Pope recalls Paul VI, says Vatican II was true renewal of the Church

Aug 8, 2004 / 22:00 pm

During the Angelus prayer held yesterday at his summer residence of Castel Gandolfo, Pope John Paul II once again recalled Pope Paul VI and his encyclical about the Church, adding that the Second Vatican Council marked a true renewal of the Church.

In his first encyclical ‘Ecclesiam suam’, Paul VI “declared his passionate love for the Church, which is called to reflect the glorious light of Christ’s face, and indicated several fundamental ‘ways of the Church’: conscience, renewal, dialogue,” said Pope John Paul.

Quoting the encyclical, the pontiff continued: “The Church is alive today more than ever! But when one considers, it seems that there is still a lot to do; the work begins today and never ends.”

 “These words,” said the Pope, “reflect our actual reality and motivate all believers to carry on, in a conscious way, in the authentic ecclesial renewal, introduced by the Second Vatican Council.”