The Theologian in the Local Church
Keywords:
Theologian, Local Church, Vatican IIAbstract
One of the unique contributions of Vatican II is the theology of the local Church. Whereas in the pre-Vatican II period the emphasis was on the universal Church, its unity and uniformity and the Papacy, in Vatican II there is a shift of emphasis to the local Churches with their diversity and legitimate autonomy. The local Church is the concrete manifestation of the universal Church. The local Church is fully the Church, not just an administrative unit of the universal Church. However, Vatican II documents did not give a precise definition of the local Church. ‘Local Church’ could mean a Basic Christian Community, a Eucharistic assembly, a parish, a diocese, an individual sui iuris Church, a regional Church, a national Church, etc.
References
Paul VI, Evangelii Nuntiandi.
Pope Francis, Amoris Laetitia.
FABC 60 - Theses on the Local Church: A Theological Reflection in the Asian Context (1991), FABC Papers, No. 60, 1990, http://www.fabc.org/fabc%20papers/fabc_paper_60.pdf
Antonio Autiero and Laurenti Magesa, “Introduction,” in The Catholic Ethicist in the Local Church, ed. Antonio Autiero and Laurenti Magesa, Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books, 2018.
Kuncheria Pathil and Dominic Veliath, An Introduction to Theology, Bangalore: Theological Publication in India, 2013.
Second Vatican Council, Gaudium et Spes.
John Paul II, Ecclesia in Asia.
