Ecclesiological Legacy of the Second Vatican Council in Light of Contemporary Challenges

Dear Colleagues,

The Second Vatican Council (1962–1965) can be understood both as the culmination of a long process of defining the identity of the Catholic Church since the Council of Trent and as a starting point that remains decisive for the life of the Church today. The central idea of aggiornamento has not lost its significance—the Church is called to be, in Christ, “sacrament, that is, sign and instrument of intimate union with God and of the unity of all humanity” (LG 1), under concrete historical conditions, both ad intra and ad extra.

Over the past sixty years, the Church has faced challenges that have prompted theological, canonical, and pastoral reflection and debate—generally profound and constructive, sometimes contentious, and leaving certain aspects still open. Nevertheless, a central conviction has crystallized: the Church is only properly understood, and ecclesial life is strengthened, when it is rooted in the mystery of the Triune God (LG 4; AG 7). The Church, conceived as communion, cannot be understood apart from union with Christ, the unique “mediator between God and man” (1 Tim 2:5) and its “head” (Eph 5:23), as both divine and human by "no weak analogy" with him (LG 8). The Church has no light of its own but can only reflect the light of Christ (LG 1) and is built and vivified by the Holy Spirit. These coordinates, along with the missionary nature of the Church, remain indispensable for any fecund ecclesiological reflection.

Although the Second Vatican Council was ecumenical, i.e., universal, its agenda was largely shaped by European and Western concerns. However, in the post-conciliar period, its ecclesiology has been inculturated in different contexts. In Latin America, the CELAM conferences emphasized new pastoral approaches to combat poverty and injustice and promoted greater participation of the people of God. In Africa, the Church as family emerged as a central image, reflecting the continent’s cultural emphasis on kinship, solidarity, and identity. In Asia, the “threefold dialogue” with cultures, religions, and the poor shaped an ecclesiology of local churches in pluralistic and interreligious contexts. In Europe and North America, the Church must face increasing secularization and polarization of society. This diversity of experiences shows that the legacy of the Second Vatican Council cannot be separated from cultural and historical circumstances.

At the same time, new global challenges have profoundly changed the ecclesial landscape. The crisis of sexual abuse, the decline of priestly and religious vocations, the demographic collapse in the West, and the simultaneous explosive growth of Christianity in the Global South—all these realities require new responses both faithful to the Council and creative, based in prayerful discernment and “conversation in the Spirit,” as emphasized by the last Synod of Bishops (2024).

We are pleased to invite to this Special Issue of Religions contributions in three interrelated areas:

1. Ecclesiological Questions: systematic, canonical, and pastoral reflections.
2. Contextual reception of conciliar insights and their development in different cultural and geographical areas.
3. Universal Challenges: reflections on communion in vertical and horizontal senses, the role and involvement of the laity and women, accountability, confronting secularism, ecumenical and interreligious questions, and social and ecological concerns.

By bringing together perspectives from these different points of view, the Special Issue aims to show how the ecclesiological insights of the Second Vatican Council continue to shape Catholic identity and practice, while providing the Church with resources to face present challenges with fidelity and creativity.

Before submitting a manuscript, interested authors are requested to submit abstracts of their proposed contributions of 200–300 words. Please send abstracts to the Guest Editor or to the Assistant Editor of Religions, Dr. Ana Vujković Šakanović (vujkovic.sakanovic@mdpi.com). Abstracts will be reviewed for the purposes of ensuring proper fit within the scope of the Special Issue. Full manuscripts will undergo double-blind peer review.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Alenka Arko
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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• Second Vatican Council
• mystery-based ecclesiology
• communion
• hierarchical structure of the Church
• synodality
• accountability
• contextual reception of the Council
• missionary conversion
• dialogue