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{{Short description|Catholic ecumenical council (1962–1965)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2025}}
{{Infobox Ecumenical council
| council_name = Second Vatican Council 
| council_date = 1 October 1962 – {{nowrap|8 December 1965}}
| image = Petersdom von Engelsburg gesehen.jpg
| caption = [[St. Peter's Basilica]], venue of the council
| accepted_by = [[Catholic Church]]
| previous = [[First Vatican Council]]
| convoked_by = [[Pope John XXIII]]
| presided_by = {{ubl|Pope John XXIII|[[Pope Paul VI]]}}
| attendance = Up to 2,625<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/event/ecv2.html |title=Second Vatican Council |first=David M. |last=Cheney |work=Catholic Hierarchy |access-date=18 May 2011}}</ref>
| topics = Complete unfinished task of Vatican I, ecumenical outreach to address needs of modern world
| documents = Four constitutions:
*{{lang|la|[[Sacrosanctum Concilium]]}} (Sacred liturgy)
*{{lang|la|[[Lumen gentium]]}} (Catholic Church)
*{{lang|la|[[Dei verbum]]}} (Divine revelation)
*{{lang|la|[[Gaudium et spes]]}} (Modern world)
Nine decrees:
*{{lang|la|[[Inter mirifica]]}} (Media)
*{{lang|la|[[Orientalium Ecclesiarum]]}} (Eastern Catholics)
*{{lang|la|[[Unitatis redintegratio]]}} (Ecumenism)
*{{lang|la|[[Christus Dominus]]}} (Role of bishops)
*{{lang|la|[[Perfectae caritatis]]}} (Religious life)
*{{lang|la|[[Optatam totius]]}} (Priestly training)
*{{lang|la|[[Apostolicam actuositatem]]}} (Role of the laity)
*{{lang|la|[[Ad gentes]]}} (Mission activity)
*{{lang|la|[[Presbyterorum ordinis]]}} (Role of priests)
Three declarations:
*{{lang|la|[[Gravissimum educationis]]}} (Education)
*{{lang|la|[[Nostra aetate]]}} (Non-Christian religions)
*{{lang|la|[[Dignitatis humanae]]}} (Religious freedom)}}
{{Ecumenical councils of the Catholic Church}}

The '''Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican''', commonly known as the {{nowrap|'''Second Vatican Council'''}} or {{nowrap|'''Vatican II'''}}, was the 21st and most recent [[Catholic ecumenical councils|ecumenical council]] of the Catholic Church. The council met each autumn from 1962 to 1965 in [[St. Peter's Basilica]] in [[Vatican City]] for sessions of 8 and 12 weeks.<ref name="oriordan">{{Cite journal |last=O'Riordan |first=Seán |date=1964 |title=The Third Session |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/27658829 |journal=The Furrow |volume=15 |issue=10 |pages=621–628 |issn=0016-3120}}</ref> 

[[Pope John XXIII]] convened the council because he felt the Church needed "updating" (in Italian: ''[[aggiornamento]]''). He believed that to better connect with people in an increasingly secularized world, some of the Church's practices needed to be improved and presented in a more understandable and relevant way. 

Support for ''aggiornamento'' won out over resistance to change, and as a result 16 [[Magisterium|magisterial]] documents were produced by the council, including four "constitutions":

* ''[[Dei verbum]]'', the ''Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation'' emphasized the study of scripture as "the soul of theology".
* ''[[Gaudium et spes]]'', the ''Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World'', concerned the promotion of peace, the gift of self, and the Church's mission to non-Catholics.
* ''[[Lumen gentium]]'', the ''Dogmatic Constitution on the Church'' on "the universal call to holiness"
* ''[[Sacrosanctum concilium]]'', the ''Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy'' to restore "the full and active participation by all the people".

Other decrees and declarations included:
* ''[[Apostolicam actuositatem]]'', a decree on ''The Apostolate of the Laity''
* ''[[Dignitatis humanae]]'', a declaration on religious freedom
* ''[[Nostra aetate]]'', a declaration about non-Christian religions 
* ''[[Orientalium Ecclesiarum]]'', a decree ''On Eastern Catholic Churches''
* ''[[Unitatis redintegratio]]'', a decree on Christian [[ecumenism]]

The documents proposed a wide variety of changes to doctrine and practice that would change the life of the Church.{{sfn|O'Malley|2008}} Some of the most notable were in performance of the Mass, including that vernacular languages could be authorized as well as Latin.
{{TOC limit}}

== Background ==

=== Biblical movement ===
Pope Pius XII's 1943 encyclical {{lang|la|[[Divino afflante Spiritu]]}}<ref>{{cite web |title = DIVINO AFFLANTE SPIRITU ENCYCLICAL OF POPE PIUS XII |url = https://www.vatican.va/content/pius-xii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-xii_enc_30091943_divino-afflante-spiritu.html |website = www.vatican.va |access-date = 27 February 2023}}</ref> gave a renewed impetus to Catholic Bible studies and encouraged the production of new Bible translations from the original languages. This led to a pastoral attempt to get ordinary Catholics to re-discover the Bible, to read it, to make it a source of their spiritual life. This found a response in very limited circles. By 1960, the movement was still progressing slowly.<ref>{{cite web |title = Biblical Scholarship 50 years After Divino Afflante Spiritu: From September 18, 1993|url = https://www.americamagazine.org/issue/100/biblical-scholarship-50-years-after-divino-afflante-spiritu |website = americamagazine.org |date = 18 September 1993 |access-date = 27 February 2023 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title = Light in our darkness – celebrating Divino Afflante Spiritu |url = https://europe-southwest.c-b-f.org/2018/10/11/light-in-our-darkness-celebrating-divino-afflante-spiritu/ |website = europe-southwest.c-b-f.org |date = 11 October 2018 |access-date = 27 February 2023}}</ref>

=== {{lang|fr|Ressourcement}} and {{lang|fr|Nouvelle théologie}} ===
{{Main|Nouvelle théologie}}

By the 1930s, mainstream theology based on [[neo-scholasticism]] and papal [[encyclicals]] was being rejected by some theologians as dry and uninspiring. Thus was the movement, called {{lang|fr|ressourcement}}, the return to the sources: basing theology directly on the Bible and the [[Church Fathers]]. Some theologians also began to discuss new topics, such as the history of theology, the theology of work, ecumenism, the theology of the laity, and the theology of "earthly realities".<ref>{{cite web |title = The Second Vatican Council, by BC Butler |url = https://vatican2voice.org/3butlerwrites/vat2_bcb.htm |website = vatican2voice.org |access-date=22 May 2020 }}</ref>

The writings, whose new style came to be called {{lang|la|la nouvelle théologie}} ('the new theology'), attracted Rome's attention, and in 1950 [[Pius XII]] published {{lang|la|[[Humani generis]]}}, an encyclical "concerning some false opinions threatening to undermine the foundations of Catholic doctrine". Without citing specific people, he criticized those who advocated new schools of theology. It was generally understood that the encyclical was directly against the {{lang|fr|nouvelle théologie}} as well as developments in ecumenism and Bible studies. Some works were placed on the [[Index of Prohibited Books]], and some of the authors were forbidden to teach or to publish. Those who suffered most were [[Henri de Lubac]] {{Post-nominals|list=[[Society of Jesus|SJ]]}} and [[Yves Congar]] {{Post-nominals|list=[[Order of Preachers|OP]]}}, who were unable to teach or publish until the death of Pius XII in 1958. By the early 1960s, other theologians under suspicion included [[Karl Rahner]] {{Post-nominals|list=[[Society of Jesus|SJ]]}} and the young [[Hans Küng]].{{Citation needed|date=August 2023}}

In addition, there was the unfinished business of the [[First Vatican Council]] (1869–70). When it had been cut short by the [[Capture of Rome|Italian Army's entry into Rome]] at the end of [[Italian unification]], the only topics that had been completed were the [[Pastor aeternus|theology of the papacy]] and the [[Dei Filius|relationship of faith and reason]], while the theology of the episcopate and of the laity were left unaddressed.<ref name="Back 2">{{cite book | last = Bokenkotter | first = Thomas | title = A Concise History of the Catholic Church | publisher = Image | location = New York | year = 2005 | isbn = 0-385-51613-4 | page = 337 }}</ref>{{Sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|p=44}} The task of the Second Vatican Council in continuing and completing the work of the first was noted by [[Pope Paul VI]] in his encyclical letter {{lang|la|[[Ecclesiam Suam]]}} (1964).<ref name=suam>Pope Paul VI, [https://www.vatican.va/content/paul-vi/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-vi_enc_06081964_ecclesiam.html Ecclesiam Suam], published on 6 August 1964, accessed on 14 August 2024</ref>{{rp|Paragraph 30}}

At the same time, the world's [[Bishop (Catholic Church)|bishops]] were challenged by political, social, economic, and technological change. Some of those bishops{{who|date=September 2024}} were seeking new ways of addressing those challenges.

== Beginnings ==
[[File:Second Vatican Council by Lothar Wolleh 005 – unframed.jpg|thumb|left|Before a papal Mass at the council; area between papal altar and apse/cathedra altar, in front of it the seat of the pope.]]

=== Announcement and expectations ===
[[Pope John XXIII]] gave notice of his intention to convene a [[Diocesan synod (Catholic Church)|diocesan synod]] for [[Diocese of Rome|Rome]] and an [[ecumenical council]] for the universal church on 25 January 1959,<ref>{{cite speech |title=Allocuzione del Santo Padre Giovanni XXIII con la Quale Annuncia il Concilio Ecumenico e L'Aggiornamento del Codice di Diritto Canonico |date=25 January 1959 |url=https://www.vatican.va/content/john-xxiii/it/speeches/1959/documents/hf_j-xxiii_spe_19590125_annuncio.html |language=it|access-date=24 April 2025}}</ref> less than three months after his election in October 1958.<ref name="Back 3">{{Harvnb|Alberigo|2006|p=1}}</ref>{{efn|The diocesan synod was inaugurated on 24 January 1960.<ref>Pope John XXIII, [https://www.vatican.va/content/john-xxiii/it/speeches/1960/documents/hf_j-xxiii_spe_19600124_sinodo-laterano.html Allocuzione del Santo Padre Giovanni XXIII al Sacro Collegio, ai presuli, ai prelati, al clero secolare a religioso, al populo], 24 January 1960 (in Italian), accessed on 2 May 2025</ref>}} His announcement, in the chapter hall of the Benedictine monastery attached to the [[Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls]] in Rome, came as a surprise to the [[cardinalate|cardinals]] present.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Surprise announcement of an elderly pope continues to reverberate today|url=https://international.la-croix.com/news/surprise-announcement-of-an-elderly-pope-continues-to-reverberate-today/9312|website=international.la-croix.com|date=25 January 2019|access-date=22 May 2020|archive-date=30 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200530031119/https://international.la-croix.com/news/surprise-announcement-of-an-elderly-pope-continues-to-reverberate-today/9312|url-status=dead}}</ref>

He had tested the idea only ten days before with one of them, his [[Cardinal Secretary of State]] [[Domenico Tardini]], who gave enthusiastic support to the idea.{{sfn|O'Malley|2008|p=15}} Although the pope later said the idea came to him in a flash in his conversation with Tardini, two cardinals had earlier attempted to interest him in the idea. They were two of the most conservative, [[Ernesto Ruffini]] and [[Alfredo Ottaviani]], who had already in 1948 proposed the idea to [[Pope Pius XII|Pius XII]] and who put it before John XXIII on 27 October 1958.<ref>{{Citation | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Ms_SyCLNpuAC&pg=PA308 | first = Michael | last = Walsh | contribution = The Religious Ferment of the Sixties | editor-first = Hugh | editor-last = McLeod | title = History of Christianity | volume = 9, World Christianities c. 1914 – c. 2000 | publisher = Cambridge University Press | year = 2006 | isbn = 978-0-521-81500-0 | pages = 307–308}}.</ref>

Over the next 3 years, the Pope would make many statements describing the results he expected from the council. They formed something like 3 concentric circles:{{sfn|Wenger|1963|p=284}}
#For the Catholic Church, he expected a renewal which he described variously as a "new Pentecost", a "new Springtime", a new "blossoming", "a rejuvenation with greater vigour of the Body of Christ that is the Church".{{sfn|Laurentin|1962|p=195}} This would be achieved by the "updating" (''[[aggiornamento]]'') or "adapting" of Church practices to new circumstances<ref>"appropriate adaptation of Church discipline to the needs and conditions of our times", Ad Petri cathedram (1959) 61</ref> and a restatement of her beliefs in a way that would connect with modern man.<ref>to present the Church's teaching "in an integral vision that better corresponds to the soul of the modern era", Homily for Pentecost 1962</ref>
#Within the wider Christian family, he sought progress toward reunion of all Christians.<ref>"We must act to overcome outdated conceptions, prejudices and discourteous expressions so as to create a climate favourable to return." "Focus on what unites rather than what separates." Quoted by Laurentin 1962, p. 170</ref>
#For the whole human family, he expected the council to contribute toward resolving major social and economic problems, such as war, hunger, underdevelopment.<ref>"to contribute more effectively to the solution of the problems of the modern age", Humanae salutis 6</ref>

Two less solemn statements are attributed to John XXIII about the purpose of the council. One is about opening the windows of the Church to let in some fresh air;<ref>{{Harvnb|Sullivan|2002|p=17}}</ref> the other about shaking off the imperial dust accumulated on the throne of St. Peter. The source for the second statement is [[Paul-Émile Léger|Cardinal Léger]] of Montréal, as reported by Congar.<ref>"[Cardinal Léger] also told us that he had yesterday met the new French ambassador to [Italy], who had just been received by the Pope.{{nbsp}}[...] John XXIII said to the ambassador: 'I want to shake off the imperial dust that has accumulated on the throne of St. Peter since the time of [[Constantine the Great|Constantine]]'." Congar 2012, p. 282, entry for 13 March 1963.</ref> The first statement has been repeated so many times as to be extremely difficult to verify.{{citation needed|date=September 2024}}

Once the officials of the [[Roman Curia|Curia]] had recovered from their shock at the Pope's announcement of a Council, they realized that it could be the culmination of the Church's program of resistance to [[Protestantism]], the [[Age of Enlightenment|Enlightenment]] and all the other perceived errors of the modern world. It was also seen as an opportunity to give the stamp of conciliar [[infallibility]] to the teachings of the most recent popes and to the Curia's vision of the role of the Church in the modern world, provided the Pope could be convinced to forget about {{lang|it|aggiornamento}}.{{clarify|reason=Forget about what?|date=September 2024}}{{sfn|Fouilloux|1995|p=111)}}

On the other side were those theologians and bishops who had been working towards a new way of doing things, some of whom had been silenced and humiliated by the Curia in the 1940s and 1950s. For them, the council came as a "divine surprise",{{sfn|Fouilloux|1995|p=121)}} the opportunity to convince the bishops of the world to turn away from a fortress-like defensive attitude to the modern world and set off in a new direction towards a renewed theology of the Church and of the laity, [[ecumenism]] and the reform of the [[Christian liturgy|liturgy]].{{Sfn|Alberigo|1995|pp=23–25}}

The council was officially summoned by the [[apostolic constitution]] {{lang|la|Humanae Salutis}} on 25 December 1961.<ref>{{cite news |url = http://ncronline.org/NCR_Online/archives/2002d/100402/100402d.htm |title = Vatican II: 40 years later |newspaper=[[National Catholic Register]] }}{{dead link|date=June 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref><ref name="Vatican 1961">{{cite web |title = l The Bull "Humanae Salutis" by John XXIII to Summon the Second Vatican Council |url = http://asv.vatican.va/en/doc/1961.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060208062018/http://asv.vatican.va/en/doc/1961.htm |archive-date = 8 February 2006 }}</ref>

=== Preparation ===
[[File:Ioannes XXIII, by De Agostini, 1958–1963.jpg|thumb|Pope John XXIII]]
{{more citations needed|section|date=April 2025}}
Preparation for the council took over three years, from the summer of 1959 to the autumn of 1962.

The first year was known officially as the "antepreparatory period". On 17 May 1959, Pope John appointed an '''Antepreparatory Commission''' to conduct a vast consultation of the Catholic world concerning topics to be examined at the council. Three groups of people were consulted: the bishops of the world, the Catholic universities and faculties of theology, and the departments of the Curia. By the following summer, 2,049 individuals and institutions had replied with 9,438 individual ''vota'' ("wishes"). Some were typical of past ways of doing things, asking for new dogmatic definitions or condemnations of errors. Others were in the spirit of ''aggiornamento'', asking for reforms and new ways of doing things.

The next two years (known officially as the "preparatory period") were occupied with preparing the drafts, called ''schemas'', that would be submitted to the bishops for discussion at the council. On 5 June 1960, ten '''Preparatory Commissions''' were created, to which a total of 871 bishops and experts were appointed.{{sfn|Wiltgen|2014|p=17}} Each preparatory commission had the same area of responsibility as one of the main departments of the Curia and was chaired by the cardinal who headed that department. From the 9,438 proposals, a list of topics was created, and these topics were parcelled out to these commissions according to their area of competence.

Some commissions prepared a separate schema for each topic they were asked to treat, others a single schema encompassing all the topics they were handed. These were the preparatory commissions and the number of schemas they prepared:

{| class="wikitable"
! Preparatory Commission !! Schemas
|-
| Theology ||  9
|-
| Bishops and Dioceses ||  7
|-
| Discipline of Clergy and Faithful || 17
|-
| Religious ||  1
|-
| Eastern Catholic Churches ||  11
|-
| Liturgy ||  1
|-
| Discipline of Sacraments || 10
|-
| Studies and Seminaries ||  6
|-
| Missions ||  1
|-
| Apostolate of the Laity ||  1

|}

Two secretariats – one the offshoot of an existing Vatican office, the other a new body – also had a part in drafting schemas:

{| class="wikitable"
! Secretariat !! Schemas
|-
| Modern Means of Communication ||  1
|-
| Promotion of Christian Unity ||  5
|}

The total number of schemas was 70. As most of these preparatory bodies were predominantly conservative, the schemas they produced showed only modest signs of updating. The schemas drafted by the preparatory commission for theology, dominated by officials of the [[Holy Office]] (the curial department for theological orthodoxy) showed no signs of ''aggiornamento'' at all. The two notable exceptions were the preparatory commission for liturgy and the Secretariat for Christian unity, whose schemas were very much in the spirit of renewal.

In addition to these specialist commissions and secretariats, there was a '''Central Preparatory Commission''', to which all the schemas had to be submitted for final approval. It was a large body of 108 members from 57 countries,{{sfn|Wiltgen|2014|p=17}} including two thirds of the cardinals. As a result of its work, 22 schemas were eliminated from the conciliar agenda, mainly because they could be dealt with during a planned revision of the [[1917 Code of Canon Law|1917 ''Code of Canon Law'']] after the council, and a number of schemas were consolidated and merged, with the result that the total number of schemas was whittled down from 70 to 22.

=== Organization ===

Paragraph numbers in this section refer to the Council Regulations published in the ''motu proprio'' ''Appropinquante concilio'', of 6 August 1962.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=Appropinquante concilio, Litterae Apostolicae Motu Proprio Datae normae statuuntur Concilii Oecumenici Vaticani Secundi celebrandi, d. 6 m. Augusti a. 1962, Ioannes PP. XXIII {{!}} Ioannes XXIII |url=https://www.vatican.va/content/john-xxiii/la/motu_proprio/documents/hf_j-xxiii_motu-proprio_19620806_appropinquante-concilio.html |access-date=20 February 2023 |website=www.vatican.va}}</ref>

'''Council Fathers''' (§1). All the bishops of the world, as well as the heads of the main religious orders of men, were entitled to be "Council Fathers", that is, full participants with the right to speak and vote. Their number was about 2,900, though some 500 of them would be unable to attend, either for reasons of health or old age, or because the Communist authorities of their country would not let them travel. The Council Fathers in attendance represented 79 countries: 38% were from Europe, 31% from the Americas, 20% from Asia & Oceania, and 10% from Africa. (At Vatican I a century earlier there were 737 Council Fathers, mostly from Europe<ref name="NCE Prep 2" />). At Vatican II, some 250 bishops were native-born Asians and Africans, whereas at Vatican I, there were none at all.

'''General Congregations''' (§3, 20, 33, 38–39, 52–63). The Council Fathers met in daily sittings – known as General Congregations – to discuss the schemas and vote on them. These sittings took place in St. Peter's Basilica every morning until 12:30 Monday to Saturday (except Thursday). The average daily attendance was about 2,200. Stands with tiers of seats for all the Council Fathers had been built on both sides of the central nave of St. Peter's. During the first session, a council of presidents, of 10 cardinals,<ref>[[Eugène Tisserant]] (Roman Curia), [[Ignatius Gabriel I Tappouni]] (Syriac patriarch of Antioch) and 8 diocesan bishops: [[Achille Liénart]] of Lille (France), [[Josef Frings]] of Cologne (Germany), [[Bernardus Johannes Alfrink]] of Utrecht (Netherlands), [[Ernesto Ruffini]] of Palermo (Italy), [[Enrique Pla y Deniel]] of Toledo (Spain), [[Antonio Caggiano]] of Buenos Aires (Argentina), [[Francis Spellman]] of New York (US) and [[Norman Gilroy]] of Sydney (Australia)</ref> was responsible for presiding over the general assemblies, its members taking turns chairing each day's sitting (§4). During the later sessions, this task belonged to a council of 4 Moderators.<ref name=":1" />

All votes required a two-thirds majority. For each schema, after a preliminary discussion there was a vote whether it was considered acceptable in principle, or rejected. If acceptable, debate continued with votes on individual chapters and paragraphs. Bishops could submit amendments, which were then written into the schema if they were requested by many bishops. Votes continued in this way until wide agreement was reached, after which there was a final vote on a document. This was followed some days later by a public session where the Pope promulgated the document as the official teaching of the council, following another, ceremonial, vote of the Council Fathers. There was an unwritten rule that, in order to be considered official Church teaching, a document had to receive an overwhelming majority of votes, somewhere in the area of 90%. This led to many compromises, as well as formulations that were broad enough to be acceptable by people on either side of an issue.<ref name=":1" />

All General Congregations were closed to the public. Council Fathers were under an obligation not to reveal anything that went on in the daily sittings (§26).<ref name=":1" /> Secrecy soon broke down, and much information about the daily General Congregations was leaked to the press.

The Pope did not attend General Congregations, but followed the deliberations on closed-circuit television.

'''Public Sessions''' (§2, 44–51). These were similar to General Congregations, except that they were open to the press and television, and the Pope was present. There were 10 public sessions in the course of the council: the opening day of each of the council's four periods, 5 days when the Pope promulgated Council documents, and the final day of the council.<ref name=":1"/>

'''Commissions''' (§5–6, 64–70). Much of the detailed work of the council was done in these commissions.<ref>Stransky, T. The Vatican Council 1962. ''Wiseman Review'', vol. CCXXXVI, n. 493, pp. 203–216, 1962. [https://books.google.com/books?id=hRUVAAAAIAAJ link].</ref><ref>Kloppenburg, Boaventura. As Comissões Conciliares. In: ''Concílio Vaticano II: Primeira Sessão (Set.-Dez, 1962)''. Vol. 2, pp. 51–60. Petrópolis, Brazil: Vozes, 1963. [http://www.apologistascatolicos.com.br/index.php/vaticano-ii/biblioteca-cvii/974-concilio-vaticano-ii-compilado-por-dom-frei-boaventura-kloppenburg-o-f-m link].</ref><ref>''L'attività della Santa Sede nel 1962''. Città del Vaticano, 1963, p. 109. [https://books.google.com/books?id=TtMqAQAAIAAJ link].</ref><ref>Herranz-Casado, Julián. ''En las afueras de Jericó: recuerdos de los años con san Josemaría y Juan Pablo II''. Madrid, Rialp, 2007, pp. 48–49. [https://books.google.com/books?id=CIv0-WSmIV0C&pg=PA48 link]{{Dead link|date=February 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}.</ref><ref>Doria, Piero. L'Archivio del Concilio Vaticano II: Storia e Sviluppo. ''Anuario de Historia de la Iglesia'', vol. 21, pp. 135–155, 2012. [http://www.redalyc.org/pdf/355/35523355007.pdf link].</ref> Like the preparatory commissions during the preparatory period, they were 10 in number, each covering the same area of Church life as a particular curial department and chaired by the cardinal who headed that department:<ref name=":1"/> 
* Commission on the Doctrine of Faith and Morals: president Cardinal [[Alfredo Ottaviani]];
* Commission on Bishops and the Governance of Dioceses: president Cardinal [[Paolo Marella]];
* Commission on the Eastern Churches: president Cardinal [[Amleto Giovanni Cicognani]];
* Commission on the Discipline of the Sacraments: president Cardinal [[Benedetto Aloisi Masella]];
* Commission for the Discipline of the Clergy and the Christian People: president Cardinal [[Pietro Ciriaci]];
* Commission for [[Religious (Western Christianity)|Religious]]: president Cardinal [[Ildebrando Antoniutti]];
* Commission on the Sacred Liturgy: president Cardinal [[Arcadio Larraona Saralegui|Arcadio Larraona]];
* Commission for the Missions: president Cardinal [[Gregorio Pietro XV Agagianian]];
* Commission on Seminaries, Studies, and Catholic Education: president Cardinal [[Giuseppe Pizzardo]];
* Commission for the Lay Apostolate and for the Media: president Cardinal [[Fernando Cento]].
Each commission included 25 Council Fathers (16 elected by the council and 9 appointed by the Pope) as well as consultors (official ''periti'' appointed by the pope). In addition, the [[Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity|Secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity]], appointed during the preparatory period, continued to exist under its president Cardinal [[Augustin Bea]] throughout the 4 years of the council, with the same powers as a commission. The commissions were tasked with revising the schemas as Council Fathers submitted amendments. They met in the afternoons or evenings. Procedure was more informal than in the general assemblies: there was spontaneous debate, sometimes heated, and Latin was not the only language used. Like the General Congregations, they were closed to the public and subject to the same rules of secrecy.

'''Official ''Periti''''' (§9–10). These experts in theology, canon law and other areas were appointed by the Pope to advise the Council Fathers, and were assigned as consultors to the commissions, where they were an important part in re-writing the council documents. At the beginning of the council, there were 224 official ''periti,'' but their number would eventually rise to 480. They could attend the debates in the General Congregations, but could not speak. The theologians who had been silenced during the 1940s and 1950s, such as Yves Congar and Henri de Lubac, and some theologians who were under suspicion in Roman circles at the beginning of the 1960s, such as Karl Rahner and Hans Küng, were appointed ''periti'' because of their expertise. Their appointment served to vindicate their ideas and gave them a platform from which they could work to further their views.<ref name=":1"/>

'''Private ''Periti''''' (§11). Each bishop was allowed to bring along a personal theological adviser of his choice. Known as "private ''periti''", they were not official Council participants and could not attend General Congregations or commission meetings. But like the official ''periti'', they gave informal teachings to groups of bishops, bringing them up to date on developments in their particular area of expertise. [[Karl Rahner]], [[Joseph Ratzinger]] and [[Hans Küng]] first went to the council as some bishop's personal theologian, and were later appointed official ''periti''. Some notable theologians, such as [[Edward Schillebeeckx]], remained private ''periti'' for the whole duration of the council.

'''Observers''' (§18) . An important innovation was the invitation by Pope John to Orthodox and Protestant Churches to send observers to the council. Eventually 21 denominations or bodies such as the [[World Council of Churches]] were represented.{{Sfn | Heraty | 1967 | p = 563, Vatican Council II}}<ref name="NCE Prep 2">{{Harvnb |Sullivan|2002|p=21}}.</ref><ref name="Kennedy2011"/>{{efn|There has been speculation that the Vatican somehow assured the [[Russian Orthodox Church]] that [[communism]] and the [[Soviet Union|Soviet State]] were topics that would not be raised at the council. However, J. O. Berlioz states that the real issue was the desire of the Russian Orthodox to be invited directly, instead of through the [[Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople|Ecumenical Patriarch]].<ref>{{Citation | last = Alberigo | title = The History of Vatican II | volume = 1 | page = 404 | chapter = IV, The External Climate }}</ref>}} The observers were entitled to sit in on all general assemblies (but not the commissions) and they mingled with the Council Fathers during the breaks and let them know their reactions to speeches or to schemas. Pope Paul VI welcomed their participation "with gratitude and respect".<ref name=suam />{{rp|Paragraph 112}} Their presence helped to break down centuries of mistrust.{{citation needed|date=September 2024}}

'''Lay auditors'''. While not provided for in the Official Regulations, a small number of lay people were invited to attend as "auditors" beginning with the Second Session. While not allowed to take part in debate, a few of them were asked to address the council about their concerns as lay people. The first auditors were all male, but beginning with the third session, a number of women were also appointed.

[[File:Missa tridentina 002.jpg|right|thumb|A [[Catholic priest]] celebrating [[Tridentine Mass]], the form of the Mass prevalent until after the council, showing the chalice after the consecration.]]

=== Main caucuses ===
In the very first weeks of the council proceedings, it became clear to the participants that there were two "tendencies" among the Council Fathers, those who were supporters of ''aggiornamento'' and renewal, and those who were not.{{sfn|Ricciardi|1997|p=65}}{{sfn|Raguer|1997|p=168, note 4}} The two tendencies had already appeared in the deliberations of the Central Preparatory Commission before the opening of the council.<ref>"The deliberations in the C[entral] P[reparatory] C[ommission] [...] saw the emergence of the individuals and the groups that would appear in clearly drawn formation during the Council. Among those most critical of the prepared texts were Alfrink, Döpfner, Frings, Hurley, König, Léger, Liénart, Maximos IV, Montini and Suenens. Among the defenders of the texts Browne, Lefebvre, Ottaviani, Ruffini and Siri were the most vocal." (Komonchak 1995, 304).</ref>

In addition to popes [[John XXIII]] and [[Paul VI]], these were the prominent contributors at the council:

'''Prominent Conservative Bishops at the Council'''{{sfn|O'Malley|2008|pp=108–114}}

*Cardinal [[Alfredo Ottaviani]]: secretary of the [[Holy Office]]
*Cardinal [[Michael Browne (cardinal)|Michael Browne]] {{Postnominals|list=[[Order of Preachers|OP]]}}: professor at the [[Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas|Angelicum]] and consultor for the [[Holy Office]].
*Cardinal [[Giuseppe Siri]]: archbishop of [[Genoa]], president of the Italian Bishops' Conference.
*Cardinal [[Ernesto Ruffini]]: archbishop of [[Palermo]].
*Archbishop [[Marcel Lefebvre]] {{Post-nominals|list=[[Congregation of the Holy Spirit|CSSp]]}}: superior-general of the [[Congregation of the Holy Spirit]]; at the council, president of the ''[[Coetus Internationalis Patrum]]'' ("International Group of Fathers"), the bloc of conservative Council Fathers

'''Prominent Reformist Bishops at the Council'''{{sfn|O'Malley|2008|pp=114–118, 121}}

*Cardinal [[Augustin Bea]] {{Post-nominals|list=[[Society of Jesus|SJ]]}}: president of the [[Secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity]]
*Patriarch [[Maximos IV Sayegh]]: patriarch of the [[Melkite Greek Catholic Church]]
*Cardinal [[Achille Liénart]]: [[bishop of Lille]] (France), the senior French bishop
*Cardinal [[Josef Frings]]: [[archbishop of Cologne]] (Germany), the senior German bishop
*Cardinal [[Bernardus Alfrink]]: [[archbishop of Utrecht]] (Netherlands), the senior Dutch bishop
*Cardinal [[Leo Jozef Suenens]]: [[archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels]] (Belgium), the senior Belgian bishop
*Cardinal [[Franz König]], [[archbishop of Vienna]] (Austria), the senior Austrian bishop
*Cardinal [[Giacomo Lercaro]]: [[archbishop of Bologna]] (Italy)
*Cardinal [[Paul-Émile Léger]]: [[archbishop of Montreal]] (Canada)
*Cardinal [[Julius Döpfner]]: [[archbishop of Munich and Freising]] (Germany)
*Archbishop [[Pietro Sfair]]: titular archbishop of Nisibis dei Maroniti (Lebanon), the senior Maronite bishop

'''Prominent reformist theologians at the Council'''{{sfn|O'Malley|2008|pp=119–120}}

*[[Marie-Dominique Chenu]] {{Post-nominals|list=[[Order of Preachers|OP]]}}: private ''peritus''
*[[Henri de Lubac]] {{Post-nominals|list=[[Society of Jesus|SJ]]}}: official ''peritus'' 
*[[Yves Congar]] {{Post-nominals|list=[[Order of Preachers|OP]]}}: official ''peritus'' 
*[[Karl Rahner]] {{Post-nominals|list=[[Society of Jesus|SJ]]}}: official ''peritus'' 
*[[John Courtney Murray]] {{Post-nominals|list=[[Society of Jesus|SJ]]}}: official ''peritus'' 
*[[Bernhard Häring]] {{Post-nominals|list=[[Redemptorists|CSsR]]}}: official ''peritus'' 
*[[Edward Schillebeeckx]] {{Post-nominals|list=[[Order of Preachers|OP]]}}: private ''peritus''
*[[Joseph Ratzinger]] (later Pope Benedict XVI): official ''peritus'' 
*[[Hans Küng]]: official ''peritus''

==Chronology of the council==
{{For-multi|a chronological guide|Chronology of the Second Vatican Council}}

The council was opened on 11 October 1962 by [[Pope John XXIII]] with his opening address [[Gaudet Mater Ecclesia]] ("Mother Church Rejoices") at [[St. Peter's Basilica]].<ref name="vatican2voice.org">{{Cite web|url=https://vatican2voice.org/91docs/opening_speech.htm|title=Pope John's Opening Speech at Vatican II|website=vatican2voice.org|access-date=25 January 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=1962 The Second Vatican Council|url=https://www.christianitytoday.com/history/issues/issue-28/1962-second-vatican-council.html|website=Christian History {{!}} Learn the History of Christianity & the Church|date=October 1990 |language=en|access-date=22 May 2020}}</ref> The next few days, from 13 October to 16 October, saw the election of the members of the 10 conciliar commissions, with candidates being drawn from national groups.<ref>{{Harvnb|Alberigo|2006|p=24}}</ref>{{Sfn | Sullivan | 2002 | p = 27}}{{sfn|Wiltgen|2014|p=12}} The first schema was discussed on 22 October, involving liturgy, and debate lasted for 15 days before being accepted in principle and returned to the commission.{{sfn|O'Malley|2008|pp=132–133,138}}{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|p=16}} The schema on revelation was debated for six days before being put to a vote on 20 November, where 62% of the participants voted to reject the schema, yet this was short of the two-thirds majority needed.{{sfn|O'Malley|2008|pp=149–150}} The schema was resolved on the next day when Pope John announced that it would undergo revision by a special joint commission representing the conservative and renewal tendencies.{{sfn|O'Malley|2008|pp=150–152}}{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|pp=27–29}} The schema on the modern means of communication was accepted in principle on 27 November, and was returned to the commission to only pertain to essential principles.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|p=112}} The schema on unity with the [[Eastern Orthodox]], one of three that were on ecumenism, was ordered to be merged with two other documents on Christian unity by the Council Fathers.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|p=112}} Discussion of the schema on the church began on 1 December, with only a week left before the end of the scheduled first session,{{sfn|O'Malley|2008|p=156}} but on the day before the scheduled vote on acceptance in principle, Pope John appointed a special commission to rewrite the schemas to more closely resemble his outlined vision from his opening address.{{sfn|O'Malley|2008|p=159}} With only 5 of the 22 schemas having been reviewed up to this point, the first period of the council ended on 8 December.
[[File:Paulus VI, by Fotografia Felici, 1969.jpg|thumb|right|Pope Paul VI, who would oversee the second through fourth periods of the council following the death of Pope John XXIII]]
<!-- More summary needed. The summary above only describes the council up to the first period. Feel free to expand upon the above from information in the split article. Please edit this comment to reflect the current state of the (incomplete) summary, and remove when complete. -->

== Documents of the council ==
Vatican II's teaching is contained in sixteen documents: 4 constitutions, 9 decrees and 3 declarations. While the constitutions are clearly the documents of the highest importance, "the distinction between decrees and declarations, no matter what it originally meant, has become meaningless".{{sfn|O'Malley|2008|p=3}}

For each document, approval of the final text was followed a few days later by the pope's promulgation of the document as the Church's official teaching. On the day of promulgation, there was a second vote of approval by the Council Fathers: it was "basically ceremonial"{{sfn|O'Malley|2008|p=210}} since the document's final text had already been approved a few days earlier. It is this earlier vote that best indicates the degree of support for, or opposition to, the document. Most documents were approved by overwhelming margins. In only 6 cases were the negative votes in the triple digits. In 3 of these cases (Church and Modern World, Non-Christian Religions and Religious Freedom), 10% to 12% of the Fathers rejected the document on theological grounds. In 2 other cases (Media and Christian Education), the negative votes mostly expressed disappointment in a bland text, rather than opposition.

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Approval of documents
|-
! Document !! Date of approval of final text !! Vote on final text !! Date of promulgation !! Vote preceding promulgation
|-
| '''Constitutions'''
|-
| [[Lumen gentium|Church]] || 1964-Nov-19<ref name="Acta synodalia">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=III/8 |page=407}}</ref> || 2,134 to 10<ref name="Acta synodalia"/> || 1964-Nov-21<ref name="ReferenceC">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=III/8 |page=782}}</ref> || 2,151 to 5<ref name="ReferenceC"/>
|-
| [[Dei verbum|Revelation]] || 1965-Oct-29<ref name="ReferenceD">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=IV/5 |page=753}}</ref> || 2,081 to 27<ref name="ReferenceD"/> || 1965-Nov-18<ref name="ReferenceE">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=IV/6 |page=687}}</ref> || 2,344 to 6<ref name="ReferenceE"/>
|-
| [[Sacrosanctum Concilium|Liturgy]] || 1963-Nov-22<ref name="ReferenceF">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=II/5 |page=767}}</ref> || 2,159 to 19<ref name="ReferenceF"/> || 1963-Dec-04<ref name="ReferenceG">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=II/6 |page=407}}</ref> || 2,147 to 4<ref name="ReferenceG"/>
|-
| [[Gaudium et spes|Church and Modern World]] || 1965-Dec-06<ref name="ReferenceH">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=IV/7 |page=641}}</ref> || 2,111 to 251<ref name="ReferenceH"/> || 1965-Dec-07<ref name="ReferenceI">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=IV/7 |page=860}}</ref> || 2,309 to 75<ref name="ReferenceI"/>
|-
| '''Decrees'''
|-
| [[Christus Dominus|Bishops]] || 1965-Oct-06<ref name="ReferenceJ">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=IV/3 |page=634}}</ref> || 2,167 to 14<ref name="ReferenceJ"/> || 1965-Oct-28<ref name="ReferenceK">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=IV/5 |page=673}}</ref> || 2,319 to 2<ref name="ReferenceK"/>
|-
| [[Presbyterorum ordinis|Priestly Ministry]] || 1965-Dec-04<ref name="ReferenceL">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=IV/7 |page=615}}</ref> || 2,243 to 11<ref name="ReferenceL"/> || 1965-Dec-07<ref name="ReferenceI"/> || 2,390 to 4<ref name="ReferenceI"/>
|-
| [[Optatam totius|Priestly Formation]] || 1965-Oct-13<ref name="ReferenceM">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=IV/4 |page=392}}</ref> || 2,196 to 15<ref name="ReferenceM"/> || 1965-Oct-28<ref name="ReferenceN">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=IV/5 |page=674}}</ref> || 2,318 to 3<ref name="ReferenceN"/>
|-
| [[Perfectae caritatis|Religious Life]] || 1965-Oct-11<ref name="ReferenceO">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=IV/4 |page=171}}</ref> || 2,126 to 13<ref name="ReferenceO"/> || 1965-Oct-28<ref name="ReferenceN"/> || 2,321 to 4<ref name="ReferenceN"/>
|-
| [[Apostolicam actuositatem|Lay Apostolate]] || 1965-Nov-10<ref name="ReferenceP">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=IV/6 |page=298}}</ref> || 2,201 to 2<ref name="ReferenceP"/> || 1965-Nov-18<ref name="ReferenceE"/> || 2,305 to 2<ref name="ReferenceE"/>
|-
| [[Orientalium ecclesiarum|Eastern Churches]] || 1964-Nov-20<ref name="ReferenceQ">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=III/8 |page=653}}</ref> || 1,964 to 135<ref name="ReferenceQ"/> || 1964-Nov-21<ref name="ReferenceC"/> || 2,110 to 39<ref name="ReferenceC"/>
|-
| [[Unitatis redintegratio|Ecumenism]] || 1964-Nov-20<ref name="ReferenceR">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=III/8 |pages=636–7}}</ref> || 2,054 to 64<ref name="ReferenceR"/> || 1964-Nov-21<ref name="ReferenceC"/> || 2,137 to 11<ref name="ReferenceC"/>
|-
| [[Ad gentes|Missions]] || 1965-Dec-02<ref name="ReferenceS">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=IV/7 |page=105}}</ref> || 2,162 to 18<ref name="ReferenceS"/> || 1965-Dec-07<ref name="ReferenceI"/> || 2,394 to 5<ref name="ReferenceI"/>
|-
| [[Inter mirifica|Media]] || 1963-Nov-24<ref name="ReferenceT">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=II/6 |page=49}}</ref> || 1,598 to 503<ref name="ReferenceT"/> || 1963-Dec-04<ref name="ReferenceU">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=II/6 |pages=408–9}}</ref> || 1,960 to 164<ref name="ReferenceU"/>
|-
| '''Declarations''' 
|-
| [[Nostra aetate|Non-Christian Religions]] || 1965-Oct-15<ref name="ReferenceV">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=IV/4 |page=824}}</ref> || 1,763 to 250<ref name="ReferenceV"/> || 1965-Oct-28<ref name="ReferenceN"/> || 2,221 to 88<ref name="ReferenceN"/>
|-
| [[Dignitatis humanae|Religious Freedom]] || 1965-Nov-19<ref name="ReferenceW">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=IV/6 |page=780}}</ref> || 1,954 to 249<ref name="ReferenceW"/> || 1965-Dec-07<ref name="ReferenceX">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=IV/7 |pages=859–60}}</ref> || 2,308 to 70<ref name="ReferenceX"/>
|-
| [[Gravissimum educationis|Christian Education]] || 1965-Oct-14<ref name="ReferenceY">{{cite book |title=Acta synodalia |volume=IV/4 |page=758}}</ref> || 1,912 to 183<ref name="ReferenceY"/> || 1965-Oct-28<ref name="ReferenceN"/> || 2,290 to 35<ref name="ReferenceN"/>
|}

=== Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy ===
{{Main|Sacrosanctum Concilium}}
[[File:SemanaSantaSevillaAguas2.jpg|thumb|The abolition of [[Friday of Sorrows]] of the Virgin Mary is an example of changes in the [[Liturgical Calendar]] after the council. The [[Virgin of Hope of Macarena]], Spain.]]

''[[Sacrosanctum Concilium]]'', the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, was the blueprint for an extensive reform of the Western liturgy.

Chapter 1 of the Constitution set out principles to guide this reform:{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|pages=17-19}}
* The Paschal mystery of Christ's death and resurrection is made present to us through the liturgy, which is a communal celebration and not just the action of the priest (SC 7). Each person present participates in it according to his/her role (SC 28, 29).
* Christ is present to us not only under the appearance of bread and wine, but also in the Word of God, in the person of the priest and in the gathered assembly (SC 7).
* "The liturgy is the summit toward which the activity of the Church is directed; at the same time it is the font from which all her power flows" (SC 10).
* "In the restoration and promotion of the sacred liturgy, [...] full and active participation by all the people is the aim to be considered before all else" (SC 14).
* In order to be better understood, the rites should be simplified and a limited use of the vernacular is permitted, but the use of Latin is to be preserved (SC 36).
* There needs to be more reading from holy scripture, and it is to be more varied and suitable (SC 35).
* A certain degree of local adaptation is permissible (SC 37-40).

Chapter 2: Mass.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|pages=19-20}} The [[Eucharist]] is both the sacrifice of Christ's body and blood and a paschal banquet (SC 47). In addition to repeating the need for active participation (SC 47), simplification of the rites (SC 50) and a greater variety of Scripture readings (SC 51), the chapter decrees that certain practices that had disappeared, such as the [[general intercessions|prayer of the faithful]] (SC 53), [[concelebration]] (SC 57), and [[communion under both kinds]] for the laity (SC 55), are to be restored under certain conditions, and that the homily should be a commentary on the Scripture readings (SC 52).

Chapter 3: Sacraments.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|pages=20}} The rite of each [[sacrament]] is to be simplified in order to make its meaning clear (SC 62); the [[catechumenate]] is to be restored for adult [[baptism]] (SC 64); the link between [[confirmation]] and baptism is to be made clear (SC 71); the sacrament then called [[extreme unction]] is to become a sacrament for those who are seriously ill ([[anointing of the sick]]) and not just of those who are on the point of death (SC 73-5); funerals are to focus on the hope of the resurrection and not on mourning (SC 81), and local cultural practices may be included in the celebration of some sacraments such as weddings (SC 63).

Chapters 4 to 7{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|pages=20–21}} provide that the [[Liturgy of the Hours|divine office]] (now called [[Liturgy of the Hours]]) is to be adapted to modern conditions by reducing its length for those in active ministry (SC 97), that the calendar is to be revised to give Sunday and the mysteries of Christ priority over saints' days (SC 108), and that, while traditional music forms such as [[Gregorian chant]] (SC 116) and organ music (SC 120) are to be preserved, congregational singing is to be encouraged (SC 114) and the use of other instruments is permissible (SC 120).

The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy launched the most extensive revision of the liturgy in the history of the Church.<ref name="Kennedy2011">{{cite book|last=Kennedy|first=Philip|url=https://archive.org/details/christianityintr00kenn_0/page/247|title=Christianity: An Introduction|date=2011|publisher=I.B. Tauris|isbn=978-1-84885-383-6|pages=[https://archive.org/details/christianityintr00kenn_0/page/247 247–]|quote=Four hundred years after the Reformation, Vatican II reversed all this and decreed that the assembled people of God celebrate the liturgy; that the texts of worship may be translated into vernacular languages; that the assembled people could drink from the communion cup; that the reading of scripture was to be an essential element of all worship; and that the Eucharist was to be regarded as the source and summit of the Church's life: ''Ubi Eucharistia, ibi Ecclesia'' – wherever the Eucharist is, there too is the Church. Such a view was entirely alien to pre-conciliar Roman theology which was more comfortable with the idea: 'Wherever the Pope is, there too is the Church.' Much of this was entirely consonant with Protestant sensibilities and explains why Vatican II was a milestone for Catholic, Protestants, the Orthodox, and all religions.}}</ref>

The invitation for more active, conscious participation of the laity through Mass in the vernacular did not stop with the constitution on the liturgy. It was taken up by the later documents of the council that called for a more active participation of the laity in the life of the Church.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://earlham.edu/media/2544046/second-vatican-council-aaron-falsetto-spring-2015.pdf|title=Implementation of the Second Vatican Council|access-date=25 September 2019|archive-date=21 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210121055248/https://earlham.edu/media/2544046/second-vatican-council-aaron-falsetto-spring-2015.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Pope Francis]] referred to a turn away from clericalism toward a new age of the laity.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://cruxnow.com/church/2016/04/27/pope-blasts-clericalism-says-clock-has-stopped-on-hour-of-laity/|title=Pope blasts clericalism, says clock has stopped on 'hour of laity'|date=27 April 2016|website=Crux|language=en-CA|access-date=25 September 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190925182624/https://cruxnow.com/church/2016/04/27/pope-blasts-clericalism-says-clock-has-stopped-on-hour-of-laity/|archive-date=25 September 2019|url-status=dead}}</ref>

=== Dogmatic Constitution on the Church ===
{{Main|Lumen gentium}}
{{see also|Ecclesiology (Catholic Church)}}The Dogmatic Constitution on the Church {{Lang|la|[[Lumen gentium]]}} ({{Gloss|Light of the Nations}}) gave direction to several of the documents that followed it, including those on Ecumenism, on Non-Christian Religions, on Religious Freedom, and on The Church in the Modern World (see below). According to Paul VI, "the most characteristic and ultimate purpose of the teachings of the Council" is the [[universal call to holiness]].<ref>[https://www.vatican.va/holy_father/paul_vi/motu_proprio/documents/hf_p-vi_motu-proprio_19690319_sanctitas-clarior_it.html Motu Proprio Sanctitas Clarior] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130302231450/https://www.vatican.va/holy_father/paul_vi/motu_proprio/documents/hf_p-vi_motu-proprio_19690319_sanctitas-clarior_it.html |date=2 March 2013 }}</ref> John Paul II calls this "an intrinsic and essential aspect of [the council Fathers'] teaching on the Church",<ref>Novo Millenio Ineunte (30)</ref> where "all the faithful of Christ of whatever rank or status, are called to the fullness of the Christian life and to the perfection of charity" (''Lumen gentium'', 40). [[Pope Francis|Francis]], in his apostolic letter ''Evangelii Gaudium'' (17) which laid out the programmatic for his pontificate, said that "on the basis of the teaching of the Dogmatic Constitution ''Lumen Gentium''" he would discuss the entire People of God which evangelizes, missionary outreach, the inclusion of the poor in society, and peace and dialogue within society. Francis has also followed the call of the council for a more [[Collegiality in the Catholic Church|collegial]] style of leadership, through synods of bishops and through his personal use of a worldwide advisory council of eight cardinals.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.lastampa.it/vatican-insider/en/2013/04/15/news/pope-francis-sets-up-a-group-of-eight-cardinals-to-advise-him-1.36103794|title=Pope Francis sets up a group of eight cardinals to advise him – La Stampa|date=15 April 2013|website=lastampa.it|language=it-IT|access-date=25 September 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2017/03/06/cardinal-wuerl-pope-francis-has-reconnected-church-vatican-ii|title=Cardinal Wuerl: Pope Francis has reconnected the church with Vatican II|date=6 March 2017|website=America Magazine|language=en|access-date=25 September 2019}}</ref>[[File:Lectio divina.jpg|thumb|The Second Vatican Council encouraged the scriptural reading of the [[Bible]] rather than relying solely on devotional writings, booklets and the lives of the [[Catholic saint]]s, as had the Council of Trent and the First Vatican Council.]] A most contentious conclusion that seems to follow from the Bishops' teaching in the decree is that while "in some sense other Christian communities are institutionally defective," these communities can "in some cases be more effective as vehicles of grace."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.americamagazine.org/issue/623/article/church-christ-and-churches|title=The Church of Christ and the Churches: Is the Vatican retreating from ecumenism?|date=27 August 2007|website=America Magazine|language=en|access-date=25 September 2019}}</ref> [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Bruges|Belgian Bishop]] Emil de Smedt, commenting on institutional defects that had crept into the Catholic church, "contrasted the hierarchical model of the church that embodied the triad of 'clericalism, legalism, and triumphalism' with one that emphasized the 'people of God', filled with the gifts of the Holy Spirit and radically equal in grace," that was extolled in ''Lumen Gentium''.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.americamagazine.org/issue/404/article/anniversary-thoughts|title=Anniversary Thoughts|date=7 October 2002|work=America Magazine|access-date=18 April 2017|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170419004349/http://www.americamagazine.org/issue/404/article/anniversary-thoughts|archive-date=19 April 2017|language=en}}</ref>

=== Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation ===
{{Main|Dei verbum}}The council's document ''Dei Verbum'' ("The Word of God") states the principle active in the other council documents that "The study of the sacred page is, as it were, the soul of sacred theology".<ref>[''Dei verbum'', 24]</ref> It is said of ''Dei Verbum'' that "arguably it is the most seminal of all the conciliar documents," with the fruits of a return to the Bible as the foundation of Christian life and teaching, evident in the other council documents.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2013/10/31/gift-word-achievements-and-challenges-vatican-ii-scripture|title=The Gift Of the Word: The achievements and challenges of Vatican II on Scripture|date=31 October 2013|website=America Magazine|language=en|access-date=25 September 2019}}</ref> Joseph Ratzinger, who would become [[Pope Benedict XVI|Benedict XVI]], said of the emphasis on the Bible in the council that prior to Vatican II the theology manuals continued to confuse "propositions about revelation with the content of revelation. It represented not abiding truths of faith, but rather the peculiar characteristics of post-Reformation polemic."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2014/09/09/sacramentality-scripture-dei-verbum-and-biblical-insights-joseph-ratzinger|title=The Sacramentality of Scripture: "Dei Verbum" and the Biblical insights of Joseph Ratzinger|date=9 September 2014|website=America Magazine|language=en|access-date=25 September 2019}}</ref> In spite of the guarded approval of biblical scholarship under [[Pius XII]], scholars suspected of [[Modernism in the Catholic Church|Modernism]] were silenced right up to Vatican II.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.americamagazine.org/issue/100/biblical-scholarship-50-years-after-divino-afflante-spiritu|title=Biblical Scholarship 50 years After Divino Afflante Spiritu: From September 18, 1993|date=18 September 1993|website=America Magazine|language=en|access-date=25 September 2019}}</ref> The council brought a definitive end to the [[Counter-Reformation]] and, in a spirit of ''[[aggiornamento]]'', reached back "behind [[Thomas Aquinas|St. Thomas]] himself and the Fathers, to the biblical theology which governs the first two chapters of the Constitution on the Church."<ref name="butler2">{{Cite web|url=http://vatican2voice.org/3butlerwrites/aggiorna.htm|title=Aggiornamento of Vatican II|website=vatican2voice.org|access-date=25 September 2019}}</ref> "The documents of the Second Vatican Council are shot through with the language of the Bible. ...The church's historical journey away from its earlier focus upon these sources was reversed at Vatican II." For instance, the council's document on the liturgy called for a broader use of liturgical texts, which would now be in the vernacular, along with more enlightened preaching on the Bible explaining "the love affair between God and humankind".<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Francis J. Moloney|first=sdb|date=23 November 2016|title=Sacred Scripture at Vatican ii|journal=Toronto Journal of Theology|volume=32|issue=2|pages=183–200|language=en|doi=10.3138/tjt.4202a|s2cid=171337874}}</ref> The translation of liturgical texts into vernacular languages, the allowance of [[communion under both kinds]] for the laity, and the expansion of Scripture readings during the Mass was resonant with the sensibilities of other [[Christian denomination]]s, thus making the Second Vatican Council "a milestone for Catholic, Protestants, [and] the Orthodox".<ref name="Kennedy2011"/>

===Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World===
{{Main|Gaudium et Spes}}
This document, named for its first words ''Gaudium et Spes'' ("Joy and Hope"), built on ''Lumen Gentium'''s understanding of the Church as the "pilgrim people of God" and as "communion", aware of the long history of the Church's teaching and in touch with what it calls the "[[Sign of the times (Catholic Church)|signs of the times]]". It reflects the understanding that Baptism confers on all the task that Jesus entrusted to the Church, to be on mission to the world in ways that the present age can understand, in cooperation with the ongoing work of the Spirit.

===Decrees and declarations on the Church as People of God===
These seven documents apply the teaching contained in the Constitution on the Church {{Lang|la|[[Lumen gentium]]}} to the various categories of people in the Church – bishops, priests, religious, laity, Eastern Catholics – and to Christian education.

'''The Pastoral Office of Bishops''' – The decree ''[[Christus Dominus]]'' ("Christ the Lord", 1965) deals with practical matters concerning [[bishops in the Catholic Church|bishops]] and [[diocese]]s, on the basis of the theology of the episcopate found in chapter 3 of ''Lumen gentium'', including [[collegiality in the Catholic Church|collegiality]]. It deals with the three levels where a bishop exercises his ministry: the universal Church, his own diocese and the national or regional level.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|p=79}}
*The universal Church (CD 4-10). Since the doctrine of collegiality holds that bishops share with the [[pope]] the governance of the universal Church, the decree proposes that there be a council of bishops from around the world to assist the pope in this governance. (It would later be called the [[Synod of Bishops in the Catholic Church|Synod of bishops]].) And since the true purpose of the [[Roman Curia]] is to serve the bishops, it needs to be reorganized and become more international.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|p=79}}
*The diocese (CD 11-35). The decree gives a job description of the bishop in his ministry as teacher, sanctifier and shepherd. It discusses his relationship to the main office-holders in the diocese, and deals with such practical matters as the need to redraw diocesan boundaries as a result of shifts in population.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|pp=80-1}}
*The national or regional level (CD 36-44). The decree stresses the need for an intermediate level between the universal Church and the individual diocese: this is the national (or regional) [[episcopal conference]], an institution which did not exist in all countries at the time.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|p=81}}

'''The Ministry and Life of Priests''' – The decree ''[[Presbyterorum ordinis]]'' ("The order of priests", 1965) describes priests as "father and teacher" but also "brothers among brothers with all those who have been reborn at the baptismal font." Priests must "promote the dignity" of the laity, "willingly listen" to them, acknowledge and diligently foster "exalted charisms of the laity", and "entrust to the laity duties in the service of the Church, allowing them freedom and room for action." Also, the human and spiritual needs of priests are discussed in detail.

'''Priestly Training''' – The decree ''[[Optatam Totius|Optatam totius]]'' ("Desired [renewal] of the whole [Church]", 1965) seeks to adapt the training of priests to modern conditions. While some of the points made in the decree are quite traditional, such as the insistence that [[seminary|seminaries]] remain the main place for priestly training, there are interesting proposals for adaptation to new conditions. The first is that instead of having the program of formation set for the whole Catholic world by the [[Congregation for Catholic Education|Congregation for Seminaries and Universities]] in Rome, the bishops of each country may devise a program that is adapted to the needs of their particular country (though it still needs Rome's approval). Another is that training for the priesthood has to integrate 3 dimensions: spiritual, intellectual and pastoral.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|pages=91–92}}

Spiritual formation aims to produce a mature minister, and to this end may call on the resources of psychology. There are many proposals for improving intellectual formation: the use of modern teaching methods; a better integration of philosophy and theology; the centrality of Scripture in theological studies; knowledge of other religions. Pastoral formation should be present throughout the course of studies and should include practical experience of ministry. Finally, there should be ongoing formation after ordination.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|pages=92–93}}

[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 121-0320, Krakau, Gefängnis Montelupich, Klosterschwester.jpg|thumb|160px|right|pre-Vatican II habit]]
'''The Adaptation and Renewal of Religious Life''' – The decree ''[[Perfectae Caritatis]]'' ("Of perfect charity", 1965) deals with the adaptation of [[consecrated life|religious life]] to modern conditions. The decree presupposes the theology of the religious life found in chapter 6 of the Constitution on the Church (''[[Lumen Gentium]]''), to which it adds guidelines for renewal. The two basic principles that should guide this renewal are: "the constant return [...] to the original spirit of the institutes and their adaptation to the changed conditions of our time" (PC 2).{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|page=96}} The decree deals mainly with religious orders, also known as [[religious institute]]s (whose members take vows and live a communal life), but touches also [[society of apostolic life|societies of common life]] (whose members take no vows but live a communal life) and [[secular institute]]s (whose members take vows but do not share a communal life).{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|page=97}}

The decree restates well-known views on the religious life, such as the consecrated life as a life of following Christ, the importance of the three vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, and the importance of charity in the life of an order.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|pages=97–98}} To these it adds a call for every order, whether contemplative or active, to renew itself, as well as specific proposals for adaptation to new conditions, such as the simplification of the religious habit, the importance of education for members of all religious orders (and not just priests), and the need for poverty not just for individual members but for each order as a whole.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|page=98}}

'''The Apostolate of the Laity''' – The decree ''[[Apostolicam actuositatem]]'' ("Apostolic Activity", 1965) declares that the apostolate of the laity is "not only to bring the message and grace of Christ to men but also to penetrate and perfect the temporal order with the spirit of the Gospel", in every field of life, together or through various groups, with respectful cooperation with the Church's hierarchy.

'''The Eastern Catholic Churches''' – The decree ''[[Orientalium Ecclesiarum]]'' ("Of the Eastern Churches", 1964) deals with the [[Eastern Catholic Churches]], those communities that are in full union with Rome, but have their own distinctive liturgy, customs (such as married priests) and forms of organization ([[patriarchs]] and [[synods]]).{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|page=122}} The decree states that they are not simply different rites (as they were commonly called previously) but are ''[[sui iuris]]'' [[Catholic particular churches and liturgical rites|particular Churches]] along with the much larger [[Latin Church]], and with the same rights as the Latin Church, including the right to govern themselves according to their traditional organizational practices.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|page=124}} The decree affirms certain practices typical of the Eastern Churches, such as the administration of [[confirmation]] by priests, as well as the possibility of satisfying Sunday obligation by taking part in the [[Canonical Hours]]. It also provides guidelines concerning common worship and shared communion between Eastern Catholics and members of the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]].{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|page=125}}

'''Christian Education''' – The declaration ''[[Gravissimum educationis]]'' ("Extreme [importance] of education", 1965)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/index.htm|title=Documents of the Second Vatican Council|website=www.vatican.va}}</ref> discusses the importance of education (GE 1), of Christian education (GE 2-7), of Catholic schools (GE 8-9) and of Catholic colleges and universities (GE 10-12). Most everything in the declaration had been said many times before: the Church has the right to establish Catholic schools; parents have the right to choose the education they want for their children, governments have a duty to fund Catholic schools; and Catholics have a duty to support Catholic schools.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|pp=142–143}}

Many observers found the declaration disappointing: "Even at the last minute, dissatisfaction with the text was widespread and wide-ranging".{{sfn|O'Malley|2008|p=279}} It was called "probably the most inferior document produced by the Council".{{sfn|Rynne|1991|pp=534–535}} But as it was late in the 4th session when everyone was under pressure to bring the council's business to a close, most bishops chose to vote for the text, though close to 9% rejected it.

===Decrees and declarations on the Church in the world===
These 5 documents deal with the Church in its relationship with the surrounding world: other religious groups – non-Catholic Christians, non-Christians – missionary outreach, religious freedom, and the media. Three of them – on ecumenism, non-Christian religions and religious freedom – were important advances in the Church's teaching.

'''Mission Activity''' – The decree ''[[Ad gentes]]''&nbsp;("To the Nations", 1965) treats evangelization as the fundamental mission of the Catholic Church, "to bring good news to the poor." It includes sections on training missionaries and on forming communities.

'''Ecumenism''' – The decree ''[[Unitatis redintegratio]]'' ("Restoration of Unity", 1964)&nbsp;opens with the statement: "The restoration of unity among all Christians is one of the principal concerns of the Second Vatican Council." This was a reversal of the Church's previous position, one of hostility or, at best, indifference to the ecumenical movement, because the Church claimed the only way unity would come about was if the non-Catholics returned to the true Church.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|pp=110–111}} The text produced by the Secretariat for Christian Unity said many things Catholics had not heard before:

Instead of showing hostility or indifference to the ecumenical movement, a movement which originated among Protestant and Orthodox Christians,<ref name="Ware1993">{{cite book|last= Ware|first= Kallistos |title= The Orthodox Church|date= 1993|publisher= Penguin Adult|isbn= 978-0-14-014656-1 |page=322}}</ref><ref name="ColbergKrieg2014">{{cite book |last1=Colberg |first1=Kristin M. |last2=Krieg |first2=Robert A. |title=The Theology of Cardinal Walter Kasper: Speaking Truth in Love |date=2014 |publisher=Liturgical Press |isbn=978-0-8146-8340-8 |page=140 |language=English}}</ref> the decree states it was fostered by the Holy Spirit. Instead of repeating the previous prohibition on Catholics taking part in ecumenical activities, the decree states that a concern for unity is an obligation for all Catholics.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|pp=113–114}}

Instead of claiming that disunity is the fault of non-Catholic Christians, the decree states that the Catholic Church must accept its share of the blame and ask for forgiveness.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|p=115}} Instead of claiming that the Catholic Church is in no need of reform, the decree states that all Christians, including Catholics, must examine their own faithfulness to Christ's will, and undertake whatever internal reforms are called for. Ecumenism requires a new attitude, a "change of heart" (UR 7), an interior conversion, on the part of Catholics.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|p=116}}

Instead of claiming that only the Catholic Church has the means of salvation, the decree states that non-Catholic Christians have many of the elements of the true Church and, thanks to these, they can achieve salvation. All baptized are members of Christ's body. Catholics must get rid of false images of non-Catholics and come to appreciate the riches of their traditions.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|p=115}}

Theological experts from both sides should enter into dialogue, in which each side sets out clearly its understanding of the Gospel. It should be remembered there is a hierarchy of truths, that not all teachings are equally central to the faith.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|p=117}} Christians of various traditions should pray together, though intercommunion is still not possible,{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|p=116}} and undertake actions for the common good of humanity.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|p=117}}

The last chapter addresses the situation of the Eastern Orthodox and of Protestants. The Orthodox are very close to the Catholic Church: they have valid sacraments and a valid priesthood, and though their customs and liturgical practices are different, this is not an obstacle to unity. Protestants comprise many denominations and their closeness to the Catholic Church varies according to the denomination; however all of them share with Catholics the belief in Jesus as saviour, the Bible, baptism, worship and the effort to lead a moral life.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|pp=117–118}}

This new way of considering the issue of Church unity met with great approval at the council and was adopted with very few dissenting voices.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|p=113}}

'''Relation of the Church to Non-Christian Religions''' – The declaration ''[[Nostra aetate]]''&nbsp;("In our time", 1965), the shortest of Vatican II's documents, is a brief commentary on non-Christian religions, with a special section on the Jews. Pope John wanted the council to condemn antisemitism, including any Catholic teaching that might encourage antisemitism. It was felt that the way to avoid stirring up trouble in the Middle East was to include the passage on the Jews within a broader document about non-Christian religions.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|pp=156–158}}

Avoiding argument or criticism, the declaration points out some positive features of Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam. "The Catholic Church rejects nothing of what is holy and true in these religions"; they often "reflect a ray of that truth which enlightens all men and women" (NA 2).{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|pp=159–160}}

As for the Jews, the declaration says they are very dear to God: "God does not take back the gifts He bestowed or the choice He made" (NA 4). Jews are not rejected or cursed by God because of the death of Jesus: neither all Jews then, nor any Jew today, can be blamed for the death of Jesus. The Church deplores all hatred and antisemitism." And the declaration ends with a condemnation of all forms of discrimination based on religion or ethnicity.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|pp=160–161}}

Better Jewish-Catholic relations have been emphasized since the council.<ref name="nostra">{{cite web | url=https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/chrstuni/relations-jews-docs/rc_pc_chrstuni_doc_20051027_rabbi-rosen_en.html | title="Nostra aetate", Forty Years After Vatican II. Present & Future Perspectives | access-date=28 April 2014 | author=David Rosen}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Dabru Emet – A Jewish Statement on Christians and Christianity|url=http://www.jcrelations.net/Dabru_Emet_-_A_Jewish_Statement_on_Christians_and_Christianity.2395.0.html?id=720&L=3&searchText=dabru+emet&searchFilter=cat_11|website=www.jcrelations.net|access-date=24 May 2020}}</ref>{{See also|Christian–Jewish reconciliation|Relations between Catholicism and Judaism}}

'''Religious Freedom''' – The declaration ''[[Dignitatis humanae]]''&nbsp;("Of the Dignity of the Human Person", 1965), "on the right of the person and of communities to social and civil freedom in matters religious", is the most striking instance of the council's staking out a new position.

Traditional Catholic teaching rejected freedom of religion as a basic human right.<ref>[[Pope Gregory XVI]] called freedom of conscience "absurd and erroneous" (Encyclical ''[[Mirari vos]]'', 1832) and [[pope Pius IX]] included freedom of religion among the errors of the modern era (''[[Syllabus of Errors]]'', 1864).</ref> The argument: only Catholics have the truth and so they alone are entitled to freedom of belief and of practice. All other religions are in error and, since "error has no rights", other religions have no right to freedom of belief and practice, and Catholic states have the right to suppress them. While it may be prudent to tolerate the existence of other religions in order to avoid civil unrest, this is merely a favour extended to them, not a matter of right. This double standard became increasingly intolerable to many Catholics. Furthermore, Protestants would not believe in the sincerity of Catholics' involvement in ecumenism, if they continued to support this double standard.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|p=148}} Pope John's last encyclical, ''[[Pacem in terris]]'' (April 1963), listed freedom of religion among the basic human rights – the first papal document to support freedom of religion – and he wanted Vatican II to address the issue.

''Dignitatis humanae'' broke with the traditional position and asserted that every human being was entitled to religious freedom. The argument: belief cannot be coerced. Since the Church wants people's religious belief to be genuine, people must be left free to see the truth of what is preached. The declaration also appealed to revelation: Jesus did not coerce people to accept his teaching, but invited them to believe, and so did his immediate followers.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|pp=151–153}}

Most Council Fathers supported this position, but 11% of them rejected it on the day of the final vote. If this position was true, they said, then the Church's previous teaching was wrong, and this was a conclusion they could not accept. The council's position on religious freedom raised in an acute way the issue of the development of doctrine: how can later teachings develop out of earlier ones? And how to tell whether a new position is a legitimate development of previous teaching or is heresy?{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|p=149}}

'''The Means of Social Communication''' – The decree ''[[Inter mirifica]]'' ("Among the wonderful [discoveries]", 1963) addresses issues concerning the press, cinema, television, and other media of communication. Chapter 1 is concerned with the dangers presented by the media, and insists that media producers should ensure that the media offer moral content, that media consumers should avoid media whose content is not moral, and that parents should supervise their children's media consumption. Chapter 2 discusses the usefulness of the media for the Church's mission: Catholic press and cinema should be promoted, and suitable persons within the Church should be trained in the use of the media.{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|p=130}}

"The text [is] generally considered to be one of the weakest of the Council."{{sfn|Hahnenberg|2007|p=129}} Rather than improve it, most Council Fathers preferred approving it as is and moving on to more important matters. Some 25% of the Council Fathers voted against it to express their disappointment.

==Impact of Vatican II==
According to theologian [[Adrian Hastings]], the key theological and practical developments due to Vatican II are of 3 kinds:{{sfn|Hastings|1991}}
#New general orientations and basic themes found throughout the documents:
#*The Church defined as People of God
#*The Eucharist as centre of the Church and its unity
#*The primacy of Scripture in theory and in practice
#*The beneficial nature of diversity: ecclesial (the Church as a communion of "churches"), liturgical, and theological (diversity "even in the theological elaborations of revealed truth")  
#*Other Christians understood as being in [imperfect] communion with the Church
#*The concern for secular human values, with justice and peace.
#Specific texts that contain a recognizable shift from pre-conciliar teaching:
#*The text on the collegiality of bishops (''Lumen Gentium'' 22)
#*The statement that the unique Church of Christ "subsists" in the Catholic Church (''Lumen Gentium'' 8)
#*The statement that "the Churches of the East, as much as those of the West, fully enjoy the right to rule themselves" (''Orientalium Ecclesiarum'' 5 and ''Unitatis Redintegratio'' 16)
#*The recognition and commendation of the ministry of married priests in the Eastern Churches (''Presbyterorum Ordinis'' 16) 
#*The recognition that every person has the right to religious freedom (''Dignitatis humanae'' 2)
#*The condemnation of anti-Semitism (''Nostra aetate'' 4)
#*The condemnation of mass destruction in war (''Gaudium et spes'' 80)
#*The statement that "parents themselves should ultimately make the judgment" as to the size of their family (''Gaudium et Spes'' 50).
#Practical decisions requiring new institutions or new behaviour:
#*The use of the vernacular in the liturgy
#*The restoration of communion under both kinds for the laity
#*The restoration of concelebration
#*The restoration of the diaconate as a permanent order open to married men
#*The [limited] possibility of sharing in the worship (including communion) of a Church other than one's own
#*The instruction to establish national or regional Episcopal Conferences with authority and responsibilities
#*The recommendation to establish an agency of the universal Church to "foster progress in needy regions and social justice on the international scene".

===Changes resulting from Vatican II===
{{Main|Post Vatican II history of the Catholic Church|Hermeneutics of the Second Vatican Council}}
The council addressed relations between the [[Catholic Church]] and the [[Modernity|modern world]].<ref>{{Citation |url = https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19651207_gaudium-et-spes_en.html |title = Gaudium et spes |trans-title = Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World |location = Rome, Italy |series = II Vatican council |publisher = Vatican }}</ref>    Several changes resulting from the council include the renewal of [[consecrated life]] with a revised [[charism]], [[Ecumenism|ecumenical]] efforts with other [[Christian denomination]]s, [[interfaith dialogue]] with other religions, and the [[universal call to holiness]], which according to Paul VI was "the most characteristic and ultimate purpose of the teachings of the Council".<ref name="Motu Proprio Sanctitas Clarior">{{cite web |title = Sanctitas clarior – Lettera Apostolica in forma di Motu Proprio con la quale sono riordinati i processi per le cause di beatificazione e canonizzazione (19 marzo 1969) {{!}} Paolo VI |url = http://www.vatican.va/content/paul-vi/it/motu_proprio/documents/hf_p-vi_motu-proprio_19690319_sanctitas-clarior.html |website = www.vatican.va |access-date = 22 May 2020 }}</ref>

According to [[Pope Benedict XVI]], the most important and essential message of the council was "the [[Paschal mystery|Paschal Mystery]] as the center of what it is to be Christian and therefore of the Christian life, the [[Liturgical year|Christian year]], the Christian seasons".<ref name="w2.vatican.va">{{cite web |url = https://www.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/speeches/2013/february/documents/hf_ben-xvi_spe_20130214_clero-roma.html |title = Meeting with the Parish Priests and the Clergy of the Rome Diocese (14 February 2013) – Benedict XVI }}</ref> Other changes that followed the council included the widespread use of [[vernacular]] languages in the [[Mass (Catholic Church)|Mass]] instead of [[Latin]], the allowance of [[communion under both kinds]] for the laity, the subtle disuse of ornate clerical [[regalia]], the revision of [[Anaphora (liturgy)|Eucharistic (liturgical) prayers]], the abbreviation of the [[liturgical calendar]], the ability to celebrate the Mass {{lang|la|[[versus populum]]}} (with the officiant facing the congregation), as well as {{lang|la|[[ad orientem]]}} (facing the "East" and the Crucifix), and modern aesthetic changes encompassing [[contemporary Catholic liturgical music]] and artwork.<ref name="Kennedy2011"/> With many of these changes resonating with the perspectives of other [[Christian denomination]]s who sent observers to the Second Vatican Council, it was an ecumenical "milestone for Catholics, Protestants, [and] the Orthodox".<ref name="Kennedy2011"/> These changes, while praised by many faithful Catholics,<ref name="O'Malley2012">{{cite web |last1=O'Malley |first1=John W. |title=Opening the Church to the World |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/11/opinion/vatican-ii-opened-the-church-to-the-world.html |work=[[The New York Times]] |access-date=28 April 2021 |language=English |date=11 October 2012}}</ref> remain divisive among those identifying as traditionalist Catholics.<ref name="BrewerHigginsTeeney2011">{{cite book |last1=Brewer |first1=John D. |last2=Higgins |first2=Gareth I. |last3=Teeney |first3=Francis |title=Religion, Civil Society, and Peace in Northern Ireland |date=2011 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=978-0-19-969402-0 |language=English |quote=Vatican II, by eliminating Latin prayers, offended traditional Catholics, and in Judaism the status of kashrut is divisive.}}</ref>{{efn|Various feasts and devotional celebrations related to popular piety were revised or abbreviated as a result of the council. Examples of this are the revision of the [[novena]] to [[Our Mother of Perpetual Help]] and the celebration of [[Friday of Sorrows]] in [[Lent]].}}

''[[Dignitatis humanae]]'', authored largely by United States theologian [[John Courtney Murray]], challenged the council fathers to find "reasons for religious freedom" in which they believed,<ref name=":2">{{Cite book|title=Religious Liberty: An End and a Beginning|publisher=Macmillan|year=1966|editor-last=Murray|editor-first=John Courtney|location=New York}}</ref>{{rp|8}} and drew from scripture scholar [[John L. McKenzie]] the comment: "The Church can survive the disorder of development better than she can stand the living death of organized immobility."<ref name=":2" />{{rp|106}}	

As a result of the reforms of Vatican II, on 15 August 1972 Paul issued the ''motu proprio'' ''Ministeria Quaedam'' which in effect suppressed the [[minor orders]] and replaced them with two [[instituted ministries]], those of [[Reader (liturgy)|lector]] and [[acolyte]]. A major difference was: "Ministries may be assigned to [[Catholic laity|lay Christians]]; hence they are no longer to be considered as reserved to candidates for the sacrament of orders."<ref name="Ministeria Quaedam">{{Cite web |title=Pope Paul VI – Ministeria Quaedam |url=http://www.ewtn.com/library/papaldoc/p6minors.htm}}</ref>

== Controversies ==
[[File:Missale Romanum Pustet.jpg|thumb|An illustrated 1911 [[Roman Missal]] reprint from its 1884 edition]]

=== Validity of the Council ===
{{See also|Traditionalist Catholicism|Sedevacantism|Sedeprivationism}}
Some Traditionalist Catholics claim that several council statements conflict with established teaching regarding faith, morals and doctrine, and are therefore in error.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Twenty-five explicit errors of Vatican Council II |url=http://www.catholicapologetics.info/modernproblems/vatican2/vatican2.htm |access-date= |website=  |language=en}}</ref> As a result, they say, Vatican II is invalid.

The largest of the traditionalist groups rejecting the validity of Vatican II is the [[Society of Saint Pius X]] (SSPX), which recognizes the authority of the Pope but rejects the validity of the Second Vatican Council. In 1988, the SSPX faced a conflict with [[Pope John Paul II]] over the consecration of bishops ([[Écône consecrations]]), which led to disputed canonical sanctions. This event has been a subject of ongoing debate within the Catholic community regarding the validity of any purported excommunications.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Marcel Lefebvre |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Marcel-Francois-Lefebvre |access-date= |website=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] |date=25 November 2023 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Esteves |first=Junno Arocho |date=4 April 2017 |title=Pope approves provisions to recognize marriages of SSPX faithful |url=https://www.ncronline.org/pope-approves-provisions-recognize-marriages-sspx-faithful |access-date= |website=[[National Catholic Register]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Casey |first=Paul M.D |date=28 April 2023 |title=SSPX Masses and Fulfilling the Sunday Obligation |url=https://catholicfamilynews.com/blog/2023/04/28/sspx-masses-and-fulfilling-the-sunday-obligation/ |access-date= |website=[[Catholic Family News]] |language=en}}</ref>

Other groups have gone further than the SSPX and have declared that the Holy See has been vacant since the death of [[Pope Pius XII]] ([[sedevacantism]]) or that all the Pontiffs since Pope John XXIII are popes [[Hylomorphism|materially but not formally]] ([[sedeprivationism]]). The most notable of these groups are the [[Congregation of Mary Immaculate Queen]] and the [[Istituto Mater Boni Consilii|Institute Mater Boni Consilii]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Chryssides |first=George D. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LgvvaMgTsZ0C&q=sedevacantists&pg=PT75 |title=Historical Dictionary of New Religious Movements |publisher=[[Scarecrow Press]] |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-8108-7967-6 |pages=310 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Pasulka |first=Diana Walsh |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0fqKBAAAQBAJ |title=Heaven Can Wait: Purgatory in Catholic Devotional and Popular Culture |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |year=2015 |isbn=978-0-19-538202-0 |pages=180 |language=en}}</ref>

=== Authority of the council's teaching ===
Since Vatican II issued no dogmatic definitions or anathemas, in accordance with the wishes of Pope John XXIII expressed particularly in his opening address to the Council,<ref name="vatican2voice.org"/> it would be easy to conclude that, apart from where it repeats  teaching that was already infallible before the Council, the Council's teaching is not binding, and that a Catholic is free to accept it or reject it.

This issue was addressed by Pope Paul VI five weeks after the end of the council in the talk he gave at his general audience of 12 January 1966:<ref>Translation of the Italian text at https://www.vatican.va/content/paul-vi/it/audiences/1966/documents/hf_p-vi_aud_19660112.html.</ref>

<blockquote>There are those who ask what is the authority, the theological qualification, that the Council wished to attribute to its teachings, knowing that it avoided giving solemn dogmatic definitions engaging the infallibility of the ecclesiastical [[magisterium]]. And the answer is known to those who recall the conciliar declaration of March 6, 1964, repeated on November 16, 1964: given the pastoral character of the Council, it avoided proclaiming in an extraordinary way dogmas endowed with the note of infallibility; but it nevertheless endowed its teachings with the authority of the supreme ordinary magisterium, and this ordinary{{snd}}and obviously authentic{{snd}}magisterium must be accepted docilely and sincerely by all the faithful, according to the mind of the Council regarding the nature and purposes of the individual documents.</blockquote>

The issue is also addressed by the Code of Canon Law. While the [[1917 Code of Canon Law|1917 ''Code of Canon Law'']], in force in the [[Latin Church]] at the time of the council, simply stated "An Ecumenical Council enjoys supreme power over the universal Church,"<ref>Canon 228 § 1</ref> the [[1983 Code of Canon Law|1983 ''Code of Canon Law'']] states that Catholics may not disregard the teaching of an ecumenical council even if it does not propose its teaching as definitive:<ref>Canon 752: https://www.vatican.va/archive/cod-iuris-canonici/eng/documents/cic_lib3-cann747-755_en.html#BOOK_III.</ref> 
<blockquote>Although not an assent of faith, a religious submission of the intellect and will must be given to a Doctrine which the Supreme Pontiff or the College of Bishops declares concerning faith or morals when they exercise the authentic Magisterium, even if they do not intend to proclaim it by definitive act; therefore, the Christian faithful are to take care to avoid those things which do not agree with it.</blockquote>

=== {{Anchor|Spirit of Vatican II}}"The Spirit of Vatican II" ===
By "the spirit of Vatican II" is often meant promoting teachings and intentions attributed to the Second Vatican Council in ways not limited to literal readings of its documents, spoken of as the "letter" of the council<ref>{{cite web |url=http://home.comcast.net/~icuweb/c02206.htm |title=James Hitchcock, The History of Vatican II, Lecture 6: The Effects of Council Part II |publisher=Home.comcast.net |access-date=1 July 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120719064228/http://home.comcast.net/~icuweb/c02206.htm |archive-date=19 July 2012 }}</ref><ref>[[Avery Dulles]], [http://www.americamagazine.org/content/article.cfm?article_id=2810 Vatican II: The Myth and the Reality]</ref> (cf. [[Paul the Apostle|Saint Paul's]] phrase, "the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life"<ref>{{Bibleverse|2|Corinthians|3:6|NIV}}</ref>). However, Cardinal [[Joseph Zen]] has pushed back, that "it is nonsense to talk about the spirit of the Council, if you ignore the Documents of the Council."<ref>{{cite web |last1=Zen |first1=Joseph |title=Comments on Dr. Taylor Marshall's: "Viganò vs. Barron on Vatican II and Benedict XVI" |url=https://oldyosef.hkdavc.com/?p=2033 |website=平安抵岸全靠祂 |access-date=31 May 2024 |language=zh-TW |date=28 May 2024 |archive-date=31 May 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240531021551/https://oldyosef.hkdavc.com/?p=2033 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Academic [[Michael Novak]] who had covered Vatican II as a journalist<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.aei.org/basicPages/20031124161414312 |title=Introduction to The Open Church |edition=Millennium |date=24 November 2003 |access-date=1 July 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110610203034/https://www.aei.org/basicPages/20031124161414312 |archive-date=10 June 2011}}</ref> described it as a spirit that
<blockquote>sometimes soared far beyond the actual, hard-won documents and decisions of Vatican II. ...It was as though the world (or at least the history of the Church) were now to be divided into only two periods, pre-Vatican II and post-Vatican II. Everything "pre" was then pretty much dismissed, so far as its ''authority'' mattered. For the most extreme, to be a Catholic now meant to believe more or less anything one wished to believe, or at least in the sense in which one personally interpreted it. One could be a Catholic "in spirit". One could take ''Catholic'' to mean the 'culture' in which one was born, rather than to mean a creed making objective and rigorous demands. One could imagine Rome as a distant and irrelevant anachronism, embarrassment, even adversary. Rome as "them".</blockquote> 
From another perspective, Church historian [[John W. O'Malley]] wrote:{{sfn|O'Malley|2008}}  
<blockquote>For the new churches it recommended [[inculturation|adaptation to local cultures]], including philosophical and theological adaptation. It also recommended that Catholic missionaries seek ways of cooperating with missionaries of other faiths and of fostering harmonious relations with them. It asserted that art from every race and country be given scope in the liturgy of the church. More generally, it made clear that the church was sympathetic to the way of life of different peoples and races and was ready to appropriate aspects of different cultural traditions. Though obvious-sounding, these provisions were portentous. Where would they lead?</blockquote>

== Legacy ==

=== Vatican II participants who later became pope ===
Of those who took part in the council's opening session, four later became [[pope]]:<ref name="NCEp563">{{Harvnb | Heraty | 1967 | p = 563, Vatican Council II}}.</ref>{{sfn|Alberigo|2006|p=69}} 
* Cardinal Giovanni Montini, who on succeeding John XXIII took the name [[Pope Paul VI|Paul VI]]
* Bishop Albino Luciani, the future [[Pope John Paul I|John Paul I]]
* Bishop Karol Wojtyła, who became [[Pope John Paul II|John Paul II]] 
* Father Joseph Ratzinger, present as a theological [[consultant]], who became [[Pope Benedict XVI|Benedict XVI]].<ref>{{Citation | title = Father Georg Ratzinger: Pope Benedict XVI: A Profile | publisher = EWTN | type = documentary | editor-first = Doug | editor-last = Keck}}.</ref>

===Saints of Vatican II===
A number of those involved in Vatican II as pope, council father, ''[[peritus]]'' or official observer have been [[canonization|canonized]] or [[beatification|beatified]], or are in the process of canonization.

Canonized saints:
*[[Pope John XXIII|John XXIII]], pope who called for the council and presided over it first (thus his feast day is the same date as the opening date of Vatican II)
*[[Pope Paul VI|Paul VI]], second pope of the council
*[[Pope John Paul II|John Paul II]], council father as Bishop Karol Wojtyła

Beatified:
*[[Pope John Paul I|John Paul I]], council father as Bishop Albino Luciani
*[[Álvaro del Portillo]], council father
*[[Enrique Angelelli]], council father

Process ongoing:
*[[Fulton J. Sheen]], council father
*[[Terence Cooke]], council father
*[[Frank Duff]], observer

== Notes ==
{{Portal|Christianity}}
{{Notelist}}

== References ==
=== Citations ===
{{Reflist}}

=== Sources ===

* {{cite book |title=Acta synodalia sacrosancti concilii oecumenici Vaticani II |date=1970–1991 |publisher=Typis polyglottis Vaticani}} 31 folios. (Official record of daily proceedings during Vatican II, in Latin) Available online at https://archive.org/details/second-vatican-council
* {{cite book |last1=Alberigo |first1=Giuseppe |editor1-last=Alberigo |editor1-first=Giuseppe |editor2-last=Komonchak |editor2-first=Joseph A. |title=History of Vatican II |date=1995 |volume=I |publisher=Peeters and Orbis |pages=1–54 |chapter=The Announcement of the Council: From the Security of the Fortress to the Lure of the Quest}}
* {{Citation |last1=Alberigo |first1=Giuseppe |title=A Brief History of Vatican II |publisher=Orbis Books |location=Maryknoll |year=2006 |isbn=1-57075-638-4 |translator-first=Matthew |translator-last=Sherry}}
* {{cite book |last1=Fouilloux |first1=Étienne |editor1-last=Alberigo |editor1-first=Giuseppe |editor2-last=Komonchak |editor2-first=Joseph |title=History of Vatican II |date=1995 |volume=I |publisher=Peeters & Orbis |pages=55–166 |chapter=The Antepreparatory Phase: the Slow Emergence from Inertia (January 1959–October 1962)}}
* {{Citation |last=Hahnenberg |first=Edward |title=A Concise Guide to the Documents of Vatican II |publisher=Saint Anthony Messenger Press |location=City |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-86716-552-4}}
* {{cite book |last1=Hastings |first1=Adrian |editor1-last=Hastings |editor1-first=Adrian |title=Modern Catholicism: Vatican II and After |date=1991 |publisher=SPCK |pages=56–67 |chapter=The Key Texts}}
* {{Citation |editor-first=J |editor-last=Heraty |others=Faculty of Catholic University of America |title=New Catholic Encyclopedia |contribution=Vatican Council II |edition=1 |year=1967 |publisher=[[McGraw-Hill]] |volume=XIV |location=New York |oclc=34184550 |contribution-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=84HrAAAAMAAJ |isbn=978-0-07-010235-4 |title-link=New Catholic Encyclopedia}}
* {{cite book |last=Laurentin |first=René |title=L'enjeu du concile |publisher=Centurion |location=Paris |year=1962 |isbn=}}
* {{cite book |last=O'Malley |first=John W. |author-link=John W. O'Malley |title=What Happened at Vatican II |url=https://archive.org/details/whathappenedatva0000omal |url-access=limited |publisher=Belknap Press of Harvard University Press |location=Cambridge, Massachusetts |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-674-04749-5}}
* {{cite book |last1=Raguer |first1=Hilari |editor1-last=Alberigo |editor2-last=Komonchak |editor2-first=Joseph A. |title=History of Vatican II |volume=II |date=1997 |publisher=Peeters & Orbis |pages=169–232 |chapter=Profile of the Assembly}}
* {{cite book |last1=Ratzinger |first1=Joseph |title=Theological Highlights of Vatican II |date=2009 |publisher=Paulist Press |location=New York}}
* {{cite book |last1=Ricciardi |first1=Andrea |editor1-last=Alberigo |editor1-first=Giuseppe |editor2-last=Komonchak |editor2-first=Joseph A. |title=History of Vatican II |volume=II |date=1997 |publisher=Peeters & Orbis |pages=1–68 |chapter=The Tumultuous Opening Days of the Council}}
* {{cite book |last1=Rynne |first1=Xavier |title=Vatican Council II |date=1999 |publisher=Orbis Books |isbn=1-57075-293-1}}
* {{Citation |last=Sullivan |first=Maureen |title=101 Questions and Answers on Vatican II |publisher=Paulist Press |location=New York |year=2002 |isbn=0-8091-4133-7 |url=https://archive.org/details/101questionsansw00osul}}
* {{Citation | last = Vorgrimler | first = Herbert | title = Commentaries on the Documents of the Council | publisher = Crossroad Publishing Company | location = | year = 1989 | isbn =   978-0-8245-0979-8 }}
* {{cite book | last = Wenger | first = Antoine | title = Vatican II. Première session | publisher = Centurion  | place = Paris | year = 1963 }}
* {{cite book |last=Wiltgen |first=Ralph M. |author-link=Ralph M. Wiltgen |title=The Inside Story of Vatican II |publisher=TAN books |isbn=978-0-89555-186-3 |year=2014}} Formerly titled ''The Rhine Flows into the Tiber: a History of Vatican II'' (1967)
* {{cite book |last1=Wittstadt |first1=Klaus |editor1-last=Alberigo |editor1-first=Giuseppe |editor2-last=Komonchak |editor2-first=Joseph A. |title=History of Vatican II |volume=I |date=1995 |publisher=Peeters & Orbis |pages=405–500 |chapter=On the Eve of the Second Vatican Council (July 1–October 10, 1962)}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|Second Vatican Council}}
* [http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/index.htm Documents of the Second Vatican Council] at [[Vatican.va]]

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