorities and lay people. (shrink)

This book assesses how Vatican II opened up the Catholic Church to encounter, dialogue, and engagement with other world religions. Opening with a contribution from the President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, it next explores the impact, relevance, and promise of the Declaration Nostra Aetate before turning to consider how Vatican II in general has influenced interfaith dialogue and the intellectual and comparative study of world religions in the postconciliar decades, as well as (...) the contribution of particular past and present thinkers to the formation of current interreligious and comparative theological methods. Additionally, chapters consider interreligious dialogue vis-à-vis theological anthropology in conciliar documents; openness to the spiritual practices of other faith traditions as a way of encouraging positive interreligious encounter; the role of lay and new ecclesial movements in interreligious dialogue; and the development of Monastic Interreligious Dialogue. Finally, it includes a range of perspectives on the fruits and future of Vatican’s II’s opening to particular faiths such as Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism. (shrink)

La publication du Journal du Concile de l’ambassadeur P. Poswick est l’occasion de rappeler quelques questions majeures de Vatican II dans le traitement desquelles trois évêques belges se sont particulièrement illustrés. Ce rapide parcours permet de dépasser les oppositions émises récemment à propos du Concile entre « l’événement et le texte » de même qu’entre « la discontinuité et la continuité ». On constate en effet que le témoignage des acteurs est indispensable pour la compréhension des textes et que (...) les avancées du Concile permettent une meilleure compréhension de la tradition. (shrink)

The more than fifty years of dialogue since Vatican II launched the Catholic Church into the ecumenical movement have resulted in significant convergence, but reception of these results remains slow and inconclusive despite the stunning success of the Joint Declaration on Justification signed in 1999. This presentation explores some of the challenges for reception within the ecclesial and social context of ecumenical relationships today and discusses why the ecumenical imperative is even more critical at this point in time. It (...) also suggests a model of ecclesiology for the reception of relationships of full communion. (shrink)

This book assesses how Vatican II opened up the Catholic Church to encounter, dialogue, and engagement with other world religions. Opening with a contribution from the President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, it next explores the impact, relevance, and promise of the Declaration Nostra Aetate before turning to consider how Vatican II in general has influenced interfaith dialogue and the intellectual and comparative study of world religions in the postconciliar decades, as well as (...) the contribution of particular past and present thinkers to the formation of current interreligious and comparative theological methods. Additionally, chapters consider interreligious dialogue vis-à-vis theological anthropology in conciliar documents; openness to the spiritual practices of other faith traditions as a way of encouraging positive interreligious encounter; the role of lay and new ecclesial movements in interreligious dialogue; and the development of Monastic Interreligious Dialogue. Finally, it includes a range of perspectives on the fruits and future of Vatican’s II’s opening to particular faiths such as Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism. (shrink)

Ce recueil d’études sur Vatican II, par un observateur attentif et passionné de l’événement conciliaire, reprend des textes antérieurs retravaillés ou traduits en français et publie quatre inédits: sur les amendements de Paul VI à propos du mariage dans Gaudium et spes, et sur des personnalités belges et hollandaises, notamment sur la part prise par W. Onclin à la rédaction de Christus Dominus et sur l’action prophétique, vigilante et tenace du cardinal J. Willebrands. Il s’impose à ceux qui s’intéressent (...) à l’histoire du concile et suggère bien des pistes pour des recherches ultérieures. (shrink)

Une étude complète de la réception de Vatican II doit prendre en compte aussi les Églises non catholiques. L’article propose une réflexion méthodologique en vue d’une telle recherche. Il faut distinguer trois degrés ou niveaux de réception d’un concile dans une Église: la réception kérygmatique ou les efforts mis en œuvre par les pasteurs pour faire connaître et promouvoir efficacement les décisions d’un concile; la réception pratique et institutionnelle, c’est-à-dire le processus par lequel un énoncé conciliaire s’infiltre et prend (...) corps dans l’épaisseur de la vie ecclésiale; la réception spirituelle ou le degré le plus profond et le plus mystérieux d’intégration d’un concile dans les mentalités des fidèles sous la mouvance de l’Esprit Saint. Encore faut-il être attentif, pour chacun de ces trois niveaux, à la particularité suivante: il s’agit ici de mesurer la réception de Vatican II dans des Églises canoniquement séparées de celle où ce concile a été célébré. (shrink)

RESENHA HEFT, James L. (Edited by). After Vatican II . Trajectories and hermeneutics. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2012.

Neste texto Claude Lacaille reflete sobre o exercício de seu sacerdócio no contexto do aggiornamento promovido pelo Concílio Vaticano II. Para tanto, o autor busca identificar os maiores feitos da assembléia conciliar, entre eles, especialmente, o novo papel desempenhado pelas Sagradas Escrituras na piedade católica e a redefinição da Igreja como Povo de Deus. Essa realidade produz grande dinamismo com as Comunidades Eclesiais de Base que enfretaram e resistiram à opressão, inspiradas na experiência do Deus do Êxodo. Leónidas Proaño, Oscar (...) Romero e tantas mulheres e homens tornaram-se mártires como os profetas bíblicos, anunciando a liberdade e denunciando a opressão, comprometidos com a causa dos pobres, a serviço da solidariedade e disponíveis a acolher o dom de Deus. Segundo Lacaille, os feitos do concílio estão ocultados e desvirtuados, porém o autor convida à atitude esperançosa frente aos desafios que o Vaticano II foi convocado a responder, firmes na liberdade de Cristo. Palavras-chave: Vaticano II. Bíblia. Povo de Deus. Comunidades Eclesiais de Base.In this paper, Claude Lacaille reflects on the practice of his priesthood within the context of the aggiornamento promoted by Vatican II. For this purpose, the author seeks to identify the greatest achievements of the Council, especially the new role of Scripture in Catholic piety such as the redefinition of the Church as People of God. This reality has produced significant dynamism through the Basic Ecclesial Communities who have faced and resisted oppression, inspired by the experience of God from the Book of Exodus. The text brings up a picture of some characters as Leonidas Proaño, Oscar Romero and other men and women who became martyrs as the prophets. The biblical prophets, as martyrs, announced freedom, denounced oppression, committed themselves to the cause of the poor and solidarity, and became available to the gift of God. According to the author, the achievements of the council are hidden and distorted. Yet despite this distortion, the author urges people to a hopeful attitude to the challenges that Vatican II addressed and sought to answer, grounded in the freedom of Christ. Keywords : Vatican II. Bible. People of God. Christian base communities. - DOI: 10.5752/P.2175-5841.2011v9n24p1334. (shrink)

Cresp, Mary Some months ago while driving I heard an interview with writer Alan Moore on the radio and was so captured by his comments about trends in modern society that I had to pull over to the side of the road and stop to concentrate on what he was saying. I ordered his book, No Straight Lines, and found he presents an inspiring plea for a more human-centric world, more able organisations and more vibrant and equitable economies relevant to (...) the world we live in today. His descriptions so correspond with my experience that, although the changes in Religious Life over the past fifty years are often seen as something that occurred only in church circles, I conclude that they are part of a world-wide search for ways to serve humanity better, to search for meaning in the work people do and to find viable alternatives for the ways that things were done in the past. Because my immediate experience of Religious Life is confined to the Sisters of St Joseph, my comments are framed around that experience. However, through interaction with members of other Congregations, I know their journey parallels that of Josephites in many respects. (shrink)

This study offers a comprehensive survey of developments in moral theology since the Second Vatican Council. The author discusses the call of the Council for the renewal of moral theology and the role the Council itself played in this renewal. Odozor also explores the various issues and controversies which have marked the discipline since the 1960s. The dramatic changes and developments in moral theology during this period rival any in the history of the Church. of Christian morality, natural law, (...) scripture and ethics, moral norms, the Church's teaching authority, virtue ethics, and casuistry. Odozor provides a constructive proposal for a common ground which makes these debates in moral discourse possible. ethicists, systematic theologians and anyone interested in Catholic cultural and intellectual history since Vatican II. (shrink)

The results of Vatican II for the study of Scripture produced both expected and unexpected fruits. Those combined fruits provide the opportunity for some reflection on the current status of biblical scholarship in relation to the Church. This current status helps identify what we must appreciate and celebrate, but also helps identify remaining gaps to be filled. By assessing some of the gaps, the fruits of the second Vatican council are used to provide one way of approaching these (...) remaining gaps, and charting a hopeful way ahead. (shrink)

Novello, Henry The word 'eschatology' means doctrine about the eschata or 'last things.' In the neo-Scholastic manual style of theology that dominated Catholic theology before the twentieth century, eschatology was the doctrine of those things that awaited the individual person beyond death, as well as those things that awaited the whole of humanity at the end of time. The teaching on the last things appeared as an appendix at the end of dogmatic theology where it led a rather barren existence (...) as instruction on what comes 'after' the pilgrim life, with the result that it had little critical and transforming effect upon the state of the present world. Since the manual style of eschatology treated the last things as objects, Yves Congar described it as a 'physical' style of eschatology. Dermot Lane makes a further noteworthy observation when he criticizes the physical style of eschatology for appearing 'to claim too much' and seeming 'far too certain on matters of detail.' In no sense should eschatology be regarded as providing factual information about the details of our future existence. (shrink)

André Naud was a French‐Canadian Catholic theologian who served as a peritus or advisor to Cardinal Leger, the Archbishop of Montreal at the Second Vatican Council between 1962 and 1965. Naud’s entire theological career was informed by the teachings of the Council. This was the reason why during the Papacy of John Paul II after 1978 he became alarmed at the expansion and the distortion of the authority of the magisterium. Over the last fifteen years of his life, he (...) wrote three remarkable books on this theme. In the last book (2002) entitled Les Dogmes et le Respect de l’Intelligence: Plaidoyer Inspiré par Simone Weil (The Dogmas and the Respect for Intelligence: An Argument Inspired by Simone Weil), he undertook an in‐depth analysis of Simone Weil, who had argued in the 1940s that Catholicism was in need of a philosophical cleaning up. This paper elaborates and explains the particular ways that Weil’s writings helped Naud to reformulate in the spirit of the Second Vatican Council the role of the magisterium with regard to dogmatic formulations, the manner of the reception of that teaching, the inspiration of scripture, the interpretation of miracles and the understanding of the Church itself. (shrink)

Cette étude examine cinq principaux changements de méthodologie qui se trouvent dans cinq documents-clé de Vatican II, afin de discerner à quel point ces documents sont cohérents avec ou différents des principales caractéristiques de méthodologie de la période du concile. L'article commence par une introduction à trois approches théologiques en voque dans les écrits catholiques romains au temps du concile: néo-scolastique, transcendantalisme et correlationisme. La conscience historique est aussi examinée comme une note importante de méthode théologique. L'article examine ensuite (...) Sacrosanctum Concilium, Lumen Gentium, Dei Verbum, Dignitatis Huamnae et Gaudium et Spes en vue de ces données. L'étude identifie six changements méthodologiques notoires dans les documents: la mise en sourdine de la néo-scolastique du 19e siècle, la transformation de la néo-scolastique grâce aux ressources bibliques, la montée de questions centrales à la méthode transcendentale, des essais tardifs mais importants de raisonnement transcendental, une corrélation toujours croissante de mode confessionel, une conscience historique en développement. En conclusion, les A. affirment une évolution méthodologique dans Vatican II qui pourrait valider une évolution continue de la méthode théologique aujourd'hui. (shrink)