On May 5th at the St. Stanislaus Church in Rome, the main focus of the meeting was “The Church Knows Herself Better and Better”. It was our meeting in correlation with the series “The Second Vatican Council as the Compass for the New Evangelization”. The series is being coordinated by John Paul II Pontificate Center for Research & Documentation along with the Pastoral Staff at St. Stanislaus Church in the Eternal City. Prof. Z. Zdzisława Kijasa OFM Conv. and Rev. Andrzej Dobrzyński, they delivered lectures supporting the teachings of the Second Vatican Council. The meeting took place in order to express the significances of the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church “Lumen Gentium”.
The first part of the meeting had an introduction into the historical and theological context before the Council. Fr. Kijas characterized the situation of the Church in the XIX century and underlined this time in which anticlericalism and liberalism began to grow and spread. These ideologies influenced many people; it was the time in which the catholic social teachings were born. Catholic activity grew significantly. The Catholic Action Movement was founded in 1922 and the other catholic movements were founded that time. The speaker underlined that it was the time of theological renewal, expressed especially through the so called “the return to the sources of the Christian faith”, to the Bible and the Fathers of the Church, to the genuine thought of the great theologians of the past centuries. It was a starting point for biblical, patristic and ecclesiological renewal in the Catholic theology and for the ecumenical movement.
According to Fr. Kijas a special influence had three encyclicals letter promulgated by Pius XII: “Divino afflante spiritu” on the proper understanding the Sacred Scriptures, “Mystici Corporis Christi” on the Church, both published in 1943, “Mediator Dei” on Liturgy, published in 1947. The speaker focused on the document “Mystici Corporis Christi” which showed the priority of the inner dimension of the Church which was presented more as an organism of spiritual life than as a worldly organization. The Professor indicated that in the time before the Vatican II, there were more and more immigrants in the World, there were sociological, cultural and technological changes which influenced people greatly making society more pluralistic. It was a need for the Church to express her universal character and not to be seen only in relationship with European civilization. Fr. Kijas spoke about intents of gathering the Council by Pius XI and Pius XII who wanted to finished the First Vatican Council which was interrupted in 1870 because the war.
During the second part of the meeting Fr. Andrzej Dobrzyński presented the history of preparing the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, explaining that there were two different proposals, so called schemas. The second one was developed during the debates of the bishops in the Council Hall. The speaker characterized shortly all the eight chapters of the Constitution. Then he paid special attention to the significance of presenting the “Mystery of the Church” at the beginning of this document. The roots of the Church are in God, the Council teaches that the sources of the Church are in God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit (“Ecclesia de Trinitate”). The Constitution presents the Church as “People of God”. This concept shows the anthropological and historical dimension of the Church. The grace of being Christian unites all baptized people and it is a call to look for unity among different Christian denominations to be one Church in Christ. All human kind is called to form a family in God, to be People of God, what shows the universal mission of Catholic Church to be sacrament of salvation in this World. Collaboration between laymen and priests and bishops is very important, they are responsible for their salvation and for witnessing the truth to the non-Catholics. Fr. Dobrzynski said that the concept of the Church as People of God could be misunderstood, if the sociological aspect was over the theological one.
The Synod of Bishops, which took place in 1985 in Rome to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Vatican II, underlined that the Church can be seen as “communio”. This can be the key ecclesiological concept which unites the theological and anthropological dimensions. John Paul II wrote in the apostolic letter “Novo millennio ineunte” that we needed “spirituality of communio” meant capacity to love God and neighbors, to unite our belief and our work and daily activity.
After the lectures took place a discussing on the Council teachings of the Church was regarding the situation of our society in which people more and more live in a “Virtual World”. They are in touch but without being together. Man is more and more alienated from the reality of life. To answer this question it was said that the Council teachings foresaw this and are effective now after 50 years. Man needs experience of community life, of brotherhood, of love. The Church who presents herself as “communio”, is the answer for this need, showing that our interpersonal relations should be rooted in Christ. It means that they have moral fundaments and consequences. The Church should serve for man’s integral development and eternal salvation of all.