From: Ouko joachim omolo
Voices of Justice for Peace
Regional News

BY FR JOACHIM OMOLO OUKO, AJ
NAIROBI-KENYA
MONDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2012

Pope Benedict XVI on Sunday opened the synod, which brings together 260 archbishops, bishops and other senior clerics. The theme of the synod is “new evangelisation”. It comes at the time the Church’s conservative stance on issues such as women priests, divorce and contraception has become a big challenge.

When Pope John XXIII inaugurated Vatican II on October 11, 1962, the aim was to evangelize cultures within the “signs of the times. He maintained that if we’re going to live the gospel in the world then we have to look at what is happening in the world.

Among his stated objectives in calling the council were: to foster spiritual renewal; to renew commitment to world evangelism and develop strategy; to lay the groundwork for an eventual reunion of the Catholic Church and other Christian denominations; to make church doctrine more accessible and comprehensible; to simplify the constitution; to clarify the Church’s stand on moral issues in the postmodern world; and to emphasize and exemplify the overall unity of the Church.

Over the course of its four periods, the council produced four constitutions, nine decrees, and three declarations, as follows:

Dogmatic Constitution on the Church: This document related chiefly to the nature and role of the church and its hierarchy. It included such things as the authority of bishops, the apostolate of the laity, the relationship of “separated” Christians and non-believers to the Catholic Church, social justice, missions, the relationship between church and state, and Mary as the mother of the church and a channel of grace.

Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation: This constitution focused on the nature of revelation. It looked at such issues as tradition in relation to Scripture, the inerrancy and historicity of the Bible, and the methods of teaching and promoting Scripture.

Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy: This constitution examined the forms, purpose and effectiveness of the liturgy. It was revolutionary in that it allowed for the use of the vernacular language in the mass, as well as the incorporation of local or national customs and the taking of both communion elements (wine and bread) by the laity. It affirmed the teaching and unifying value of communion.

Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the World of Today: This constitution addressed a number of issues relevant to contemporary society, such as the role of women, race relations, poverty, hunger, communism, the relationship of church and society, divorce, abortion, nuclear weapons, and population.

On the decrees- Pastoral Office of Bishops: As the name implies, this decree clarifies the roles and obligations of bishops, especially in the light of the new Dogmatic Constitution of the Church.

Ecumenism: This is one of the areas where the progressive mood of the council was most evident. Although the decree exhorts Catholics to be faithful to the truth as they have received it, it also encourages humility, charity and cooperation with regard to “separated brethren”.

Oriental Catholic Churches: This decree is similar in some ways to the Decree on Ecumenism, but it concerns itself specifically with the Church in the Far East. It gives Asian patriarchs similar standing with those of the West; accepts the need of Asian churches to adapt themselves to their own cultures rather than accept Latinization; accepts the validity of rites performed in non-Catholic Christian churches, and allows Catholics to participate in them when no Catholic priest is available.

Ministry and Life of Priests: This decree is for the priesthood what the Decree on the Pastoral Office of Bishops is for that particular group. It clarifies the roles, responsibilities and obligations of priests in the contemporary world.

Education for the Priesthood: Priestly education was seen as important by the council, because the revitalization of the church was in large part dependent on its priests. This decree dealt with the need to update seminary programs to equip priests for ministry in the postmodern world, and the need for a practical training period after seminary.

Adapted Renovation of the Life of Religious: In regard to membership in the various orders, the council affirmed the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. It was decided that constitutions of the orders should be updated to ensure both their adherence to their original spirit and their relevance in the postmodern world. Languishing communities should be forbidden from receiving any more novices. Communities with similar objectives should form associations.

Missionary Activity of the Church: This decree urged cooperation between missionary institutes and local ecclesiastical jurisdictions, adaptability to different cultures, dialogue with non-Christians, and the setting up of a central mission board.

Apostolate of the Laity: The theological basis and objectives of lay ministry were analyzed, and training for lay ministry was emphasized. In a significant move, the council affirmed what the Protestant reformers had proclaimed centuries before concerning the apostolate of the laity, or the priesthood of all believers.

Previously, the Church was considered to be made up of its hierarchy – clergy, religious, etc. – but not the laity. This decree affirms that all Christians continue in the calling of the original apostles in whatever walk of life they find themselves. Therefore, the definition of the Church was expanded to include the laity.

Media of Social Communication: This decree affirms the legitimacy of the use of the mass media in evangelization and the promotion of church objectives. It also recommends that a special office for media concerns be set up in Rome, with national offices in each country. Additional recommendations were that an international Catholic news agency be founded, and that communications experts from various countries, including lay people, be recruited.

Religious Freedom declaration: This declaration comes to terms with the fact that the Catholic Church is no longer the political power that it was from the time of Constantine until the nineteenth century. It affirms that governments have no right to interfere with the personal religious convictions and practices of individuals or groups, except where it becomes a matter of public order. It urges governments to pass laws guaranteeing the free exercise of religion.

The Church’s Attitude toward Non-Christian Religions: This declaration reflects a new openness toward other religions. It affirms that all peoples have one community, origin, and goal.

Christian Education: This declaration affirms the right of all people to obtain an education and the obligation of national governments to ensure that basic education is provided, as well as the right to freedom of choice in education. The church has a right to use its own methods and principles at all levels of education, and can and should make recommendations and work in cooperation with other educational bodies. The church is responsible for upholding religious and moral principles in its own schools and encouraging them in others.

Since then the acceptance of modern media as tools for education, evangelism, promoting church unity, dissipation of information, and the furtherance of Catholic goals in society has been of great effect. John Paul II is a good example of a pope who, through extensive media exposure, became a familiar and influential person internationally.

He was very sensitive to the potential of the mass media for extending his message to the world, and he did not hesitate to use it for the furtherance of Catholic objectives. The ability to respond to the media in a positive way may, in the end, be the greatest asset to a church which is seen by many as out of touch.

While this has been effective however, a doctrine which was affirmed at Vatican II, but which is increasingly coming under fire, is the need for celibacy in the priesthood. There has been a marked decline in those wishing to enter the priesthood in recent years and the celibacy requirement is cited more often than any other as a reason for this.

Another challenge is an issue which has a direct bearing on the lives of the laity is that of birth control, in which all forms of artificial birth control were absolutely proscribed, despite the fact that the majority opinion of a special commission which had been called to give advice had advocated change.

Many Catholic theologians and laymen took strong exception to the encyclical, finding that it was not in keeping with the expectations created by the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World.

USA as a study case: While the number of priests in the United States more than doubled to 58,000, between 1930 and 1965, since then that number has fallen to 45,000. By 2020, there will be only 31,000 priests left, and more than half of these priests will be over 70.

Ordination: In 1965, 1,575 new priests were ordained in the United States. In 2002, the number was 450. In 1965, only 1 percent of U.S. parishes were without a priest. Today, there are 3,000 priestless parishes, 15 percent of all U.S. parishes.

Seminarian: Between 1965 and 2002, the number of seminarians dropped from 49,000 to 4,700, a decline of over 90 percent. Two-thirds of the 600 seminaries that were operating in 1965 have now closed.

Sisters: In 1965, there were 180,000 Catholic nuns. By 2002, that had fallen to 75,000 and the average age of a Catholic nun is today 68. In 1965, there were 104,000 teaching nuns. Today, there are 8,200, a decline of 94 percent since the end of Vatican II.

Religious Orders: For religious orders in America, the end is in sight. In 1965, 3,559 young men were studying to become Jesuit priests. In 2000, the figure was 389. With the Christian Brothers, the situation is even more dire.

Their number has shrunk by two-thirds, with the number of seminarians falling 99 percent. In 1965, there were 912 seminarians in the Christian Brothers. In 2000, there were only seven. The number of young men studying to become Franciscan and Redemptorist priests fell from 3,379 in 1965 to 84 in 2000.

Catholic Marriage: Catholic marriages have fallen in number by one-third since 1965, while the annual number of annulments has soared from 338 in 1968 to 50,000 in 2002.

Attendance at Mass: A 1958 Gallup Poll reported that three in four Catholics attended church on Sundays. A recent study by the University of Notre Dame found that only one in four now attend.

Only 10 percent of lay religious teachers now accept church teaching on contraception. Fifty-three percent believe a Catholic can have an abortion and remain a good Catholic.

Sixty-five percent believe that Catholics may divorce and remarry. Seventy-seven percent believe one can be a good Catholic without going to mass on Sundays. By one New York Times poll, 70 percent of all Catholics in the age group 18 to 44 believe the Eucharist is merely a “symbolic reminder” of Jesus.

Sources- http://www.townhall.com/columnists/patbuchanan/pb20021211.shtml

“Index of Leading Catholic Indicators: The Church since Vatican II” (113 pages) by Kenneth C. Jones.

Fr Joachim Omolo Ouko, AJ
People for Peace in Africa
Tel +254-7350-14559/+254-722-623-578
E-mail omolo.ouko@gmail.com

Peaceful world is the greatest heritage
That this generation can give to the generations
To come- All of us have a role.