Excerpts from Four Documents from the Second Vatican Council Dave Putrich, Lay Leadership Council Member
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Excerpts from Four Documents from the Second Vatican Council Dave Putrich, Lay Leadership Council Member The mission statement of Pax Christi includes the phrase "..guided by the Spirit of Vatican II.." The worldwide Church is celebrating the 50th anniversary of Vatican II. What exactly did the documents written and approved by the Council say? The volume cited below is over 1,000 pages long. But you can read the four pages of excerpts, which are taken from four of the documents; each page has the title of the document. Reading these excerpts should: affirm what we at Pax Christi have been and are doing; reinforce us to continue doing these things. It should take about 10 minutes to read these excerpts. It will take more time to reflect on some or all of them. Note: These are all direct quotes from the documents. The choice of words denoting people are all masculine. Fifty years ago, this was the norm, rather than choosing words that are gender‐neutral or plural. For these four pages, we can consider all [sic]. Also, the number for each quote is the paragraph number in the document. Citation: Vatican Council II: The Conciliar and Post Conciliar Documents Austin Flannery, O.P., General Editor (1975) Liturgical Press, Collegeville, MN Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 75‐18840 Dogmatic Constitution on the Church (Nov, 1964) 10. Though they differ essentially and not only in degree, the common priesthood of the faithful and the ministerial or hierarchical priesthood are none the less ordered one to another; each in its own proper way shares in the one priesthood of Christ. 12. It is not only through the sacraments and the ministrations of the Church that the Holy Spirit makes holy the People, leads them and enriches them with his virtues. Allotting his gifts according as he wills, he also distributes special graces among the faithful of every rank. By these gifts he makes them fit and ready to undertake various tasks and offices for the renewal and building up of the Church, as it is written, "the manifestation of the Spirit is given to everyone for profit" (1 Cor. 12:7). 32. Although by Christ's will some are established as teachers, dispensers of the mysteries and pastors for the others, there remains, nevertheless, a true equality between all with regard to the dignity and to the activity which is common to all the faithful in the building up of the Body of Christ. 33. The laity, however, are given this special vocation: to make the Church present and fruitful in those places and circumstances where it is only through them that she can become the salt of the earth. Thus, every lay person, through those gifts given to him, is at once the witness and the living instrument of the mission of the Church itself "according to the measure of Christ's bestowal" (Eph. 4:7). 37. By reason of the knowledge, competence or pre‐eminence which they have the laity are empowered ‐‐ indeed sometimes obliged‐‐to manifest their opinion on those things which pertain to the good of the Church. 37. Like all Christians, the laity should promptly accept in Christian obedience what is decided by the pastors who, as teachers and rulers of the Church, represent Christ. In this they will follow Christ's example who, by his obedience unto death, opened the blessed way of the liberty of the sons of God to all men. 37. The pastors, indeed, should recognize and promote the dignity and responsibility of the laity in the Church. They should willingly use their prudent advice and confidently assign duties to them in the service of the Church, leaving them freedom and scope for acting. Indeed, they should give them the courage to undertake works on their own initiative. They should with paternal love consider attentively in Christ initial moves, suggestions and desires proposed by the laity. Moreover the pastor must respect and recognize the liberty which belongs to all in the terrestrial city. Decree on the Apostolate of Lay People (Nov, 1965) 2. The laity are made to share in the priestly, prophetical and kingly office of Christ; they have therefore, in the Church and in the world, their own assignment in the mission of the whole People of God. The characteristic of the lay state being a life led in the midst of the world and of secular affairs, laymen are called by God to make of their apostolate, through the vigor of their Christian spirit, a leaven in the world. 4. Only the light of faith and meditation on the Word of God can enable us to find everywhere and always the God "in whom we live and exist" (Acts 17:28); only thus can we seek his will in everything, see Christ in all men, acquaintance or stranger, make sound judgments on the true meaning and value of temporal realities both in themselves and in relation to man's end. 8. The greatest commandment of the law is to love God with one's whole heart and one's neighbor as oneself. Christ has made this love of the neighbor his personal commandment and has enriched it with a new meaning when he willed himself, along with his brothers, to be the object of this charity saying: "When you showed it to one of the least of my brothers here, you showed it to me: (Mt. 25:40). He has made charity the distinguishing mark of his disciples. 8. The laity should highly esteem, and support as far as they can, private or public works of charity and social assistance movements, including international schemes. By these channels effective help is brought to individuals and nations in need. They should collaborate in this with all men of good will. 10. Participators in the function of Christ, priest, prophet and king, the laity have an active part of their own in the life and action of the Church. Their action within the Church communities is so necessary that without it the apostolate of the pastors will frequently be unable to obtain its full effect. 10. Indeed, they will not confine their cooperation within the limits of the parish or diocese, but will endeavor, in response to the needs of the towns and rural districts, to extend it to interparochial, interdiocesan, national and international spheres. 22. Worthy of special respect and praise in the Church are the laity, single or married, who, in a definitive way or for a period, put their person and their professional competence at the service of institutions and their activities. 27. The common patrimony of the Gospel and the common duty resulting from it of bearing a Christian witness make it desirable, and often imperative, that Catholics cooperate with other Christians, either in activities or in societies. Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests (Dec, 1965) 3. Priests will be helped by cultivating those virtues which are rightly held in high esteem in human relations. Such qualities are goodness of heart, sincerity, strength and constancy of mind, careful attention to justice, courtesy and others which the apostle Paul recommends when he says: "Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things" (Phil. 4:8). 6. Priests ought to be especially devoted to the sick and the dying, visiting them and comforting them in the Lord. 9. Priests should unite their efforts with those of the lay faithful and conduct themselves among them after the example of the Master, who came amongst men "not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many" (Mt. 20:28). Priests are to be sincere in their appreciation and promotion of lay people's dignity and of the special role the laity have to play in the Church's mission. They should be willing to listen to lay people, give brotherly consideration to their wishes, and recognize their experience and competence in the different fields of human activity. 9. Priests should also be confident in giving lay people charge of duties in the service of the Church, giving them freedom and opportunity for activity and even inviting them, when opportunity occurs, to take the initiative in undertaking projects of their own. 9. Theirs is the task, then, of bringing about agreement among divergent outlooks in such a way that nobody may feel a stranger in the Christian community. They are to be at once the defenders of the common good, for which they are responsible in the bishop's name; and at the same time the unwavering champion of truth lest the faithful be carried about with every wind of doctrine. 9. The faithful for their part ought to realize that they have obligations to their priests. They should treat them with filial love as being their fathers and pastors. They should also share their priests' anxieties and help them as far as possible by prayer and active work so that they may be better able to overcome difficulties and carry out their duties with greater success. 17. Priests are to manage ecclesiastical property, properly so called, according to the nature of the case and the norm of ecclesiastical laws and with the help, as far as possible, of skilled laymen. They are to apply this property always to those purposes for the achievement of which the Church is allowed to own temporal goods. These are: the organization of divine worship, the provision of decent support for the clergy, and the exercise of works of the apostolate and of charity, especially for the benefit of those in need.