Stand Up 4 Vatican 2

An article written by Esther Gordon as a result of the Stand up for Vatican II inaugural meeting.  It was written for the Grails's In Touch magazine - a quarterly which is used to keep contact with the widespread membership and to alert people to what is current especially among lay people in the Church.

I stood up for Vatican II on a chilly January night by attending a meeting with the title above. I believe that meeting was important for a number of reasons, not least being that the venue for the meeting had to be changed to the Thistle Hotel, close to Westminster Cathedral in order to accommodate an unexpectedly large group of people who were keen to attend. Interest had been roused by the title of the meeting which had been advertised in the Catholic press. The three speakers, Michael Winter, former priest and Catholic writer, Sister Myra Poole, Notre Dame Sister and campaigner for women’s roles in the Church, and Robert Noel, Catholic spokesperson and journalist, all three spoke movingly about the impact of Vatican II from their different standpoints. They touched on the historical background of both Vatican Councils, the theological innovation in the documentation and the enormous difficulties that had to be overcome. The second half of the meeting was given over to questions and comments from the floor. This was well handled, bearing in mind some strength of feeling.

The title Stand up for Vatican II suggests of course that what had been achieved by The Council and its ongoing influence were in need of support or backing. It follows that such a meeting would attract people with axes to grind and disappointments to air. I believe it did, but somehow the tone of this meeting remained more upbeat than angry, more questioning than antagonistic. When the meeting finished there was no sudden rush for the exits. Knots of people gathered around the room and chatted. People tried to make contact with others they had recognised on the far side of the room, while others found their way to the hotel bar. It is true to say that this kind of gathering attracts likeminded people who then want to share their feelings. And among those present there was a tangible urgency. Catholics old enough to have experienced the vitality and excitement of the second Vatican Council are now at least middle aged and mostly of pensionable age. Many have experienced in recent years a gradual loss of the impact the event created worldwide. Not only that, there is a perception that many of the important decisions are being quietly reversed, or imperceptibly reduced, nibbled away is one description I overheard…and there is a distinct sense of loss.

Alongside this unease and disappointment we must acknoweldge that there is a different landscape within the Catholic Church. There are no longer thriving Religious Houses, no longer seminaries full of young men training for priesthood, and Catholic-run institutions have all but disappeared. We are aware of and are experiencing a massive reduction in the workforce that was once at the service of the Church. State provision has largely taken over. In addition there have been immense changes in our society and worldwide in the last forty five years. Surely then it follows that the Church must have changed too?

And perhaps this is where Vatican II Catholics feel most acutely the loss of continuity and of any momentum that was once evident. The current changes in the Church do not seem to be dovetailing or engaging sufficiently with the rapid changes in Society. Some might argue that this is not a bad thing. We are living in an electronically driven, television and celebrity obsessed world which has spawned a serious drug culture. There is scandalous inequality worldwide that leaves millions living close to destitution and hunger. Terrorism, much of which stems from a perverted mindset of revenge, has taken many lives and costly precautions are in place globally. We are warned that our planet is being exploited to the point of destruction. Political upheaval and ongoing military operations rumble on. How are we to face up to and respond to all this? These are nightmare scenarios. Yet it is vitally important that the Church is seen to be responding to the crying needs of the world we inhabit. One Vatican II document in particular, Gaudium et Spes -The Church in The World Today, opened up some of the emerging issues and pointed to a challenging future. So where have we lost the way? How can we recover the energy, vigour and innovative thinking of Vatican II and at the same time, in harmony with the ecumenical dimension that surfaced so emphatically during the Council, come even closer to our fellow Christians who share so many of our concerns?

Perhaps each of us as thinking, committed Catholics needs to spend time praying and asking ourselves how can I contribute to this support for the legacy of Vatican II? It is only our personal or local response that will maintain the groundswell of this process. What can my tiny effort achieve? How can my small parish group or dwindling Religious community take on this task? Maybe I am too old? Let’s take to heart the words of the famous anthropologist, Margaret Mead: Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens (Christians ) can change the world - indeed it’s the only thing that ever does.