WHAT DID THE COUNCIL LOOK LIKE?
· Watch the opening of the council video link above for 3 minutes.
· Question: Discuss what you find intriguing or unusual about this ceremony with a partner.
Each day of the council consisted of a plenary meeting in which a bishop would celebrate the Eucharist in his native tongue for the 2700 bishops who were present. Draft schemata would initially be debated before the 16 final documents were enacted over the four years. In the initial stages of the council, Arch Bishop Lille voiced his concern about the non-representational list of nominees proposed for the commissions appointed by the Curia and as a result an immediate recess was called for so that the bishops could converge with their local bishops in order to nominate candidates. McBrien believes this “procedural development was of enormous ecclesiological importance” (McBrien, 2008, p. 161) as the bishops sent a very vocal message to the Curia that this “was to be their council, not the Curia’s alone” (McBrien, 2008, p. 161). The bishops refused to accept some of the Curia’s organisation of counciliar documents, which reflected a new assertive attitude that “signalled a new mood and direction for the Catholic Church” (McBrien, 2008, p. 154). This began the process of creating a more collegial atmosphere that fostered a spirit of unity, which contrasted starkly to the heavily hierarchical and dominating nature of the Vatican’s Curia that had controlled the Church for some time.
REFLECTION: What will your class liturgy look like? How will you organise it logistically?
· Question: Discuss what you find intriguing or unusual about this ceremony with a partner.
Each day of the council consisted of a plenary meeting in which a bishop would celebrate the Eucharist in his native tongue for the 2700 bishops who were present. Draft schemata would initially be debated before the 16 final documents were enacted over the four years. In the initial stages of the council, Arch Bishop Lille voiced his concern about the non-representational list of nominees proposed for the commissions appointed by the Curia and as a result an immediate recess was called for so that the bishops could converge with their local bishops in order to nominate candidates. McBrien believes this “procedural development was of enormous ecclesiological importance” (McBrien, 2008, p. 161) as the bishops sent a very vocal message to the Curia that this “was to be their council, not the Curia’s alone” (McBrien, 2008, p. 161). The bishops refused to accept some of the Curia’s organisation of counciliar documents, which reflected a new assertive attitude that “signalled a new mood and direction for the Catholic Church” (McBrien, 2008, p. 154). This began the process of creating a more collegial atmosphere that fostered a spirit of unity, which contrasted starkly to the heavily hierarchical and dominating nature of the Vatican’s Curia that had controlled the Church for some time.
REFLECTION: What will your class liturgy look like? How will you organise it logistically?