Reclaiming Vatican II

In 1990 Bill Huebsch established The Vatican II Project which contributes to efforts within the Church to keep alive the spirit and energy of Vatican II. Huebsch provided the day’s input that focused on the documents, the theology and history of Vatican Council II. New ideas developed at the Council were documents on the laity, on an ecumenical council and denunciation of the arms race.

Huebsch described the Council’s environment: representatives from all the Christian churches of the world; 1000 reporters; persons from other world religions. Turning points of the Council were Pope John XXIII’s opening speech; daily liturgy in various rites of the Church; the bishops interacting with each other; and everyone knowing what was happening.

He explained Vatican II’s challenges and the call to holiness for each of us. His closing comment was a call to “live as though we belong to God and to one another” and to reflect on the people, events and moments of life that call us to self-giving love.

Some comments at the day’s end included:

"The day gave me a history of the Council along with the challenge to live the CALL to Holiness which is the core of all the documents. The Council is not over because the call to holiness goes on in each of our lives." ~Sister Lalande Hennen

"How good to hear a comprehensive summary of an event you lived through yet had only a smitten of knowledge about all it entailed, that which preceded it, the issues, the state of the third world church, the Curia's role, etc." ~Sister Claudette Hudalla