Friday, October 11, 2024

*** This is a rough transcript of today’s show ***

It is the 11th of October, 2024. Welcome to the Christian History Almanac, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org; I’m Dan van Voorhis.

On a recent Weekend Edition of this program, I listed the most monumental events and names from the last century. On that show, and many others, I referenced the seismic shift that occurred in the history of the Church when, in 1959, the new Pope, John XXIII, announced that he would be calling a council, the second to be held at the Vatican and the one that would forever change, at least cosmetically, the Catholic Church.

Pope John XXIII was not supposed to make news. He was seventy-six when he was elected, largely as a stop-gap after the controversial, although diplomatic, Pope Pius XII, who was Pope throughout the Second World War until his death in 1958.

The Papacy had been marked by culture wars and a reactionary element since the French Revolution—and the way priests and the church were handled, you might forgive them. The shape of the Papacy-to-come was up in the air when the new Pope made his surprising announcement. He called 11 groups to help set the agenda for the council that opened on this, October 11, 1962.

The late 1950s saw the beginnings of the youth culture we associate with the 1960s. The modern age in terms of Rock and Roll, Civil Rights demonstrations, and calls for an equal rights amendment—the first astronauts and the microchip were all introduced by 1959. In 1960, the first oral contraceptive pill appeared, and the revolution was on.

How would the church respond? This is a multi-layered question, but for our sake today- the Catholic Church, under Pope John XXIIII, called the Second Vatican Council to address the changes, among other things.

There was a debate amongst Vatican insiders as to whether this Council would follow the previous in doubling down in the face of cultural pressure, attempt to accommodate the world, or—in the view of some—succumb to the worldly temptations that had gotten into the Protestant mainline traditions.

The questions pertaining to reproduction and a call to allow clergy to marry were a bridge too far. Nonetheless, the Second Vatican Council would make strides in other places.

The list of invitees was enough to signal change. Protestant and Eastern Orthodox Christians were invited to be observers (not voting participants). The first document from the Council, Lumen Gentium, affirmed the priesthood of all believers (while not abolishing it) and also that the church “subsisted in” the Roman Catholic Church. This was short of equating the two, leaving open the possibility that a true church could exist outside the purview of the Pope at Rome.

The council called for religious toleration and freedom, arguing that no one could be compelled to become a Christian (and if you know the history of the past few hundred years, this was a big deal). The Council affirmed that it was not the Jews who were responsible for the death of Christ and apologized for its anti-semitism in the past.

But of most significance for the masses (pun intended) was the switching of the Latin mass to the vernacular and removing the altar from against the back wall and instead pulled out such that the priest would face the parishioner during worship.

 But “good Pope John,” as his supporters called him, did not disappoint those who predicted a short papacy. He would die before the council was over, having served fewer than 5 years. His predecessor, Paul VI, would preside over the end of the council and would uphold the progressive ideas of worship in the vernacular and lay participation in the church while similarly holding the conservative positions on reproduction and questions regarding beginning and end of life issues.

The council has been characterized, I think rightly, as a major shift in the Catholic Church’s approach to the world outside its own walls. But this did not come without a price, two of the dissenters amongst the attendees at this Council would later be Popes- those called John Paul II and Benedict XVI.

Nevertheless, the second Vatican Council was a far cry from the first Vatican Council in the previous century; the Catholic Church made far-reaching changes and showed itself open to modern concerns and its fellow Christians outside of the Catholic communion. This second Vatican Council closed in 1965 under Pope Paul VI and opened on this day, the 11th of October in 1962 under Pope John XXIII.

The last word for today is from Matthew 7 and a good word on prayer: 

7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.

9 “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? 10 Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? 11 If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him! 12 So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets. 

This has been the Christian History Almanac for the 11th of October 2024, brought to you by 1517 at 1517.org.

The show is produced by a man who gives his kids both fishes and snakes-  he is Christopher Gillespie.

The show is written and read by a man who will never like nor get used to Roman numerals… I’m Dan van Voorhis. 

You can catch us here every day- and remember that the rumors of grace, forgiveness, and the redemption of all things are true…. Everything is going to be ok.