Vatican II at 50 - Back to Basics
The current U.S. debate over gun control ultimately involves
going back to the source--in this case, the Second Amendment. Both sides of the
debate are trying to interpret the original intent of the Founding Fathers to
justify their point of view. The implication is that the past contains
information that can form or reform our present-day practices.
From the 11th Century onward, the Church has engaged in a likewise return to the sources. The practice was significant in the decades leading up to and including the Second Vatican Council. There was even a name for it: ressourcement. Ressourcement is French for "return to the sources." Ressourcement looked to the past as the norm for judging and influencing the present. Ressourcement pervaded Vatican II, driving the Church to return to its earliest Biblical, liturgical and traditional sources. Ressourcement influenced every aspect of the Council. The Decree on Ecumenism, for example, called for the restoration of the unity of Christians, which prevailed prior to the Reformation. The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy restored the ancient practice of enabling the entire community to participate in the sacred actions of the liturgy. The catechumenate was restored to resemble the initiation process utilized in the early centuries of the Church.
The theologians of Vatican II realized the wisdom in going back to the sources of our faith, while at the same time embracing and integrating the present realities of culture and circumstance. All of this they did to make it easier for us to get in touch with the real source: Jesus Christ. Amen!
From the 11th Century onward, the Church has engaged in a likewise return to the sources. The practice was significant in the decades leading up to and including the Second Vatican Council. There was even a name for it: ressourcement. Ressourcement is French for "return to the sources." Ressourcement looked to the past as the norm for judging and influencing the present. Ressourcement pervaded Vatican II, driving the Church to return to its earliest Biblical, liturgical and traditional sources. Ressourcement influenced every aspect of the Council. The Decree on Ecumenism, for example, called for the restoration of the unity of Christians, which prevailed prior to the Reformation. The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy restored the ancient practice of enabling the entire community to participate in the sacred actions of the liturgy. The catechumenate was restored to resemble the initiation process utilized in the early centuries of the Church.
The theologians of Vatican II realized the wisdom in going back to the sources of our faith, while at the same time embracing and integrating the present realities of culture and circumstance. All of this they did to make it easier for us to get in touch with the real source: Jesus Christ. Amen!
