Wednesday, March 16, 2011

A Vatican II Parish?

In this blog post Heidi Schlumpf responds to readers who take issue with her phrase "Vatican II parish." She gets to an important question at the end:
It's true that the phrase "Vatican II" (as in "Vatican II priests" or "Vatican II parishes) has become Catholic shorthand for "more progressive or liberal," as opposed to "more traditional or conservative." How sad that even a mention of such an historic moment in our church has become divisive. 
I was born during the Second Vatican Council, and the parish I grew up in embraced its reforms wholeheartedly. Critics would say it even went beyond what the council called for in some instances. But it did an excellent job of teaching and modeling the Gospel to me, and I tend to think it inspired me in a way that much of the church before Vatican II would not have. Still, the reforms of Vatican II were just that: a reforming and reclaiming of parts of our tradition that had been lost. In the years since, there has also been some tweaking of the reforms, as there should be. 
I proudly claim the label "Vatican II" Catholic. 
What is a "Vatican II parish" or "Vatican II Catholic" to you? Should this phrase be retired? Is it too divisive?
So, what's your answer?

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