We did talk a little about Pope Francis at our session yesterday, but we also considered the challenges of collegiality among the cardinals during Vatican II and foresight of the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World. It will be interesting to compare what we thought with Nancy Wisdo's presentation tonight at the Newman Center in DeKalb. (http://yearoffaith.rockforddiocese.org/lecture-series)
Our next meeting, already planned, will be a 4 p.m. session on May 15, when we'll focus on the Declaration on Religious Freedom (Dignitatis Humanae) along with "What Happened at Vatican II" by Father O'Malley.
History on tap
And, while we plan to keep looking at a few Vatican II documents during this Year of Faith, we'll take a detour this summer by reading two other books. We'll also change our meeting time to 6:30 p.m. for the summer gatherings. If it's nice, we can sit outside to talk.
For our June 26 gathering, we'll talk about "Endowed by Our Creator: The Birth of Religious Freedom in America" by Michael I. Meyerson. We thought it would be a nice follow-up to the May readings. The book looks at how the framers of the U.S. Constitution looked at religion and governement. (http://yalepress.yale.edu/book.asp?isbn=9780300166323)
Then, on Aug. 7, we'll step back a few centuries to get a brief sense of a previous Church council in "Trent: What Happened at the Council" by Father John W. O'Malley, S.J. Yes, it's the same Father O'Malley who wrote "What Happened at Vatican II." Considerably shorther than the original 12-volume record of that historic council, O'Malley will take us from the 15th century prelude to the council through the 25 sessions, held between 1545 and 1563, in a whirlwind 275 pages. (http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog.php?isbn=9780674066977)
There are several online vendors of both books, but you may also be able to order them through your favorite Catholic bookstore.
