As a result of Vatican II, the Catholic Church opened its windows onto the modern world, updated the liturgy, gave a larger role to lay people, introduced the concept of religious freedom and started a dialogue with other religions.
“It was a time of a new hope, when everybody was proud that we are able to convoke such a council and having a real renewal of the Catholic Church,” says Hans Kung, who was the youngest theologian at Vatican II.
But the changes provoked a backlash, and many Catholics today say the council’s renewal momentum has been stopped in its tracks.
Eesh. I listened to half of this on the road this morning. This bit jumped out at me:
[blockquote]”We really haven’t made our peace as a Catholic Church, as an institution, with the Enlightenment,” Mickens says. “The Vatican is a great example. It’s an absolute monarchy. The Enlightenment got rid of all that.” [/blockquote]
As I see it, the French Revolution and the enlightenment were fueled by atheism and secularism. Churches that have embraced the Enlightenment without qualification or hesitation have suffered for doing so. And the last time I checked, Jesus did not convene a committee and ask for a consensus before He taught. He commanded and even the wind and seas obeyed. It makes sense that the Church should reflect her Creator.
NPR reportage on Roman Catholic issues isn’t what it used to be. I can remember when Scot Appleby was among the regular ‘experts’ contacted for more nuanced perspectives on Vatican affairs, or at least the American RC bishops. Vatican II was an event of such complexity that it neither serves ‘conservative’ nor ‘liberal’ agendas easily.
#2,
Indeed. Did anyone else notice Ms. Poggioli only interviewed well known Catholic dissenters (Hans Kung, Thomas Reese and Robert Mickens of The Tablet)?