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Given by His
Holiness John XXIII
October 11, 1962
Note: Please
note these two paragraphs below (the entire address follows) which clearly
state that the Council had a predominantly pastoral nature. Pastoral orientations
and disciplines are not infallible, and there can be no "dissent" from dogma
if no dogma is pronounced. The only statements of the Second Vatican Council
which are infallible are those which merely repeat what had been infallibly
taught before. The Council was not an exercise of the Extraordinary or Ordinary
Universal Magisterium, but only of the Authenic Ordinary Magisterium. The
misunderstanding of this simple fact, the Council documents' ambigious language,
and Modernist interpretations of those documents in the "Spirit of Vatican
II" are a main source of post-Conciliar confusion:
The salient
point of this Council is not, therefore, a discussion of one article or another
of the fundamental doctrine of the Church which has repeatedly been taught
by the Fathers and by ancient and modern theologians, and which is presumed
to be well known and familiar to all.
For this a Council was not necessary. But from the renewed, serene, and tranquil
adherence to all the teaching of the Church in its entirety and preciseness,
as it still shines forth in the Acts of the Council of Trent and First Vatican
Council, the Christian, Catholic, and apostolic spirit of the whole world
expects a step forward toward a doctrinal penetration and a formation of
consciousness in faithful and perfect conformity to the authentic doctrine,
which, however, should be studied and expounded through the methods of research
and through the literary forms of modern thought. The substance of the
ancient doctrine of the deposit of faith is one thing, and the way in which
it is presented is another. And it is the latter that must be taken into
great consideration with patience if necessary, everything being measured
in the forms and proportions of a magisterium which is predominantly pastoral
in character.
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Mother Church rejoices that, by the singular gift of Divine Providence, the
longed-for day has finally dawned when -- under the auspices of the virgin
Mother of God, whose maternal dignity is commemorated on this feast -- the
Second Vatican Ecumenical Council is being solemnly opened here beside St.
Peter's tomb.
The Ecumenical Councils of the Church
The Councils -- both the twenty ecumenical ones and the numberless others,
also important, of a provincial or regional character which have been held
down through the years -- all prove clearly the vigor of the Catholic Church
and are recorded as shining lights in her annals.
In calling this vast assembly of bishops, the latest and humble successor
to the Prince of the Apostles who is addressing you intended to assert once
again the magisterium (teaching authority), which is unfailing and perdures
until the end of time, in order that this magisterium, taking into account
the errors, the requirements, and the opportunities of our time, might be
presented in exceptional form to all men throughout the world.
It is but natural that in opening this Universal Council we should like to
look to the past and to listen to its voices whose echo we like to hear in
the memories and the merits of the more recent and ancient Pontiffs, our
predecessors. These are solemn and venerable voices, throughout the East
and the West, from the fourth century to the Middle Ages, and from there
to modern times, which have handed down their witness to those Councils.
They are voices which proclaim in perennial fervor the triumph of that divine
and human institution, the Church of Christ, which from Jesus takes its name,
its grace, and its meaning.
Side by side with these motives for spiritual joy, however, there has also
been for more than nineteen centuries a cloud of sorrows and of trials. Not
without reason did the ancient Simeon announce to Mary the mother of Jesus,
that prophecy which has been and still is true: "Behold this child is set
for the fall and the resurrection of many in Israel, and for a sign which
shall be contradicted" ( Lk. 2: 34 ) . And Jesus Himself, when He grew up,
clearly outlined the manner in which the world would treat His person down
through the succeeding centuries with the mysterious words: "He who hears
you, hears me" (Ibid. 10:16), and with those others that the same Evangelist
relates: "He who is not with me is against me and he who does not gather
with me scatters" (Ibid. 11 :23).
The great problem confronting the world after almost two thousand years remains
unchanged. Christ is ever resplendent as the center of history and of life.
Men are either with Him and His Church, and then they enjoy light, goodness,
order, and peace. Or else they are without Him, or against Him, and deliberately
opposed to His Church, and then they give rise to confusion, to bitterness
in human relations, and to the constant danger of fratricidal wars.
Ecumenical Councils, whenever they are assembled, are a solemn celebration
of the union of Christ and His Church, and hence lead to the universal radiation
of truth, to the proper guidance of individuals in domestic and social life,
to the strengthening of spiritual energies for a perennial uplift toward
real and everlasting goodness.
The testimony of this extraordinary magisterium of the Church in the succeeding
epochs of these twenty centuries of Christian history stands before us collected
in numerous and imposing volumes, which are the sacred patrimony of our
ecclesiastical archives, here in Rome and in the more noted libraries of
the entire world.
The Origin and Reason for the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council
As regards the initiative for the great event which gathers us here, it will
suffice to repeat as historical documentation our personal account of the
first sudden bringing up in our heart and lips of the simple words, "Ecumenical
Council." We uttered those words in the presence of the Sacred College of
Cardinals on that memorable January 25, 1959, the feast of the Conversion
of St. Paul, in the basilica dedicated to him. It was completely unexpected,
like a flash of heavenly light, shedding sweetness in eyes and hearts. And
at the same time it gave rise to a great fervor throughout the world in
expectation of the holding of the Council.
There have elapsed three years of laborious preparation, during which a wide
and profound examination was made regarding modern conditions of faith and
religious practice, and of Christian and especially Catholic vitality. These
years have seemed to us a first sign, an initial gift of celestial grace.
Illuminated by the light of this Council, the Church -- we confidently trust
-- will become greater in spiritual riches and gaining the strength of new
energies therefrom, she will look to the future without fear. In fact, by
bringing herself up to date where required, and by the wise organization
of mutual co-operation, the Church will make men, families, and peoples really
turn their minds to heavenly things.
And thus the holding of the Council becomes a motive for wholehearted
thanksgiving to the Giver of every good gift, in order to celebrate with
joyous canticles the glory of Christ our Lord, the glorious and immortal
King of ages and of peoples.
The opportuneness of holding the Council is, moreover, venerable brothers,
another subject which it is useful to propose for your consideration. Namely,
in order to render our Joy more complete, we wish to narrate before this
great assembly our assessment of the happy circumstances under which the
Ecumenical Council commences.
In the daily exercise of our pastoral office, we sometimes have to listen,
much to our regret, to voices of persons who, though burning with zeal, are
not endowed with too much sense of discretion or measure. In these modern
times they can see nothing but prevarication and ruin. They say that our
era, in comparison with past eras, is getting worse, and they behave as though
they had learned nothing from history, which is, none the less, the teacher
of life. They behave as though at the time of former Councils everything
was a full triumph for the Christian idea and life and for proper religious
liberty.
We feel we must disagree with those prophets of gloom, who are always forecasting
disaster, as though the end of the world were at hand.
In the present order of things, Divine Providence is leading us to a new
order of human relations which, by men's own efforts and even beyond their
very expectations, are directed toward the fulfilment of God's superior and
inscrutable designs. And everything, even human differences, leads to the
greater good of the Church.
It is easy to discern this reality if we consider attentively the world of
today, which is so busy with politics and controversies in the economic order
that it does not find time to attend to the care of spiritual reality, with
which the Church's magisterium is concerned. such a way of acting is certainly
not right, and must justly be disapproved. It cannot be denied, however,
that these new conditions of modern life have at least the advantage of having
eliminated those innumerable obstacles by which, at one time, the sons of
this world impeded the free action of the Church. In fact, it suffices to
leaf even cursorily through the pages of ecclesiastical history to note clearly
how the Ecumenical Councils themselves, while constituting a series of true
glories for the Catholic Church, were often held to the accompaniment of
most serious difficulties and sufferings because of the undue interference
of civil authorities. The princes of this world, indeed, sometimes in all
sincerity, intended thus to protect the Church. But more frequently this
occurred not without spiritual damage and danger, since their interest therein
was guided by the views of a selfish and perilous policy.
In this regard, we confess to you that we feel most poignant sorrow over
the fact that very many bishops, so dear to us are noticeable here today
by their absence, because they are imprisoned for their faithfulness to Christ,
or impeded by other restraints. The thought of them impels us to raise most
fervent prayer to God. Nevertheless, we see today, not without great hopes
and to our immense consolation, that the Church, finally freed from so many
obstacles of a profane nature such as trammeled her in the past, can from
this Vatican Basilica, as if from a second apostolic cenacle, and through
your intermediary, raise her voice resonant with majesty and greatness.
Principle Duty of the Council: The Defense and Advancement of
Truth
The greatest concern of the Ecumenical Council is this: that he sacred deposit
of Christian doctrine should be guarded and taught more efficaciously. That
doctrine embraces the whole of man, composed as he is of body and soul. And,
since he is a pilgrim on this earth, it commands him to tend always toward
heaven.
This demonstrates how our mortal life is to be ordered in such a way as to
fulfil our duties as citizens of earth and of heaven, and thus to attain
the aim of life as established by God. That is, all men, whether taken singly
or as united in society, today have the duty of tending ceaselessly during
their lifetime toward the attainment of heavenly things and to use. for this
purpose only, the earthly goods, the employment of which must not prejudice
their eternal happiness.
The Lord has said: "Seek first the kingdom of Cod and his justice" (Mt. 6:33).
The word "first" expresses the direction in which our thoughts and energies
must move. We must not, however, neglect the other words of this exhortation
of our Lord, namely: "And all these things shall be given you besides" (Ibid.
). In reality, there always have been in the Church, and there are still
today, those who, while seeking the practice of evangelical perfection with
all their might, do not fail to make themselves useful to society. Indeed,
it from their constant example of life and their charitable undertakings
that all that is highest and noblest in human society takes its strength
and growth.
In order, however, that this doctrine may influence the numerous fields of
human activity, with reference to individuals, to families, and to social
life, it is necessary first of all that the Church should never depart from
the sacred patrimony of truth received from the Fathers. But at the same
time she must ever look to the present, to the new conditions and new forms
of life introduced into the modern world, which have opened new avenues to
the Catholic apostolate.
For this reason, the Church has not watched inertly the marvellous progress
of the discoveries of human genius, an has not been backward in evaluating
them rightly. But, while following these developments, she does not neglect
to admonish men so that, over and above sense -- perceived things -- they
may raise their eyes to God, the Source of all wisdom and all beauty. And
may they never forget the most serious command: "The Lord thy God shalt thou
worship, and Him only shalt thou serve" (Mt. 4:10; Lk. 4:8), so that it may
happen that the fleeting fascination of visible things should impede true
progress.
The manner in which sacred doctrine is spread, this having been established,
it becomes clear how much is expected from the Council in regard to doctrine.
That is, the Twenty-first Ecumenical Council, which will draw upon the effective
and important wealth of juridical, liturgical, apostolic, and administrative
experiences, wishes to transmit the doctrine, pure and integral, without
any attenuation or distortion, which throughout twenty centuries, notwithstanding
difficulties and contrasts, has become the common patrimony of men. It is
a patrimony not well received by all, but always a rich treasure available
to men of good will.
Our duty is not only to guard this precious treasure, as if we were concerned
only with antiquity, but to dedicate ourselves with an earnest will and without
fear to that work which our era demands of us, pursuing thus the path which
the Church has followed for twenty centuries.
The salient point of this Council is not, therefore, a discussion of one
article or another of the fundamental doctrine of the Church which has repeatedly
been taught by the Fathers and by ancient and modern theologians, and which
is presumed to be well known and familiar to all.
For this a Council was not necessary. But from the renewed, serene, and tranquil
adherence to all the teaching of the Church in its entirety and preciseness,
as it still shines forth in the Acts of the Council of Trent and First Vatican
Council, the Christian, Catholic, and apostolic spirit of the whole world
expects a step forward toward a doctrinal penetration and a formation of
consciousness in faithful and perfect conformity to the authentic doctrine,
which, however, should be studied and expounded through the methods of research
and through the literary forms of modern thought. The substance of the ancient
doctrine of the deposit of faith is one thing, and the way in which it is
presented is another. And it is the latter that must be taken into great
consideration with patience if necessary, everything being measured in the
forms and proportions of a magisterium which is predominantly pastoral in
character.
How to Repress Errors
At the outset of the Second Vatican Council, it is evident, as always, that
the truth of the Lord will remain forever. We see, in fact, as one age succeeds
another, that the opinions of men follow one another and exclude each other.
And often errors vanish as quickly as they arise, like fog before the sun
The Church has always opposed these errors. Frequently she has condemned
them with the greatest severity. Nowadays however, the Spouse of Christ prefers
to make use of the medicine of mercy rather than that of severity. She consider
that she meets the needs of the present day by demonstrating the validity
of her teaching rather than by condemnations Not, certainly, that there is
a lack of fallacious teaching, opinions, and dangerous concepts to be guarded
against an dissipated. But these are so obviously in contrast with the right
norm of honesty, and have produced such lethal fruits that by now it would
seem that men of themselves are inclined to condemn them, particularly those
ways of life which despise God and His law or place excessive confidence
in technical progress and a well-being based exclusively on the comforts
of life. They are ever more deeply convinced of the paramount dignity of
the human person and of his perfection as well as of the duties which that
implies. Even more important, experience has taught men that violence inflicted
on others, the might of arms, and political domination, are of no help at
all in finding a happy solution to the grave problems which afflict them.
That being so, the Catholic Church, raising the torch of religious truth
by means of this Ecumenical Council, desires to show herself to be the loving
mother of all, benign, patient, full of mercy and goodness toward the brethren
who are separated from her. To mankind, oppressed by so many difficulties,
the Church says, as Peter said to the poor who begged alms from him: "I have
neither gold nor silver, but what I have I give you; in the name of Jesus
Christ of Nazareth, rise and walk" (Acts 3:6). In other words, the Church
does not offer to the men of today riches that pass, nor does she promise
them merely earthly happiness. But she distributes to them the goods of divine
grace which, raising men to the dignity of sons of God, are the most efficacious
safeguards and aids toward a more human life. She opens the fountain of her
life-giving doctrine which allows men, enlightened by the light of Christ,
to understand well what they really are, what their lofty dignity and their
purpose are, and, finally, through her children, she spreads everywhere the
fullness of Christian charity, than which nothing is more effective in
eradicating the seeds of discord, nothing more efficacious in promoting concord,
just peace, and the brotherly unity of all.
The Unity of the Christian and Human Family Must Be Promoted
The Church's solicitude to promote and defend truth derives from the fact
that, according to the plan of God, who wills all men to be saved and to
come to the knowledge of the truth (l Tim. 2:4), men without the assistance
of the whole of revealed doctrine cannot reach a complete and firm unity
of minds, with which are associated true peace and eternal salvation.
Unfortunately, the entire Christian family has not yet fully attained this
visible unity in truth.
The Catholic Church, therefore, considers it her duty to work actively so
that there may be fulfilled the great mystery of that unity, which Jesus
Christ invoked with fervent prayer from His heavenly Father on the eve of
His sacrifice. She rejoices in peace, knowing well that she is intimately
associated with that prayer, and then exults greatly at seeing that invocation
extend its efficacy with salutary fruit, even among those who are outside
her fold.
Indeed, if one considers well this same unity which Christ implored for His
Church, it seems to shine, as it were, with a triple ray of beneficent supernal
light: namely, the unity of Catholics among themselves, which must always
be kept exemplary and most firm; the unity of prayers and ardent desires
with which those Christians separated from this Apostolic See aspire to be
united with us; and the unity in esteem and respect for the Catholic Church
which animates those who follow non-Christian religions.
In this regard, it is a source of considerable sorrow to see that the greater
part of the human race -- although all men who are born were redeemed by
the blood of Christ -- does not yet participate in those sources of divine
grace which exist in the Catholic Church. Hence the Church, whose light illumines
all, whose strength of supernatural unity redounds to the advantage of all
humanity, is rightly described in these beautiful words of St. Cyprian:
"The Church, surrounded by divine light, spreads her rays over the entire
earth. This light, however, is one and unique and shines everywhere without
causing any separation in the unity of the body. She extends her branches
over the whole world. By her fruitfulness she sends ever farther afield he
rivulets. Nevertheless, the head is always one, the origin one for she is
the one mother, abundantly fruitful. We are born of her, are nourished by
her milk, we live of her spirit' (De Catholicae Eccles. Unitate, 5).
Venerable brothers, such is the aim of the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council,
which, while bringing together the Church's best energies and striving to
have men welcome more favorably the good tidings of salvation, prepares,
as it were and consolidates the path toward that unity of mankind which is
required as a necessary foundation, in order that the earthly city may be
brought to the resemblance of that heavenly city where truth reigns, charity
is the law, and whose extent is eternity (Cf. St. Augustine, Epistle 138,
3).
Now, "our voice is directed to you" (2 Cor. 6:11 ) venerable brothers in
the episcopate. Behold, we are gathered together in this Vatican Basilica,
upon which hinges the history of the Church where heaven and earth are closely
joined, here near the tomb of Peter and near so many of the tombs of our
holy predecessors, whose ashes in this solemn hour seem to thrill in mystic
exultation.
The Council now beginning rises in the Church like daybreak, a forerunner
of most splendid light. It is now only dawn. And already at this first
announcement of the rising day, how much sweetness fills our heart. Everything
here breathes sanctity and arouses great joy. Let us contemplate the stars,
which with their brightness augment the majesty of this temple. These stars,
according to the testimony of the Apostle John (Apoc. 1:20), are you, and
with you we see shining around the tomb of the Prince of the Apostles, the
golden candelabra. That is, the Church is confided to you (Ibid.).
We see here with you important personalities, present in an attitude of great
respect and cordial expectation, having come together in Rome from the five
continents to represent the nations of the world.
We might say that heaven and earth are united in the holding of the Council
-- the saints of heaven to protect our work, the faithful of the earth continuing
in prayer to the Lord, and you, seconding the inspiration of the Holy Spirit
in order that the work of all may correspond to the modern expectations and
needs of the various peoples of the world.
This requires of you serenity of mind, brotherly concord moderation in proposals,
dignity in discussion, and wisdom of deliberation.
God grant that your labors and your work, toward which the eyes of all peoples
and the hopes of the entire world are turned, may abundantly fulfil the
aspirations of all.
Almighty God! In Thee we place all our confidence, not trusting in our own
strength. Look down benignly upon these pastors of Thy Church. May the light
of Thy supernal grace aid us in taking decisions and in making laws. Graciously
hear the prayers which we pour forth to Thee in unanimity of faith, of voice,
and of mind.
O Mary, Help of Christians, Help of Bishops, of whose love we have recently
had particular proof in thy temple of Loreto, where we venerated the mystery
of the Incarnation dispose all things for a happy and propitious outcome
and, with thy spouse, St. Joseph, the holy Apostles Peter and Paul St. John
the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist, intercede for us to God.
To Jesus Christ, our most amiable Redeemer, immortal King of peoples and
of times, be love, power, and glory forever and ever. |
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