Fifty years ago, on October 11, 1962, Pope John XXIII convened the Second Vatican Council.
There were number of fearful and vocal bishops at the first session of the Second Vatican Council says Christchurch priest, Father John O’Connor, “but they were were overwhelmed by voices of hope.”
And, he says, “among those harbingers of hope was a young priest, Joseph Ratzinger. Today, as Pope Benedict XVI, his voice remains one of true “radical conservatism”, seeking to conserve the essence of truth and beauty, and to live deeply rooted in the person of Jesus Christ.”
In his reflection, published in the Christchurch Press, O’Connor says Pope John XXIII knew that an introspective and fearful church is a weak and ineffective vehicle of hope. In his opening address to the gathering, Pope John “disagreed with ‘prophets of gloom who are always forecasting disaster’, and focused the church once again on the presence and power of the Holy Spirit in the church and in the world.”
“Pope John understood that the church is a living body – an organism rather than an organisation. In an organisation, members might democratically decide policies and priorities. In contrast, an organism has a life that is received from outside of itself. The organism finds purpose and happiness when living in harmony with the one who gifts this life,” O’Connor says.
Source:
- The Press
- Image: TraditionAction.org