The present article attempts to provide a synthetic approach to the issue of resurrection, particularly the “resurrection in death” model developed by the German exegete and theologian Gerhard Lohfink (1934–2024). The article’s focus is strictly biblical and theological, and its structure begins by presenting the biblical foundations of the doctrine of resurrection, including the resurrection of all the dead. Next, it presents the fruit of Lohfink’s reflections on resurrection, known in theology as the “resurrection in death” model. The final section of the article presents a Catholic assessment of the presented model and comprehensive conclusions. To achieve these goals, a comparative method was used to juxtapose and analyze the biblical sources on the resurrection, followed by a theological method treating the teaching of the Church and the Magisterium as one of its guiding principles. The analyses presented in this article lead to a conclusion that, on the one hand, highlights Lohfink’s exegetical contribution in relation to the truth of the resurrection, and, on the other hand, demonstrates the incompatibility of the “resurrection in death” model with the Catholic doctrine.

John Henry Newman (1801–1890), a prominent Anglican and later Catholic theologian, a saint and Doctor of the Church, underwent a profound change of religious beliefs throughout his life. After converting to Anglican Calvinism at the age of fifteen, Newman’s religious thinking gradually moved towards High Church Anglicanism before he was received into the Roman Catholic Church in 1845. This study focuses on the formative period of his ecclesiological development during his early Anglican years (1816–1830), as expressed in his letters and diaries. By examining these sources, we aim to present a synthesis of the major themes, theological influences, and the development of ecclesiological thought as it emerged within Newman’s early Anglican context.

This paper addresses the problem of the scope and directions of the reform of the Roman Curia postulated in the vota submitted for the antepreparatory stage of the Second Vatican Council. It has been structured around three thematic areas identified from the source material: procedural and organizational changes, calls for the internationalization of the Curia, and postulates for the decentralization of power in the Church. The study employs a theological-historical and linguistic analysis of the Acta et documenta, complemented by a hermeneutical interpretation of the written submissions and proposals of reforms. The findings reveal a striking unanimity among bishops from the different continents: the reform of the Curia was viewed not as a secondary topic, but as a necessary condition for the renewal of the Church. The analysis concludes by identifying the triple dynamics of anticipated changes: increasing the efficiency of the Curia, expanding its catholicity in the sense of universality, and strengthening collegiality—all while full respecting papal primacy.

The aim of this article is to present the reception of Vatican II teachings in the apologetics of Józef Myśków (1927–1988), a theologian and apologist associated with the Warsaw School of Apologetics, which conducted research and teaching at the Faculty of Theology of the Academy of Catholic Theology in Warsaw from 1956 to 1992. With the conclusion of the Second Vatican Council and the publication of the council’s documents, a shift can be observed in Myśków’s scholarly reflections. The Warsaw apologist, keenly interested in Vatican II, not only undertook analysis of key texts but, above all, rebuilt his own apologetic system to incorporate the thought of the latter council. Using an analytical method, the author of the article presents the debate on apologetics after the Second Vatican Council, as reflected in the writings of the Warsaw professor. The second part is devoted to Myśków’s concept of ecumenical apologetics in its theoretical and practical dimensions. The analyses conducted allow us to conclude that, according to Myśków, apologetics after the last council is tenable, although it should be supplemented with selected issues proposed by the documents of Vatican II, both in terms of Christology and ecclesiology. Inspired by ecumenical ideas, Myśków proposes a new approach to apologetics, with a clear ecumenical slant. While he admits that it was not the council itself that gave rise to this idea, the council’s teachings confirmed and strengthened his beliefs regarding the integration of apologetics and ecumenism. As a result, Myśków creates his own, original concept of apologetics, which is being called comparative. In addition to his theoretical efforts related to the new model of apologetics, the Warsaw professor undertakes practical activities, promoting doctoral theses with a clear apologeticecumenical profile and preparing scholarly articles based on the methodology he has developed.

This article seeks to answer the question of what language-related requests Polish bishops made to the Vatican in their vota to the Second Vatican Council. In inductive research, documents submitted by ordinaries and auxiliary bishops, collected in the “Polonia” and “Gedanum” sections, will be subjected to a content analysis. This will allow us to demonstrate the extent to which language issue were important to the local Church and, after sorting out emerging themes, detail the expected changes. The arguments justifying these requests will then be discussed, and, in the final section, a case study will present the most comprehensive proposal by Lucjan Bernacki, auxiliary bishop of Gniezno. The thesis, which stems from the research, assumes that the change in the language of liturgy permitted by the Second Vatican Council was not a exerted pressure on the Church in Poland but was highly anticipated by both the faithful and the bishops.

A fundamental aspect of the Second Vatican Council is the novelty of the literary genre of its documents and its configuration as an event of language, which demonstrates its profound affinity with symbolic and artistic language, even though the theme of art does not occupy many lines of its texts. From this perspective, the importance of the reception of Vatican II in subsequent artistic production becomes clear. This article focuses on the work of the Brazilian artist Cláudio Pastro (1948–2016). Subject of growing research over the last three decades, his work has been identified as a model of art for worship in line with Vatican II, capable of clearly and powerfully embodying its theological, ecclesiological, liturgical, and anthropological principles. In this article, we seek to consolidate these recent acquisitions in Brazilian academic production, highlighting the relationship between Pastro’s work and Vatican II and situating it within the scope of international research. To this end, we shall first outline certain aspects of his trajectory, his formation, and the sensibility that characterized him, and then present and comment on a few selected works within his extensive artistic output. Finally, we will address the reception of his work in the ecclesiastical, academic, and artistic spheres, highlighting it as a model for the reception of Vatican II and a space for its fruitful and creative assimilation in our communities today.

This article presents a detailed account of the evolution of references to Islam during the Second Vatican Council. Analyses reveal systematic changes, beginning with the Council Fathers’ narrow perspective at the Council’s outset (related to differing interpretations of the principle extra Ecclesiam nulla salus), continuing through preparations for Vatican II and the changes occurring during individual sessions. The dynamics of this process encompassed the activity of Middle Eastern bishops (especially the Melkite hierarchy) and Pope Paul VI, as well as the evolution of texts on Islam in the documents Lumen gentium and Nostra aetate. It is significant that the theology of Louis Massignon, developed in the first half of the 20th century, became an acceptable basis for references to Islam in the Council’s documents. Nevertheless, the path to the official recognition of the necessity of dialogue with Muslims, from the Council’s lack of interest in non-Christian religions to the adoption of references to Islam, was long, difficult, and at the same time fascinating. Finally, in Nostra aetate, the passage on Islam (no. 3) is presented before the mention of Judaism (no. 4). The article shows how these concise Council mentions of Islam—due to their official character, their essentially positive content, and the direction of the Church’s thought and action—ultimately paved a new path for Catholic communities.

This article examines how the Czech Catholic Church engages in dialogue with modern culture during two transformative periods: the post-conciliar and post-communist era of the 1990s and the current synodal process. The analysis is structured around a comparative reading of Tomáš Halík’s early text Víra a kultura (1995) and his recent Spiritual Introduction to the European Synodal Assembly (2023), situating both within their historical and ecclesial contexts. The method combines historical-theological analysis with textual interpretation, focusing on Halík’s concept of dialogue as a theological and pastoral principle. The study reveals that Halík consistently frames dialogue as essential for the church’s credibility and mission, rooted in Vatican II’s vision and adapted to contemporary challenges. While the first text emphasizes cultural engagement and overcoming a “ghetto mentality” after communism, the second calls for synodality as a pilgrim journey of reform and solidarity in a globalized, pluralistic world. The paper argues that Halík’s dialogical approach offers a coherent response to secularization and internal crises, presenting dialogue not as a strategy but as an incarnational imperative for renewing both church and society.

This article examines the intergenerational transmission of values in Polish families, focus­ing on three generations of women: grandmothers, mothers, and daughters. The point of departure is the axiological transformations observed in European societies, particularly the processes of secular­ization and individualization. The study involved 417 women from 139 three-generational families, in which the hierarchy of values was analyzed using Max Scheler’s theory. The findings reveal an increase in the importance of hedonistic and esthetic values across successive generations, accompanied by a de­cline in the significance of religious and secular sacred values. In religious families, however, the pace of these changes proved slower, with greater intergenerational similarity in value systems. Religiosity emerged as a significant moderator in the dynamics of axiological transformation. On this basis, the ar­ticle draws pastoral conclusions that emphasize the need to support families in the process of religious and moral education. The results contribute to the broader discourse on value change in post-traditional societies, providing both a foundation for pastoral reflection and a point of departure for further inter­disciplinary research.

The article offers partial results of research on media competencies in the communication of faith, reconstructed on the basis of Pope Francis’ Messages for the World Communications Day (2014–2025). The research problem focuses on identifying the competencies deemed essential for the Christian proclamation within the digital culture and on analysing their theological and anthro­pological grounds in the face of such contemporary challenges as disinformation, social polarisation, and the development of artificial intelligence. A three-stage qualitative content analysis (exploration— categorisation—interpretation) was supported by contextual validation through comparison with the rel­evant literature and the teaching of the Church. The analysis helped to define five equivalent categories of media competencies: cognitive, ethical, relational, technical, and spiritual (each with four subcate­gories). This article discusses the first two of them, i.e. cognitive competencies (related to the search for truth, critical discernment, and reflection) and ethical competencies (responsibility, the culture of encounter, the ethics of technology, resistance to disinformation). Their mutual complementarity and deep grounding in Christian anthropology and Francis’ theology of communication were demonstrated. The messages show communication of the faith as an act of love, witness, and community-building, in which cognition and ethics constitute two inseparable dimensions of the mature presence of Chris­tians in the media. The article concludes with seven findings and formative recommendations for media education and pastoral ministry in the context of digital culture. The remaining categories (relational, technical, and spiritual) will be discussed in a separate publication.