Vatican Council, Second

The Second Vatican Council (1962–1965) was a general assembly of the bishops and other ecclesiastical representatives of the Roman Catholic Church, the second held since the 16th century. Pope John XXIII, attentive to the changing global context, called the Council as a means of renewing the Church and updating its pastoral practices in light of the needs of the modern era. The bishops present at the Council represented the increasingly global membership of the Church, and the Council's pronouncements shaped not only the internal life of the Church but its relationship with the cultures, states, civil societies, other Christian bodies, and other religions with which it interacts around the world.

The dramatic growth of Christianity in the non-European world in the 20th century was reflected in the attendance at the Council, which was larger and more diverse than any previous council. Of the approximately 3,000 bishops who attended, about one third (36%) were from Europe, another third (35%) from the Americas, and the remainder from Asia (14%), Africa (12%), and Oceania (3%). John XXIII, who died at the end of the first session, also invited non-Catholic religious leaders to attend as observers. His successor, Paul VI, took the unprecedented step of inviting Catholic women, including prominent leaders of women's religious orders, to observe what had previously been allmale assemblies.

In its Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy (Sacrosantum Concilium) and its Decree on Missionary Activity of the Church (Ad Gentes), the Council moved away from its ultramontane stress on the uniformity of Catholic practice and encouraged a deeper engagement with the cultures of the world, most notably by approving the translation of the Latin Mass into vernacular languages and by encouraging missionaries to explore the ways in which Catholic thought and practice could be accommodated to different cultures.

The Decree on Ecumenism (Unitatis redintegratio) and the Declaration on the Church's Attitude Toward Non-Christian Religions (Nostra aetate) fostered a new openness to dialogue and engagement with other traditions both Christian and non-Christian. Nostra aetate acknowledged that other religions, though different, may contain much that is true and holy and encouraged Catholics not only to greater dialogue and collaboration but also to promote that which is good in other traditions.

The Declaration on Religious Freedom (Dignitatis humanae) and the Pastoral Constitution on the [Page 1344]Church in the World of Today (Gaudium et spes) reshaped the relationship between the Church, states, and civil societies. Recognizing and affirming the principle of religious freedom, Dignitatus humanae recognized the right of individuals to be free of coercion in matters of religion as a civil right grounded in the nature of the human person. Gaudium et spes also stressed the fundamental dignity of the human person and the importance of constructive engagement with the deep questions raised by “the profound and rapid changes … spreading by degrees around the world.” Although the extent to which the Council broke with the past is still hotly debated, it clearly reoriented the way the Church engaged with the modern world.