The Word on Fire Vatican II Collection: Declarations and Decrees

by Pope Paul VI, Matthew Levering (Editor)

The Second Vatican Council (1962–1965), a gathering of Catholic bishops from around the world, was one of the most significant cultural and religious events of the twentieth century. Though practically everyone acknowledges its importance, Catholics have been debating its precise meaning and application for the past sixty years. On the one hand are “radical traditionalists” who claim that Vatican II betrayed authentic Catholicism and produced disastrous consequences in the life of the Church; on the other, “progressives” who saw the council documents as a first step toward more substantial changes in the Church.  But even as debate over the council rages on, not enough Catholics have actually read or properly understood its texts. Word on Fire continues to address this problem in the second volume of its groundbreaking  Vatican II Collection .  This elegant hardcover volume contains the twelve declarations and decrees issued by the council, rounding out its entire corpus of documents. In these pages, you will discover the Church’s teaching on education, religious freedom, evangelization, and more. While shorter and lesser-known than the four major constitutions, these additional texts are nevertheless essential to communicating the very heart of Vatican II.  Like the first volume,  Declarations and Decrees  features commentary from the postconciliar popes and Bishop Robert Barron to help readers understand how the Church authoritatively interprets different passages. It also includes a foreword by Bishop Barron, an afterword by theologian Matthew Levering, and helpful appendices listing key terms, figures, and answers to frequently asked questions. T he Word on Fire Vatican II Collection  is a robust and readable journey into the true history and purpose of the Second Vatican Council, and a compelling call for an enthusiastic return to its texts today.

Genres: Religion, Catholic, Theology

504 pages, Hardcover

Published February 13, 2023

About the author

Pope Paul VI (Latin: Paulus VI; Italian: Paolo VI), born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini (26 September 1897 – 6 August 1978), reigned as Pope from 21 June 1963 to his death in 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, he continued the Second Vatican Council which he closed in 1965, implementing its numerous reforms, and fostered improved ecumenical relations with Eastern Orthodox and Protestants, which resulted in many historic meetings and agreements. Montini served in the Vatican's Secretariat of State from 1922 to 1954. While in the Secretariat of State, Montini and Domenico Tardini were considered as the closest and most influential colleagues of Pope Pius XII, who in 1954 named him Archbishop of Milan, the largest Italian diocese. Montini automatically became the Secretary of the Italian Bishops Conference. John XXIII elevated him to the College of Cardinals in 1958, and after the death of John XXIII, Montini was considered one of his most likely successors.

Upon his election to the papacy, Montini took the pontifical name Paul VI (the first to take the name "Paul" since 1605) to indicate a renewed worldwide mission to spread the message of Christ, following the example of Apostle St. Paul.[citation needed] He re-convened the Second Vatican Council, which was automatically closed with the death of John XXIII, and gave it priority and direction. After the council had concluded its work, Paul VI took charge of the interpretation and implementation of its mandates, often walking a thin line between the conflicting expectations of various groups within Catholicism. The magnitude and depth of the reforms affecting all fields of Church life during his pontificate exceeded similar reform policies of his predecessors and successors. Paul VI was a Marian devotee, speaking repeatedly to Marian congresses and mariological meetings, visiting Marian shrines and issuing three Marian encyclicals. Following his famous predecessor Saint Ambrose of Milan, he named Mary as the Mother of the Church during the Second Vatican Council. Paul VI sought dialogue with the world, with other Christians, other religions, and atheists, excluding nobody. He saw himself as a humble servant for a suffering humanity and demanded significant changes of the rich in North America and Europe in favour of the poor in the Third World. His positions on birth control, promulgated most famously in the 1968 encyclical Humanae vitae, and other political issues, were often controversial, especially in Western Europe and North America.

Pope Benedict XVI declared that the late pontiff lived a life of heroic virtue and conferred the title of Venerable upon him. Pope Francis beatified him on 19 October 2014 after the recognition of a miracle attributed to his intercession. His liturgical feast is celebrated on the date of his birth on 26 September.

Reviews

[Walter Plymale · Rating 5 out of 5]

This a difficult book to review. On one hand, the term “Vatican II” elicits so many different reactions from Catholics. Liberal Modernists see it as a stepping stone to a more “inclusive” Church. Traditionalists, at best see it as a misunderstood and naïve attempt to reconcile the Church with the modern world, and at their worst see it as the erection of an anti-church. I sought to read these documents in a vacuum. What I found was a corpus of declarations and decrees that were saturated with the Word of God and the Tradition of the Church. There are some profound meditations on the priesthood in 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘣𝘺𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘳𝘶𝘮 𝘖𝘳𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘴 and 𝘖𝘱𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘢𝘮 𝘛𝘰𝘵𝘪𝘶𝘴. The decree 𝘈𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘮 𝘈𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘮 is entirely devoted to the role of laity in the Church. Are there ambiguous sections that ought to be clarified by the Church? Yes. Were some of the liturgical products of the conciliar reform misguided and even defective to the point where it is better to default to pre-conciliar texts. Again, the answer is yes. In a vacuum however, these are inspiring and important documents for all Catholics to live out.