A History of Christian Doctrine #3 - Online Christian Library

A History of Christian Doctrine
stand what was being said when they went to church, and
they could benefit from the Scripture readings in the liturgy.
Another change was the eating of meat on Fridays. By
longstanding tradition, Catholics had abstained from eating
meat on Fridays in commemoration of the day of
Christ’s crucifixion. They were allowed to eat fish, since
most of the apostles were fishermen. Even the public
schools in America typically served fish on Fridays to
accommodate their Catholic students.
The list of saints and the church calendar were
revised to reduce the number of saints that were venerated.
Those who appeared to be mythical—evidence for
their historical existence was lacking—were removed
from the list. For example, St. Christopher, the patron
saint of travel, was deleted.
In summary, Vatican II did not make major doctrinal
changes, but it did change many traditions, and it opened
the door for further debate. People began to think about
the potential for additional changes. If the church could
suddenly modify or overturn traditions that were hundreds
of years old, then more changes were also possible.
For example, the celibacy of the priesthood had become
an official rule in the early Middle Ages. In principle, it
could be overturned. Before Vatican II, such a change was
unthinkable, but after Vatican II many people began to
think it was possible.
Vatican II shook the faith of some traditionalists.
Many devout people had difficulty adjusting to the
changes. People who had abstained from eating meat on
Fridays now learned that it was no longer a sin. People
who had prayed for years to St. Christopher, who were
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