Vatican II was a ecumenical Council called by Pope John XXIII in 1959 to modernise the Catholic Church around the world. He was called for an Aggiornamento to improve the Church to do God’s work and serve the people of God on earth. The four sessions were held from 1962-1965 at St Basicilica in Vatican City. Pope John XXIII convened the Council in 1959 with his speech including “This will be a demonstration of the Church…” The preparations for the Council formally began on June 6th 1960 when the Preparatory Commissions and Secretariats were established. Pope John died in 1963 and the new Pope Paul VI continued the Council to its conclusions in 1965. Thousands of observers, lay people, sisters, and auditors were gathered to attend. Bishop Christopher Butler wrote “So there was to be a Second Vatican Council. What would be its business? Nothing in particular, it would appear; or perhaps it would be truer to say: everything. Christian unity was the Pope’s distant goal, no doubt, but his immediate aim was ‘to let some fresh air into the Church’ and to promote within an aggiornamento” in an important book published not long after the end of the Council. The Dogmatic constitution on the Church (Lumen Gentium) and Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World (Gaudium et Spes) were written as a result of the Council. In total 16 Vatican documents were written in the Council. These documents were about the Church and the world, Ecumenism (aiming for unity), and nostrs aetate (liturgy).
A big change for Nuns was the change in dress from the long, heavy, dark habit to a shorter, more practical, comfortable dress. Before the change, the Sisters wore a full habit which included a coif, apron, habit, veil, sleeves, scapular, cincture, underskirt, and card. They also carried a cross, rosary beads and a silver ring showing their devotion to God. This dress was a way of being modest and setting them apart from lay people. This was changed after Vatican II because of the issue of hygiene as the garment was extremely hot in the summer and the cleaning time was long due to the heavy woollen fabric. This took away from prayer and time with God. This also meant that the sisters often felt uncomfortable or unwell due to the heat during the warmer seasons. This meant they were less useful to the community at this time. As said in Perfectae caritatis 17. "The religious habit, an outward mark of consecration to God, should be simple and modest, poor and at the same becoming. In addition, it must meet the requirements of health and be suited to the circumstances of time and place and to the needs of the ministry involved. The habits of both men and women religious which do not conform to these norms must be changed." Societal changes also influenced this change as it meant the Sisters were able to be more active and participate in physical activity. After the Council, the dress gradually changed starting with a shorter, more practical garment which resulted in less Sisters being sick and they were more helpful to the community. Some Sisters insisted on keeping their long habit as a tradition. Today's nuns wear lay people's clothes as they do not see a need for a habit as there is no occasion on the liturgical calendar where the habit is required. They still carry a cross and wear the silver ring to show their relationship with God. The habit was changed to modernise the nun's look and to be more practical when serving the community
Another change was the meanings of the Vows. The Vows are an expression that one is given over to living how Jesus did, obediently, communally, chastely, and with great inward and outward simplicity (Becoming a Trappist Monk or Nun, 2017). The vow of poverty challenges a person to reverence all things, and creation itself. Underlying the vow of poverty is the understanding that all things come from God. The call to religious life is always marked by a desire to serve God and his people. Those called to live the consecrated religious life, live according to the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. To consecrate means to dedicate to a special or sacred purpose (Collins Dictionary, 2017). At the heart of the vocation to consecrated religious life is the desire to give yourself completely to God. Those called to live the consecrated religious life are members of a particular religious congregation, order or institute. The vocation of a consecrated religious is to be a sign to others that the whole of creation is a gift from God.
The religious life when it is well lived, challenges people to treat all things, people and ourselves with reverence and respect because we belong to God and committed themselves to religious life do not marry. Before the Vatican Council, Vow of Poverty meant that nuns had to ask a superior person before making any decision. This became the dependence vow although this was not the intention. The intention was to take a person's mind and heart away from the idea of satifying greed. After the end of Vatican II, this became known as the vow of sharing or the vow to live simply. In the 21st century, and the age of climate change, some Sister preferred referring to this as the vow to live ecologically. The vow of poverty expresses the dependence on and trust in God’s care for us.
The Vow of Chastity is a virtue that needs one to be faithful to their state of life or partner. The vow of chastity or consecrated celibacy expresses a desire to follow God unconditionally. Someone can be married and still chaste if they are fully faithful to their spouse. The Chastity vow is more the Celibacy vow, or a vow to live without an exclusive or sexual relationship with another person, according to National Catholic Reporter's 2013 article. The purpose of this vow was that a major love between two people, like that through marriage, would distract from the strongest love of God. Before the Vatican, Sisters friendships and platonic relationships with men were restricted but after the changes, as a promise to God, they are encouraged to have these relationships with everyone. This meant that they are more confident when helping males in need as they feel they can approach them. This resulted in being able to help the vulnerable. Theologians argue this idea by emphasising a large number of people in strengthen committed relationships with the love of God and their ministries by an intimate relationship with another human. It is also challenged that celibacy can enhance the "one heartness for God" in the person making the vow. This idea of celibacy was a quest for expansive love and the dedication of someone's mind and heart primarily to God. When a religious lives the vow of consecrated celibacy well, they inspire people to love, even those who are not family.
The vow of obedience is a voluntary, permanent oath to obey superiors in a religious institute. This means they will be united with God's will. The vow of religious obedience is an acknowledgement that all of us are called to listen to the Holy Spirit. The vow of obedience assists religious to be honest in their search for God’s will.The Second Vatican Council declares "Moved by the Holy Spirit, they subject themselves in faith to those who hold God's place, their superiors. Through them they are led to serve all their brothers in Christ, just as Christ ministered to his brothers in submission to the Father and laid down his life for the redemption of many. They are thus bound more closely to the Church's service and they endeavour to attain to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ" (Decree on Renewal of Religious Life, 14). The intention of this vow is to "enable the person to follow their gospel call by figuring out how to live the example set by Jesus" (REF) This vow is a sign that we all are ultimately dependent on God and that a life of interdependence, as opposed to dependence or the illusion of absolute independence, is the way to holiness.
Before Vatican II, the vow of obedience was most obvious in ministries and living arrangements for the sisters as they were expected to go to their superiors when in need of help. Vatican II caused large changes as sisters began to make their own decisions and be more independent through trusting in God. Most religious women in today's communities are rarely commanded to do something. Before the changes, Sisters were restricted to only having visits from their families once each month. This resulted in the Sisters being isolated from the community and only had the support of each other in the convent. Today, sisters have the opportunity to spend time with their family as these interations help the community understand faith. The vow of poverty expresses the dependence on and trust in God’s care for us.
Another change for the Sisters of Mercy was the change in their daily routine, this was easier for some who preferred to have their own schedule, like Sister Mary Neven said “(it was) difficult to get up in the mornings” like some of the other sisters who preferred having a structure and routine to their day. The Perfectae Caritatis introduced the independent timetable by stating “16. Papal cloister should be maintained in the case of nuns engaged exclusively in the contemplative life. However, it must be adjusted to conditions of time and place and obsolete practices suppressed. This should be done after due consultation with the monasteries in question. But other nuns applied by rule to apostolic work outside the convent should be exempted from papal cloister in order to enable them better to fulfill the apostolic duties entrusted to them. Nevertheless, cloister is to be maintained according to the prescriptions of their constitutions”. This change meant that the sisters weren’t spending all of their days together and resulted in each of them being independent and needing to be organised. Before the Vatican Council, the sisters’ day was directed by a bell instructing them through their structured timetable: when to wake up at 5am, go to church, have breakfast, study, be at leisure, pray, then have dinner. All of the sisters participated in these activities as a group as it was a rigid timetable or 'horarium'. After the Vatican Council, the sisters routine was less rigid and there was more freedom as they were able to personalise their timetable by deciding where and how they wanted to contribute to the community. They are now able to form their own timetable but they must ensure that they balance their life with God and His needs.
Vatican II made the Church more relevant in society and caused a positive change in religious lives and directed them to follow their purpose of faith.