This is the final article of a four-part series reflecting on the significance of the Second Vatican Council.
Our beloved Pope Francis guided the Church for just over 12 years (2013-2025), all filled with intense activity. As the 266th pope, he garnered many “firsts”: first to take the name Francis, first Jesuit and the first pope from the Americas.
Pope Francis, clearly a “missionary pope,” visited over 60 countries and territories on international trips. He was the first pope to visit the Arabian Peninsula, birthplace of Islam. He canonized over 900 saints, including Mother Teresa of Calcutta and the martyred Archbishop Óscar Romero, as well as three popes: John XXIII, Paul VI and John Paul II. It is significant that all these three “pope-saints” were active participants in Vatican II. Thus, one could validly assert that Pope Francis has not simply canonized three “Vatican II popes,” he has also canonized the legacy of the Second Vatican Council.
Remarkably, Pope Francis was the first pope in six decades who did not personally participate in Vatican II. He had his formation during the Council, entering the Jesuits in 1958 — the same year that Pope John XXIII, the “Father of Vatican II,” was elected by the conclave. Pope Francis was ordained in 1969, soon after the Council concluded, and he assimilated the ethos and vision of this marvelous, Spirit-inspired event.
Following the Francis papacy, the Council is almost as alive today as it was when it concluded in 1965, 60 years ago. Pope Francis’ successor, Pope Leo XIV, immediately signaled his support for continuity, affirming “our complete commitment to the path that the universal Church has now followed for decades in the wake of the Second Vatican Council.”
One can identify several core Council themes clearly reflected in the life and teaching of Pope Francis, and most recently in Pope Leo XIV.
First, Vatican II gave attention to collegiality, the principle that all bishops, together with the pope, have responsibility for the Church. This guideline intends to promote a participatory Church, an involved People of God. Pope Francis further expanded this vision with his emphasis on synodality, which is a readiness to enter into dynamic, respectful and prayerful speaking, listening and dialogue, following the Holy Spirit’s lead. He successfully concluded two international gatherings on synodality, involving all members of the Church, in 2023 and 2024.
A second Council emphasis focuses on the local church. This vision was highlighted in the Council document on missionary activity, Ad Gentes (For all Peoples). In short, the “center of action” is the local church; this principle extends to liturgy, evangelization, episcopal conferences and leadership, as well as numerous other areas of Christian life. Full, active, conscious participation in missionary Church life is both a right and duty of all the baptized; Pope Francis sought to concretize this vision in all local churches around the world.
The Most Reverend Jorge Mario Bergoglio, then archbishop of Buenos Aires, Argentina, is seen celebrating Mass at the Villa 21-24 slum in 1998. (CNS/Parroquia Virgen de Caacupe, Reuters/Argentina)
Vatican II emphasized the importance of dialogue. This word was introduced into the Council by Paul VI, another Vatican II “saint pope,” in his 1964 encyclical Ecclesiam Suam (His Church). This broad principle emphasizes that the Church is to be a community of dialogue, not monologue, a truly listening Church, hearing voices from within the Church, from other Christians, from people of other faiths, and from the world at large.
Pope Francis proved in his papacy to be a superb example of open-hearted listening!
A fourth principle is captured by the popular expression “servant leadership.” Again, this vision is applicable to all Christians who seek to aid others in their diverse needs. Even if the actual assistance may be rather small, it is the attitude of sensitive compassion that touches the other person’s heart. Truly, Pope Francis embodied the episcopal motto of Cardinal Newman: cor ad cor loquitur, heart speaks to heart. Pope Leo is following the same path.
Our new Holy Father said, “Let us build a Church founded on God’s love, a sign of unity, a missionary Church that opens its arms to the world, allows itself to be made ‘restless’ by history, and becomes a leaven of harmony for humanity.”
Clearly, in pivotal ways Pope Francis, and now Pope Leo, are truly Vatican II popes. We all rejoice in heartfelt gratitude for the marvelous gifts of Franciscus and Leo!
Editors’ note: For more on the significance of the Second Vatican Council, see Maryknoll Father James H. Kroeger’s recently published Exploring Vatican II Treasures: Actors, Events, Insights (Faith Alive Books – 2024).
Featured image: Pope Francis greets then-Cardinal Robert F. Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, in St. Peter’s Square during a consistory at the Vatican Sept. 30, 2023. (CNS/Vatican Media/Vatican City)
