Paul Ⅵ And Modern Catholic Liturgical Renewal

The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican,which ended during the Pope PaulⅥ’s term was a crucial turning point in the church’s two-thousand-year life,it opened an irreversible door to the modernization process of the Catholic church.The fundamental problem that Vatican Ⅱ wanted to solve was how to carry on the dialogue with modern society on the basis of inheriting the tradition,and take the road of innovation and openness.Its core was how to cultivate God’s people in modern society.The purpose of the Vatican Ⅱ liturgy reform was to revitalize liturgy to make it more rooted in the early church tradition and more suitable for the life of modern society.The first document adopted by Vatican Ⅱ was the Sacrosanctum Concilium which was issued by Pope Paul VI.It was a close and organic connection between the reformation of liturgy and the reformation of the whole church life.It laid the theological foundation for the liturgy reform of Vatican Ⅱ and was also the principle of the liturgical life of the church after Vatican Ⅱ.The liturgy is the summit toward which the activity of the Church is directed,at the same time it is the font from which all her power flows.Pope Paul VI wanted to promote the reform of church life through the liturgy reform,and through the reform of church life to promote the reform of society and promote social justice.Since Pope Paul VI is the main promoter and interpreter of the Vatican Ⅱ liturgy reform,this thesis chooses his liturgy ideas for research,and takes the programmatic document Sacrosanctum Concilium as the basic literature,to understand more deeply the essence of the Vatican Ⅱ liturgy reform and the Catholic church’s response to the modern pastoral needs.In the first part of the introduction,this thesis introduces the research status of Pope Paul Ⅵ and Vatican Ⅱ liturgy reform,and then focuses on exploring the historical background of Vatican Ⅱ liturgy reform.The church’s ancient tradition of liturgy,the Reform of the Council of Trent,the Liturgical Movement,and the teachings of the liturgy by the popes before Pope Paul Ⅵ,they have laid the foundation for the VaticanⅡ systematic liturgy reform.Secondly,this thesis traces back to the life of Pope PaulⅥ and the origin of his thoughts on liturgy.Benefited from good family religious education,the instruction of many knowledgeable liturgical scholars in the Liturgical Movement,and his experience of life in the Benedictine monastery,he began to pay attention to liturgy very early and had a strong sensitivity and systematic thinking on the problems of the liturgy.Finally,his long experience in the administration-of the Holy See,and his governance of local dioceses during his tenure as archbishop of Milan enabled him to lead and effectively implement Vatican Ⅱ liturgy reform.Pope Paul VI had his own thoughts on the liturgy reform.He realized that the religious consciousness was in recession at that time and some rites in the traditional liturgy hinder people’s understanding and participation.He also noticed that human beings cannot be self-sufficient.People need to pray and need a deeper communication with God to provide spiritual support for their lives and work.And from the church’s history and experience,the best prayer is the liturgy.liturgy is the most powerful,because it contains not only the confession of the supplicant,but also the presence of God.The severe spiritual crisis experienced by the society at that time can find a very effective way out in the restoration practice of liturgical prayer,and people can enter into a profound experience of the mystery of God through liturgy.Therefore,Pope PaulⅥ regarded the liturgical reform as the core motivation of the renewal of church life.In the concrete implementation of the Vatican Ⅱ liturgy reform,Pope Paul Ⅵorganized the participants to study the liturgy scheme.He promulgated the Sacrosanctum Concilium and established the purpose and principles for the Vatican Ⅱliturgy reform.The theological basis of Vatican Ⅱ liturgy reform is that liturgy is thesalvation project of the holy trinity,with God as its source and end.It is also the ministry of the priesthood of Christ,the communion of the church community in the holy spirit and the public worship of God.The purpose of the liturgical reform is to enhance the Christianization of Christian life,so that they can better understand the intrinsic meaning of the liturgical,promote their active participation in the liturgy,create and deepen their dialogue and encounter with God.The principles of the liturgy reform are to emphasize the nobility and simplicity of liturgy,to emphasize the preaching of the Bible and the active participation of Christians,clarify the respective duties of the clergy and laymen,and allow the use of the local language.After Vatican Ⅱ,the reform of the rites and the revision of the liturgy book began immediately.Because only these rites themselves have changed,can they present a new theological view in the liturgy.These new liturgy books were reviewed and approved by Pope Paul VI.The specific contents of the reform include the Roman Missal,the seven sacraments,and other ceremonial celebrations.In addition to formulating the principle of active participation,Pope Paul Ⅵ also emphasized the fit with the liturgical tradition,beware of the tendency to demystify,and attached the importance of the educational function of the liturgy,to ensure that the reformed liturgy truly became the school of the people of God.The Decalogue for Prayer was a specific instruction to the liturgy in the late years of Pope Paul VI.In terms of liturgy,every instruction he promulgated has become the norm followed by the Vatican Ⅱ liturgy reform,and the concrete operation principle when ceremonial celebration.To some extent,because the Vatican Ⅱ liturgy reform was led by Pope Paul VI,his personal thoughts on liturgy also became a part of the Vatican Ⅱ liturgy reform,if they are forcibly separated,it would cause a sense of tearing.Finally,this thesis summarizes the liturgical thoughts of Pope Paul VI.His thoughts on liturgy were profound.He grasped the core of liturgy(the Paschal mystery)and took the liturgy renewal as the core motivation of the renewal of church life.He also took into account the various levels of the liturgy,from formulating the principle of active participation to the candles placed on the altar decoration,he has a comprehensive and careful consideration.The importance of Pope Paul Ⅵ in the process of Vatican Ⅱ liturgy reform and his contributions were obvious.Especially in the face of those conservatives or radicals attacking reforms,rejecting the renewal of the church,pushing the church to the hidden reef and disintegrating,Pope Paul Ⅵdecided the route of Peter’s ship.He upholds loyalty and confidence in the reform of the liturgy.He believes this is the source of power for the revival of the entire Catholic Church.The reformed liturgy after Vatican Ⅱ was exactly what Pope Paul Ⅵ had hoped for,not only has it energized the church in Catholic church districts around the world,it also provides dialogue and reference for the rites of various Christian denominations and other religions.Although the liturgical reform of Vatican Ⅱ is still an agenda to be completed,it is already like a crystal,through which the mystery of God shines.