"The Second Vatican Council (1962-1965), a gathering of Catholic bishops from around the world, was one of the most significant cultural and ecclesiastical events of the twentieth century. Though practically everyone acknowledges its importance, Catholics have been debating its precise meaning and application for the past sixty years. On the one hand are 'radical traditionalists' who claim that Vatican II betrayed authentic Catholicism and produced disastrous consequences in the life of the Church; on the other, 'progressives' who saw the council documents as a first step toward more substantial changes in the Church. But even as many voices have argued about the council since the documents appeared in the mid-1960s, the documents of Vatican II are still widely unread, and if they are read, often misunderstood. This groundbreaking collection from Word on Fire is designed to address that problem."--From publisher's website.