Last Wednesday, Jan. 7, Pope Leo XIV gave two talks, one at the weekly general audience and the other to the cardinals at the start of their consistory, that focused on the reception of the Second Vatican Council. It has been 70 years since the close of the council, but as he reminded us in the words of St. John Paul II: “I feel more than ever in duty bound to point to the Council as the great grace bestowed on the Church in the twentieth century.”
Leo is aware of the different interpretations that have been given to the 1962-65 council. There are “John Paul II Catholics” and “Francis Catholics.” Leo artfully reminded all of us that while each pope in the postconciliar era lent a different emphasis to the reception of the council, all were faithful to it. In both texts, he quoted John Paul II and Francis, St. Paul VI and Benedict XVI. In his general audience address, he even quoted the often-overlooked Pope John Paul I, who, at the close of the council, expressed this hope: “As always, there is a need to achieve not so much organizations or methods or structures but a deeper and more widespread holiness. … It may be that the excellent and abundant fruits of a council will be seen after centuries and will mature by laboriously overcoming conflicts and adverse situations.”
Leo briefly sketched the major accomplishments that Vatican II achieved, things we now almost take for granted. “After a rich biblical, theological and liturgical reflection spanning the 20th century, Vatican Council II rediscovered the face of God as the Father who, in Christ, calls us to be his children; it looked at the church in the light of Christ, light of nations, as a mystery of communion and sacrament of unity between God and his people; it initiated important liturgical reform, placing at its center the mystery of salvation and the active and conscious participation of the entire people of God,” the pope said. “At the same time, it helped us to open up to the world and to embrace the changes and challenges of the modern age in dialogue and co-responsibility, as a church that wishes to open her arms to humanity, to echo the hopes and anxieties of peoples, and to collaborate in building a more just and fraternal society.”
To continue reading this article, click here.
With thanks to the National Catholic Reporter (NCR) and Michael Sean Winters, where this article originally appeared.
