-
Preparing for the Council
Cardinal Angelo Roncalli is elected Pope, taking the name John XIII -
First Session of the Council
Formal Opening of the Council; Opening Address by Pope John XXIII. His passionate views on equality were summed up in his famous statement, "We were all made in God's image, and thus, we are all Godly alike." -
Changing the Catholic Church and the World
The start of a historic three-year assembly that would change the way members of the world’s largest Christian denomination viewed themselves, their church and the rest of the world. -
The End of Pope John XXII
Pope John XXIII dies -
A New Pope
Cardinal Giovanni Battista Montini is elected Pope, taking the name Paul VI, Pope Paul also declares his intention to continue the Second Vatican Council -
Second Session of the Council
second session formally opens. Pope Paul VI worked to correct some of the problems of organization and procedure that had been discovered during the first period -
Third Session of the Council
third session formally opens. the third period, began on 14 September 1964 and during the third session there was controversy over revisions of the decree on religious freedom and the failure to vote on it during the third period, but Pope Paul promised that this schema would be the first to be reviewed in the next period.Pope Paul closed the third period on 21 November by announcing a change in the Eucharistic fast and formally reaffirming Mary as "Mother of the Church". -
Fourth Session of the Council
Pope Paul VI opened the last period of the Council on 14 September 1965 with the establishment of the Synod of Bishops. This more permanent structure was intended to preserve close cooperation of the bishops with the Pope after the council. -
The Second Vatican Council closes
The Second Vatican Council is officially closed with an open-air Mass in St. Peter's Square
