Thursday 16 September 1965
Went to St. Peter’s in spite of everything. The liturgy of the Mass now has a much better format: 1) the celebrant makes his entry bringing in the Gospel book, from which the Gospel reading for the day is read. Thus the unity between the two ceremonies is affirmed, and Christ is proclaimed as the Master of Truth; 2) everyone present sings the proper of the Mass, with a system of antiphonal psalms, which is a bit overdone and of which one will soon grow tired. Each day, four times over, a sometimes humdrum antiphon is alternated with some rather long psalms; 3) for the epistle, a lectio continua [sequential reading] of the Acts of the Apostles has been introduced, and, for the Gospel, of the final chapters of St John.
Thus the book, which used to be only an object of ceremonial, is now speaking!!!
Tuesday 7 December 1965
Why is it that one CANNOT rest when one is most tired?
Exhausted as I was yesterday evening, it took me four hours to get to sleep . . .
This morning, I would not have gone to the public session were it not that the ending of the mutual excommunications between Rome and Constantinople was to be declared there. But I wanted to take part in this event, and share in the prayer of the Church. Before leaving, I was able to get the finishing touches done for my text on the four Marks, so that I was able to give it to Feiner.
Congestion such as I have never seen, to get into St. Peter’s, by the Cardinals’ door. The basilica was flooded with light, an excessive light for TV, which hurt my eyes very much, even though I protected myself as best I could. But the ceremony lasted nearly four hours. Everywhere was already packed when I got in; the ambassadors and delegations were arriving. Thanks to God and my friends, I had a seat with the Observers. I greeted on the sacristy-side, in relation to the altar, some Orthodox bishops who had come from London, Vienna, Geneva.
Everything was very beautiful. However, there was still too much of the theater, with spectacular gestures, strange and sumptuous vestments, elaborate chants. It was bound to be, on the whole, too long! Why sing a polyphonic version of the Veni Creator, when we had just said the Adsumus?
The communion rite of the concelebrated Mass was also excessively long. But what a day! What a moment!
Felici read out the beginning and the end of the principal parts of the schemas to be voted on. I was waiting for the passage from No. 2 of the De Missionali Activitate: it was read out just as it was printed, without addition or correction. I was astounded and happy at this. I had introduced there a little bit of Eastern theology.
After that, Willebrands read out, in French, the text of the abolition of the mutual excommunications between Rome and Constantinople.
It is a fine text. Right at the beginning, the name of Athenagoras was applauded and cheered at length. The document itself was also warmly applauded.
‘Nine hundred years later!’
I could feel the historic moment. Not that the difficulties have been resolved into nothing, but they can be the better tackled.
What a reversal of history!
It was 10.20 am, when this was read out: the date 1054 begins to fade on the screen!
The Pope’s speech: very much in the tone of ‘Ecclesiam suam’; a veritable declaration of the complete acceptance of the modern human being and of the primacy of anthropology. (The Holy Father’s speech was remarkable: he gave expression to the fundamental intention of schema XIII: to renew contact with humanity, to re-introduce the consideration of humankind into theology. The Pope thus responded to those criticisms according to which the Council was tipping towards humanism.)
After Mass, the results of the final votes were given. I was expecting 120 non placet against the De libertate. But it was quite otherwise. [2,308 to 70] …
This is a triumph (without triumphalism, I hope).
VERY strong applause.
After this announcement of the results of the voting, and the promulgation of the texts [of several approved documents] by the Pope (vacatio legis [not legally binding] until 29 June 1966), Cardinal Bea read out the pontifical brief about the events of 1054 (in Latin): it was very much the same content as the French text read out by Willebrands. Bea was again greatly applauded. Msgr. Meliton of Tyre had gone up near to the altar. After this reading, the Pope embraced him, and two or three of the Pope’s close assistants also embraced him. There was thunderous applause, which was redoubled while Meliton returned to his place, walking right the way round the altar. If there had been a popular plebiscite in favor of union at Constantinople, there was also a popular plebiscite in Rome!!
The public session concluded, before the final Te Deum, with a liturgy of penance imploring God’s forgiveness for the sins committed during the Council, and because of it.
I left slowly and with difficulty, barely able to stand. A great many bishops congratulated me, thanked me. To a good extent, it was my work, they said.
Yves Congar, My Journal of the Council, pp. 778, 869-870. For previous posts in this series, simply enter “Congar” in the search box in the upper right. The 1100-page book can be purchased from Liturgical Press.
Please leave a reply.