The Unfinished Business of Vatican II
by Marcellino D'Ambrosio, Ph.D.
Renewal of the Baptized
But weak, lifeless Christians also make evangelization quite difficult. As the atheist philosopher, Nietszche once said, “if Christians want me to believe in their Redeemer, they need to look more redeemed.” So a great deal of the Council’s attention was devoted to the inner life of the Church (ecclesia ad intra) in an effort to revitalize Christians by reconnecting them with the sources of faith and life (ressourcement), namely, the liturgy, the Bible, and the Fathers of the Church. In order to make these sources more accessible to ordinary people, a certain “updating” (aggiornamento) of language, images, customs and ceremonies would be required without any dilution of doctrine.
The Need for Continuing Formation and Education
The religious education programs in many Catholic parishes have not yet caught up with this conciliar vision. If they had, adult education and parenting courses would be top priority in parish religious education programs. Though some strides have been made in this direction (the RCIA is one), by and large adult education outside of RCIA is regarded as an optional extra. Evangelical Churches generally put Catholic parishes to shame in the emphasis placed on continuing adult education which is focused on bible study, parenting and Christian family life.
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