St Andrews Encyclopaedia of Theology

History of the Second Vatican Council

Dries Bosschaert

First published: 12 March 2025

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Bosschaert, Dries. 2025. 'History of the Second Vatican Council', St Andrews
Encyclopaedia of Theology. Edited by Brendan N. Wolfe et al. [Link]
Christianity/VaticanII Accessed: 18 May 2025

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Copyright © Dries Bosschaert CC BY-NC

ISSN 2753-3492
History of the Second Vatican Council
Dries Bosschaert

This article provides a historical-theological picture of the Second Vatican Council (Vatican
II). By examining the main phases leading up to the council, the actual proceedings of
Vatican II, and its reception, the article will highlight the main actors and debates that
shaped the council’s theology. In light of the centrally defined axes that make up the four
conciliar constitutions – Sacrosanctum Concilium, Dei Verbum, Lumen Gentium, and
Gaudium et Spes – the development around the sacramental understanding of the church,
revelation, ecclesiology, and the relationship between the church and the modern world will
form a common thread in this contribution. At the same time, however, particular attention
will be paid to the other theological themes debated at the council, which are reflected in
the sixteen conciliar documents. In particular, the development of thinking on ecumenism,
religious freedom, and the relationship to non-Christian religions will be highlighted, since
these themes were not only particular points of debate at the council but would also define
discussions around the post-conciliar reception – a reception that took place worldwide
and was shaped by the particularities of each context, but was equally determined by the
historical/theological debate surrounding the hermeneutics of Vatican II.

Keywords: Second Vatican Council, Vatican II, Roman Catholic Church, Church councils,
Conciliar studies, Post-conciliar reception, Church and modernity

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Table of contents
1 Historical context

1.1 Long term

1.2 Medium term

1.3 Short term

2 The announcement and preparation

3 The actors

4 The history of Vatican II

4.1 First conciliar period and intersession

4.2 Second period and intersession

4.3 Third period and intersession

4.4 Fourth period

5 Doctrinal results

5.1 Key theological orientations

5.2 The constitutions: the dogmatic axis of the council

5.3 The nine conciliar decrees: initiating practical implementation

5.4 The three declarations: concise position statements

6 Receptions of Vatican II

7 List of Second Vatican Council documents

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1 Historical context
1.1 Long term
The historical background of the theology of Vatican II can be situated in a long-, medium-
and short-term history. The long-term history behind Vatican II begins, for some, with
the French Revolution in 1789 and the way in which it heightened the tensions between
the Church and its doctrine with modern political states and Enlightenment ideals. This
interaction, however, played out significantly in the long nineteenth century. Indeed, under
the influence of the Restoration, traditionalism gained a foothold in Catholicism, thus
paving the way for the rise of ultramontanism (strong emphasis on papal centralized
authority) and an emerging neo-scholastic theology. Despite Catholicism’s political
struggles with liberalism, Enlightenment ideals, and rationalism, nineteenth-century
Catholicism was equally marked by a broad religious revival (particularly in the mid-
nineteenth century) that meant exponential growth for religious orders and congregations,
and spurred on the laity and their popular beliefs and devotions. All this came to a head
during the pontificate of Pius IX who, strongly influenced by the revolutions of 1848, made
the fight against modernity (including liberalism) central to his pontificate, as shown in the
Syllabus Errorum – the appendix to the Quanta Cura encyclical issued on 8 December
1864. This also strongly marked, after years of Tridentine Catholicism, the convocation of
the First Vatican Council (Vatican I, 1869–1870). On the theological level, as expressed
in Dei Filius, this council was keeping the middle ground between rationalism and
traditionalism in understanding revelation, and on the ecclesiological level, Pastor
Aeternus defined papal primacy and infallibility. The premature conclusion of this council
due to the capture of Rome by the Risorgimento troops and the subsequent unresolved
‘Roman question’ determined the relations with the modern states for the decades to
come. Equally decisive was the pontificate of Leo XIII. His various encyclicals showed a
broader policy of ‘ralliement’, that is, the rapprochement between church and state, during
this pontificate. Indeed, Aeterni Patris (1879) gave impetus to neo-scholasticism and
the development of neo-Thomism via the return to the texts of Thomas Aquinas; Rerum
novarum (1891) inaugurated a tradition of Catholic social teaching that aimed to deal with
the ‘social question’ spurred by the second industrial revolution, and Providentissimus
Deus (1893) promoted the study of the Bible with the inclusion of critical methods. With
the pontificate of Pius X, tying in with the policies of his namesake predecessor, and its
defining fight against ‘modernism’ the theological matrix for understanding theological
development in the twentieth century (cf. Étienne Fouilloux) was set.

1.2 Medium term

In the medium term, the theology of Vatican II was determined by the developments of
church and theology during the interwar period, the aftermath of the Second World War,

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and the context of the Cold War; a period that was encompassed by the long pontificate
of Pius XII. Within the Church – but in close contact with sociocultural developments and
interactions with other Christian churches and other religions – developments often played
out around different movements; in particular, the liturgical movement, the lay apostolate
movement, the ecumenical movement, and the biblical movement. Theologically, this
was all held together by movements of ressourcement and renewal. Underlying the
various movements, one can see a renewed study of biblical, liturgical, and Thomistic/
Patristic sources enabling a more historically-subject oriented theology in line with current
times. The ‘nouvelle théologie’ is often used to showcase this development. The current
emerged in the French-speaking theological context and stood for a revived theology
that sparked a new contact with faith and life. It is mainly associated with the renewal
that took place at the Dominican study house Le Saulchoir under the rectorship of Marie-
Dominique Chenu in collaboration with Yves Congar and Henri-Marie Féret. Here, the
historical study of Thomas Aquinas and a renewed dialogue with modern philosophy
were central components. Secondly, a similar project was pursued at the Jesuit study
house La Fourvière by Henri De Lubac, Henri Bouillard, and Jean Daniélou based mainly
on a renewed patristic study. However, it should not be overlooked that there never
was an organized theological movement – hence also the label nouvelle théologie used
mainly by its then opponents to easily condemn certain innovative tendencies – but it
was rather part of a broader anthropological turn in mid-twentieth-century theology in
which the acceptance of historicity was a key element. The magisterium’s acceptance of
these developments was mixed. Relying on the centralized church image of Vatican I in
particular, the Roman neo-scholastic theology and its representatives, especially at the
Gregorian University, such as Réginald Garrigou-Lagrange, regarded these developments
with suspicion; the aforementioned even calling the ‘nouvelle théologie’ a return to
‘modernism’.

Several of these movements gained significant momentum after World War II. Neo-
Thomism itself, in particular through the work of the French philosophers Jacques
Maritain (especially his L’Humanisme Intégral, 1936) and Raïssa Maritain had found its
way to the general public and also led to new artistic expressions. Incorporated by the
representatives of L'Art Sacré, this led to a new Catholic self-expression in post-war
church architecture. With the encyclical Divino Afflante Spiritu (1943), Pius XII had given
leeway to the historical-critical method in exegesis. Likewise, the encyclical Mediator Dei
(1947) reinforced the liturgical movement’s call for a spiritual ressourcement of the liturgy
and active participation of the laity, as advocated by Romano Guardini and Dom Lambert
Beauduin. The pivotal moment seemed to be, however, the year 1950, proclaimed a Holy
Year by Pope Pius XII. For the first time, a dogma was defined with papal infallibility, the
dogma of the Assumption of Mary. At the same time, also the encyclical Humani Generis
was promulgated, warning against various deviations in academic disciplines, including

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an expression of views on evolution within biology and a repeated condemnation of ‘new’
developments. With the various international congresses and gatherings organized in
Rome on the occasion of the Holy Year, it was also a pivotal moment in the further stirring
up of Catholic internationalism.

This played out in particular through the World Congresses for the Lay Apostolate
(1951, 1957), but equally through the transnational activities of Catholic organizations in
which the Organisations Internationales Catholiques (OIC) played a central role. These
developments helped to further diversify forms of Catholic Action with movements such
as the Legion of Mary. But perhaps of even greater importance was the breakthrough
of specialized Catholic Action, which did not work at the parish level, but was organized
according to specific social groups, broken down, for example, by gender or social
class. The Jeunesse Ouvrière Chrétienne (Young Christian Workers), founded by the
Belgian priest Joseph Cardijn, functioned as a role model. The movement swiftly spread
internationally and managed to achieve the emancipation of lay people through the ‘see-
judge-act’ method. It taught young workers to discern their social context and the problems
they faced (see), evaluate them according to the gospel and the Church’s teaching (judge),
and then proceed to action (act); brought together in small study circles, it offered them an
opportunity to discuss this with each other and thus shape a common apostolate.

1.3 Short term

In the short term, Vatican II can be situated within the long 1960s, a period defined by
scholars such as Hugh McLeod (2007) as a time of rapid developments in the social
and ecclesiastical spheres – especially in Western Europe, with major implications for
Christendom. It was a period marked by major contradictions: increased economic
prosperity but equally a greater awareness of world poverty; a great belief in scientific
progress yet under the shadow of nuclear war; the belief in a unified humanity under
the shadow of the struggle for decolonization. The latter increased in importance
exponentially with seventeen African countries gaining independence in 1960. On the
world stage, the Berlin crisis (1961) and the Cuban missile crisis (1962) brought Cold
War tensions between John F. Kennedy, the first Catholic president of the United States,
and Nikita Khrushchev, Chairman of the Soviet Union, to an unprecedented height.
Increased affluence and urbanization that had started in the 1950s disrupted the classical
socialization of people into Catholicism that so often characterized rural communities.

Moreover, the first signs of secularization were noted in the years before among the
working class in works such as Yvan Daniel and Henri Godin’s La France, Pays de
Mission? (1943) now continued rapidly at all levels of society. Christianity in general, and
Catholicism in particular, were pushed back from the public sphere into the private sphere.
The second sexual revolution, in which the commercialization of the contraceptive pill in

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1960 played a particular role, also put increasing pressure on the Catholic view of family
and sexuality morality. Most importantly, however, was that on 9 October 1958 the long
pontificate of Pope Pius XII came to an end and Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli was elected as
new pope on 28 October, taking the papal name John XXIII.

2 The announcement and preparation

On 25 January 1959, during a meeting at the end of the International Week of Prayer for
Christian Unity, Pope John XXIII announced a threefold plan for his pontificate: to organize
a synod for the diocese of Rome, to issue a new code of canon law, and to convene an
ecumenical council. Despite the never realized plans to convoke a council under the
pontificates of Pius XI and Pius XII and the long shadow of the unfinished First Vatican
Council, the plan was met with surprise amongst the cardinals, but would soon invigorate
Catholics worldwide. At an organizational level, an Ante-Preparatory Commission was
established on 17 May 1959. Together with the secretaries of the Roman Congregations,
its president, Secretary of State Domenico Tardini, and its secretary, auditor of the
Roman Rota and Professor of Canon Law at the Lateranum, Pericle Felici, would hold the
responsibility over the preparation of the council. Their major act was sending the letter
(18 June 1959) to the global episcopate to submit their expectations and wishes for this
upcoming council in ‘absolute freedom’. In the following months, the Commission received
ten vota from the different departments of the Roman Curia, fifty-one vota of the Catholic
Universities and Faculties of Theology, 1,998 vota from the resident and titular bishops,
and finally 101 vota from the Generals of Religious Orders and Congregations. All these
vota were brought together in an Analyticus conspectus consiliorum et votorum qauae
ab Episcopis et Praelatis data sunt (An Analytical View of the Councils and Vows given
by Bishops and Prelates), which formed a rather heterogenous basis for the work of the
preparatory commissions. Coming from around the world and mostly expressing intra-
ecclesial matters, the vota were for a long time considered an expression of the situation
of the Catholic Church on the eve of the council; but because of conformity and the power
balances at stake in the communication with the Roman Curia, this view has been strongly
nuanced in contemporary research, as well as the view that this could provide a truthful
glimpse into the ecclesiastical, cultural, and social situation of the different regions.

On 5 June 1960, with the motu proprio Superno Dei Nutu, the actual preparation took off.
In addition to the Central Preparatory Commission to oversee the work, ten Preparatory
Commissions were installed, their presidents being the heads of the Roman Curia.
The Theological Commission was chaired by Cardinal Alfredo Ottaviani. Among these
commissions, the biggest novelty, without counterpart in the Roman Curia, was the
Preparatory Commission on the Apostolate of the Laity. This development was clearly the
result of the growing importance of lay apostolate in Catholicism in the preceding decades.
In addition, three secretariats were set up: the Secretariat for Economic and Technical

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Questions, the Secretariat for the Supervision of Publications and Entertainment, and the
Secretariat for the Unity of Christians. The latter met the ecumenical aspirations for this
council of John XXIII. Until the start of the council – which was actually convened officially
in December 1961 with the Apostolic Constitution Humanae salutis – these preparatory
commissions and secretariats were respectively responsible for drafting what would
eventually become seventy-two schemata based on the vota and the practical preparation.
Beyond the organization in Rome, the anticipation of the council, shaped the minds of
Catholics globally and raised expectations of a new era for the Church. The vota had been
an opportunity for some bishops to organize surveys in their dioceses; for theologians
and other academics, an incentive to redirect their theological reflections. Equally, bottom-
up expectations were created, driven by pastoral letters addressed to the faithful by their
bishops or by the appeals for prayer for the success of the coming council, as launched by
John XXIII on 27 April 1959.

3 The actors
The theology and unfolding of the Second Vatican Council was the result of many actors.
As those who held the authority to participate in an ecumenical council, the Council
Fathers played the most significant role. Among those who participated as Council
Fathers, this council was unique. More than 2,000 Council Fathers took part in each of
the council’s four periods: 2,449 in period I; 2,488 in period II; 2,466 in period III; and
2,636 in period IV. This number, however, was only a fraction of the cardinals, patriarchs,
residential and titular bishops, abbots, and superior generals of the religious orders that
could participate (cf. Code of Canon Law and Ordo Conciliari). Among the bishops, the
Eastern rite bishops – including the six Catholic patriarchs of the Armenian, Chaldean,
Maronite, Melikite, Syrian, and Coptic Church – were a notable group.

In the way that the conciliar dynamics played out, it is clear that sociability played a major
role in the collaboration of the Council Fathers. This collaboration was, in the first place,
based on shared nationality or language, foreshadowing the intensified importance of
national bishops’ conferences after Vatican II. Among the bishops’ conferences that
raised their profile most were those that were greater in number and already had a long
tradition of working as conferences, such as the French, German, Italian, and Spanish
bishops. However, the ‘squadra belga’ – the efficient and successful cooperation of
Belgian bishops and theologians within the assembly – also made it clear that smaller
national groups could play a significant role as well. Despite the global nature of Vatican II,
with Council Fathers from the world Church present, and a notable contribution from some
episcopates such as the Chilean and Indian bishops, this council still remained dominated
by the Western European church. Indeed, many of the Council Fathers had received their
theological training in Western Europe or had been influenced by this theology, they were
often themselves descended from the West as missionary bishops and relied strongly on

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the large presence of Western European theologians in Rome and the financial means of
the Propaganda Fidei.

Some Council Fathers formed collaborative groups based on common interests. Thus,
the Coetus Internationalis Patrum came to the fore as bringing together the strongest and
most consistent voices of the conciliar minority, such as Archbishops Geraldo de Proença
Sigaud, Marcel Lefebvre, and Luigi Maria Carli. Equally, groups like the ‘Church of the
Poor’ can be noted. Inspired by Paul Gauthier, this group gathered Council Fathers who
pursued a poor church that serves the poor, a position they took up as a kind of manifesto
in the Pact of the Catacombs (16 November 1965). Their aspirations were expressed
symbolically when Paul VI renounced the papal tiara and donated the proceeds from its
sale to the poor.

In addition to the Council Fathers were the theological experts, the periti, who assisted
in their work. They were divided into two categories: those appointed as periti of the
council and those appointed as periti of particular Council Fathers. Only with this official
appointment were they allowed to attend debates in the conciliar aula (council chamber)
and be present at meetings of the commissions, where, after being designated by
the commissions members, they could also take the floor. Particularly linked to these
commissions and thus the redaction of certain schemata, they performed much of
the drafting and revision work. Within these commissions, they could also take up the
role of secretary. As the example of German Jesuit Sebastian Tromp, secretary of the
Doctrinal Commission, makes clear, this allowed them not only to play a central role in
the committees but also in cultivating the relationships between them. Finally, there were
those theologians who assisted bishops in a personal capacity, provided advice, and
were active in Rome (for example, giving evening lectures, among other things). This
category included Dutch theologian Edward Schillebeeckx, who never received an official
appointment despite repeated attempts to gain one, and the Swiss theologian Hans Küng,
who never sought such an appointment because he believed it would jeopardize his
theological independence and freedom to act. The periti’s influence on this council was
extensive, with the question sometimes asked whether this was not more the council of the
theologians than the bishops.

Based on Pope John XXIII’s ecumenical focus, an invitation had been extended to other
Christian churches to attend the conciliar proceedings. The representatives they sent, as
a result, participated as ‘non-Catholic observers’. They fell under the responsibility of the
Secretariat for Christian Unity, under the guidance of its president Augustine Bea. Among
them there were two groups: the delegate observers who functioned as representatives of
their respective churches, and the guests who took part ad personam. For example, Lukas
Vischer attended the Ecumenical Council of Churches; the Lutheran Oscar Cullmann
and Russian Orthodox theologians Nicholas Arseniev and Alexander Schmemann

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attended as guests. By the final period of the council, their number had increased to
106, with a majority coming from Protestant churches and a minority from Orthodox and
Eastern Churches. This situation was primarily caused by the initial hesitation of the
Patriarchate of Constantinople to send a representative. This was rectified from the third
period onwards, when André Scrima started to attend as a personal representative of
Athenagoras. Although being invited as passive spectators initially, through the mediation
of the Secretariat that provided practical, linguistic, and theological support, they emerged
as a key group guarding the ecumenical principles of this council.

The last group allowed to attend the session in aula were the ‘lay auditors’. Although the
French philosopher Jean Guitton had been present during the first session on special
invitation by John XXIII, it was only in the second session that thirteen lay men were
officially appointed to attend the council. Many of them came from international Catholic
organizations or had been active in Catholic lay apostolate movements. Symbolic in that
sense was the position of Vittorino Veronese, former director of UNESCO and president
of the first two World Congresses of Lay Apostolate. It should be pointed out that they
took part in the council ad personam (on an individual basis) and not as representatives
of their respective organizations. In the case of August Vanistendael, General Secretary
of the International Federation of Christian Trade Unions, this even led to discussions
with the organization itself. From the third session onwards, after calls by several Council
Fathers, women were also included when the number of lay auditors was expanded.
These included both lay women and women in religious orders: for example, Rosemary
Goldie; Pilar Bellosillo, president of the World Union of Catholic Women’s Organizations;
the economist Barbara Ward Jackson; and Chair of the US Conference of Major Superiors
of Women, Sister Mary Luke Tobin. At the end of the council, fifty-two lay auditors had
been appointed.

In addition to these officially appointed participants, two additional groups present in

Rome need to be mentioned. First of all, the global press that had come to Rome to
report on the council contributed strongly to its global outreach. In contrast to the previous
council, news of the Second Vatican Council reached living rooms simultaneously through
radio and television. In addition to the official press office, the press also organized itself
internationally, on the basis of previous years of collaboration, with a clear role for editors
of the journals connected to the Rencontres Internationals d’Informateurs Religieux.
Nor can we ignore the many people behind the scenes who made the conciliar work
possible. In particular, think of the practical organization that involved converting the nave
of St. Peter’s Basilica into a conciliar aula, the simultaneous translators and minutanti
(administrators) and those – men and women – who supported the conciliar process in
positions as secretaries or assistants. Not to be forgotten are also those who took care of

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the attendees’ stay in the city of Rome, providing accommodation in the different colleges,
institutions, religious houses, and hotels.

Finally, often remaining invisible, is the wider ‘community of Catholic faithful’. Through
private and public letters, requests, and petitions, they sometimes directly sought to
contribute to the process of the council. Similarly, through prayer actions or individual
requests, their support was sought by Council Fathers. However, most importantly, they
would become the main recipients of the conciliar decisions. This interconnection between
the council and the community of faithful at grassroots level in different contexts worldwide
has only recently received increased attention from researchers.

4 The history of Vatican II

The council was opened on 11 October 1962 by Pope John XXIII. The Pope immediately
set the tone with his opening speech Gaudet Mater Ecclesia, in which he called for the
aggiornamento (bringing up to date) of the Church. His speech further clarified that this
council would aim to find ways to express doctrinal substance in a pastoral way – a call he
repeated that evening, in a more improvised manner, in what has become known as the
Sermon of the Moon. Whereas the opening speech marked the mentalities of the Council
Fathers gathered in Rome, the sermon would – through the live broadcasting – have a
similar effect on the global community. The mediatization of this speech, but equally of
the procession of the Council Fathers and the opening liturgy that same day, ensured that
the council penetrated the collective memory of Catholics worldwide. As such, the council
was accomplishing the goal that John XXIII had set a month before the council began in
his radio message to the world through Eurovision (11 September 1962) in which he had
emphasized the global character of this council and the necessary attention for the Church
of the Poor.

The council unfolded over four years, adhering to the regulations outlined in the Ordo
Concilii Oecumenici Vaticani II Celebrandi. These regulations had been the work of a
subcommittee of the Central Preparatory Commission, headed by Cardinal Francesco
Roberti, who presented their work on 6 August 1962 to John XXIII with the motu proprio
Appropinquante Concilio. Every year in the fall, the Council Fathers would gather in Rome,
where they would assemble in St Peter’s Basilica to discuss the prepared schemata in
plenary; and, if possible, to vote upon and approve them. The schemata were prepared
by the conciliar commissions and once accepted as ready for discussion, they would be
sent to the Council Fathers, and in session be presented to the General Congregation by
a relator appointed by the commission; next, the floor was opened for the interventions of
the Council Fathers, who were given equal time for their interventions in an order defined
by rank. After discussing the schemata generally, the discussion would continue chapter
by chapter with a vote at the end to decide whether they would be accepted (placet),

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rejected (non-placet), or accepted on the condition that specific changes were still made
(placet juxta modum). This, then, allowed the commissions to further revise the schemata
in the intersessions. As such, much of the actual work was carried out in the conciliar
commissions during the intersessions.

Supported by the General Secretariat, chaired by Felici, the work was divided over ten
commissions: the Doctrinal Commission (Alfredo Ottaviani); the Commission for Bishops
and the Governance of Dioceses (Paolo Marella); the Commission on Oriental Churches
(Amleto Cicognani); the Commission for the Discipline of the Sacraments (Benedetto
Masella); the Commission for the Discipline of the Clergy and the Christian People (Pietro
Ciriaci); the Commission for Religious (Valerio Valeri); the Commission for Missions
(Grégoire-Pierre XV Agagianian); the Liturgical Commission (Arcadio Larraona Saralegui);
the Commission for Seminaries, Studies, and Catholic Schools (Giuseppe Pizzardo); the
Commission for the Apostolate of the Laity, for the Press, and Entertainment (Fernando
Cento); and – elevated as an equivalent to the commissions at the beginning of the first
period – the Secretariat for Christian Unity (Augustin Bea).

The election of the members for the commissions proved to be a moment of self-
awareness for the Council Fathers when, on 13 October, presidents of the day Cardinals
Achilles Liénart and Josef Frings received great acclaim from the Council Fathers in their
demand for a postponement of the vote. This allowed several bishops’ conferences to
produce their own lists with possible members. The subsequent election on 16 October
proved its success and led to more diverse commissions in terms of theological and
geographical composition compared to the preparatory commissions.

4.1 First conciliar period and intersession

The council’s first period (11 October–8 December 1962) was marked by the Council
Fathers’ growing awareness of co-responsibility over the accomplishment of the council
and its schemata. In preparation of the first period of the council, the Council Fathers had
been sent seven preparatory schemata, between July and November 1962. The first batch
of documents were De Fontibus Revelationis on the sources of revelation, De Deposito
Fidei on revelation, De Ordine Morali Christiano on the Christian moral order, De Castitate,
Matrimonio, Familia et Verginitate on chastity, marriage, family, and virginity, De Sacra
Liturgia on sacred liturgy, De Instrumentis Communicationis Socialis on the means of
social communication, and De Ecclesiae Unitate on ecumenism. In the lead-up to the
council and over the first few days of the proceedings, it was evident there was a certain
dissatisfaction with these drafts.

The first session started with a discussion on the De Sacra Liturgia, as it clearly reflected
the developments of the liturgical movement and was not expected to result in too much
debate (22 October–13 November 1962). In general, the schema received a lot of support

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and the debate mainly focused on the use of vernacular languages in liturgy and the
role of the conferences of local bishops. Both were in line with general tendencies that
emphasized the responsibility of the local church and the bishop as the main liturgist.

As easy as the discussion on the De Sacra Liturgia had been, the De Fontibus
Revelationis debate (14–21 November 1962) proved to be much more challenging. The
preparatory schema, a product of the Theological Commission, was marked by its critical
stance – almost condemnation – of the historical-critical method and an emphasis on
Scripture and Tradition as the two main sources of revelation and, thus, ignored the
advancements made in the Biblical Movement and the Ecumenical Movement respectively.
This resulted in the first public clash between Cardinal Ottaviani and Cardinals Alfrink,
Bea, Frings, König, Liénart, Léger, Suenens, and Ritter. The split in the council hall also
became clear in the vote on the interruption of the debate on the schema, and what de
facto would mean the rejection of this schema. Despite the 1,368 placet to 822 non-
placet vote, it did not achieve the two-third majority needed to come to a decision, causing
John XXIII to intervene in favour of those asking to interrupt the debate and to transfer
the schema to a mixed commission of the Doctrinal Commission and the Secretariat for
Christian Unity (SCUF).

The period continued with two short debates: the debate on the schema on social
communication means (23–26 November 1962) resulted in the acceptance of the schema.
The debate on Ut unum sint (23–26 November 1962) resulted in the proposal to integrate
this schema on Christian unity that dealt mostly with the relation between Catholics and
the Orthodox through a reunification and reconciliation lens into a schema that dealt with
ecumenism in a broader sense. However, these debates mainly turned out to be a kind of
interlude before the debate on the schema De Ecclesia (1–7 December 1962). The debate
was short and brought to light the criticisms of the schema, summarized by Monsignor De
Smedt on behalf of the SCUF as subject to ‘triumphalism, legalism, and clericalism’. The
schema was met with pleas for it to take into account the ecclesiological developments
of the past century, including the increased christocentrism and attention to the college of
bishops.

The end of this first period was, however, mostly marked by an adjustment of the council’s
organization in order to make it more efficient. The Belgian Cardinal Suenens played a
decisive role in this through introducing the ad intra and ad extra division of the schemata
in his speech in December. Joined by Cardinals Montini and Lercaro, among others, this
established a new programme for the council at the beginning of the second session,
consisting of seventeen drafts divided according to these two lines of intra-ecclesial and
extra-ecclesial focal points. Particularly the seventeenth schema on the list, De Ecclesiae
principiis et actione ad bonum societatis promovendum, would draw the attention of the
Council Fathers in the years to come. Given its novelty in the conciliar tradition, it would

12
be mainly referred to as its position on the list of schemas, that is, Schema XVII and
later Schema XIII. Its rather late presence on the agenda, however, did not mean that no
attention had been paid to the modern world and its challenges: the preparatory schemata
had made this clear already, but equally so did the Message of the Council Fathers –
following initiatives of Marie-Dominique Chenu and Jacques Lebret, among others – which
was sent out to the world on 20 October 1962 and made clear the commitment of the
Council Fathers to enter into dialogue with the modern world.

The ‘first intersession’ showed how these periods could have a decisive influence on the
conciliar process. In the first place, the newly created Coordination Commission (presided
by Amleto Cicognani) would oversee the work on the different schemata. However, it
would mainly be extra-conciliar events that would set the agenda during this period,
such as the promulgation of Pacem in Terris on 11 April 1963. This encyclical dealt with
the questions of war and peace in the middle of the Cold War and would, like Mater et
Magistra (15 May 1961), become a point of reference for the Council Fathers in the later
discussions on Schema XVII/XIII. In particular, its address to ‘all people of good will’ in the
opening lines set the tone for a more dialogical approach. At around the same time, the
death of Pope John XXIII occurred on 3 June, followed by the subsequent conclave. The
continuation or otherwise of the council was prevalent in the minds of the papal electors.
The election of the Archbishop of Milan, Giovanni Battista Montini on 21 June, evidenced
a clear choice in favour of continuation. A week later, on 27 June, he announced he would
do as such and would reconvene the Council Fathers to Rome on 29 September. Yet,
while John XXIII had been the pope who had given the council to the Council Fathers,
the pontificate of Paul VI clearly planned the council to lead it – hopefully without too
much friction between majority and minority – to a close. In addition, he also appointed
four moderators, Cardinals Grégoire-Pierre XV Agagianian (Patriarch of the Armenian
Catholic Church), Julius Döpfner (Archbishop of Munich and Freising), Giacomo Lercaro
(Archbishop of Bologna), and Léon-Joseph Suenens (Archbishop of Malines-Brussels)
who would form the bridge between the Pope and the Council Fathers.

4.2 Second period and intersession

The council’s second period (29 September–4 December 1963) would be marked most
strongly by the continued debates on the De Ecclesia. In his opening speech on 29
September, Paul VI introduced four guiding principles for the upcoming period, namely
the presentation of the theology of the Church, the inner renewal of the Church, the
promotion of Christian unity, and dialogue with the modern world. In particular this last
aspect of ‘dialogue’ as the new guiding principle, one to which he would later return more
extensively in the encyclical Ecclesiam Suam (6 August 1964), would become his imprint
on the council. The discussions took off the next day on the new schema De Ecclesia,
which went back to a draft prepared by Gerard Philips during the intersession. The shifts

13
were remarkable; the juridical focus on the ecclesial hierarchy had been shifted to a
sacramental understanding, placing the mystery of the Church centrally. At the same time,
the college of bishops started to receive more attention from the council as discussions
recalled its biblical roots. Of symbolic importance was the acceptance of the request to
give the chapter on the People of God precedence over the chapter on the hierarchy.
The general positive tone in the discussions was reflected in the strong majority vote to
continue with the present schema.

Next followed the discussion on the bishops and the governance of the dioceses (5–18
November 1963). Despite strong critiques of the preparatory schema – among others
for not respecting the idea of collegiality and respecting the conciliar style – and Council
Fathers taking the opportunity to call for reforms of the Roman Curia in this context, the
schema was accepted for discussion. During the proceedings, it became clear how this
discussion was influenced by the long shadow of Vatican I, and it became a learning
process in collegiality for many of the Council Fathers.

The final discussion was reserved for the discussion on the schema on ecumenism (18
November–2 December). The discussion focused on the first three chapters, during which
it became clear that despite the advocacy by some Council Fathers in favour of a return
to ecumenism, the majority valued the ecumenical rapprochement. The debate on the
last two chapters of the schema – on the relation to Judaism and religious liberty – was
postponed to the next period, which responded both to their controversial nature and to
the question of whether these texts actually belonged in a schema on ecumenism. This
second period had been marked by many tensions that could finally be laid to rest, at least
temporarily, due to the voting on the constitution on liturgy (Sacrosanctum Concilium and
the decree on social communication means (Inter Mirifica), both of which were accepted
by the Council Fathers on 4 December. Both schemas were promulgated by Pope Paul VI,
adding to the formulation that it was done ‘una cum Venerabilibus Patribus’ (together with
the Venerable Fathers).

In his concluding speech, Paul VI had already indicated that during ‘second intersession’
he would pay a visit to Jerusalem (4–6 January 1964). The pilgrimage of Paul VI should
certainly be understood in the context of the ongoing conciliar debates on ecumenism
and on the relation to Judaism – in particular, his successful meeting with Patriarch
Athenagoras during which they prayed together and expressed that their hope to restore
Christian communion would hold symbolic importance for the conciliar proceedings.
Secondly, it had become clear in the meantime that many topics were still open for
discussion, and an early end of the council was not yet in sight. Based on a plan that
Döpfner had already worked out the previous year, the Coordinating Commission
decided to propose that only the schemata on the Church, on bishops, on revelation,
on the apostolate of the laity, on ecumenism, and on the Church in the modern world

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be continued; the other texts would be transferred to post-conciliar committees, so that
the council could end after its third period. However, the changes to the regulation for a
more efficient use of time, which had been equally part of this Döpfner plan, were met with
opposition during the third session and made a conclusive end to the council in one more
period unlikely.

4.3 Third period and intersession

The third period of the council (14 September–21 November 1964) was strongly marked
by the hope of making as much progress as possible, including on hot topics such as
religious liberty. In his opening speech Paul VI emphasized the importance of collegiality,
a topic that would return at the end of this period in all strength. A rapid succession of
debates followed on the schemata on the Church (16–23 September), on the bishops (18–
22 September), and on religious liberty (23–28 September), in which a text that had been
given now the status of decree drew much criticism for creating the risk for indifferentism,
but also got the strong support of the American bishops, and a debate on the schema
on the non-Christians and Jews (28–29 September). The debate on the schema on
revelation (30 September–6 October) prompted a minority and majority report that argued
respectively for the equal importance of tradition and the singularity of Scripture as the
sole source of revelation; this issue was clearly not yet settled. The debate on the schema
on lay apostolate (6–13 October) made clear that, probably due to its novelty, the schema
was not considered mature enough and reflected the advancements in lay apostolate of
the past decades. Nevertheless, this debate provided the context for the historic moment
when Patrick Keegan, as a layman, took the floor on 13 October to address the Council
Fathers.

Among the schemata still discussed – on the priests (14–15 October), on the Eastern
Churches (15–22 October), on the missions (6–8 November), on religious life (10–12
November), on Christian education (17–19 November), and on the training of priests (13–
18 November) – it would be the discussion on the schema on the Church in the world
(20 October–10 November) that would be most intense. This document, having gone
through a variety of different drafts, was still marked by ambiguity over the diversity of
topics to be included and the style – either doctrinal or pastoral – to be used. The debate
finally addressed the relationship between the Church and the world, the assessment
of culture, modern atheism, and developments in thinking around marriage and family
among others. What became clear is that pre-conciliar tensions over incarnational or
eschatological theological visions of history, the need for inductive or deductive theology,
or the engagement of theology with other academic disciplines clearly surfaced in the
context of these debates. It also became clear that a fourth session was really necessary
to bring this schema to a successful conclusion.

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The last week of the council was marked by a series of incidents that rocked the council’s
fate, and would be dubbed ‘the Black Week’. Firstly, before the vote on the third chapter
De Ecclesia, Felici announced ‘by mandate of higher authority’ that a Nota Explicativa
Praevia (preliminary explanatory note) would be included in the text that proposed an
‘introductory and restrictive interpretation of the text on collegiality’. Secondly, the vote
on the schema on religious freedom was cancelled. Thirdly, being distributed last minute
before the final vote, it became clear that the Pope had made minor changes to the
Decree on Ecumenism – for which the Council Fathers had already approved every
chapter. While this period closed with the successful promulgation on 21 November of
Lumen Gentium, Unitatis Redintegration, and Orientalium Ecclesiarum, these interventions
gave the impression that Paul VI was succumbing to the pressure coming from the
conciliar minority and caused frustration among the Council Fathers. Moreover, especially
in the context of the debates around schedule XVII/XIII, fractures in the conciliar majority
began to become clear.

The third intersession was a period of tremendous activity to accomplish the successful
voting of the remaining documents in the last period. This included Paul VI’s participation
in the International Eucharistic Congress in Bombay; the huge working meeting of the
Mixed Commission on Schema XIII in Ariccia (31 January–6 February 1965); and intensive
diplomatic works for the success of some of the more controversial documents, like
Nostra Aetate, including conversations with the Catholic actors in the Middle East and the
(Muslim) political leaders of the Middle Eastern countries.

4.4 Fourth period

The fourth period (14 September 14–8 December 1965) was mainly dominated by the
Church’s dialogue with the modern world. This was made clear in Paul VI’s opening
speech, during which he also surprisingly announced the creation of a body of bishops that
would regularly meet with him. The next day, the Synod of Bishops was created with the
motu proprio Apostolica Sollicitudo. He also announced his visit to the United States on
4 October, where he would address the United Nations assembly. Upon his arrival back
in Rome – and being brought straight to the conciliar aula where all Council Fathers were
assembled – they requested the speech to be included in the conciliar acts as a symbol
of the Church’s engagement with the modern world. Debates started with the revised
schema on religious freedom (15–21 September), and the final vote on the schema on
revelation (22 September), but would focus substantially on Schema XIII (21 September–
8 October). The text – the only original written in a modern language, French – was still
criticized for being too optimistic, failing to make clear the relationship between nature
and the supernatural, and at times lacking conceptual clarity such as on the concepts of
‘world’, ‘creation’, and ‘culture’. Nonetheless, it received an overall positive vote for the

16
discussion chapter by chapter, during which interventions on the council’s approach to
atheism, to marriage and family, and to nuclear arms were especially notable.

This was followed by final debates and votes on the schema on the Church’s missionary
activity (8–13 October), on Christian education (13–14 October), and on the non-Christian
religions (14–15 October). Before the debate on priesthood (13–16 and 25–27 October)
began, Paul VI had made it clear via a letter on 11 October that he would withdraw the
hot topic of celibacy from the council, so the debate mainly focused on the tension in the
priestly image between the sacramental minister and the presbyter in the service of the
world.

After the debates, the final votes and approval (mostly with overwhelming majority) of
Christus Dominus, Perfectae Caritatis, Optatam Totius, and Gravissimum Educations,
Nostra Aetate on 28 October and Dei Verbum and Apostolicam Actuositatem on 18
November brought to light the achievements of the council. It was also the achievement
of the many redactors who had succeeded during the intersession and in this period to
still integrate the many amendments requested by the Council Fathers. However, the final
votes on the schedule in the modern world (15–17 November) and Paul V’s four modi
(amendments) for the chapter on marriage – including the demand for a ban on artificial
contraception – made it clear that tensions were still alive in the conciliar assembly.
Emphasizing the freedom of conscience and personal responsibility of couples in this
particular case, but showing a great sense of nuance, diplomacy, and comprise in general
by the redactors, Gaudium et Spes was overwhelmingly approved on 7 December, along
with Presbyterorum Ordinis, Ad Gentes, and Dignitatis Humanae. The same day Cardinal
Johannes Willebrands was also given the honour of reading, during the public ceremony,
the declaration lifting the mutual excommunication between the Catholic and the Orthodox
Church.

The council closed on December 8 with a public session. A celebration occurred during
which Pope Paul VI presented messages to specific groups in society. The messages
were to the ‘men’ of thought and science, to the heads of state, to the artists, to women, to
the youth, to the workers, to the Council Fathers, and finally, to the poor, the sick, and the
suffering. With the apostolic brief In Spiritu Sancto, the council was officially closed.

5 Doctrinal results
Presenting the theological content of Vatican II is a difficult task, and it cannot be
understood in isolation from its redaction history and the wider events of the council.
The documents themselves, being the result of lengthy drafting, redacting, amending,
and seeking the ‘unimitatis’ (unanimity), are often reflected in a language marked by
compromise, creating sometimes ambivalence over its interpretation. Nevertheless, in
what follows an attempt will be made to point out some of the key principles contained in

17
the different documents, paying attention to both the main components and some aspects
that have later gained more attention due to their role in post-conciliar debates.

A collection of the documents is available at the Vatican online archive.

5.1 Key theological orientations

Strongly based on the theological renewal in the years prior to the council, the key
theological orientations of the council are also strongly defined by the visions of Popes
John XXIII and Paul VI. In calling for a new council, the former had clearly set the goal
for it to be an ecumenical council, understood in its broadest sense as entering into
dialogue with non-Catholics, other Christians, and Judaism in particular. John XXIII further
complemented this at the start of the council with the principles of aggiornamento and
the need to express doctrine in a pastoral way. Paul VI added to these orientations with
the principles of collegiality and dialogue, further setting the stage for later processes of
synodality and engagement with the modern world.

The council’s orientation was fundamentally determined by its dogmatic axis formed by
the four constitutions. Scripture and liturgy are the foundation on which the Church’s
self-understanding (Ecclesia ad intra) and its relationship to the outside world (Ecclesia
ad extra) is based. Revelation, found primarily in Scripture, emerges as historical and
dialogical. Moving away from the classical hierarchical understanding of the structures
of the Church, the Biblical-Sacramental ecclesiology of the council moves towards a
Christocentric-Trinitarian theology that prioritizes the People of God’s common dignity and
calling, on the basis of the common baptism as participation in the Paschal Mystery. Thus,
the Church is understood eschatologically; its functioning and its tradition are always in
need of renewal, as is expressed concisely in the principle of Ecclesia semper reformanda
(the Church must always be reformed, LG 8). The attitude towards the modern world is
marked by an (incipient) desire for dialogue. The principle of ‘reading the signs of the times
in the light of the Gospel’ represents a key point in the further interpretation and application
of the council.

The decrees and declarations build on this foundation by elaborating further on aspects
of the People of God, on the formation, and on the mission of the church. In this way,
Vatican I’s emphasis on the papacy and a vertical hierarchical view of the Church is
balanced with a theology of the episcopate in which sharing in the threefold office (tria
munera) of Christ and collegiality also set the tone for the priesthood, with some interest
in collaboration with the laity. Moreover, the sacerdotal and cultic imagination of ordained
ministry is complemented by a more pastoral one. The increased importance of the lay
apostolate and the inner renewal of religious life throughout the twentieth century recall
what the council says about active participation in the Church’s life and apostolate, and
about renewing the religious life by revisiting the founder’s charism. Secondly, the conciliar

18
renewal wishes to permeate all domains of the Church through a rethinking of priestly
formation and Catholic education in general.

Finally, the council offers impulses for the Church’s internal and external mission. In this,
the council considers the same concentric circles as Paul VI presented in his encyclical
Ecclesiam suam to present the various dialogue partners of the Church. This, first and
foremost, is renewal in the Church itself with a particular focus on unity in diversity,
expressed especially where the Eastern Catholic churches are concerned. Next, it
may be clear that the council was true to its ecumenical commitment, rediscovering
other Christians as ‘brothers and sisters’. Third, the Council opens up to dialogue
with non-Catholics, setting the stage for later decades of interreligious dialogue. The
recognition of what is ‘true and holy in these religions’, including Islam, Hinduism, and
Buddhism, was an unforeseen outcome of the council’s efforts to redefine its relationship
to Judaism, distancing itself from supersessionist theologies and the belief in Jewish
responsibility for ‘deicide’ (the killing of God). Nevertheless, the tension between dialogue
and evangelization remains one of the council’s central areas of tension. This is also felt
in its attitude and presence in the modern world, characterized at the time as becoming
increasingly secular. Here, equally, dialogue is paramount with upholding principles of
inculturation, human dignity, and the right to religious freedom.

What stood out were not only specific theological convictions or orientations, but also the
way they were prepared – the modus procedendi – and the way they were presented and
the style of the conciliar texts. John XIIII's desire to express doctrine in a pastoral way was
embraced more and more in the course of the council. Unlike previous councils, Vatican
II’s style is less scholastic and more literary-humanistic in nature (panegyric, according
to O’Malley); less deductive and more inductive; marked by an openness to the rise of
sociology in theology during the pre-conciliar years and with a clear aim of presenting
a comprehensible and conveying message to contemporary humanity. In terms of the
moral theological options, a shift towards personalism and an emphasis on the personal
conscience and the common good is apparent. In general, the council, as the ‘end of the
Constantinian era’ (Chenu) and the ‘beginning of the beginning’ (Rahner), set the stage
for an understanding of the Church as moving away from a Western-European focused
Catholicism to becoming a global church.

5.2 The constitutions: the dogmatic axis of the council

Sacrosanctum Concilium, Constitution on the Divine Liturgy (SC, 4 December 1963; 2,147
placet, 4 non-placet) was the first approved document of the council. It emphasized the
eucharistic nature of the Church, defining the Eucharist as the ‘sacrament of unity’. After
opening with the importance of liturgy for the life of the Church, the eight chapters of the
constitution discuss the renewal and promotion of the liturgy, the mystery of the Eucharist,

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the sacraments and sacramentals, the liturgy of the hours, the liturgical year, sacred
music, and finally sacred art. Throughout these chapters, the idea of the liturgy as ‘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) runs as a common thread, clearly reflecting the
achievements of the Liturgical Movement. This is also reflected in its embrace of the active
participation of the faithful in the liturgy and, consequently, the call for the increased use
of the vernacular in the liturgy. At the same time, the importance of the Word of God also
comes more strongly to the fore. While the schema was voted in with a large majority, its
implementation through the Consilium ad exsequendam Constitutionem de Sacra Liturgia
commission in the post-conciliar years proved – as one of the most visible results of the
council at grassroots level – at times a stumbling block in the conciliar reception.

Lumen Gentium, Dogmatic Constitution on the Church (LG, 21 November 1964; 2,151
placet, 5 non-placet) functioned as synthesis of Vatican II’s ecclesiology with a biblical-
patristic orientation as a benchmark for all other documents. Divided into eight chapters,
the document deals with the mystery of the church with an emphasis on its sacramental
nature, the realization of this mystery through the People of God that share as a whole
in the threefold office of Christ, and the hierarchical structure of the church (with special
attention for the bishops in which it elevated the college of bishops). It goes on to develop
how the laity in particular contributes to the mission of the Church through its apostolate
that shared in the threefold office of Christ, the universal call for holiness that broadened
the understanding of the paths to perfection, the religious as an essential expression of
this striving to holiness, the eschatological character of the church, and a final chapter
on Mary, the mother of God. The constitution integrated insights from all the pre-conciliar
movements, particularly aspects of sacramental theology with its emphasis on the
church as mystery and the importance of the laity – reflected in the decision to place the
chapter on the People of God before the chapters dealing with the church hierarchy. The
constitution remained a guiding document in the post-conciliar period where, in particular
in the 1985 synod, the communio-ecclesiology contained in the constitution received even
greater emphasis.

Dei Verbum, Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation (DV, 18 November 1965; 2,344
placet, 6 non-placet) places the Word of God at the centre of the life of the church, with
its dynamic and dialogical view on revelation. After an introduction in which the listening
and proclaiming character of the Church is emphasized, six chapters present revelation
in a relational perspective, with God communicating himself, speaking to humans ‘as
friends’ and inviting them to enter ‘voluntarily’ into communion with him; the transmission
of revelation in which the tradition concept in particular is further developed; as well as the
inspiration and interpretation of Scripture in which attention is given to the literary genres
employed by the human authors, with further indications on the Old and New Testament
(chapters IV and V respectively). The constitution closes by emphasizing the significance

20
of Scripture in the life of the church and its importance also for theology. This constitution
reflected one of the greatest developments of the council in which the initial emphasis
in the De Fontibus Revelationis and De Deposito Fidei Pure Custodiendo schemata on
the two-source doctrine on revelation – both Scripture and Tradition – gave room for the
integration of the historical-critical exegetical insights of the past century and, with its
emphasis on the Word of God, also resonated with ecumenical sensibilities.

Gaudium et Spes, Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World (GS, 7
December 1965; 2,300 placet, 75 non-placet) redefines Catholicism’s relation to modernity
on a Christian anthropological and dialogical basis. In its extensive preface introduction
dealing with the condition of humanity in today’s world (GS 1–3; 4–10), the Pastoral
Constitution expresses the Church’s solidarity with the whole of humanity, condensed in
its opening lines expressing the shared ‘joys and hopes, and sorrow and anxieties’ of the
people of today and the disciplines of Christ; and the ‘reading of the signs of the times in
light of the Gospel’ (GS 4). Its first rather dogmatic part focuses on the Church and the
vocation of humanity by respectively focusing on the dignity of the human person, the
human community, human activity in the world, and the church’s task in today’s world. This
part elaborated lengthily on atheism, a topic to which also the then Archbishop of Krakow,
Karol Wojtyła, had strongly contributed. The second part deals with some urgent problems
of the time, being defined by the dignity of marriage and the family, the development
of culture, socioeconomic life, life in the political community, and questions on war and
peace.

In general, the document shows, in line with Gaudet Mater Ecclesia, a pastoral concern
that is expressed in a balance between a theological and sociological style. More
concretely, this led the Council Fathers, among others, to an emphasis on personalist/
situational ethics in its chapter on marriage and family – including a focus on conjugal love
– and a realistic definition of culture as the human being’s self-realization, and an equally
strong dose of realism where it concerns the views on nuclear warfare. This second part
had been an adnexa in the initial stages of the redaction process, but was eventually fully
integrated into the schema – leading, as the first footnote makes clear, to a full integration
of the dogmatic and pastoral character throughout the two parts of the constitution.

5.3 The nine conciliar decrees: initiating practical

implementation
Inter Mirifica, Decree on Mass Communication (MI, 4 December 1963; 1,960 placet, 164
non-placet), gave pointers on dealing with media such as press, radio, and television.
Despite the rise of popular media in the 1960s, and the great importance of the press
for this particular council, the decree mainly reflected pre-conciliar moralizing positions
on media. Consecutively it dealt with the rights of the Church when dealing with and the

21
duties of those consuming, providing, and controlling these means of communication (IM,
chapter 1) and discussed the international collaboration between the Church and national
organizations for the media (IM, chapter 2). The position of the decree was redirected in
the 1971 pastoral instruction Communio et Progressio.

Unitatis Redintegratio, Decree on Ecumenism (UR, 21 November 1964; 2,137 placet, 11

non-placet), was clearly the result of the Ecumenical Movement, John XXIII’s ecumenical
intentions with the council, and the concrete work of the Secretariat for Christian Unity
and its allies. Starting from the ‘desire for the restoration of unity among all the followers
of Christ’ in the introduction, the three chapters deal with the Catholic principles on
ecumenism, the practice of ecumenism, and the ‘churches and ecclesial communities
separated from the Roman Apostolic See’, dealing first with the Eastern Churches
and then the churches that resulted from the Reformation. The decree reflects the
broader development of the council from an exclusivist to an inclusivist ecclesiology that
recognized ‘significant elements and endowments […] outside of the visible boundaries
of the Catholic Church’ (UR 3), while also indicating that the unity of the Church of Christ
‘subsists in the Catholic Church’ (UR 4, emphasis added). In adopting a ‘hierarchy of
truths’ (UR 11) within Catholic teaching, the council situated itself as part of a consistent
tradition striving towards the pursuit of Christian unity and paved the way for post-conciliar
engagement in the ecumenical dialogues.

Orientalium Ecclesiarum, Decree on the Catholic Eastern Churches (OE, 21 November

1964; 2,110 placet, 30 non-placet), focuses on the particular Catholic churches and rites
sui iuris (in its own right), emphasizing the nature of the Catholic Church as a community
of churches in which there is equal dignity among the particular churches of the East
and the West. After a preamble, the decree discusses the particular churches and rites,
the preservation of the spiritual heritage of the Eastern Churches, and the Eastern
rite patriarchs – aligning with Lumen Gentium and Unitatis Redintegratio in stating the
importance of their synods – as well as the discipline of the sacraments, divine worship,
and the relations with the Eastern Churches. Although its redaction history and the content
of the decree are sometimes in tension with ecumenism as expressed in UR, the decree
was somewhat overlooked in the initial reception of the council. However, due to the
increased migration of Eastern rite Catholics and the situation of the particular churches in
the Middle East, the decree has regained attention in recent years.

Perfectae Caritatis, Decree on the Renewal of Religious Life (PC, 28 October 1965; 2,321
placet, 4 non-placet), aims to renew the theology and practice of religious life starting
from the ecclesiological dimension of religious life as set out in Lumen Gentium. It builds
further on the foundations of a ‘constant return to the sources of all Christian life and to
the original spirit of the institutes and their adaptation to the changed conditions of our
time’ (PC 2) on the basis of five guiding principles: following of Christ as set out in the

22
Gospels; the rediscovery of the original charism; participation in the life of the Church;
discernment of the signs of the times; and the renewal of the spirit according to the
evangelical counsels (chastity, poverty, and obedience). On the basis of these principles,
the diverse forms of religious life (i.e. contemplative, apostolic active, monastic, and
secular institutes) are discussed, wherein community is emphasized over individualism
in the following of the evangelical counsels. The decree ends with a discussion on the
concrete aspects of renewal and adaptation of religious life, among other instructions on
clothing.

Christus Dominus, Decree on the Bishops’ Pastoral Office in the Church (CD, 28 October
1965; 2,319 placet, 2 non-placet), builds upon LG’s theology on the office of bishops and
elaborates on how to shape this office pastorally. After a foreword, the decree discusses
the role of the bishops in the universal church, in their particular churches or dioceses,
and their cooperation within the church, for example in synods, councils, and bishops’
conferences. The decree concludes with calls for a reform of the Code of Canon Law,
directories for the care of the souls, and the pastoral care of special groups of faithful. The
decree stresses how the office of the bishop can only be understood in unity within the
episcopal college (CD 4).

Apostolicam Actuositatem, Decree on the Apostolate of the Laity (AA, 18 November

1965; 2,342 placet, 2 non-placet), had been drafted by the Commission for the Apostolate
of the Laity under the presidency of Fernando Cento and secretary Achille Glorieux in
collaboration with members of the laity. Building on decades of success of Catholic lay
apostolate and further broadening since a unique focus on Catholic Action, the decree
emphasizes the lay apostolate as an integral ‘vocation’ of the Church. It subsequently
deals with the ‘vocation’ of the laity to the apostolate from a christological perspective;
the aims of the apostolate in the temporal and spiritual realm with caritas (charity) as
the central guiding principle; the different milieus of the apostolate; its individual and
collective expressions (developed most extensively in a chapter wherein the Catholic
Action functions as a role model, while a broader definition of lay apostolate is accepted);
the position of lay apostolate in the Church; and the necessary formation to apostolate.
In sum, the decree wanted to contribute to the ongoing rise of the importance of the laity
in the Church ‘so that they may show that they are co-workers in the various forms and
modes of the one apostolate of the Church, which must be constantly adapted to the new
needs of our times’ (AA 33).

Ad Gentes, Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church (AG, 7 December 1965;
2,394 placet, 5 non-placet), contributed to a broader understanding of mission that,
replacing the juridical understanding, more strongly emphasized evangelization as the
fundamental mission of the Church. The document discusses the principles of mission, the
actual mission work with a strong focus on witness, preaching, and community building,

23
mission in the particular churches, the profile of the missionaries, mission activity, and the
cooperation of all on the basis of the whole Church being missionary (for more on these
missiological themes, see Missio Dei and Missiology).

Optatam Totius, Decree on the Training of Priests (OT, 28 October 1965; 2,318 placet, 3
non-placet). Starting from the necessity of the priestly formation, the first decree focuses
on the need for ‘programmes of priestly training’ in each country and rite; the fostering of
vocations, including in minor seminaries, the role of major seminaries, and the spiritual,
intellectual, and disciplinary training towards a pastoral end; the spiritual training and
practices of piety in which pedagogical and psychological insights are integrated; the
revision of the ecclesiastical studies with the alignment of philosophical and theological
disciplines and discernment of the mystery of Christ; the pastoral training that includes
gaining insights from other disciplines such as pedagogy, psychology, and sociology, and
further training after the studies.

Presbyterorum Ordinis, Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests (PO, 7 December 1965;
2,390 placet, 4 non-placet), reflects the same pastoral concern as Optatam Totius. The
ministry of the priest is presented primarily as Presbyter sharing in the threefold office of
the bishops, whereby they built up the church ‘into the People of God, the Body of Christ,
and the Temple of the Holy Spirit’ (PO 1). With a christological-ecclesiological focus, the
decree elaborates in three chapters the ministry of the priesthood in the mission of the
Church, the ministry of the office of priests, and the priestly life. The decree contributed
to a broadened priest image, moving away from a sole focus on being the sacramental
minister to emphasizing their teaching, sanctifying, and governing roles.

5.4 The three declarations: concise position statements

Nostra Aetate, Declaration on the Relationship of the Church to the Non-Christian
Religions (NA, 28 October 1965; 2,221 placet, 88 non-placet), is the result of centuries
of tensions between the Catholic Church and Judaism, with the Shoah as the most
recent breaking point present in the minds of the Council Fathers, and intra-conciliar
developments leading to a broader document including attention to other non-Christian
religions. Indeed, plans to elaborate a schema on Judaism alone, after an initiative
by the Jewish historian Jules Isaac, and subsequently its inclusion in the schema on
ecumenism as presented by Bea during the second period, were abandoned in favour
of this schema being integrated in a more comprehensive text that discussed attitudes
towards non-Christian religions. The declaration, five paragraphs long, eventually dealt
with the existential questions of humanity (NA 1); the value of the Eastern traditions and
spiritualities, such as Hinduism and Buddhism, stating that ‘the Catholic Church rejects
nothing that is true and holy in these religions’ and they ‘often reflect a ray of that Truth
which enlightens all men’ (NA 2); its esteem for Islam on the basis of shared beliefs,

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calling for greater mutual understanding and collaboration (NA 3); and, in a very lengthy
paragraph, developing the relation towards Judaism on the basis of their common roots
with the prominent rejection of the Jewish deicide thesis (NA 4); concluding with the
rejection of any form of discrimination, including religious discrimination (NA 5).

Gravissimum Educationis, Declaration on Christian Education (GE, 28 October 1965;

2,290 placet, 35 non-placet), deals in eleven paragraphs with Christian education in
both Catholic and non-Catholic education on the basis of a broader emphasis on the
importance of education in the life of humanity and social progress. It subsequently
elaborates on the right to education; the specifics of Christian education; the educators in
which parents are recognized as the ‘primary and principal educators’; the various aids
to education such as the media of communication; the importance of schools in Christian
education; the duties and rights of parents; moral and religious education; Catholic
schools; the different types of Catholic schools, Catholic colleges, and universities;
faculties of theology; and the need for further diocesan, national, and international
collaboration. Probably because of the wide diversity of Catholic schooling systems in
different regions, the declaration necessarily focused on Catholic education and formation
in generalizing terms, which might also explain its lack of reception.

Dignitatis Humanae, Declaration on Religious Freedom (DH, 7 December 1965; 2,308

placet, 70 non-placet), presents the ‘right of the person and of communities to social
and civil freedom in religious matters’, including the freedom of conscience, thus
taking distance from a pre-conciliar tradition that was strongly marked by Catholic
intransigentism. Its fifteen paragraphs can be divided into two parts, dealing respectively
with the general principles of religious freedom and the doctrine of religious freedom in
light of revelation. In particular, the recognition of the right to religious freedom as an
individual and public right, on the basis of human dignity, made this statement highly
debated during the council, but equally a benchmark in the Catholic Church’s relationship
with the modern states.

6 Receptions of Vatican II
The reception of Vatican II played out on four levels, although it was sometimes difficult to
discern exactly which post-conciliar developments were caused by the council. Equally,
some outcomes of the council were subject to non-reception, in the sense that documents
and concepts were forgotten or only reevaluated much later.

The council led to a series of reforms and the establishment of new bodies in the Roman
Curia reflecting the aims of the council. The first reforms already took place during
the council itself, with the establishment of the Secretariat for the Non-Christians on
19 May 1964 and the Secretariat for the Non-Believers on 9 April 1965. The creation
of the Pontifical Commission Justitia et Pax (Justice and Peace) on 6 January 1967,

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with the aim of promoting social justice in an international sphere, and the Pontifical
Council for the Laity on 6 January 1967 had been requested in Gaudium et pes and
Apostolicam Actuositatem respectively. For the development of theology, the abolition
of the Index for Prohibited Books on 14 June 1966 was of great symbolic value; so, too,
was the establishment of the International Theological Commission in 1969, as the idea to
establish this commission was raised at the 1967 first General Assembly of the Synod of
Bishops. Equally of defining importance, often overlooked, was the revision of the Code of
Canon Law, announced by John XXIII in 1959 and completed under Pope John Paul II in
1983. Its release can be considered – in line with the Universal Catechism of the Catholic
Church in 1997 and the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church in 2004 – as
attempts at further harmonization, centralization, and codification of Vatican II’s theological
principles.

The impetus that the council had given to episcopal collegiality, theological reflection,
and a pastoral service to the world continued to permeate all parts of the church after the
council. Bishops’ conferences began to cooperate more closely and their collaboration
on a transnational level intensified. There was the foundation of the Symposium of
Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar in 1968, the Federation of Asian
Bishops’ Conferences in 1970, and the Council of Bishops’ Conferences of Europe in
1971. The Latin American Bishops Conference Consejo Episcopal Latinoamericano
(CELAM) had already been created in 1955, and it gained support for the preferential
treatment of the poor and the support it offered to basic ecclesial communities in Medellín
(1968) and Puebla (1979). It achieved international renown for the way they had integrated
Gaudium et Spes 4’s ‘reading of the signs of the times’. It was indicative of a period of the
development of contextual theologies and social engagement of bishops and theologians.
The World Conference of Theologians organized by the board of Concilium (1970) gave
voice to critical theologies; and using Latin American liberation theology as a starting
point, the Detroit Conference Theology in the Americas (1975) gave expression to a wide
variety of emerging contextual theologies, such as feminist theology and Black theology.
In its development, interaction with Christians from other confessions played a major role.
This was not only in theology; both locally and internationally, the post-conciliar years
were marked by ecumenical enthusiasm with a special role for the Pontifical Council for
Christian Unity and its non-member participation in the World Council of Churches through
Joint Working Groups. Its most notable result is probably the Baptism, Eucharist and
Ministry (1982) document. Similarly, the council’s opening up to interreligious dialogue
was deepened further by the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, leading among
others to the 1986 Interfaith Prayer Service for World Peace in Assisi.

At the local level, among the community of Catholic faithful, the council was often received
with great enthusiasm, but it was also viewed with great concern. Whereas the liturgical
renewal of Vatican II and the ‘novus ordo’ (new order) (promulgated in the 1969 Missale

26
Romanum ex decreto Sacrosancti Oecumenici Concilii Vaticani II instauratum, The Roman
Missal Restored by Decree of the Second Vatican Council) was broadly seized as an
opportunity for inculturation, some of its Western expressions, often in university parishes,
caused alarm by their experimental character. On the one hand, there was enthusiasm
at the local level for the various ecumenical initiatives as well as for concrete practices,
such as the mass pilgrimages of Catholic youth to ecumenical places like the monastery
of Taizé. At the same time, Church life and the lifestyles of Catholic community members
developed at a rapid pace that the council had certainly not anticipated. The development
of social Catholicism found close connection with social and church-critical movements,
and drew inspiration from emerging Latin American liberation theology and its base
communities (see Latin American Liberation Theology, section 4.

On the other hand, the council and especially its theoretical and practical reception
gave cause for uncertainty. After first withdrawing the debate from the council, the ban
eventually on artificial contraceptives proclaimed by Pope Paul VI in the encyclical
Humanae Vitae in 1968 was a catalyst in sparking ‘catholic dissent’ – with many members
of the laity appealing to the conciliar concept of freedom of conscience – and also
exponentially increased church disaffiliation. At the other side of the spectrum, general
discontent with the ‘progressive’ conciliar developments found a spokesman in the figure
of Bishop Marcel Lefebvre, who critiqued the conciliar and post-conciliar developments
and questioned the legitimacy of the council. Eventually, this led to the schism of the
Society of Saint Pius X at the time of the Écône consecrations (1988).

Finally, the post-conciliar years were marked by debates on hermeneutics, or

understanding and interpretation, of this council. In a first wave, theological commentaries
appeared immediately following the council in which contributions were often written by
former periti. Among the best known are those published in the Unam Sanctam (One and
Holy) series and in the Herder’s Lexikon für Theologie und Kirche (Lexicon of Theology
and the Church). Next, a first historicization of the council began to take shape. Of utmost
importance here was the development of the first comprehensive history of Vatican II
as it was developed eventually in the five-volume History of Vatican II; led by the Italian
historian Giuseppe Alberigo, it was a project that historicized the council and also opened
debates on its positioning within history. These five volumes laid the foundations for a
historiographical tradition that makes grateful use of the available archives, especially
specialized conciliar archives, like the one in the Achivio Apostolico Vaticano, and
diocesan archives, and in which autobiographical documents such as diaries play a
special role. Increasingly, debates on the hermeneutics emerged, often instigated by post-
conciliar developments – either or non-receptions – and often influenced by theologians
who themselves had taken part in the council as periti.

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In the interpretation of these debates, often introduced by those involved in the debates,
dichotomies played a key role. To mention just a few, reference can be made to the
dichotomy Spirit and Letter of the council, i.e. emphasizing the conciliar experience and
continuation of the intentions on which the council was founded versus emphasizing the
texts as expressed in the sixteen conciliar documents; the dichotomy between a historic
Thomism and a Neo-Augustinianism, often historically reduced to the tension between the
French and German theologians and bishops with a more positive and negative view of
humanity and human reason, respectively; the dichotomy between the journals Concilium
(founded in 1965) and Communio (founded in 1972), which commentators say represent
the previous dichotomies with, in particular, their views on the council and on modernity;
and, finally, between the hermeneutics of discontinuity and continuity, i.e. the presentation
of the council as either a rupture or a continuation of tradition. It should be mentioned that
these dichotomies often entailed a simplification of the meaning and interpretation of the
council that did not contribute to mutual understanding in the debates and, in popularized
forms, in certain contexts contributed to a kind of Catholic ‘culture wars’. A first decisive
step in the debate was the Second Extraordinary Synod of Bishops (22 November–8
December 1985) on the occasion of the twentieth anniversary of the council. Here, it was
defined that the four constitutions formed the crux in the interpretation of the council,
that an integral understanding of the documents was needed, and a clear choice was
made for the communio-ecclesiology as a lens through which to understand the council.
A second step was the Christmas speech given by then Pope Benedict XVI to the Roman
Curia on 22 December 2005, in which he emphasized the ‘hermeneutics of reform’ as
the rightful interpretation of the council. The pontificate of Pope Francis in 2013 and the
fiftieth anniversary of the council in 2015 paved the way for increased attention towards
international receptions and the hermeneutics of the council.

Attributions

Copyright Dries Bosschaert (CC BY-NC)

7 List of Second Vatican Council documents

The constitutions, declarations, and decrees of Vatican II are available in various

languages on the Vatican online archive.

Constitutions:
• Dei Verbum (Word of God), Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation
• Lumen Gentium (Light of the Nations), Dogmatic Constitution on the Church
• Sacrosanctum Concilium (The Sacred Council), Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy
• Gaudium et Spes (Joys and Hopes), Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the
Modern World

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Declarations:
• Gravissimum Educationis (Extremely Important Education), Declaration on Christian
Education
• Nostra Aetate (In Our Time), Declaration on the Relation of the Church to Non-
Christian Religions
• Dignitatis Humanae (Of the Dignity of the Human Person), Declaration on Religious
Freedom
Decrees:
• Ad Gentes (To the Nations), Decree on the Mission Activity of the Church
• Presbyterorum Ordinis (Order of Priests), Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests
• Apostolicam Actuositatem (Apostolic Activity), Decree on the Apostolate of the Laity
• Optatam Totius (Desired Renewal of the Whole), Decree on Priestly Training
• Perfectae Caritatis (Of Perfect Charity), Decree on the Adaptation and Renewal of
Religious Life
• Christus Dominus (Christ the Lord), Decree Concerning the Pastoral Office of
Bishops in the Church
• Unitatis Redintegratio (Restoration of Unity), Decree on Ecumenism
• Orientalium Ecclesiarum (Of the Eastern Churches), Decree on the Catholic
Churches of the Eastern Rite
• Inter Mirifica (Among the Wonderful), Decree on the Media of Social
Communications

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Bibliography
• Further reading
◦ Alberigo, Giuseppe. 2006. A Brief History of Vatican II. Leuven/Maryknoll:
Peeters/Orbis.
◦ Alberigo, Giuseppe, and Joseph A. Komonchak (eds). 1995. History of Vatican II.
5 vols. Leuven - Maryknoll: Peeters - Orbis.
◦ Blanchard, Shaun, and Stephen Bullivant. 2023. Vatican II: A Very Short
Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
◦ Clifford, Catherine E., and Massimo Faggioli (eds). 2023. The Oxford Handbook
of Vatican II. Oxford Handbooks. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
◦ Gaillardetz, Richard R. (ed.). 2020. The Cambridge Companion to Vatican II.
Cambridge Companions to Religion. Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University
Press.
◦ Hahnenberg, Edward P. 2007. A Concise Guide to the Documents of Vatican II.
Cincinnati, OH: St Anthony Messenger Press Cincinnati.
◦ Hazell, Matthew P. 2022. ‘Acta of the Second Vatican Council’, Source of the
Liturgy. [Link] (Resource for primary
source material of Vatican II.)
◦ Hünermann, Peter, and B. J. Hilberath (eds). 2004. Herders Theologischer
Kommentar Zum Zweiten Vatikanischen Konzil (Herder’s Theological
Commentary on the Second Vatican Council). 5 vols. Freiburg im Breisgau:
Herder.
◦ Lamb, Matthew L., and Matthew Levering. 2008. Vatican II: Renewal Within
Tradition. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
◦ Melloni, Alberto (ed.). 2015. Vatican II: The Complete History. New York/Mahwah,
NJ: Paulist Press.
◦ O’Malley, John W. 2008. What Happened at Vatican II. Cambridge, MA: Belknap
Press.
• Works cited
◦ Faggioli, Massimo, and Giovanni Turbanti. 2001. Il Concilio Inedito: Fonti del
Vaticano II (The Unpublished Council: Sources of Vatican II). Testi e ricerche di
scienze religiose/Istituto per le scienze religiose Fonti e strumenti di ricerca 1.
Bologna: Il mulino.
◦ Godin, Henri, and Yvan Daniel. 1943. La France, pays de mission? (France,
Country of Mission?). Lyon: Éditions de l’Abeille.
◦ McLeod, Hugh. 2007. The Religious Crisis of the 1960s. New York: Oxford
University Press.

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◦ Roman Catholic Church. n.d. ‘Code of Canon Law’, [Link]
archive/cod-iuris-canonici/cic_index_en.html
◦ Roman Catholic Church. 1960. Acta and Documenta Concilio Vaticano II
apparando (Acts and Documents of the Second Vatican Council preparatory
period). Vatican City: Typis Polyglottis Vaticanis.
◦ Roman Catholic Church. 1962. Ordo Concilii Oecumenici Vaticani celebrandi
(Order of Celebration of the Vatican Ecumenical Council). Vatican City: Typis
Polyglottis Vaticanis.
◦ Roman Catholic Church. 1963. Ordo Concilii Oecumenici Vaticani II celebrandi
(Order of Celebration of the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council). Vatican City:
Typis Polyglottis Vaticanis. 2nd edition.
◦ Roman Catholic Church. 1970. Acta Synodalia Sacrosancti Concilii Oecumenici
Vaticani II (Synodal Proceedings of the Sacred Ecumenical Council Vatican II).
Vatican City: Typis Polyglottis Vaticanis.
◦ Roy-Lysencourt, Philippe. 2012. Bibliographie du Concile Vatican II. Atti e
Documenti 34 (Bibliography of the Second Vatican Council. Acts and Documents
34). Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana.
◦ Vatican II. 1963–1965. ‘Documents of the Second Vatican Council’, Vatican
Archive. [Link]
◦ Walter, Peter, and Michael Quisinsky (eds). 2012. Personenlexikon zum Zweiten
Vatikanischen Konzil (Biographical Encyclopaedia of the Second Vatican
Council). Freiburg u.a.: Herder.
◦ World Council of Churches. 1982. Baptism, Eucharist and Ministry (BEM). Faith
and Order Paper No. 111. Geneva: WCC. [Link]
default/files/Document/FO1982_111_en.pdf

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