The Second Vatican Council (1962 – 1965)

One of the major themes proposed by Pope Benedict XVI for the Year of Faith which commenced on 11 October 2012 (the 50th Anniversary of the Opening of Vatican II in 1962) is the study by all Catholics of the Documents of Vatican II.  Fr Malcolm Rodrigues SJ, former Guyana Jesuit Superior, has written a series of articles on the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965).  In this first article, he puts the Council into context.

Protocol of Procedures

Two months before the solemn opening of the Second Vatican Council, more precisely on 6^th August 1962, Pope John XX111 in the Motu Proprio, The Approaching Council, set out the rules that were to govern the Council.

For the General Congregations, in which the decrees were to be discussed and voted on, he appointed a board of 10 presidents, all cardinals, one of whom was to preside each day, supervising the debate and maintaining discipline. He also brought forward the 10 commissions of the preparatory phase, each consisting of 16 members elected by the council fathers and 8 appointed by the Pope, giving each commission 24 members, and a Chairman appointed by the Pope.

Languages and the length of interventions

The language of the public sessions and the General Congregations of the Council was to be Latin; however modern languages could be used at the meetings of the commissions. The interventions of individual fathers of the council was to be no longer then 10 minutes

The Vote

The majority for approval of all matters, except elections, was to consist of two-thirds of those fathers present with the right to vote.

Texts sent to Fathers of the Council

Almost three months before the official opening of the Council, on the 23^rd July, 1962, Archbishop Felici, Chair of the General Secretariat of the Council, sent to the Fathers of the Council a first volume of texts that were to be discussed at the First Session of the Second Vatican Council.  This volume contained the following draft texts:-

1.    On dogmatic constitutions on the sources of revelation;

2.    On the defense of the deposit of faith;

3.    On the Christian moral order;

4.    On chastity, marriage, the family and virginity;

5.    On the sacred liturgy of the Church;

6.    On the mass media;

7.    On the Unity of the Church in relation to the Oriental Catholic Churches;

The Ecumenical Nature and Goal of the Council

At this point in the council’s preparations, it became clear that invitations to participate in the council were sent to the major Christian churches and communities. Their representatives were expected to attend not only the public sessions but also the General Congregations, but they did not have the right to vote or to speak. However they were expected to make their views known through the Secretariat for Christian Unity and through personal contact with the Council Fathers. The up-shot of this initiative by the Pope was that ecumenical representation increased noticeably over the periods of the council; 17 Orthodox and Protestant denominations were represented by 35 delegate-observers and guests during the First Period (11^th October to 8^th December, 1962); at the Fourth Period (14^th September – 8^th December, 1965)  93 delegates-observers represented 28 groups.

The Periods of the 2^nd Vatican Council

Originally the Council was not expected to last more than two Periods, but in actual fact it lasted for four Periods as started below:-

·         The First Period (Session) from 11^th October to 8^th December, 1962.

·         The Second Period (Session) from 29^th September to 4^th December, 1963.

·         The Third Period (Session) from 14^th September to 21^st November, 1964.

·         The Fourth Period (Session) from 14^th September to 8^th December, 1965.

The Composition of the Council

Over the four years of the Second Vatican Council, 3,058 Fathers participated, by far the largest number in the history of Ecumenical Councils. The numbers and the percentages of all those who attended, ranked by continent, were as follows:-

·         Europe - 1,060 (36%)   

·         South America - 531 (18%)     

·         North America - 416 (14%)    

·         Asia - 408 (13%) 

·         Africa - 351 (12%)      

·         Central America - 89 (3%)     

·         Oceania - 74 (2%)  

To this number must be added the 129 Superiors General of clerical religious orders, who attended; these numbers would have been higher were it not for the existence of the Iron Curtain of Communism which prevented many bishops from attending the Council. The spectrum of participation contained in the data above really gives us a sense of the universality of the council. At the stage, we bring the preliminary work of the Council to a close and are ready to begin our consideration of the actual documents of the council.