Second Vatican Council

The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, or Vatican II, was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Roman Catholic Church. It opened under Pope John XXIII on October 11, 1962 and closed under Pope Paul VI on December 8, 1965. At least four future pontiffs took part in the council's opening session: Cardinal Giovanni Battista Montini, who on succeeding Pope John XXIII took the name of Paul VI; Bishop Albino Luciani, the future Pope John Paul I; Bishop Karol Wojtyła, who became Pope John Paul II; and Father Joseph Ratzinger, present as a theological consultant, who became Pope Benedict XVI. == == Issues considered during the sessions included liturgy, mass communications, the Eastern Catholic churches, and the nature of revelation. Most notably, the schema on revelation was rejected by a majority of bishops, and Pope John intervened to require its rewriting. After adjournment on December 8, work began on preparations for the sessions scheduled for 1963. These preparations, however, were halted upon the death of Pope John XXIII on June 3, 1963. Pope Paul VI was elected on June 21, 1963 and immediately announced that the Council would continue.

There was an attempt to update or modernize ( without once using the word Progress or Modernist!) Church doctrine and life issues. Aggiornamento- Living in the Present tense is an approximate translation, was the order of the day, Updating, perhaps. Latin was all-but discarded as a liturgical language, but this jettisoned a useful unifying factor ( akin to ll0-l20 VAC power in the US) In Europe the Masses were all conducted in Latin ( prior ro Vatican II) sermons, of course , were in the language of the congregation, in the US- English. Rules and practices were vastly altered or again, updated. the relative position of the celebrant and congregation was altered, ushering in the so-called ( Flying Washboard) altar. More lay involvement led to so-called folk masses and some songs were rather quesitonable as they were not traditional hymns- Religious articles were subject to the obsolescence-block- and the Ecclesiastical Wates industry took a beating- one company survived by getting into military insignia, badges, etc. and is still very much in business. Their name, Lordship Industries- reflects original production of religious articles! Other Ecclesiastical wares houses were not so fortunate. it is still debatable if Vatican II did enough, went too far, or maybe not far enough. the celibacy laws were not modified or slacked-down one iota.

According to Pope John XXIII, who called the Council, its main purposes were threefold:

?Spiritual Renewal - promoting peace and unity of human kind ?Pastoral Updating - "Aggiornamento"

?Ecumenical Unity - that all Christians may be one

Pope Pius IX convened the First Vatican Council which began in 1868.

Pope John XXIII convened the Second Vatican Council which began in 1962.

Pope Paul VI reconvened the Second Vatican Council in 1963 after it was suspended due to the death of Pope John.

Pope John had to close the First Vatican Council before opening the Second Council since the First Council was never officially closed by Pius, it ended abruptly, or temporarily suspended because the Franco-Prussian War broke out and the bishops in attendance wanted to return to their diocese. After Rome was captured, Pope Pius permanently suspended the Council but did not close it officially.

Pope John died during the intermission break between the first and second session of the Second Council to which it was suspended. Once Cardinal Giovanni Montini was elected as Pope Paul VI, he reconvened the Second Council and presided over it until its ending in 1965.

The chief reforms in the church from the second Vatican Council were: the use of the vernacular language instead of Latin in the Holy Mass; the church tabernacle displaced from the central aisle and the usage of revised Eucharistic prayers in the church. There were the direct reforms.

council of deans has. not have. has!

The Latin rite in its pre-liturgical reform splendor was described as "the most beautiful thing this side of heaven."

Mass was celebrated in different degrees depending on the occasion. There was Low Mass, High Mass and Pontifical Masses. Low Mass was solemn but without the extra splendor of High Mass: there was no singing, no chanting, no grand procession, no sermon, etc. It was basically the Mass abridged and lasted anywhere from 20 minutes to 30 minutes. Low mass was especially designed for the faithful, that they might be able to attend daily before going to work or school. It was quite common before the 1960s for Catholics to for Catholics to go to Mass daily. This practice is all but extinct as the new mass is designed for communal celebration, which is not feasible for the working person or student. A High Mass was celebrated on Sundays and special celebrations or feasts during the week. The High Mass had incense, chant, Gregorian chant, organ music, often a sermon, a grand procession, more prayers, etc. Pontifical Masses were Masses celebrated with a bishop as the celebrant. Often these were specific to certain sacraments or special occasions. The ceremonies could be incredibly complex. Sermons, when they were given, were often very precise about Catholic theology and morals, and were noted for their strength, for they did not strive to be politically correct or sympathetic to other religions vis a vis the Catholic concept of the truth. The new ecumenical push has dissolved this style of preaching.

Before the liturgical reform, all Latin Rite Masses were celebrated in Latin with the sermon given in the common language and often the Epistle and Gospel reread in the common language as well. This allowed Catholics to participate in the Mass anywhere in the world, for it would always be the same, minus the sermon: it was the same ceremony with the same words all over the world. In the old rite there were no Eucharistic ministers, readers or offertory procession, and the laity participated via singing, Gregorian chant, responses and receiving Communion. The receiving of Holy Communion in the hand was seen as a sacrilege, and was not practiced in the old rite, since the priest's hands alone were anointed to consecrate the Host and thus it was only seen as proper that he handle the sacred species and the containers, such as the chalice. This gave a tremendous gravity to the ceremony and emphasized the role of the priest as mediator and the Mass as a sacrifice.

The old set up had the priest facing the altar, which was often build into the wall of the sanctuary. The tabernacle was enthroned in the altar's center, hence why the priest faced it and not the people as is now the practice. The priest said many more prayers, made many more reverences (kissing the altar, sacred objects, etc.,) and overall the effect was one of great solemnity and sacredness. When there was music it could only be either Catholic hymns or Gregorian chant - often there were pieces in the Mass that were to be sung by a trained choir and others that could be sung by the congregation as they were familiar and often repeated each Sunday. The organ, save for rare exceptions, was the only instrument allowed to be played in church, as its sound was considered the most noble and inspiring.

After Vatican II the Mass was reformed in ways that lost the luster of its sacred character. In order to involve the laity to a further degree, the altar was shifted to the center of the sanctuary, that the priest might now address the people. Tabernacles were sent to a side alcove, to be referenced only when needed. The crucifix on the altar was also removed and often hung behind the priest on the wall - a move the old rite would not allow in principle. Eucharistic ministers and readers were introduced and the restrictions on handling the sacred species - despite never being revoked - were ignored until it became a fait accompli. The Mass is now regarded more as a community meal than a holy sacrifice with the emphasis on the people not the sacrifice of the altar and the priest's role has developed into a sort of master of ceremonies. The music quality has dropped significantly - Gregorian chant is almost gone and whole bands have been introduced to play music that emphasizes God's love and very rarely anything else. The liturgical calendar has also been redone, and many of the liturgical seasons and customs proper to certain places have fallen into obscurity. Things such as novelty masses, dancing, etc., would never be permitted in the old rite which saw the church space as sacred, and hence quiet and propriety in voice and dress were honoured.

The new Mass was purposely modeled to be more ecumenical, hence Archbishop Bugnini modified it with the aid of 6 Protestant ministers and a Jewish representative. Hence the visible character of the Mass differs little now from many organized Protestant ceremonies. Because of these reasons, there are some religious congregations, such as the Society of Saint Pius X, The Society of Saint Peter, etc., who came into existence solely to uphold the old ways. Due to the moral pressure of Catholics who reject the new way of Mass as unfulfilling and spiritually desiccated, Rome finally publicly acknowledged that the old rite was never formally abrogated and that any priest may celebrate it. Many bishops, whose indult used to be required before the old Mass could be said in the their dioceses, are not pleased with Rome making this acknowledgment and continue to make it difficult for priests to celebrate the old rite, at least publicly. As well, the classic Catholic community that used to center around the church is largely gone accept for hardcore cliques. Catholic communities used to be built around the church and the school, but since Catholic schools now rarely have mass, and daily mass is rarely done at church, Catholics only congregate on Sundays and have lost the sense of spiritual family that was so well noted of them throughout the centuries.

Yes, it was. It was often recited in Latin.

who organised council of barabhais

All the bishops in the world met in the Vatican, at St. Peter's Basilica off and on for three years beginning in 1962 through 1965. They discussed and vote on various documents, which then had to be approved by the reigning Pope, and were published. You can see the documents at the link below, and pictures of the Council at the second link.

The Bar Council is located in several different countries. The most well-known of the locations is in London. The other locations are in Ireland and Malaysia.

The council addressed issues of modernizing the church.

Vatican II lasted approximately 3 years: 1962-1965.

The Second Vatican Council, itself, made no changes to Friday abstinence, although Pope Paul VI, streamlined, and explicated the reasons for Friday abstinence. He also allowed, with specific permission from the Vatican, individual Bishops' Conferences to allow individuals to substitute some other penance on Fridays outside of Lent if it would be more meaningful. That has been a total disaster, and they are just now started to rescind that, I believe that the English Bishops have already returned that entire country to mandatory Friday abstinence year round. You may view the entire document at the link below.

Pope Paul VI closed Vatican II.

The Second Vatican Council in its Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy called for several things: first among them, it called for full, active participation:

Mother Church earnestly desires that all the faithful should be led to that fully conscious, and active participation in liturgical celebrations which is demanded by the very nature of the liturgy.

It also called for education of the laity,

and then it called for "noble simplicity" without "useless repetitions":

The rites should be distinguished by a noble simplicity; they should be short, clear, and unencumbered by useless repetitions; they should be within the people's powers of comprehension, and normally should not require much explanation.

and finally it called for Latin to be retained, although the vernacular could be used in such as the readings, to make them easier to understand. For the full document, see the link below:

The Second Vatican Council said nothing about beverages in Church.