with Prof. Thomas Beaudoin / Campion Hall 303

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Thesis advisor: Richard Lennan / This thesis examines issues that complicate the reception of Vatican II, proposes hermeneutical principles to engage these issues, and argues that to receive the council’s teaching on the church and episcopal conferences one has to combine sociology with the traditional sources of theology such as Scripture, patristic theology, church teaching, and church history. Chapter One studies issues that involve the reception of Vatican II through the perspectives of Walter Kasper, the delegates of the 1985 Synod of Bishops, and Joseph Ratzinger/Pope Benedict XVI. It shows that to engage these issues, one has to pay attention both to the historical context of Vatican II and to the documents of the council, to both ressourcement and aggiornamento, and to both elements of continuity and elements of discontinuity in the teaching of Vatican II. Chapter Two explains why one needs sociology to interpret Vatican II’s teaching on the church. It argues that for the council’s bishops the church is more than a mystery of communion promoted by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and defended by Joseph Ratzinger in his debate with Walter Kasper. The church is the sacrament of Christ or a theological and socio-historical reality. As a result, Scripture, patristic theology, church teaching, and church history are not sufficient to provide a proper understanding of the church. Sociology should be integrated into conciliar ecclesiology to study the church. Chapter Three shows how sociology can be integrated into ecclesiology to help theologians receive Vatican II’s teaching on the church. The chapter engages Neil Ormerod’s critique of Roger Haight’s two-language approach to ecclesiology to demonstrate why the relationship between the theological and the socio-historical dimension of the church complicates the integration of sociology into ecclesiology. It argues that Karl Rahner’s theology of grace and the church can provide a framework for relating sociology to ecclesiology. Chapter Four builds on this framework to examine the Vatican’s and Asian bishops’ reception of episcopal conferences. It argues that neither the Vatican’s nor the Asian bishops’ reception can offer a comprehensive understanding of episcopal conferences. To receive this teaching of the council, one has to combine sociological insights from the sociology of organizations with theological concepts from Scripture, canon law, and church teaching. / Thesis (STD) — Boston College, 2020. / Submitted to: Boston College. School of Theology and Ministry. / Discipline: Sacred Theology.

Le Coetus Internationalis Patrum (CIP) fut le groupe le plus important de la minorité au sein du concile Vatican II. Dans cette thèse, nous présentons brièvement, dans un chapitre préliminaire, tous les membres du groupe, puis, dans une première grande partie, son origine lointaine – ou sa préhistoire –, qui passe par une formation romaine antilibérale et contre-révolutionnaire et l’appartenance à des réseaux du catholicisme intransigeant aux ramifications internationales que nous identifions et présentons. Nous clôturons cette partie en exposant les dispositions des dirigeants du CIP à la veille de l’événement au moyen de leurs vota préconciliaires. Nous entamons ensuite l’étude du Coetus proprement dite, avec la création du groupe, son organisation et sa stratégie tout au long des sessions et intersessions du Concile. Ainsi la deuxième partie retrace la formation d’un « Groupe d’études » ou « piccolo comitato » pendant la première session ; la troisième partie porte sur la naissance officieuse du CIP et les combats de la première intersession et de la deuxième session ; la quatrième partie montre la création officielle du groupe et les bagarres de la deuxième intersession et de la troisième session ; et enfin, la cinquième et dernière partie, expose les ultimes batailles du Coetus, c’est-à-dire les combats de la troisième intersession et de la quatrième session. Pour chacune de ces périodes conciliaires, nous suivons l’ordre chronologique du Concile en présentant l’opinion, les prises de positions et les combats des membres et sympathisants du CIP pour chacun des schémas étudiés par l’assemblée, et en dressant un bilan de l’action et de l’impact du groupe sur chacun des textes. Nous concluons cette étude en évaluant l’organisation, l’activité et la stratégie du groupe, son impact sur les textes conciliaires, l’appréciation et la réception du Concile par les membres les plus importants, en situant l’histoire du Coetus Internationalis Patrum dans l’histoire générale du catholicisme intransigeant, et enfin en présentant les limites de notre travail tout en ouvrant sur des possibilités de recherches futures. / The Coetus Internationalis Patrum (CIP) constituted the most important group of council minority representatives during the Second Vatican Council. In a preliminary chapter, this dissertation sets out with a brief presentation of all the group’s members. Consequently, a first and vast section of our thesis is devoted to a sketch of the more remote origins – i.e. its prehistory – of the CIP. These origins lie both in the counter-revolutionary and anti-liberal Roman education of its members, and in their belonging to catholic intransigent networks on an international level – which we aim to identify and present in detail. This section ends with a study of the positions taken by the main CIP-protagonists on the eve of Vatican II, through an analysis of their preconciliar vota. A following section is devoted to the CIP as such. We will study its establishment, its organization and strategies throughout the subsequent conciliar periods and intersessions. A second part retraces the early formation of a « Study Group » or a « piccolo comitato » during the first council period ; a third part focuses upon the ‘officious’ birth of the CIP and the battles it waged during the first intersession and the second council period ; the fourth part then illustrates the group’s official establishment and its engagement in the council debates of the second intersession and the third period ; finally, the fifth and sixth parts offer a survey of the final battles fought by the Coetus, during the third intersession and the council’s closing period. Our overall study of the CIP-activities during the council combines a chronological study of the events with ample attention to the presentation of the opinions, the positions taken and the battles fought by its members and sympathizers regarding the conciliar drafts (schema’s) discussed by the assembly. It aims at highlighting the impact of the CIP on the evolution of the council documents.Our study closes with an evaluation of the organization, the activities and the strategies of the group, its impact on the council texts, and of the appreciation and reception of the Council by its core members, thus imbedding the story of the Coetus Internationalis Patrum within the larger history of intransigent Catholicism. Finally, we present the limits of our work and outline paths for future research.

À l’élection de Jean XXIII, peu s’attendaient à ce que ce pape, considéré de transition, amènerait l’Église dans une mise à jour qui ébranlerait toute la catholicité. Durant les quatre années qu’a duré le concile Vatican II, entre 1962 et 1965, les pères ont débattu sur de nombreuses questions, dont celle de la vie des communautés religieuses. Au même moment au Québec, les années 1960 sont pour ces congrégations une période de grands changements, certains diront même de crise, tant les défections augmentent et le recrutement se tarit. Toutefois, on peut se demander si tous les instituts religieux sont touchés de la même façon par le concile. Les communautés religieuses vouées au service domestique, comme les Petites Sœurs de la Sainte-Famille, se transforment-elles au même rythme que les autres congrégations à la suite de Vatican II entre 1962 et 1983 ? Notre étude démontre que les Petites Sœurs de la Sainte-Famille se sont conformées aux recommandations des pères conciliaires et ont adapté leur vie religieuse tout comme les autres communautés religieuses, mais à un rythme plus lent. À partir des archives privées de la congrégation et d’entrevues orales menées auprès de quelques sœurs, nous pouvons voir qu’elles ont adapté leur vie communautaire afin qu’elle soit davantage ouverte au dialogue, autant à l’interne, entre les sœurs elles-mêmes et leur supérieure générale, que dans les relations externes, avec les religieuses d’autres instituts ainsi qu’avec les autorités ecclésiastiques et le monde séculier. Au point de vue de la spiritualité, ces femmes ont été amenées à prendre davantage de responsabilités dans leur vie religieuse, notamment avec une formation plaçant l’individu au centre des apprentissages, et de nouveaux exercices spirituels qui les aideront dans leur cheminement personnel.

A tese estuda a participação do episcopado brasileiro no Concílio Vaticano II, convocado einaugurado pelo Papa João XXIII (1959-1963), continuado e concluído por Paulo VI (1963-1965): etapa antepreparatória (1959-1960), com as respostas (vota) dos bispos e prelados à consulta romana; etapa preparatória, com os trabalhos nas comissões preparatórias (1960-1962) e etapa conciliar, nos seus quatro períodos, com as intervenções na Aula Conciliar ou depositadas por escrito (1962-1965). Analisa outros aspectos da vida e atividades do episcopado brasileiro em Roma: local de moradia e trabalho; pontos de apoio; inserção nas redes de articulação formadas antes e durante o Concílio; promoção das assim chamadas Conferências da Domus Mariae, Mensagens ao povo brasileiro; elaboração do Plano de Emergência da Igreja do Brasil (PE –1962) e encaminhamento da recepção do Concilio, com o Plano de Pastoral de Conjunto (PPC - 1965). Conclui com a prosopografia de todos os bispos e prelados brasileiros que tiveram direito, nem sempre exercido, de participarem das diversas etapas do Concílio; a bibliografia e um caderno iconográfico. / The thesis studies the participation of the Brazilian episcopate in the Second Vatican Council, convoked and inaugurated by Pope John XXIII (1959-1963), continued and concluded by Paul VI (1963-1965): the pre-preparatory phase (1959-1960), with the replies (vota) of the bishops and prelates to the Roman consultation; the preparatory phase, with the work done in the preparatory commissions (1960-1962) and the conciliar phase, with its four periods, and with the interventions in the Plenary Sessions of the Council or submitted in writing (1962-1965). The thesis also analyses other aspects of the life and activities of the Brazilian episcopate in Rome: where the bishops stayed, where they found support; how they were linked into the various net-works that were formed before and during the Council; the promoting of the events that went under the title of the Domus Mariae Conferences, of the Messages to the Brazilian People; the elaboration of the Emergency Plan for the Church in Brazil (PE – 1962) and the steps taken to ensure the reception of the Council, with the Joint Pastoral Plan (PPC – 1965). It finishes with a prosopography of all the Brazilian bishops and prelates who had the right, not always exercised, of participating in the various stages of the Council; a bibliography and iconography.

Thesis advisor: Richard Lennan / A number of theologians claim that the church has not tapped into the fullness of Vatican II’s teaching on the sensus fidelium. As an attempt to address that concern, this dissertation examines the teaching authority of the laity as a key element in the expression of the sensus fidelium in the church. It argues for a fuller realization of Vatican II’s emphasis on the laity’s participation in Christ’s prophetic office. It proposes a three-part lay hermeneutic (hermeneutic of everyday life, hermeneutic of desire, and hermeneutic of trust) as a relevant, authoritative framework for discerning the sensus fidelium, of which Filipino popular Catholicism is a living expression. This dissertation employs a method that is primarily critical, hermeneutical and practical. It is structured in two parts: the first two chapters establish the theological underpinnings of the study, while the last three chapters focus on the laity, their sense of the faith, their reception process, their lived faith expressed through popular Catholicism, and their participation in the prophetic office of Christ. Through an analysis of the laity’s sensus fidei as an integral dimension in the discernment of the sensus fidelium, this dissertation emphasizes that authority in the church derives from all its members and that the interpretation of faith is a process that invites the participation of all the baptized as sharers in Christ’s prophetic function. In such a church, not only the ordained, but the laity, equally belong to the guild of interpreters of God’s revelation. The laity possess a teaching authority that contributes significantly to the life of the church. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2015. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Theology.

Depuis 'Ecclesia in Africa', le concept de l’Eglise-Famille-de-Dieu est identifié comme le concept africain de l’inculturation de l’ecclésiologie de communion du concile Vatican II et la clé de la nouvelle évangélisation en Afrique. Son adoption suscite des polémiques chez des pasteurs et des théologiens africains, notamment au sujet de sa genèse et de sa pertinence. Plusieurs études bibliques et théologiques ont été effectuées au sujet du concept de l’Eglise- Famille-de-Dieu. Celles-ci ont surtout pour vocation à le valider comme le concept ecclésiologique africain. Or la promotion faite au concept de l’Eglise-Famille-de-Dieu au plan continental, national et diocésain n’est qu’institutionnelle voire même conventionnelle. Pour dépasser le cadre d’une appropriation simplement superficielle de ce concept, il nous paraît nécessaire et urgent d’accorder une place prioritaire aux spécificités historiques, culturelles et communautaires de chaque Église locale à l’instar de l’expérience ecclésiale du Burkina Faso qui apparaît comme le modèle fondateur. La présente contribution, qui se veut une étude monographique, met en évidence la genèse du concept de l’Eglise-Famille-de-Dieu au Burkina Faso et mesure sa pertinence dans un champ ecclésial particulier : celui de l’Église catholique au Togo. En définitive, il s’agit de tenter une refondation de l’Eglise-Famille-de- Dieu en vue d’une réception communautaire de Vatican II et d’'Ecclesia in Africa'. / Since 'Ecclesia in Africa', the concept of the Church as Family of God has been identified as the African concept for the development of the Ecclesiology of communion advised by the second Vatican Council and as the key of the new evangelization in Africa. Its adoption has given rise to polemics among African priests and theologians, in particular concerning its genesis and its significance. Several biblical and theological studies have been carried out about the concept of the Church as Family of God. Their aim is mostly to confirm it as the ecclesiological concept in Africa. However it turns out that the promotion given at the continental, national and diocesan levels to the concept of the Church as Family of God is merely institutional or even conventional. To transcend a purely superficial implementation of the concept it seems necessary and urgent that primary importance be given to each local Church’s specific features, in terms of history, culture and community life, following the example of the experience of the Church in Burkina Faso, which turns out to be the founding model. The present work, which aims to be a monograph, delineates the genesis of the concept of the Church as Family of God in Burkina Faso and assesses its significance in a given field : the Roman Catholic Church in Togo. Eventually it attempts to reform the concept of the Church as Family of God with a view to sustaining a community reception of the second Vatican Council and of 'Ecclesia in Africa' in Togo.

A tese estuda a participação do episcopado brasileiro no Concílio Vaticano II, convocado einaugurado pelo Papa João XXIII (1959-1963), continuado e concluído por Paulo VI (1963-1965): etapa antepreparatória (1959-1960), com as respostas (vota) dos bispos e prelados à consulta romana; etapa preparatória, com os trabalhos nas comissões preparatórias (1960-1962) e etapa conciliar, nos seus quatro períodos, com as intervenções na Aula Conciliar ou depositadas por escrito (1962-1965). Analisa outros aspectos da vida e atividades do episcopado brasileiro em Roma: local de moradia e trabalho; pontos de apoio; inserção nas redes de articulação formadas antes e durante o Concílio; promoção das assim chamadas Conferências da Domus Mariae, Mensagens ao povo brasileiro; elaboração do Plano de Emergência da Igreja do Brasil (PE –1962) e encaminhamento da recepção do Concilio, com o Plano de Pastoral de Conjunto (PPC - 1965). Conclui com a prosopografia de todos os bispos e prelados brasileiros que tiveram direito, nem sempre exercido, de participarem das diversas etapas do Concílio; a bibliografia e um caderno iconográfico. / The thesis studies the participation of the Brazilian episcopate in the Second Vatican Council, convoked and inaugurated by Pope John XXIII (1959-1963), continued and concluded by Paul VI (1963-1965): the pre-preparatory phase (1959-1960), with the replies (vota) of the bishops and prelates to the Roman consultation; the preparatory phase, with the work done in the preparatory commissions (1960-1962) and the conciliar phase, with its four periods, and with the interventions in the Plenary Sessions of the Council or submitted in writing (1962-1965). The thesis also analyses other aspects of the life and activities of the Brazilian episcopate in Rome: where the bishops stayed, where they found support; how they were linked into the various net-works that were formed before and during the Council; the promoting of the events that went under the title of the Domus Mariae Conferences, of the Messages to the Brazilian People; the elaboration of the Emergency Plan for the Church in Brazil (PE – 1962) and the steps taken to ensure the reception of the Council, with the Joint Pastoral Plan (PPC – 1965). It finishes with a prosopography of all the Brazilian bishops and prelates who had the right, not always exercised, of participating in the various stages of the Council; a bibliography and iconography.

Pope Benedict XVI, since his election to the papacy, has urged Catholic clergy and theologians to interpret the documents of the second Vatican Council using a "hermeneutic of continuity." This thesis seeks to answer whether such a hermeneutic is possible by focusing on one aspect of the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium. The methodology here employed is a critical analysis of one of the major patristic sources of Lumen Gentiums teaching, St. Augustine of Hippo. In claiming St. Augustines support for its doctrine, Lumen Gentium also offers an interpretation of his thought. For Lumen Gentiums teaching to be plausible, we must be able to conclude that Augustines teaching is essentially identical to it. In that connection, Lumen Gentiums claim that the Church is both a spiritual and visible reality forces us to consider a controverted topic in Augustinian studies: can Augustines city of God be identified with the hierarchical Church? In order to resolve that question, we will examine both the historical and eschatological aspects of the Church in Augustines thought, with some reference (treated in an appendix) to the compatibility between his theory of predestination and his ecclesiology. Further, what the Council meant when it said that the Church of Christ subsists in the Catholic Church, and whether this change in terminology, along with its implications in the field of ecumenism, can be reconciled with St. Augustines ecclesiology must be determined with a view to establishing the continuity between pre and post conciliar Catholic ecclesiology. St. Augustine developed his understanding of the nature of the Church in the early years of his ecclesiastical career through his polemical battles with the Donatist schismatics, and so the history of that schism is related in an appendix.