The following statements can be verified by consulting volumes 1 and 2 of the book, Vatican
Council II printed by Costello Publishing Co., Northport, New York. Austin Flannery, O. P., is the
general editor and each volume contains the Nihil Obstat and the Imprimatur. The editions are: 1984
(Vol. 1) and 1982 (Vol. 2).
This most recent Roman Catholic Council, which closed on December 8, 1965, is the current
official stand of Roman Catholicism. The following quotes are that official stand. (All bold print
has been used for emphasis. Furthermore, brackets have been used to increase clarity.)
"Hence, both Scripture and Tradition must be accepted and honored with equal feelings
of devotion and reverence." (Vol. 1, page 755)
"But the task of giving an authentic interpretation of the Word of God, whether in its written
form or in the form of Tradition, has been entrusted to the living teaching office of the Church
alone." (Vol. 1, p. 755)
"But by divine institution it is the exclusive task of these pastors alone, the successors of
Peter and the other Apostles, to teach the faithful authentically, that is with the authority of
Christ ...." (Vol. 2, p. 430)
"... it [the Roman Catholic Church] condemns with anathema those who say that indulgences
are useless or that the Church does not have the power to grant them." (Vol. 1, p. 71)
"An indulgence is a remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilt
has already been forgiven, which the faithful Christian who is duly disposed gains under certain
defined conditions through the Church's help when, as minister of Redemption, she dispenses
and applies with authority the treasury of the satisfaction won by Christ and the saints." (Vol. 1, p. 75)
"An indulgence is partial or plenary according as it removes either part or all of the
temporal punishment due to sin." (Vol. 1, p. 75)
"Partial as well as plenary indulgences can always be applied to the dead by way of
prayer." (Vol. 1, p. 75)
"... the Church in its pilgrim members, from the very earliest days of the Christian religion,
has honored with great respect the memory of the dead; and because it is a holy and
wholesome thought to pray for the dead that they may be loosed from their sins'
(2 Mac. 12:46) she offers her suffrages for them." (Vol. 1, p. 410)
"The faithful who use with devotion an object of piety (crucifix, cross, rosary,
scapular or medal) after it has been duly blessed by any priest, can gain a partial
indulgence." (Vol. 1, p. 77)
"We believe that the souls of all those who die in the grace of Christ -- whether they must still
make expiation in the fire of Purgatory, or whether from the moment they leave their
bodies they are received by Jesus into Paradise like the good thief -- go to form that People of
God ...." (Vol. 2, p. 394)
"Sins must be expiated. This may be done on this earth through the sorrows, miseries and
trials of this life and, above all, through death." (Vol. 1, p. 63)
"The doctrine of purgatory clearly demonstrates that even when the guilt of sin has been
taken away, punishment for it or the consequences of it may remain to be expiated or
cleansed." (Vol. 1, p. 64)
"Following in Christ's steps, those who believe in him have always tried to help one another
along the path which leads to the heavenly Father, through prayer, the exchange of spiritual
goods and penitential expiation .... They have carried their crosses to make expiation for
their own sins and the sins of others. They were convinced that they could help their
brothers to obtain salvation from God who is the Father of mercies. This is the very ancient
dogma called the Communion of Saints." (Vol. 1, pp. 65 and 66)
"Confession of sins is part of the sacrament of penance. It issues from true self-knowledge and
sorrow for sin. Such interior heart-searching and external accusation ought to be done in the
awareness of God's mercy. Confession presupposes in the penitent the willingness to open his
heart to God's minister. It presupposes in the minister spiritual judgment, for it is he
who, acting for Christ and having the power of the keys, the power to forgive and
to retain sins, pronounces judgment." (Vol. 2, p. 38)
"Further, when our Saviour Jesus Christ gave the power to forgive sins to the
apostles and their successors, he instituted the sacrament of penance, so that the
faithful who had committed sin after baptism could be restored to grace and reconciled to
God." (Vol. 2, p. 36)
"The penance imposed may fittingly take the form of prayer, or self-denial, but especially
of service of the neighbour and works of mercy. By these latter the social aspect of sin
and of its forgiveness are set in relief." (Vol. 2, p. 43)
"In the sacrifice of the Mass in fact, Christ offers himself for the salvation of the entire
world." (Vol. 1, p. 114)
"The celebration of the Eucharist which takes place at Mass is the action not only of Christ,
but also of the Church. For in it Christ perpetuates in an unbloody manner the sacrifice
offered on the cross, offering himself to the Father for the world's salvation through the
ministry of priests." (Vol. 1, p. 103)
"We believe that the Mass which is celebrated by the priest in the person of Christ in virtue
of the power he receives in the Sacrament of Order ... is indeed the Sacrifice of Calvary
sacramentally realized on our altars." (Vol. 2, p. 393)
"When the Mass is to be offered for a dead person, one can insert into this prayer a
special formula just before the Memento." (Vol. 1, p. 202)
"We believe that the Blessed Mary, who ever enjoys the dignity of virginity, was the
Mother of the Incarnate Word, of our God and Saviour Jesus Christ, and that in view of her
Son's merits she was redeemed in a more exalted manner and preserved from all stain of
sin, outstripping in excellence all other creatures by reason of the grace given her." (Vol.
2, pp. 390 and 391)
"Finally the Immaculate Virgin preserved free from all stain of original sin, was taken
up body and soul into heavenly glory, when her earthly life was over, and exalted by the
Lord as Queen over all things ...." (Vol. 1, pp. 417 and 418)
"She conceived, brought forth and nourished Christ, she presented him to the Father in the
temple, shared her son's sufferings as he died on the cross. Thus, in a wholly singular
way she cooperated by her obedience, faith, hope and burning charity in the work of the
Savior in restoring supernatural life to souls. For this reason she is a mother to us
in the order of grace." (Vol. 1, p. 418)
"Taken up to heaven she [Mary] did not lay aside this saving office but by her
manifold intercession continues to bring us gifts of eternal salvation." (Vol. 1, p.
419)
"Having entered deeply into the history of salvation, Mary, in a way, unites in her person and
re-echoes the most important doctrines of the faith: and when she is the subject of preaching
and worship she prompts the faithful to come to her Son, to his sacrifice and to the love of the
Father." (Vol. 1, pp. 420 and 421)
"From the earliest times the Blessed Virgin is honored under the title of Mother of God,
whose protection the faithful take refuge together in prayer in all their perils and
needs." (Vol. 1, p. 421)
"We believe that the multitude of those souls gathered around Jesus and Mary in
Paradise forms the Heavenly Church." (Vol. 2, pp. 394 and 395)
"By baptism men and women are cleansed from original sin and from all personal sins, they
are born again as children of God, are made part of the Church and are made holy by the gifts
of the Holy Spirit." (Vol. 2, p. 561)
"We believe in one baptism instituted by our Lord Jesus Christ for the remission of sins.
Baptism is also to be given to infants, who cannot as yet be guilty of any personal sin, in order
that, though born deprived of supernatural grace, they may be reborn of water and the Holy
Spirit to divine life in Christ Jesus." (Vol. 2, p. 391)
"Baptism, which is necessary for salvation, is the sign and the means of God's prevenient
love, which frees us from original sin and communicates to us a share in divine life." (Vol. 2, pp.
111 and 112)
"Basing itself on scripture and tradition, it teaches that the Church, a pilgrim now on earth,
is necessary for salvation: the one Christ is mediator and the way of salvation; he is present
to us in his body which is the Church. He himself explicitly asserted the necessity of faith and
baptism (cf. Mk. 16:16; Jn. 3:5), and thereby affirmed at the same time the necessity of the
Church which men enter through baptism as through a door. Hence, they could not be
saved who knowing that the Catholic Church was founded as necessary by God
through Christ, would refuse either to enter it, or to remain in it." (Vol. 1, pp. 365
and 366)
"The infallibility, however, with which the divine redeemer wished to endow his Church in
defining doctrine pertaining to faith and morals, is co-extensive with the deposit of revelation,
which must be religiously guarded and loyally and courageously expounded. The Roman
Pontiff, head of the college of bishops, enjoys this infallibility in virtue of his office,
when, as supreme pastor and teacher of all the faithful -- who confirms his brethren in
the faith (cf. Lk. 22:32) -- he proclaims in an absolute decision a doctrine pertaining to faith and
morals." (Vol. 1, p. 380)
"Above all, they acknowledge the authority of the successor of Blessed Peter, the key
bearer of heaven. To them the Savior himself entrusted the task of feeding his flock and
ruling his Church." (Vol. 1, p. 72)
"We believe in the infallibility enjoyed by the Successor of Peter when he speaks ex
cathedra as shepherd and teacher of all the faithful, an infallibility which the whole
Episcopate also enjoys when it exercises with him the supreme magisterium." (Vol. 2, p. 392)
"This loyal submission of the will and intellect must be given, in a special way, to the
authentic teaching authority of the Roman Pontiff, even when he does not speak ex
cathedra in such wise, indeed, that his supreme teaching authority be acknowledged with
respect, and that one sincerely adhere to decisions made by him, conformably with his
manifest mind and intention ...." (Vol. 1, p. 379)
"There should be no doubt in anyone's mind that all the faithful ought to show to the most
holy sacrament the worship which is due to the true God, as has always been the custom
of the Catholic Church. Nor is it to be adored any less because it was instituted by Christ to
be eaten.' " (Vol. 1, p. 104)
"The Eucharist is above all else a sacrifice. It is the sacrifice of the Redemption and also
the sacrifice of the New Covenant ...." (Vol. 2, p. 75)
"We believe that the mass which is celebrated by the priest in the person of Christ in virtue
of the power he receives in the Sacrament of Order, and which is offered by him in the name
of Christ and of the members of his Mystical Body, is indeed the Sacrifice of Calvary
sacramentally realized on our altars. We believe that, as the bread and wine consecrated
by the Lord at the Last Supper were changed into his Body and Blood which were to be
offered for us on the Cross, so likewise are the bread and wine consecrated by the priest
changed into the Body and Blood of Christ now enthroned in glory in heaven."
(Vol. 2, p. 393)
"The practice of placing sacred images in churches so that they [the images] be venerated
by the faithful is to be maintained." (Vol. 1, p.35)
"From the very earliest days of the Church there has been a tradition whereby images of our
Lord, his holy Mother, and of saints are displayed in churches for the veneration of the
faithful." (Vol. 1, p. 193)
"There is no doubt that ... the Rosary should be considered as one of the best and most
efficacious prayers in common that the Christian family is invited to recite." (Vol. 2, p.
865)
"But at the same time the [Second Vatican] Council did not hesitate to confirm solemnly the
ancient, sacred and providential present law of priestly celibacy." (Vol. 2, p. 290)
"He [the celibate priest] will not be lacking the protection of the Virgin Mother of
Jesus nor the motherly solicitude of the Church, to whom he has given himself in service."
(Vol 2, p. 301)
"Venerable brothers, pastors of God's flock throughout the world, and dearly beloved priest,
Our sons and brothers: as We come to the end of this letter which We have addressed to you,
We invite you, with a soul responsive to Christ's great love, to turn your eyes and heart with
renewed confidence and filial hope to the most loving Mother of Jesus and Mother
of the Church, and to invoke for the Catholic priesthood her powerful and
maternal intercession." (Vol. 2, p 313)
"And so I [Pope John Paul, II] desire that all of you should, with me, find in Mary the mother
of the priesthood which we have received from Christ ... among the people of God which look
to Mary with immense love and hope, you must look to her with exceptional love and
hope. Indeed, it is your task to proclaim Christ, her Son. And who can better communicate to
you the truth about him than his mother? It is your task to nourish men's hearts with Christ.
And who can make you more aware of what you are doing than she who nourished him?
Hail, true Body, born of the Virgin Mary.' There is a wonderful dimension to our ministerial
priesthood: it places us near the mother of Christ." (Vol. 2, p. 360)
"This sacred council accepts loyally the venerable faith of our ancestors in the living
communion which exists between us and our brothers who are in the glory of heaven or who are
yet being purified after their death; and it proposes again the decrees of the Second Council
of Nicea, of the Council of Florence, and of the Council of Trent." (Vol. 1, p. 412)
Vatican Council II "Proposes Again"
The Decrees of Trent
Of all the official declarations that you just read, #46 is most significant and comprehensive!
Many people in our day, decades after Vatican Council II, wrongly think the Catholic Church is
changing its teachings. However, this is NOT true! Of course, certain evangelical terms (like
"hallelujah," "amen" and "praise the Lord") are spoken by Catholics from time to time and
certain evangelical songs are sung on occasions. Furthermore, the Mass has been changed from Latin
to English. However, the MEANING of the Mass today is IDENTICAL to its meaning in the days BEFORE the dawn of the Protestant Reformation, as you have just
read. All these "changes," therefore are just surface changes!
Statement #46 mentions that Vatican
Council II concurs with and reaffirms again "the decrees" of Trent (1545 to 1563). There were over
100 anathemas written against true, Bible-believing Christians at that Catholic council! Listed below
are a few of Trent's decrees that will help some understand that the Catholic Church will NOT and
can NOT change their unique teachings. (Again, all bold print has been used for emphasis.
Furthermore, brackets have been used to increase clarity.)
A. "... that by means of the images which we kiss and before which we uncover the
head and prostate ourselves, we adore Christ and venerate the saints whose
likeness they bear .... great profit is derived from all holy images, not only because the
people are thereby reminded of the benefits and gifts bestowed on them by Christ, but also
because through the saints the miracles of God and salutary examples are set before the eyes
of the faithful, so that they may give God thanks for those things, may fashion their own and
conduct in imitation of the saints and be moved to adore and love God and cultivate piety. But
if anyone should teach or maintain anything contrary to these decrees, let him be
anathema." (H. J. Schroeder, O. P., The Canons And Decrees Of The Council Of Trent, Tan
Books and Publishers, Inc., 1978, p. 216)
B. "If anyone says that in the sacred and holy sacrament of the Eucharist the substance of the
bread and wine remains conjointly with the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, and
denies that wonderful and singular change of the whole substance of the bread into the
body and the whole substance of the wine into the blood, the appearances only of bread and
wine remaining, which change the Catholic Church most aptly calls
transubstantiation, let him be anathema." (ibid., p. 79 -- Thirteenth Session, Chapter
VIII, Canon 2)
C. "If anyone says that in the holy sacrament of the Eucharist, Christ, the only begotten Son of
God, is not to be adored with the worship of latria, also outwardly manifested, and is
consequently neither to be venerated with a special festive solemnity, nor to be solemnly
borne about in procession according to the laudable and universal rite and custom of holy
Church, or is not to be set publicly before the people to be adored and that the
adorers thereof are idolaters, let him be anathema." (ibid., p. 80 -- Thirteenth Session,
Chapter VIII, Canon 6)
D. "If anyone says that after the reception of the grace of justification the guilt is so remitted and
the debt of eternal punishment so blotted out to every repentant sinner, that no debt of
temporal punishment remains to be discharged either in this world or in purgatory
before the gates of heaven can be opened, let him be anathema." (ibid., p. 46 -- Sixth
Session, Chapter XVI, Canon 30)
E. "If anyone says that in the Roman Church, which is the mother and mistress of all churches,
there is not the true doctrine concerning the sacrament of baptism, let him be
anathema." (ibid., p. 53 -- Seventh Session, Sacrament Of Baptism, Canon 3)
F. "If anyone says that the sacraments of the New Law are not necessary for salvation but
are superfluous, and that without them or without the desire of them men obtain from God
through faith alone the grace of justification, though all are not necessary for each one,
let him be anathema." (ibid., p. 52 -- Seventh Session, Sacraments In General, Canon 4)
G. "If anyone denies that sacramental confession was instituted by divine law or is
necessary to salvation; or says that the manner of confessing secretly to a priest alone,
which the Catholic Church has always observed from the beginning and still observes, is at
variance with the institution and command of Christ and is a human contrivance, let him be
anathema." (ibid., pp. 102 and 103 -- Fourteenth Session, Chapter III, Canon 6)
H. "Its [The Council of Trent's] purpose was twofold, to define the doctrines of the Church in
reply to the heresies of the Protestants, and to bring about a thorough reform of the inner life
of Christians .... In them [the dogmatic decisions] the council proclaimed to the world the
doctrines that were committed to the keeping of the Church on the day of Pentecost. They are
a sign erected on everlasting foundations indicating to the passer-by the straight road along
which the Church has traveled ever since that day and along which she will continue to
travel till the day of judgment. She recognizes no detours, for these lead only to
destruction." (ibid., p. iii)
