Vatican II

"Wilde has written the first serious sociological study of the dynamics of the Second Vatican Council. The men who organized the 'progressive' faction were not, as is often claimed, theologians who were manipulating bishops, but bishops from the countries where the church was engaged with modernity, especially from South America. Nor did they view their efforts as anything less than a dramatic change from the past. They were great men who accomplished great deeds. After this book, no one will be able to dismiss them."--Andrew Greeley, author of The Catholic Revolution

Offering an explanation for the revolutionary transformation of the Church, this book includes a collection of interviews with the Council's key bishops and cardinals, and primary documents from the Vatican Secret Archive. It says that the pronouncements of the Council are the product of a confrontation between progressives and conservatives.

List of Tables and Figures xi Acknowledgments xiii Introduction 1 What Does Not Explain the Council 4 Part I: Explaining the Council 5 Part II: The Case Studies 8 The Data 9 Part I: Explaining the Council 11 Chapter One: Collective Effervescence and the Holy Spirit: The Eventful First Session 13 Eventful Sociology and Vatican II 14 Trying to Ensure a Rubber-Stamp Council: The Curia on the Eve of Vatican II 16 The Chain of Occurrences 17 The Effects: Collective Effervescence and the Holy Spirit 22 Conservatives: Waiting for the Holy Spirit 26 Conclusion: The Transformation of Structures 27 Chapter Two: Who Wanted What and Why at the Second Vatican Council? Toward a Theory of Religious Change 29 Measuring Organizational Strategies 30 The Four Groups of Bishops and Their Votes 32 Theories of Religious Competition 42 Theories of Institutional Legitimacy and Organizational Change 45 Combining Theories 47 The Ecumenical Movement 51 Conclusion: Competition from the Perspective of the Competitors 55 Chapter Three: How Culture Mattered at Vatican II: Collegiality Trumps Authority in the Council's "Social Movement Organizations" 57 Organizational Effectiveness and Culture at Vatican II 58 Competing Views of Authority in the Roman Catholic Church 59 The DM's Belief in Collegiality 61 The CIP's Suspicions about Collegiality 62 The Domus Mariae 63 The Coetus Internationalis Patrum 68 Tactics in Common: Petitions, Votes, and the Modi 74 Conclusion: Institutional Rules, Models of Authority, Semi-Marginality, and Organizational Effectiveness 77 Part II: The Case Studies 83 Chapter Four: The Declaration on Religious Freedom: Ceding Power, Gaining Legitimacy 85 Critiques of Hypocrisy: Illegitimacy before the Council 86 Roman Catholic Reactions 88 The Story of Reform 91 Conclusion: The Power of Legitimacy 100 Chapter Five: The Blessed Virgin Mary: The Toughest Fight of the Council 102 Catholic and Protestant Views of Mary 103 The First Session 104 The Second Session: The Closest Vote of the Council 105 The Third Session and More Controversy 110 Conclusion: Mary's Deaccentuation 114 Chapter Six: The Council's Failure to Liberalize Birth Control: Lackluster Progressive Effort Meets a Hesitant Pope 116 Christianity's Varied Stances on Birth Control 117 Pressure to Change 119 Deliberations on Birth Control during the Council 121 Conclusion: The Cost to Religious Authority 124 Rethinking the Council 126 Appendix A: Abbreviations of Primary Sources 129 Appendix B: Methodological Information 131 Votes from the Second Vatican Council 131 Caporale's Sample 132 Members of the Domus Mariae 133 The Dutch Documentation Center (DOC) 136 Analysis of the Ecumenical Review 137 Communism and the Council 137 Appendix C: Timeline of the Second Vatican Council 140 Notes 143 References 175 Index 191