Back to the Future: The Fathers Refounded and the Recovery of Early Christianity

2020 ◽  
Vol 89 (2) ◽  
pp. 399-403
Author(s):  
Robin Darling Young
Keyword(s):  
Early Christianity ◽  
Roman Catholic ◽  
Church History ◽  
Early Church ◽  
Second Vatican Council ◽  
American Universities ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Vatican Council ◽  
Historical Investigation ◽  
Apostolic Succession

The Fathers Refounded, Elizabeth Clark's magnificent sequel to Founding the Fathers, describes in abundant detail how the overlapping disciplines of early church history and patristics became established in several American universities. It examines the work of three historians of early Christianity and their accomplishments and difficulties—and along the way it reminds its readers more than once that historical investigation poses a danger to the security of religious dogmatists. Take, for instance, the work of George LaPiana: As an Italian exile and historical scholar whose investigations of early Christian associations in Rome undermined the accustomed Roman Catholic story of apostolic succession and episcopal authority, his work could be ignored during his lifetime by the triumphalist representatives of seemingly unquestioned dogma. An example is the work of LaPiana's American contemporary, Monsignor Joseph (“Butch”) Fenton, writing only a few years before the Second Vatican Council would vindicate the historical approach when it endorsed patristic theology as an inspiration for aggiornamento, the “updating” of Catholic thought.

Developing Doctrines and Changing Beliefs

1966 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 280-292
Author(s):  
David Nicholls
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Roman Catholic ◽  
Early Church ◽  
Second Vatican Council ◽  
Christian Community ◽  
Doctrinal Development ◽  
Vatican Council ◽  
Religious Controversy ◽  
The Church ◽  
Official Recognition

The notion of doctrinal development has become increasingly popular with Roman Catholic theologians in recent years, and has received official recognition in the decree of the second Vatican Council on Revelation. ‘There is’, the document maintains, a growth in the understanding of the realities and the words which have been handed down. … As the centuries succeed one another, the Church constantly moves forward toward the fulness of divine truth until the words of God reach their complete fulfilment in her. But, if dogma develops, how can revelation be constant? This, starkly put, is the dilemma to which many Roman Catholic theologians have directed their attention in recent years. If there has been a growth in dogma, must we not say that the contemporary Church is in a better position than the early Church? How can we deny that the Church today, in which dogmas have been better understood and more fully expressed, has an advantage over the primitive Christian community? As one nineteenth-century theologian observed, If there be a difference of any sort between Augustine and Liguori (and if there be not, what becomes of Mr Newman's theory?) it must manifestly be incalculably to the advantage of the latter … to compare the catachetical schools of Alexandria, Antioch, Gaesarea, with our Irish Maynooth, would palpably be an insult to the latter, too gross even for the licensed bitterness of religious controversy.

scholarly journals A Protestant perspective on Vatican II & 50 years: An engagement with dissent

2013 ◽  
Vol 69 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Graham A. Duncan
Keyword(s):  
20Th Century ◽  
Vatican Ii ◽  
Roman Catholic ◽  
Church History ◽  
Negative Response ◽  
Second Vatican Council ◽  
Church Hierarchy ◽  
Vatican Council ◽  
Younger Generation

The Second Vatican Council (1962–1965) is regarded by many in Protestant circles as one of the most significant processes in ecumenical church history during the 20th century. At the time hopes were high that closer cooperation was a reality to be embraced and achieved. Concurrently, a younger generation of Roman Catholic theologians began to make their mark on the ecumenical theological scene. Their work has provided a bridge between the two ecclesiastical traditions, notwithstanding the subsequent negative response of the Roman church hierarchy. Despite important advances, recent pontificates have destroyed much of the enthusiasm and commitment to unity. This article examines the disjuncture in views regarding the outcomes of the Council and points of contact with Protestant thinking.

scholarly journals Kościół rzymskokatolicki w poszukiwaniu interkomunii z Kościołami odmiennych tradycji liturgicznych

2007 ◽  
Vol 60 (2) ◽  
pp. 97
Author(s):  
Przemysław Nowakowski
Keyword(s):  
Catholic Church ◽  
Roman Catholic ◽  
The Other ◽  
Roman Catholic Church ◽  
Second Vatican Council ◽  
Christian Communities ◽  
Protestant Churches ◽  
Vatican Council ◽  
The Common ◽  
Apostolic Succession

After the Second Vatican Council the Roman Catholic Church recapitulated all his teaching on the Holy Eucharist, coming back to its biblical and patristic roots. At the same time Church was looking for the best way to common Eucharistic Table with different Christian communities – eastern and western. The intercommunion exists just between Catholics and Orthodox in the very special situations. The intercelebration is not possible yet in the absence of ecclesiological and doctrinal communion. The lack of apostolic succession and the other interpretation of the sacraments causes more difficulties on the way to intercommunion with Protestants. A lot of popular initiatives are taken recently in order to make the common Eucharist closer. Protestant Churches regards the practice of intercommunion as one of the means to the complete union among Christians. The Roman Catholic Church emphasizes that intercommunion is just to be an ultimate aim of the Churches union.

scholarly journals The ‘enemy within’ the post-Vatican II Roman Catholic Church

2013 ◽  
Vol 69 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Graham A. Duncan
Keyword(s):  
Catholic Church ◽  
Vatican Ii ◽  
Common Ground ◽  
Roman Catholic ◽  
Church History ◽  
Roman Catholic Church ◽  
Second Vatican Council ◽  
Church Hierarchy ◽  
Vatican Council ◽  
History Of

The Second Vatican Council (1962–1965) is regarded as one of the most significant processes in the ecumenical church history of the 20th century. At that time, a younger generation of Roman Catholic theologians began to make their mark in the church and within the ecumenical theological scene. Their work provided an ecumenical bridge between the Reforming and the Roman Catholic ecclesiastical traditions, notwithstanding the subsequent negative response of the Roman church hierarchy. Despite important advances, recent pontificates significantly altered the theological landscape and undermined much of the enthusiasm and commitment to unity. Roman Catholic theological dissent provided common ground for theological reflection. Those regarded as the ‘enemy within’ have become respected colleagues in the search for truth in global ecclesiastical perspective. This article will use the distinction between the history and the narratives of Vatican II.

Catholic Doctrines on the Jewish People after Vatican II

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gavin D'Costa
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
Vatican Ii ◽  
Jewish People ◽  
Roman Catholic ◽  
Second Vatican Council ◽  
Apparent Contradiction ◽  
Early Christian ◽  
Religious Rituals ◽  
Vatican Council ◽  
Theology Of Land

The book explores Roman Catholic doctrines after the Second Vatican Council regarding the Jewish people (1965–2015). It establishes the emergence of the teaching that God’s covenant with the Jewish people is irrevocable. What does this mean for Catholics regarding Jewish religious rituals, the land, and mission? The book examines early magisterial documents that seem to contradict current teachings. The apparent contradiction is historically contextualized. It argues two points. First, that earlier teachings accept the positive value of Jewish rituals within certain conditions. This can be applied, in principle, to contemporary religious Jewish rituals. These earlier traditions also show a positive valuation of Jewish cultic practices within the early Christian church. The book examines new Catholic approaches to the Old Testament. Despite different New Testament teachings about the land, it is argued that the promise of the Land to the Jewish people, with various conditions, can be regarded as valid for Catholics. The book also examines the Holy See’s shifting attitude to the modern State of Israel and its pragmatic silence on the theology of land. The book proposes a form of minimalist Catholic Zionism: affirming the land without excluding a just Palestinian resolution. The book explores unresolved Catholic teachings on ‘mission’ and ‘witness’. The centre of this debate concerns the new assumption that Christians should not erase God-given Jewish identity. The book asks: could Hebrew Catholics witness to this reality while also testifying to the compatibility and unity of the two covenants?

The Aggiornamento Phenomenon and the Second Vatican Council

2020 ◽  
pp. 98-105
Author(s):  
Hiermonk Ioann ( Bulyko) ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Catholic Church ◽  
Roman Catholic ◽  
Roman Catholic Church ◽  
Second Vatican Council ◽  
Church Fathers ◽  
John Xxiii ◽  
The People ◽  
Vatican Council ◽  
Pope John Xxiii ◽  
The Church

The Second Vatican Council was a unique event in the history of the Roman Catholic Church. Initiated by Pope John XXIII, it was intended to make the Roman Catholic Church more open to the contemporary society and bring it closer to the people. The principal aim of the council was the so called aggiornamento (updating). The phenomenon of updating the ecclesiastical life consisted in the following: on the one hand, modernization of the life of the Church and closer relations with the secular world; on the other hand, preserving all the traditions upon which the ecclesiastical life was founded. Hence in the Council’s documents we find another, French word ressourcement meaning ‘return to the origins’ based on the Holy Scripture and the works of the Church Fathers. The aggiornamento phenomenon emerged during the Second Vatican Council due to the movement within the Catholic Church called nouvelle theologie (French for “new theology”). Its representatives advanced the ideas that became fundamental in the Council’s decisions. The nouvelle theologie was often associated with modernism as some of the ideas of its representatives seemed to be very similar to those of modernism. However, what made the greatest difference between the two movements was their attitude towards the tradition. For the nouvelle theologie it was very important to revive Christianity in its initial version, hence their striving for returning to the sources, for the oecumenical movement, for better relations with non-Catholics and for liturgical renewal. All these ideas can be traced in the documents of the Second Vatican Council, and all this is characterized by the word aggiornamento.

Exploring the Possible Contributions of the African Palaver towards a Participatory Synodal Church

Exchange ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 50 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 209-237
Author(s):  
Stan Chu Ilo
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Groups ◽  
Catholic Church ◽  
Roman Catholic ◽  
Roman Catholic Church ◽  
Consensus Building ◽  
Traditional Society ◽  
Second Vatican Council ◽  
Pope Francis ◽  
Vatican Council ◽  
The Church

Abstract This essay argues for a participatory synodal Church and the possible contributions of the African palaver as a model for participatory dialogue in the Roman Catholic Church. The African palaver is the art of conversation, dialogue, and consensus-building in traditional society that can be appropriated in the current search for a more inclusive and expansive participatory dialogue at all levels of the life of the Church. I will develop this essay first by briefly exploring some theological developments on synodality between the Second Vatican Council and Pope Francis and some of the contributions of the reforms of Pope Francis to synodality in the Church. Secondly, I will identify how the African palaver functions through examples taken from two African ethnic groups. I will proceed to show how the African palaver could enter into dialogue with other new approaches to participatory dialogue for a synodal Church.

Champion of the Gaeilgeoirí: John Charles McQuaid and the Irish-language mass

2016 ◽  
Vol 40 (157) ◽  
pp. 110-130 ◽  
Author(s):  
James P. Bruce
Keyword(s):  
Catholic Church ◽  
Roman Catholic ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Second Vatican Council ◽  
Irish Language ◽  
Vatican Council ◽  
Liturgical Reform ◽  
The Catholic Church

AbstractIn 1963 the Second Vatican Council voted overwhelmingly to introduce the vernacular into Roman Catholic worship. The Irish hierarchy decided that both Irish and English speakers should be catered for in the reformed liturgy. Within a few years John Charles McQuaid, archbishop of Dublin, had gained a widespread reputation as having gone further than his fellow bishops in the provision of masses in Irish. At the same time he was criticised for his lack of enthusiasm towards other areas of liturgical reform. This dichotomy stemmed from McQuaid’s deep dismay at the church’s new ecumenical direction and the possibility that it would lead to shared worship between Catholics and Protestants. Yet, as a senior prelate in the Catholic Church, he was obliged to implement each of the Council’s decrees, including those concerning the liturgy. McQuaid’s response was to introduce Vatican-approved changes to the mass, while simultaneously protecting the traditional liturgy he cherished. So he tried to re-establish the Latin rite on the same terms as those he had arranged for the Irish mass. Had he succeeded, the result would have been a reduction in the use of an English vernacular which he found offensive to his Catholic sensibilities.

scholarly journals Liturgical renovation of modern churches in Rome (Italy)

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 39
Author(s):  
Daniela Concas
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Roman Catholic ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Second Vatican Council ◽  
Direct Reading ◽  
Liturgical Movement ◽  
Vatican Council ◽  
Architectural Language ◽  
Historical Moment ◽  
The Church

At the beginning of the first half of the twentieth century the bond between ars-venustas and cultus-pietas has produced many churches of Roman Catholic cult.It’s between the 20s and 60s of the twentieth century that the experiments of the Liturgical Movement in Germany lead to the evolution of the liturgical space, which, even today, we see engraving in modern churches in Rome (Italy).The Council of Trent (1545-1563) constitutes the precedent historical moment, in which the Church recognised the need for major liturgical renovation of its churches. In comparison with this, the Second Vatican Council (1959-65) introduced some radical changes within the church architectural spaces.The observations come from the direct reading of the present architectural space and the interventions already realised in modern churches in Rome. The most significant churches from an historical-artistic point of view were selected (1924-1965). Significantly, although every single architecture is unique for dimensions, architectural language and used materials, a comparison, in order to gather the discovered characteristics and to compare the restrictions regarding the different operations, would extremely effective, as demonstrated below.Since the matter is considerably vast, in this work, only some brief notes regarding the liturgical renovation of the Presbytery area will be outlined.

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