aggiornamento

American  

[uh-jawr-nuh-men-toh, ahd-jawr-nah-men-taw] / əˌdʒɔr nəˈmɛn toʊ, ɑdˌdʒɔr nɑˈmɛn tɔ /

noun

plural

aggiornamenti

1. the act of bringing something up to date to meet current needs.

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aggiornamento British  

/ addʒornaˈmɛnto /

noun

1. RC Church the process of bringing up to date methods, ideas, etc

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Etymology

Origin of aggiornamento

First recorded in 1960–65; from Italian, equivalent to aggiorna(re) “to revise, update,” equivalent to ag- verbal prefix + -giornare, verbal derivative of giorno “day” + -mento noun suffix. See ad-, adjourn, -ment

Explanation

Aggiornamento is a process of modernization. The term was made famous in the 1960s when Pope John XXI used it to describe a movement to update and revitalize the Roman Catholic Church. Aggiornamento is Italian for “bringing up to date.” In the Roman Catholic Church, aggiornamento has included such things as changing the language of the mass from Latin to whatever modern language is spoken by the local congregation. While the word aggiornamento is most commonly used within the context of the Church's ongoing process of renewal, it is also used in non-religious contexts, referring to processes of modernization in business, education, and politics.

Example Sentences

By the grace of God Pope Francis will effect an aggiornamento and, at the same time, ressourcement in Holy Mother Church.

From New York Times • Dec. 22, 2014

Since the inception of Pope John's aggiornamento K�ng has been fearlessly writing on what Vatican II was about: ecumenism.

From Time Magazine Archive

That reformation is most spectacular in Rome, where the Second Vatican Council has unleashed a passion for aggiornamento in the most tradition-encrusted of churches.

From Time Magazine Archive

Within the society itself, there is a visible−and highly audible−gap between the enthusiasts of aggiornamento and the defenders of older, stricter ways.

From Time Magazine Archive

In the years that followed, the movement that John called aggiornamento, or modernization, became part of a revolution larger than John had foreseen�a tumultuous moral and social upheaval around the world.

From Time Magazine Archive