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Pope John XXIII's main goal in calling the Second Vatican Council was to bring the church up to date by opening its doors to the wind of the Spirit. John knew that if the doors were open, the church could be renewed, and believers could be sent out into the world with the refreshing message of the gospel. And after John's death, Paul VI continued with the same convictions and saw the church through the challenging time of transition.
An Optimistic Wind. Pope John’s vision for the Council, and for the church as a whole, was very optimistic and positive. He believed that the winds of the Holy Spirit could change the world. In his opening speech at the start of the Council, John was very candid about the challenges he faced, and about what he felt the Spirit was telling him:
In the daily exercise of our pastoral office, we sometimes have to listen, much to our regret, to voices of persons who, though burning with zeal, are not endowed with too much sense of discretion or measure. In these modern times they can see nothing but prevarication and ruin. They say that our era, in comparison with past eras, is getting worse… . We feel we must disagree with those prophets of gloom, who are…The full article is available to subscribers only
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