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ST. SCHOLASTICA’S ACADEMY

Tabunok, Talisay City, Cebu
SY 2021 – 2022

LESSON 1 – DOING THEOLOGY AND VATICAN II

Objectives:
 Point out the mission of the Church
 Compose a poem about the impact of Vatican II in the life and mission of the Church guided
by the principles of doing theology
 Express appreciation on the significant changes of the Catholic Church and the modern world
as a result of the second ecumenical council

Lesson Essential Questions:

1. What is the impact of the Second Vatican Council today?
2. How relevant is Theology to people’s lives?

Introduction
For many the studly of theology is irrelevant to life. It is merely getting to know the
doctrines and practices of the Catholic Church which seem to have no connection with
experiences of people today. Knowledge of it, therefore, may be useful only to persons who have
institutional functions in the Church but not that important for ordinary Catholics. Even the term
“theology” which derives from two Greek words—“theos” (God) and “logos” (word, explanation,
discourse)—sounds foreign. Life in the world and what is being dealt with in theology appear to
be disconnected.
Classically referred to as “faith seeking understanding” (St. Anselm
of Canterbury) it is essential that theology seriously incorporate the
experiences of people today. Theology is born when human experience is
seen in the light of our faith in Jesus Christ as well as when this faith is
reflected upon from the perspective of actual experiences in life.
Understood in this way, all Christians who regard their faith as important
actually do some form of theology. Theology then is not a subject reserved
St. Anselm of Canterbury
for religious professionals.
The systematic study of it in theology courses is meant to enhance the meaningfulness of
our faith. With regard to the impression that theology is merely a rehash of old stuff, it is useful
to note, as with any discipline of thought, its dynamic character. For theology, the particular way
we understand our faith in a given cultural context, changes. Theology is never really static,
although there are those in the church, especially among its leaders, who at times want to see it
as unchanging. While this may provide a sense of seeming stability, it risks the faith itself being
seen as irrelevant to Christian life as lived today in the world.

Neo-Scholastic Catholicism
Central and distinctive in neo-scholastic theology was its rationalistic description of the
relationship between God and people. This theology was aimed at making Catholic faith
intelligible to people who assumed the primacy of reason (Latin, ratio) in human life. It was
further presupposed that the main aim of reason was to get at the truth. The capability to reason
distinguished human beings from animals such that a human being was defined as a rational
animal. Neo-scholastic theology adopted this language of rationalism and explained relationship
between God and people with its categories.
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In this relationship “revelation” was God’s initiative to “reveal supernatural truths” about
the GodSelf, while “faith” referred to the human response to this divine action by way of “assent
of the mind to the truths revealed by God” One notices the primary importance given to the
notion of “truth,” understood as the correspondence between what was real and what was in
one’s mind by way of concepts. In other words, the formulated truths in one’s mind were
identical to what was the case in reality. It was explained that the truths revealed by God,
precisely because they were from God who would not deceive anyone, were reliable and not
dependent on anything created. As absolute and unchangeable, these truths were not bound by
culture and history, or so it was believed by the proponents of neo-scholasticism.
It was assumed that the fullness of revelation can only be found in the Catholic Church.
Given this belief, it was incumbent on the church to teach the truth to everyone, for outside the
Catholic church there was no salvation. This led to an Overall impression that what mattered
most about being a Catholic was believing in one’s mind the doctrines of the Church. As a result,
many Catholics resorted to mere memorization of these doctrines.
Neo-scholastic theology was made known and popularized in the Catholic Church
throughout Asia, Africa, Latin and Caribbean America and the Pacific by the missionaries from the
West. This was done through the training of native priests in the seminaries, in the formation of
religious sisters and brothers in their religious houses, and in the education of the laity both
formally in schools and informally through sermons, retreats and catechetical instruction.
At this time, they were not aware that the manner they understood the faith was by way
of neo-scholastic theology. They became convinced that this was the only way Catholicism could
be understood. So, when change came during the second half of the twentieth century by way of
official declarations from the leadership of the Catholic Church during the Second Vatican
Council, the shift proved to be unsettling. Some interpreted this change as “becoming like the
Protestants,” while others felt the church was capitulating to ideas, values and practices of the
modern world. In either case, it was perceived as a betrayal of what it truly meant to be Catholic.
The younger generation, who had to straddle the not so familiar neo-scholastic theology of their
elders and the new ideas regarding Catholicism being introduced, perceived the change
differently.

Second Vatican Council

Upon the death of the previous
pope, John XXIII was elected pope in 1958.
The cardinals, who could not immediately
decide on a “right” candidate, voted for
him thinking that he was old enough to
die soon and too old to do anything. This
pontificate was expected to provide them
some time to think of a next pope who
would hold office for a longer time. To
their surprise as well as of many other
Catholics throughout the world, soon
after his installation as supreme leader of
the Catholic Church, Pope John XXIII called Pope John XXIII leads the opening session of the Second Vatican
Council on Oct. 11, 1962, in St. Peter's Basilica.
for an ecumenical council. This was a
worldwide gathering of Catholic bishops at the Vatican. He was of the conviction that the church
was no longer communicating with the contemporary world. It was out of date and, therefore,
badly needed a renewal. His image of the Church was a room that had been closed for centuries.
Its windows needed to be opened to let fresh air in. Despite the objections, John XXIII moved
ahead with his plan to renew the Church through such a council. He presided over its opening
rites in 1962.
The Second Vatican Council or Vatican II, for short was held from 1962-1965. Pope John
XXIII gave this ecumenical council a “pastoral” orientation. He did not want this meeting to be
like other ecumenical councils that mainly sought to condemn what was wrong in the Church and
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in the world. Rather, he wanted it to provide joy and hope to the world through the Church’s
solidarity with women and men of today.

Double Thrust of Vatican II

The bishops gathered at Vatican Il Council followed the pastoral orientation set by Pope
John XXIII and worked at the renewal of the Church with two inseparable thrusts: aggiornamento
and ad fontes. Aggiornamento, an Italian word, means and represents the desire of the Church
for “renewal” to be up to date vis-à-vis the modern world. The Latin phrase ad fontes (a return to
the sources) stood for the church’s firm commitment to remain faithful to the gospel of Jesus
Christ. These were the two movements operative in the discussion of the bishops.

Four Pivotal Documents of Vatican II

Of the sixteen documents produced by Vatican II, four are
considered to be pivotal. These four—Lumen Gentium, Gaudium et Spes,
Sacrosanctum Concilium and Dei Verbum—are usually identified by their
Latin “titles,” which are actually the first words of the original Latin
documents. On them hinge the spirit of the renewal ushered by Vatican
II. The first, Lumen Gentium (Light of Nations) or the Dogmatic
Constitution on the Church deals with life of Catholics within the Church
itself. The second, Gaudium et Spes (Joy and Hope) is the Pastoral
Constitution on the Church in the Modern World. It treats the
relationship of the Church with contemporary situations. Sancrosanctum
Concilium (Sacred Council), the Constitution on Sacred Liturgy, lays out
the importance, relevance and re-orientation of worship within
Catholicism at the present time. And Dei Verbum (Word of God), the Dogmatic Constitution on
Divine Revelation, speaks about the centrality of the God-human relationship in Christian
thought as well as the important role of scripture within Catholicism.

Experiences and Theologies

The pastoral orientation of Vatican II is clearly manifested in its manner of theological
reflection. In Gaudium et Spes, art. 46, it is stated that there is a need to consider “a number of
particularly urgent needs... in the light of the gospel and of human experience.” In Vatican II,
experience as a source for doing theology was rediscovered and recovered. The phrase “doing
theology” refers to “the process of carrying out theological reflection, articulation and action. It is
commonly used today to underscore the necessity of thinking theologically in context. The doing
of theology has given birth to a proliferation of many different theologies. To a large extent these
have developed because of how experience was interpreted in the theological endeavor.

Basic Realities and Processes in Doing Theology

The mutual interaction between human experience and the gospel makes it possible to
start theologizing from either human experience or from the Gospel. Beginning with the
consideration of one reality inevitably leads to correlating it with the other. Tackling a theme
from the Gospel and attempting afterwards to make sense of it in a particular context is an
option. So is a broad and deep analysis of present-day experience giving way to correlating it
with relevant aspects of the Gospel.
But theologizing or doing theology is not to be mistaken as simply to be a process that
does not require certain tenets or standards. We need some guidelines to direct and set
parameters that may help us have a meaningful and relevant theology.

The Two Poles of Theologizing:

The Judeo-Christian Tradition and Contemporary Human Experience
There are two poles of doing theology which will guide us in our theological reflections. It
is not enough to dwell on our experiences alone. We also need to consider our faith tradition
(Judeo-Christian Tradition). It is true that our experiences are rich resources for lessons on life
but we are also part of a faith community whose identity is derived from the legacy of the past.
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The mutual interaction between the Judeo-Christian Tradition and contemporary human
experiences gives rise to a theology.

CONTEMPORARY
JUDEO-
HUMAN
CHRISTIAN
EXPERIENCES
TRADITION

THEOLOGY
Examples of Theologies Resulting from the Mutual Interaction
Since theologies are formulated to make sense of our relationship with God, many ways
of understanding the faith have evolved. Examples include personalist theologies, theologies of
religions, liberation theologies, gender-sensitive theologies, and ecological theologies.

a. Personalist Theologies
At a time when, triggered perhaps by technological advances, personalist philosophies
became widespread among people in the West, theological reflection was focused on the
primacy of the human person among all of God’s creatures. Believed to be the crown of creation
who is gifted with dignity and free-will, the human person became the focus of theological
reflections. Taking its cue from people’s need of personal fulfillment, salvation was perceived as
oriented towards an individual person. Certain statements like, “Jesus is my personal Lord and
Savior; I have a personal relationship with God; This is between me and my God” were inspired
by this kind of theological reflection.

b. Theologies of Inter-Religious Dialogue

After the Second Vatican Council, the Catholic Church began to recognize the positive
values in other religions and initiated dialogue with them. Nostra Aetate (one of the documents
of Vatican II) expresses the basis for this openness very strongly:
“The Catholic Church rejects nothing which is true and holy in these religions. She
looks with sincere respect upon those ways of conduct and of life, those rules and
teachings which, though differing in many particulars from what she holds and sets
forth, nevertheless often reflect a ray of that Truth which enlightens all people.”
(Nostra Aetate, article 2)

c. Liberation Theologies
During the late 1960’s, there emerged a new way of doing theology. It takes the praxis of
faith more seriously and sees social action as a necessary aspect of evangelization especially
among the poor. Faced with the wide spread problem of structural injustice and oppression,
Latin American theologians have reinterpreted the message of the gospel. In it, they gave
primacy to its liberating character and called for the transformation of society. The Church was
challenged to fulfill its prophetic voice in order to express a faith that seeks justice. Like Jesus
who took the side of the poor and the marginalized, Christians are called to work towards the
liberation of the poor. For faith and love are not mere words but active participation in the
liberation of the oppressed.
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d. Gender-sensitive Theologies
The prevalence of gender inequality in our Church and society brought some women
theologians to question a system that dehumanizes women. This socially-constructed institution
called “patriarchy” focuses and privileges the position and power of men over women. Taking
their cue from a personal experience of a God who is just and treats all in love and compassion,
feminist, womanish and mujerista theologians began to expose the abuses which women have
suffered—violence, harassment, oppression, and subjugation, to name a few. This context, which
was analyzed using narrative as a tool in presenting the contemporary human experience,
challenged male-oriented theologies and structures which had become part of the Church’s life.

e. Ecological Theologies
Theological reflections must include a rereading and reinterpretation of the “dominion”
claimed by human beings over the rest of creation (cf. Gen. 1:28). Instead of an attitude of
lording it over, Christians should care for the earth with genuine compassion guided by a vision
for the integrity of creation. It poses an urgent call to preserve and develop it with due respect
and reverence (cf. Gen. 2:15). Through such theologizing, one is reminded that the fullness of life
is achieved only when there is harmony in all of creation or “that all beings function together in
an integrated way”. The exploitation of the environment is understood as an afront to God’s
gracious love that is creative and life-giving. It violates the integrity of God’s creation and
compromises the quality of life in the world. Retrieving the spirituality of folk traditions which
fostered awe and reverence for the dignity of the earth has become one of the thrusts of
ecological theologies.