1963: Vatican II

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• Background Info
• Vocabulary

• On September 29, 1963, Pope Paul VI opened the second period of the Second Vatican Council, popularly known as Vatican II. Vatican II began in 1962 and did not officially end until 1968. It was the most ambitious reform and renewal of the Catholic Church since the Counter Reformation 500 years earlier.

   

  Vatican II expanded the Catholic Church’s reconciliation and public outreach to members of other faiths, including Eastern Orthodox and Protestant denominations. Its teachings allowed Catholics to pray with other Christians and encouraged Catholics to respect and form friendships with people of other faiths. Vatican II also expanded the role of everyday Catholics—the laity, not just priests and bishops—in religious activities.

   

  Perhaps the most famous outcome of Vatican II was its allowing churches to use local languages in their services. Prior to Vatican II, masses had always been celebrated in Latin. After Vatican II, masses were celebrated in English, Spanish, Mandarin, Zulu, and any other language of a congregation.

• Term	Part of Speech	Definition	Encyclopedic Entry
  ambitious	Adjective	eager to achieve wealth, power, status, or a specific goal.
  bishop	Noun	leader of a church's diocese.
  Catholic	Adjective	having to do with the Christian denomination with the Pope as its leader.
  Christian	Noun	people and culture focused on the teachings of Jesus and his followers.
  congregation	Noun	group of people who worship at the same church.
  council	Noun	group of people selected to act in an advisory, administrative, or legislative capacity.
  Counter Reformation	Noun	(1545-1648) spiritual, social, and political response of the Catholic Church to the Protestant Reformation.
  denomination	Noun	branch of a church or larger spiritual faith.
  Eastern Orthodox	Noun	loose affiliation of several Christian denominations (including Russian Orthodox, Greek Orthodox, etc.) which follow early church hierarchy.
  encourage	Verb	to inspire or support a person or idea.
  expand	Verb	to grow or get larger.
  laity	Noun	all members of a religious organization that are not members of the clergy, or official leadership.
  language	Noun	set of sounds, gestures, or symbols that allows people to communicate.
  Latin	Noun	language of ancient Rome and the Roman Empire.
  mass	Noun	central act of worship in the Catholic Church.
  outcome	Noun	result.
  pope	Noun	leader of the Catholic Church.
  pray	Verb	to offer praise, worship, or other appeal to a spiritual deity.
  priest	Noun	title of religious leader in many faiths.
  prior	Adjective	before or ahead of.
  Protestant	Noun	Christian who is not a follower of Catholic or Orthodox faiths.
  public outreach	Noun	program by an organization to connect its work to other organizations or the general public.
  reconciliation	Noun	process of accepting or no longer being opposed to something.
  reform	noun, verb	change or improvement of a policy or process.
  renew	Verb	to restore or begin again.
  Vatican	Noun	authority and leadership of the pope and the Catholic Church.