Strukturprobleme der Ökumenischen Konzilien

The history of the councils permits the recognition of four traditional types of Oecumenical Council - the Old-christian Bishops' Council, which was convened by the Emperor and decided questions of dogma and disci pline; the Papal General Council of the middle ages, which was convened, guided and confirmed by the Pope and which, both by reason of the sub jects to be dealt with and the personal constitution thereof, represented Christendom; the councils of the 15th century claimed to act as Church Par liaments; the Council of Trient, which again reverted to the twO first types and to which the first Vatican Council was similar as to structure, was con forming in essentials to the Codex Juris Canonici. Does the present Vatican Council II, as to its structure, show new ten deneies which go beyond the characteristics of the historie types? The author believes that five such tendencies can be recognised: 1. The careful preparation by experts, which also include Bishops, due to the predominant influence of the central cu rial authorities extends far beyond that of the Vaticanum I; 2. The consciousness of the collegial joint responsibility of the episcopate, which however 3. co-operates with the Papal primatial authority and which elevates the long contested question of powers into the sphere of responsibility; 4. the pastoral and 5. the oecumenical direction, both of which have been basing on the person al initiative of Pope Johannes XXIII.