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Vatican II

Cultural  
  1. The popular name for the Second Vatican Council, an assembly of all the bishops of the Roman Catholic Church held from 1962 to 1965. The bishops ordered a large-scale liberalization and modernization of practices in their church.


Example Sentences

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The Society of Saint Pius X comprises fundamentalist Catholics who strongly oppose the liberal reforms imposed by the Vatican II Council in the 1960s.

From Barron's ● Jul. 1, 2026

Meanwhile, the Catholic church, launching reforms that culminated in Vatican II, officially recognized that political institutions could be independent from church structures.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 18, 2026

At St. Maria Goretti, once steeped in the ethos of Vatican II, many parishioners saw the changes as a requiem.

From Seattle Times ● Apr. 30, 2024

Vatican II modernised the liturgy, including more active participation by the congregation.

From Reuters ● Feb. 21, 2023

“It felt like the whole church was going, ‘You know that Vatican II thing we tried in the ‘60s? Let’s all forget about that,’” he said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 4, 2023

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