When Bishops Meet: An Essay Comparing Trent, Vatican I, and Vatican II

O’Malley (The First Jesuits), professor of theology at Georgetown University, compares three major Roman Catholic councils—the Council of Trent (1545–63), Vatican I (1869–70), and Vatican II (1962–65)—to present his findings on “councils as such” in this trenchant analysis of the changing roles of the councils’ participants and the impact that the councils had on the church and the world. While the substantive doctrinal and disciplinary matters of the councils are covered, the book’s strength lies in O’Malley’s comparison of the organization and operation of the councils themselves. Decisions about the goals of the councils and the relative power of the participating groups were often drawn on centuries-old frameworks that could produce unexpected challenges, prompting the creation of innovative new frameworks in response. For instance, Vatican II’s Gaudium et spes took so long to produce, O’Malley asserts, because “attending to the sign of the times was the point” of the document, which taught that the church must be concerned with “social justice, the destructiveness of modern war, and the need to foster respect of the Other.” O’Malley’s investigation into how Catholic councils changed the mission of the church over centuries will appeal to clergy in particular, but also any lay reader interested in how the Catholic church came to take its modern form. (Aug.)