Declaration on Christian Education

Education is important to many people all around the world. It is basic to human progress and social development, and the means of education are changing and improving rapidly. There are still many people in the world who do not have adequate access to education even though they want it, both adults and young people. Nonetheless, the right to education is frequently being proclaimed, schools are increasing in number, new methods of education are emerging, and attempts are being made to extend the benefit of education to all. This document offers some principles to guide Christian education. • By Bill Huebsch

Declaration on Religious Freedom

This declaration is one of the most important doctrinal statements of the council. Prior to Vatican II, the Church did not provide religious freedom to other religions in nations which were firmly Catholic, yet it demanded freedom for itself in nations which were not mainly Catholic. This declaration challenges this contradictory approach as the status quo. • By Bill Huebsch

Declaration on the Relation of the Church to Non-Christian Religions

In our day and age, people everywhere are growing closer together, and their ties are becoming more profound, even when they are socially diverse. Because of this reality, the Church is giving more attention to its relationship with non-Christian religions and, toward that end, gives primary consideration in this document to what unites all people and to what people have in common. This furthers the Church's task of fostering unity and love among people and even among various nations. • By Bill Huebsch

Decree Concerning the Pastoral Office of Bishops in the Church

All the bishops are united in a "college," or body, although they exercise their authority individually in the particular local church entrusted to them. Aware of the changing times and the needs of our modern world, we issue this decree to describe more accurately the pastoral office of the bishop. • By Bill Huebsch

Decree on the Media of Social Communication

In order to assist the human family as a whole in coming to terms with new technology, the council turned its attention to these instruments of communication. They can benefit humankind but can also cause much harm if used wrongly. Therefore, the council proposed certain directives and principles for their proper use. • By Bill Huebsch

Decree on Ecumenism

At least three council documents, including this one, had profound influence on the mat-ter of ecumenism. The Declaration on the Relationship of the Church to Non-Christian Religions and the Declaration on Religious Freedom also opened many doors in the ecumenical arena. But the Decree on Ecumenism provided an explicit set of principles and encouraged the church's full participation in the ecumenical movement. • By Bill Huebsch

Decree on Priestly Training

The bishops working at Vatican II for the renewal of the whole Church fully realized that such a renewal depends, in large part, on the ministry of priests animated by the spirit of Christ. Beginning with Jesus' words as he sent his apostles to carry his mission to the world and continuing through our history, the progress of the People of God has always depended on priests this way. Therefore, in this document the bishops articulate certain principles to provide guidance in the training of priests. • By Bill Huebsch

Decree on the Adaptation & Renewal of Religious Life

This document gives some general principles by which religious orders of women and men can renew themselves to meet their own needs and better serve the Church in these times. • By Bill Huebsch

Decree on the Apostolate of the Laity

Lay people, together with the clergy, bear co-responsibility for the work of the Church, its renewal, and its future. Despite nearly two thousand years of "lay participation" in the ministry of the Church, it was not until this council in the mid-twentieth century that this role was examined, affirmed, and expanded. • By Bill Huebsch

Decree on the Catholic Churches of the Eastern Rite

This decree more generously allows for diversity within the Catholic Church when addressing the Eastern Churches, some of whom have practices that vary greatly from those in the Roman Church of the West. In this document, the bishops may have established a model for ecumenism-based-on-diversity, rather than ecumenism that expects absolute conformity in every detail of worship and Church life. • By Bill Huebsch

Decree on the Ministry & Life of Priests

Priests share in the work of Christ who was the Teacher, the Priestly minister, and the Servant Ruler. They are responsible for the Church: the People of God, the Body of Christ, and the Temple of the Holy Spirit. The bishops issued this decree because their situations in the Church and the world have changed so dramatically. • By Bill Huebsch

Decree on the Missionary Activity of the Church

We in the Church have a strong sense that we are called to offer all humans that which makes human life most noble: God's word and presence! We have a sense of mission about this because of Christ's command to preach the Gospel to all. But this missionary self-identity also comes from the nature of the Church itself: that it is universal, that is has something to offer to all, that it addresses the entire world with the Word of God. We want to be the "salt of the earth" and the "light of the world." This document outlines principles for this work. • By Bill Huebsch

Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy

in Plain English

This paraphrase of the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, originally published in The Story and Promise of Vatican II in Plain English, was updated in January of 2026. • By Bill Huebsch

Constitution on the Church

in Plain English

This paraphrase of the Constitution on the Church, originally published in The Story and Promise of Vatican II in Plain English, was updated in January of 2026. • By Bill Huebsch

Constitution on Divine Revelation

in Plain English

This paraphrase of the Constitution on Divine Revelation, originally published in The Story and Promise of Vatican II in Plain English, was updated in January of 2026. • By Bill Huebsch

Constitution on the Church in the Modern World

in Plain English

This paraphrase of the Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, originally published in The Story and Promise of Vatican II in Plain English, was updated in January of 2026. • By Bill Huebsch