Friendly Guide to Vatican II

If you would like to deepen and enrich your understanding of Scripture and important Catholic beliefs, but don't know where to start--then start right here! Journeying into Scripture does not have to be difficult, tedious or academic. This easy to comprehend series has been purposefully written at an introductory level. Written by some of Australia's leading scholars, theologians and scripture experts, the Friendly Guide series, is vibrant, engaging and laden with maps, timelines, 'did you knows', colour charts, summary boxes, comparisons to modern day living and summations. The Friendly Guide series, is a great way to delve a little deeper, to understand a little more, to enrich your faith. Each volume is a sheer delight to read.

When the bishops of the Catholic world gathered in the Vatican in 1962 for the Second Vatican Council, they initiated a process of change which would restyle the way Catholics worshipped and celebrated liturgy. Younger Catholics today might know that the council brought about the celebration of the mass in the vernacular, but they might not realise the enormous implications for the greater participation of the laity in the liturgy.

In the style which is typical of the other books in the Friendly Guide series, Vodola explains in easy terms the history of change that was already happening in the church prior to Pope John XXIII initiating the council and how he became focussed on the process of modernisation early in the 20th Century. Vodola offers an easy-to-understand explanation of the Second Vatican Council, the changes and what it means for us today in the 50 years since the council was convened. This book will be welcomed by teachers, religious and lay people wishing to know more about Vatican II

Rev. Dr Max Vodola holds the degrees of Bachelor of Theology and Master of Theological Studies from the Melbourne College of Divinity, a Master of Arts from Monash University, and a Doctorate in Church History from Monash University. His doctoral thesis was on "John XXIII, Vatican II and the Genesis of Aggiornamento: A Contextual Analysis of Angelo Roncalli's works on San Carlo Borromeo in relation to Late Twentieth Century Church Reform". He is a member of the Department of Church History and lectures in the history of the Church in Australia, 19th/20th century Catholicism and Vatican II. He is a priest of the Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne.