The People of the Account

This reference preserves the account’s distinction between opportunity, documented action and textual effect. A role, relationship or appearance here is not by itself proof of influence on a final Council text.

This account is being read for influence, and three kinds of evidence must stay distinct. Opportunity is a formal place in the machinery: a commission seat, a presidency, a secretaryship. Documented action is what a person is recorded doing: a draft produced, a proposal made, an intervention delivered, a letter written. Textual effect is what then happened to the words: adoption, rejection, replacement, revision. The entries below connect the account's recurring figures along those lines; where the record does not show an effect, it says so, and no membership or association is read as motive or cause.

Suenens: a proposal that became a text

Opportunity: a seat on the Central Preparatory Commission and, from December 1962, on the Coordinating Commission. Documented action: his March 1962 complaint to John XXIII about the mass of prepared schemas and the project John asked him to draw up; the overall program he drafted, with Cardinal Montini concurring, for a single comprehensive document on the Christian relation to the world; his press conference presenting the resulting seventeenth schema; his suggested reworking prepared by Louvain theologians. Textual effect: the program's adoption as the seventeenth schema is documented, and the "Louvain text" he suggested became a stage of the draft. The drafting between those points was collective - the Louvain theologians, a subcommission, the Ariccia redrafting - and the adoption was the Council's own. The line from his proposal to the pastoral constitution is documented stage by stage, but the making of the text was not his alone.

Opportunity and action with mixed textual outcomes

Cardinal Alfredo Ottaviani, secretary of the Holy Office, presided over the theological commission. His commission produced the doctrine drafts - documented production - and the chronology then records what the Council did with them: the revelation draft's rejection and replacement, the Church draft's revision, the directional votes of October 1963. Influence exercised and contained are both in the record.

Cardinal Augustin Bea presided over the Secretariat for Christian Unity and sat on the Central Preparatory Commission. His Secretariat's ecumenism draft became the decree on ecumenism, and two texts it carried, on the Jews and non-Christians and on religious freedom, were detached and finished as separate declarations. The lineage from his office to three promulgated texts is documented stage by stage above.

Cardinals Achille Liénart of Lille and Josef Frings of Cologne, both members of the Central Preparatory Commission, proposed on October 13, 1962 that the election of the conciliar commissions be postponed so the bishops could learn who their colleagues were. The documented effect was immediate: the vote was postponed and the bishops drew up their own lists, against the expectation that the preparatory commissions' members would be confirmed as the conciliar majorities. Liénart later sat on the Coordinating Commission.

Cardinal Giovanni Battista Montini sat on the Central Preparatory Commission and concurred in Suenens' program. As Paul VI he added Cardinals Agagianian, Lercaro and Roberti to the Coordinating Commission on August 22, 1963, and on November 21, 1963 he entrusted a disputed subject to a special commission joining members of the theological commission and the Secretariat, announced by the Secretary General. The promulgations of the finished texts were his.

Documented action, textual effect not established here

Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, Superior General of the Holy Ghost Fathers, sat on the Central Preparatory Commission. On October 11, 1963 he warned that retaining the collegiality chapter as written would put the Council's pastoral authority at risk; his adviser Fr. Berto's letter of October 29, 1963 records his grief at the Marian vote. The account does not establish that either changed a line of the text; the collegiality teaching and the Marian placement both advanced as the votes recorded.

Archbishop Pierre Martin Ngô-Dinh-Thục of Huế praised the De Ecclesia schema and intervened on non-Christian religions, on women and on Our Lady. These positions are documented in the record itself; they cannot be inferred from his later reputation, they do not establish membership in any bloc, and no effect on the wording is traced here.

Archbishop Pericle Felici, secretary-general of the Central Preparatory Commission and then Secretary General of the Council, appears at procedural turns: announcing the Pope's special commission of November 1963, correcting the first description of Schema XIII's accompanying booklet, addressing the assembly on the preliminary note of November 16, 1964. The account documents the actions, not a drafting hand. Cardinal Valerian Gracias of Bombay asked that the seventeenth schema be placed first on the next session's agenda.

Witnesses without seats

Fr. Yves Congar and Fr. Joseph Ratzinger appear as periti, not members: Congar through journal entries that record the theological commission's discussions and the mood of votes, Ratzinger through testimony about the program's origin, the Ariccia redrafting and the drafting assignments, cited at its stages here. Their value to this account is as witnesses to how the texts were made; Ratzinger's later assessments are gathered in the separate document.

The Central Preparatory Commission's member list

Four figures in Wiltgen's account

Fr. Ralph M. Wiltgen's The Rhine Flows into the Tiber describes the following actions by Cardinals Josef Frings, Franz König and Bernard Alfrink, and by the Dominican theologian Edward Schillebeeckx. These entries report Wiltgen's account; they do not independently confirm it against the Council's official proceedings or the participants' original papers. His estimates of influence and explanations of causes remain his assessments. All page references are to the printed pages of the March 1967 Hawthorn first edition. A schema was a draft document; a peritus was a theological expert; collegiality concerns the bishops' shared responsibility with and under the Pope.

Josef Frings: organization, interventions and drafting connections

Frings, Cardinal Archbishop of Cologne, was a member of the Council Presidency. That office gave him a part in directing proceedings, distinct from an elected commission seat. Wiltgen also identifies Joseph Ratzinger as his consultant theologian.

Commission elections (pp. 15-18). German bishops discussed candidates at his residence. Frings and Liénart agreed on an opening procedure, and Frings seconded Liénart's request to postpone the elections. Wiltgen traces the German-Austrian list into an international list of 109 candidates. Frings belonged to the Presidency, not to the commissions being elected.
Liturgy first (pp. 23-24). Frings, Liénart and Alfrink supported beginning with liturgy at the presidents' meeting after the first General Congregation. The decision was announced on October 16, 1962. Wiltgen expressly says the order of discussion had not been fixed and choosing it was within the Presidency's existing authority. This was an agenda decision, not in itself a change to the rules.
The fuller liturgy draft (pp. 25-26, 29). As the first speaker in the debate, Frings asked that the Fathers receive the fuller preparatory text, including explanatory declarations removed before circulation. Wiltgen says requests continued, the responsible subcommission acknowledged making the changes, and most deleted passages were eventually restored.
Weekly coordination and wider support (pp. 41-42, 53-54). The German-language group met weekly at his residence to determine policy; Wiltgen describes nearly 100 participants and generally coordinated action. He connects the alliance's wider support with cultural ties, missionary networks and gratitude for aid from Misereor and Adveniat.
Revelation (pp. 46-51). Frings was among the leading speakers dissatisfied with the original sources-of-revelation draft. After its withdrawal from debate, he was among the cardinals added to the mixed revision commission under Ottaviani and Bea.
Fulda and theological advice (pp. 79-84). He presided at the August 1963 meeting, attended by Alfrink for the Netherlands. Wiltgen identifies Ratzinger as Frings's consultant and Rahner as König's, then describes Rahner's analyses being reviewed by Ratzinger, Grillmeier and Semmelroth before circulation. He reports Frings's high praise of Rahner, but also Frings's rejection of press claims that Fulda was a conspiracy and his statement that observations had been submitted openly to the proper Roman authorities.
Mary within the Church draft (pp. 93-95). On September 30, 1963, Frings advocated including the Marian material in the Church draft, with support from 65 German-speaking and Scandinavian Fathers. König later presented the same side in the formal debate.
Collegiality and Holy Office procedure (pp. 115-119). Frings insisted that the commissions should serve the assembly and take its indicative vote seriously. He called for a distinction between administrative and judicial functions, and for an accused person's opportunity to be heard and correct a publication or action. Ottaviani disputed his description of Holy Office procedure. Wiltgen also gives Bishop Romoli's distinction between criminal proceedings and the examination of publications. The criticism and the responses belong together.
The Marian compromise (pp. 156-158). At Father Balić's request, Frings urged acceptance of the compromise chapter rather than risking failure over competing preferences. Wiltgen reports that Balić credited his intervention with helping its passage.
Jews and other religions (p. 173). He urged that the declaration be retained and improved.
A full missions document (pp. 194-197). Missionary superiors sought his intervention. On November 7, 1964, he argued for a complete draft rather than a few propositions. Alfrink agreed. This followed Paul VI's favorable address about the propositions, in which the Pope also allowed improvements.
The modern-world draft (p. 254). Frings asked for substantial reorganization because, in his criticism, the draft confused human progress through dialogue with supernatural salvation through Christ's mission.
Missions drafting connections (pp. 257-258). Wiltgen says Ratzinger and Congar supplied the theological groundwork for the new missions draft. He links German representation on the Missions Commission with Bishop Bolte's appointment and the German missionary-aid network. He reports that Paul VI appointed Bolte instead of the next candidate in the election returns.
Wiltgen's closing assessment (p. 285). The author places Frings among the most influential figures in passing legislation and organizing the Council. He also says Frings became more cautious about Rahner's proposals toward the end.

Franz König: commission work, proposals and theological cautions

Cardinal König was a member of the Theological Commission. Wiltgen identifies Karl Rahner as his consultant, while noting that many German and Austrian bishops also used Rahner's advice.

Theological Commission and revelation (pp. 17, 47, 95). König initially headed the German-Austrian candidate list for the commission; the later account explicitly identifies him as a member. He was among the cardinals dissatisfied with the original sources-of-revelation draft.
Rahner and Fulda (pp. 79-80). Rahner's position as his consultant connected König with the theological advice discussed at the August 1963 meeting.
Mary and the Church draft (pp. 94-95). In the October 24, 1963 debate, he presented the argument for combining the Marian and Church drafts.
Regular episcopal collaboration (p. 112). He proposed meetings of episcopal-conference presidents and other bishops with the Pope once or twice each year, to assist in government and improve communication.
Religious freedom (pp. 165-166). He accepted the declaration as it stood, while asking that it not ignore countries where religious freedom was absent.
Jews and other religions (p. 173). He considered the declaration good but wanted greater accuracy in parts.
A proposed appointment that did not occur (pp. 76-78, 171-172). Wiltgen and Edmund Farhat favored König to lead a secretariat for non-Christians because of his expertise in comparative religion. Frings supported the idea; König discussed it with him and intended to raise it with Bea. When that Secretariat was established in 1964, however, Marella headed it.
The modern-world draft (p. 253). König asked for fundamental theological principles and attention to sin, the Cross, repentance and resurrection. Wiltgen places him beside Siri on this issue. He warned against presenting an achievable earthly solution to every problem.
Missions draft review (p. 257). The Nemi draft was sent to him for comment because of his influence on the Theological Commission. He returned four pages of observations.
An actual appointment (p. 273). Paul VI placed him in charge of the Secretariat for Non-Believers in April 1965. That office was distinct from the Secretariat for Non-Christians discussed earlier.

Bernard Alfrink: Presidency authority and substantive interventions

Cardinal Alfrink belonged to the Council Presidency. Wiltgen describes both his direction of proceedings and his interventions on the contents and coordination of draft documents.

Liturgy first (pp. 23-24). He joined Frings and Liénart in supporting the decision to begin with liturgy.
Speaking-time enforcement (pp. 28-29). While presiding on October 30, 1962, Alfrink rang the warning bell during Ottaviani's overlong speech and signaled for the microphone to be switched off. Wiltgen's descriptions of humiliation and audience reaction are the author's portrayal.
Revelation (p. 47). He was among the leading critics of the original sources-of-revelation draft.
Episcopacy and coordination (pp. 57-58). He noted the draft's omission of titular bishops and called for coordination between texts to avoid repetition. Wiltgen connects this proposal, supported by Léger, Suenens and Montini, with John XXIII's creation of a Coordinating Commission and orders for further examination of the drafts. He does not say that Alfrink himself became a member of that commission.
Fulda (p. 79). Alfrink represented the Netherlands at the August 1963 meeting presided over by Frings.
Bishops and the Curia (p. 112). Speaking for the Dutch bishops, he argued that if collegiality was of divine right, the episcopal college took precedence over the Curia, which should not stand between bishops and Pope. He presented the question as theological and juridical, without denying the respect owed to the Curia.
The Marian compromise (p. 157). He spoke for 124 Fathers in favor of the compromise, while resisting insistence on the title Mediatrix because of the difficulties it caused.
A fuller document on priests (pp. 191-193). On October 15, 1964, he asked for a new text in place of the compressed propositions, saying that publication as they stood would disappoint priests. Wiltgen connects the wider debate with revised handling of the propositions and their return to commission.
A fuller missions document (pp. 194-197). He joined the effort for a complete missions draft rather than short propositions.
Receipt of information (p. 77). His name appears among recipients of information about the proposed non-Christian secretariat.

Edward Schillebeeckx: circulated criticism and a defense of Paul VI

Schillebeeckx was a Dominican theologian whose advanced studies included Le Saulchoir, the Dominican house of studies. That educational connection is distinct from evidence of particular actions at the Council. Wiltgen's named episodes concern writing, advice and opposition outside the hall, not a reported floor speech by him.

The anonymous commentary (pp. 22-24). Wiltgen attributes its authorship to Schillebeeckx after 17 Dutch bishops discussed the initial drafts. It criticized the first four dogmatic drafts and favored beginning with liturgy. Latin, English and French versions were prepared, and nearly 1,500 copies were printed for international circulation. It proposed delaying those four drafts, raised the possibility of complete rewriting, opposed settling disputed theological questions and urged a more positive style rather than that of a classroom text.
Time for further criticism (pp. 35-36). Wiltgen says beginning with liturgy gave Schillebeeckx and other opponents more time to develop their criticisms and demand revision.
Revelation opposition outside the hall (p. 46). Wiltgen identifies Schillebeeckx and the Dutch bishops as leaders of opposition before debate began.
Re-examination between sessions (p. 58). Wiltgen connects renewed examination of all the drafts with the dogmatic drafts that Schillebeeckx and the Dutch bishops had attacked.
Paul VI and ambiguity on collegiality (p. 242). After the third session, Schillebeeckx defended the Pope in De Bazuin. In a further article dated January 23, 1965, he discussed the preliminary explanatory note on collegiality. As Wiltgen recounts it, Schillebeeckx personally preferred a stronger formulation of collegiality but objected to leaving wording deliberately ambiguous so that stronger conclusions could later be drawn from it. He held that the text should state its position plainly and that the Pope's note was necessary to prevent ambiguity. Wiltgen also reports his recollection of Congar's earlier objection to deliberately ambiguous wording.
Later reception (p. 247). Bishop Carli cited Schillebeeckx's article in his own discussion of the third-session disputes.

The evidence chain on p. 242 is Wiltgen recounting Schillebeeckx's published account of a conversation with an unnamed expert. It does not identify that expert, establish that every commission member shared the alleged intention, or independently authenticate the conversation. The Dutch articles have not been checked here. Wiltgen's use of peritus does not by itself establish an official appointment.

Other figures in Wiltgen's account

The following entries continue the same source-specific review for the other people named in the original page. The citations refer to Wiltgen's printed pagination.

Leo Jozef Suenens

Wiltgen follows Suenens through the Coordinating Commission, his appointment as a Moderator and several substantive debates. The Moderators directed the Council's business meetings from the second session onward.

Revelation and coordination (pp. 47, 58, 64, 78-84). Suenens opposed the original revelation draft, supported coordination of the Council's texts and joined the Coordinating Commission in December 1962. The Munich substitute Church draft followed the five-chapter arrangement he had suggested. In July 1963 he reported on the Church and modern-world drafts. Paul VI appointed him one of the four Moderators before the second session.
The permanent diaconate (pp. 97-100). He defended the diaconate as a sacramental ministry and denied that admitting married men to it would necessarily undermine priestly celibacy or vocations. He requested an exploratory vote. The October 30, 1963 vote favored restoration of a permanent diaconate, without deciding whether its members could be married.
The People of God chapter (pp. 100-101). Wiltgen credits him with securing the Coordinating Commission's July decision to add this chapter before the second session. A printed footnote announced the division of the existing laity material into two chapters. Wiltgen notes that the phrase itself already appeared in the original preparatory Church draft.
The Marian chapter (pp. 155-156). Suenens objected that the revised text minimized Mary's importance. He asked for a fuller presentation of her continuing spiritual maternity, her cooperation in redemption and the ordinary teaching authority of the Church. Wiltgen describes this as a departure from the European alliance's usual position.
Postponing two votes (pp. 162-163). At a December 1, 1963 lecture, Suenens said that the Moderators had chosen not to insist on votes on the Jewish and religious-freedom chapters. He said a cooling-off period and public discussion would improve their chances of acceptance. Bea's statement the following day emphasized that time had run out.
Women auditors and the lay apostolate (pp. 184-188). He proposed admitting women and increasing the number and geographical range of male auditors, with representation for religious brothers and sisters. He also objected to singling out Catholic Action in the lay-apostolate draft. Bishop Laszlo defended the existing wording, and the final treatment did not put every organized form of apostolate on an identical footing.
Missions (pp. 195-196). Missionary superiors asked him to intervene, and their group circulated the intervention texts in advance. Speaking for the bishops of Africa, he asked for major amendments to the abbreviated missions text.
The modern-world document (pp. 205-212). Wiltgen connects his December 4, 1962 proposal with John XXIII's earlier outline of the Church's work in the world. Suenens received responsibility for promoting the new draft and proposed a joint theological and lay-apostolate commission. After the first draft was judged unsatisfactory, he brought experts to Belgium for another text. During the third session he favored including subjects from the accompanying supplement in the document itself. The Coordinating Commission later ordered their inclusion, at least in substance.
Religious life (pp. 217-222). He asked for a new text and for changes in active congregations of women: adult participation in community government, better representation in general chapters, greater freedom for apostolic work and the removal of outdated customs. Spellman distinguished adaptation from changing the essence of religious life. The Roman Union of Superiors General and the Bishops' Secretariat preferred retaining and amending the propositions. Anastasio del SS. Rosario called for both a return to the founders' spirit and adaptation to modern conditions; Sartre emphasized the interior life and the purposes of each community, and Guilly asked for explicit recognition of the contemplative life as apostolic. A Secretariat expert criticized Suenens's emphasis on the external apostolate. The Secretariat's experts later said that they welcomed many of his proposed additions but objected to what his approach left out. The assembly retained them by 1,155 votes to 882, defeating the course favored by Suenens and Döpfner. Their experts then supplied qualifications, as did their opponents; Wiltgen says many proposals from both sides entered the revised decree. On November 14, 1964, the Moderators allowed qualifications to be handed in after the ballot. Wiltgen attributes that extension, tentatively, to a breakdown in the distribution of the two cardinals' proposed qualifications.
Seminaries and minority organization (pp. 224, 249). He proposed a special commission to carry seminary renewal beyond publication of a decree. Later, he and Döpfner complained to Paul VI about the Bishops' Secretariat. Archbishop Perantoni answered that his group existed to secure a hearing for a minority overlooked by their organization.
Marriage and celibacy (pp. 266, 268-269). He urged the Pope's birth-control commission to examine the balance between procreation and the union of spouses and asked that its members' names be published. Ottaviani challenged suggestions that earlier teaching might have been mistaken. After a papal audience, Suenens publicly denied questioning authentic Church teaching and acknowledged the Pope's authority over the inquiry. Elsewhere Wiltgen describes amendments to the priestly document that placed closer consecration to Christ before celibacy's value as a sign, qualifying the emphasis he associates with Suenens and Döpfner.
Atheism and the Council's close (pp. 71, 273, 283). He carried John XXIII's signed Pacem in Terris to the United Nations, asked for fuller treatment of militant atheism and its causes, and, as the last day's Moderator, thanked the Council's officials.

Alfredo Ottaviani

Ottaviani presided over the Theological Commission and served in the Holy Office. Wiltgen records both his defense of preparatory work and his part in later revisions.

Liturgy (pp. 28-29). On October 30, 1962, he protested against drastic changes in the Mass. After he exceeded the speaking limit, Alfrink signaled for his microphone to be cut off. Wiltgen's account of the audience reaction is his own description.
Revelation and the right to reject a draft (pp. 46-51). He introduced the original draft on November 14 and defended its pastoral value as a statement of unchanging truth. He protested against Döpfner's account of objections being set aside during preparation. When Ottaviani maintained that papally approved drafts could not be rejected, the presiding Cardinal Gilroy cited Article 33, which expressly allowed acceptance, rejection or amendment. After John XXIII withdrew the text for revision, Ottaviani and Bea became co-presidents of the mixed commission.
The Church draft (pp. 53-56, 64, 96, 100-101). He defended the competence and international membership of the preparatory theological body. He had preferred completing the shorter Marian draft before the first session ended. German-speaking bishops later sent their substitute Church text and criticisms to him and to the Pope. Wiltgen notes that the expression "People of God" was already present in Ottaviani's original draft.
Collegiality and the Holy Office (pp. 114-119, 234). Ottaviani disputed the formulation and use of the indicative votes and argued that bishops succeeded the Apostles without thereby inheriting a juridically constituted apostolic college. He answered Frings's criticism of Holy Office procedure by pointing to expert examination of cases. Bishop Romoli subsequently distinguished criminal trials, in which the accused received a hearing and legal assistance, from examination of publications, in which an author was not always heard before a judgment on the work. D'Souza objected that this treatment disregarded the assembly's clearly expressed view. Döpfner answered that the Moderators had studied the propositions for fifteen days and that their wording reflected the Church draft; although the votes were not definitive, their clear result should not be obscured. Wiltgen later relates Ottaviani's earlier objections to the clarification supplied by the explanatory note.
Religious freedom (pp. 160-164). The Theological Commission had to examine the doctrinal draft before its release. Press accusations that Ottaviani was deliberately obstructing it are reported as accusations. In debate, he accepted that no one could be forced in religion but distinguished the objective claims of revealed religion from a person's subjective conscience. He objected to an unrestricted right to propagate every religion and called for explicit recognition of divine law.
Revelation and the modern-world draft (pp. 181-183, 207, 212, 232-234). He received the Pope's directions for further work on revelation and on the collegiality note. With Cardinal Cento, he co-presided over the joint commission responsible for the modern-world document. That commission received the later order to incorporate the supplement's material.
Marriage and peace (pp. 267, 269, 285). He challenged the marriage draft's account of spouses determining family size and defended confidence in Providence and continuity in teaching. Wiltgen also records his signature on the March 18, 1966 decree revising mixed-marriage legislation, whose changes fell short of Döpfner's proposal. At the Council he proposed a world republic as a means of peace and received prolonged applause. Wiltgen includes this favorable reception alongside the earlier conflicts.

Augustin Bea

Bea headed the Secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity. Wiltgen's account includes its drafting work, its contacts with observers and several occasions on which Bea supported Paul VI's interventions.

Revelation and the Church draft (pp. 47, 51, 53-57, 69, 106). He opposed the original revelation draft and became co-president of its revision commission. His Secretariat supplied one of the texts brought together in the ecumenism draft. On the Church document, he criticized the use of Scripture and asked that pastoral concerns shape the text itself. He also insisted that a treatment of holiness distinguish the perfected Church in heaven from the Church on earth, which included sinners.
Non-Christian religions (p. 77). Wiltgen reports his sympathy for the proposed separate secretariat. The office eventually established under Marella was distinct from Bea's own Secretariat.
Observer invitations (pp. 120-125). He invited representative Christian bodies rather than attempting to invite every denomination. After objections to invitations routed through Constantinople, he sent invitations directly to the Orthodox churches. Willebrands went to Moscow, and the Russian Orthodox invitation was accepted. Wiltgen expressly reports that no promise to exclude communism from the Council was requested or given in the Paris and Moscow contacts he describes. Observers received documents, attended General Congregations and could offer views at the Secretariat's weekly meetings. Bea invited constructive criticism.
Ecumenical safeguards and Mary (pp. 127, 155). He acknowledged the danger of indifferentism when dialogue lacked learning and caution, and favored activity under episcopal direction and Church norms. He opposed including the disputed title Mediatrix as though its theological meaning were already settled.
Religious freedom (pp. 160-163). His Secretariat prepared the draft and initially presented it as a chapter of the ecumenism text. In December 1963 he publicly attributed the lack of debate to shortage of time. Wiltgen sets that explanation beside Suenens's statement that the Moderators had chosen delay to improve prospects of acceptance.
Jews and other religions (pp. 167-175). John XXIII gave him an oral mandate to prepare a text on the Jews and later approved his explanation of its religious, rather than political, purpose. Bea kept the project before the Council authorities despite postponements. In September 1964 he denied collective responsibility of the Jewish people for Christ's death and discussed the limits of personal knowledge among the historical leaders involved. Eastern patriarchs opposed publication because of dangers to their communities; other speakers supported and broadened it. The resulting declaration covered non-Christian religions more generally. Bea welcomed its final approval.
Paul VI's revelation amendments (pp. 181-183). Bea supported the addition that the Church did not draw certainty about everything revealed from Scripture alone. He considered "truth pertaining to salvation" open to misunderstanding and supported a clearer affirmation of the Gospels' historical character. The commission adopted revised formulations after discussion and ballots.
Ecumenism amendments and Mother of the Church (pp. 239-243). At the Pope's request, Bea and his colleagues examined forty proposed amendments and adopted nineteen, leaving aside those they considered destructive of the document's orientation or substance. Later he explained that alarm about one amendment rested on an incorrect translation. He also answered claims that Paul VI's proclamation of Mary as Mother of the Church contradicted a Council majority: the Council had never voted on that title, and individual speeches did not establish the assembly's majority view. Wiltgen separately reports Bea's opposition to a proposed consecration of the world to Mary's Immaculate Heart.
The modern-world draft and the close (pp. 194, 211, 253, 283). He registered to speak on missions. He praised the modern-world project while asking for a stronger theological and scriptural basis, then criticized the Latin of its later draft as unclear. At the final reception he introduced the observers to Paul VI.

Achille Liénart

Elections and agenda (pp. 15-18, 24). After planning with Frings, he requested time for bishops to consider commission candidates. The Presidency granted the delay. The General Secretariat said its list of former preparatory members was an aid to identifying experience, not a binding slate. Liénart also supported beginning with liturgy.
Revelation, unity and coordination (pp. 47, 51, 55, 58). He opposed the original revelation draft and joined its mixed revision commission. He called the first unity draft defective in form and content and asked for rejection. He also became a member of the Coordinating Commission.
Non-Christians and the modern world (pp. 77, 173, 211). He welcomed the proposal for a non-Christian secretariat while reserving the decision to the Pope. He supported the declaration on Jews and other religions, treating its subject as religious; Tappouni replied with pastoral and political dangers faced by Eastern Christians. Liénart also asked for a deeper theological and scriptural basis in the modern-world draft.

John XXIII

Calling and preparing the Council (pp. 13-15, 19-23). He announced his intention on January 25, 1959, established the preparatory bodies, approved their subjects and chose Felici for central secretarial work. His opening address called for guarding and teaching the deposit of faith while distinguishing its substance from the manner of presentation. It joined adherence to earlier teaching with a pastoral method and a preference for demonstrating truth rather than issuing condemnations.
Press, commissions and debate (pp. 19, 30-32, 40-41). He supported accurate information for journalists while retaining confidentiality for some deliberations. He increased his appointed members on each Council commission from eight to nine. When debates grew lengthy, he authorized the Presidency to put closure to a vote. His remarks on language, the Ambrosian rite and adaptation encouraged missionary bishops; Wiltgen presents that encouragement as their understanding of his words.
St. Joseph and revelation (pp. 43-46, 50-51). He inserted St. Joseph's name in the Canon of the Mass after a long petition campaign. When the vote to interrupt the revelation debate failed to reach two thirds, he ordered revision by a mixed commission, including the Theological Commission and Bea's Secretariat.
Coordination and work between sessions (pp. 58-59, 68-72). He created the Coordinating Commission in December 1962 and required renewed examination of all drafts. He pressed for study, correspondence and circulation of revised texts during his final illness. Wiltgen records his personal review and approval of drafts, while elsewhere questioning whether a religious-life text revised after its recorded approval date had actually been seen by him in that final form (p. 214).
Unity, liturgy and canon law (pp. 69, 120-123, 141). He founded the Secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity and later gave it commission status without subjecting its existing membership to election. He established the canon-law revision commission. Wiltgen also recounts his direction to the Secretary of State to obtain Cardinal Gaetano Cicognani's signature on the preparatory liturgy draft.
Mary, the Jews and the modern world (pp. 153, 167-168, 205-206, 240). He requested the Church draft's eschatological chapter, concerning its final fulfillment in heaven. He commissioned Bea's Jewish text and endorsed its religious purpose. His September 1962 address supplied themes that Wiltgen connects with the later modern-world document. The suggestion that he also prompted the title Mother of the Church in a drafting instruction is reported by Wiltgen through Balić, not as a surviving direction reproduced in the book.
The Eastern patriarchs (pp. 199-201). Wiltgen recounts Maximos IV's requests for precedence and the absence of a substantive reply under John. The patriarchs were still seated after the cardinals when the Council opened.

Giovanni Battista Montini / Paul VI

Before his election (pp. 26-27, 33, 41, 45, 58, 82, 229). Montini supported the liturgy draft while opposing both arbitrary changes and the claim that every inherited ceremony was unalterable. He favored Latin in the sacramental and properly priestly parts, understandable instruction for the faithful and prudent simplification. He issued diocesan Council newsletters, supported coordination of the texts and served in preparatory and extraordinary Council bodies. Wiltgen also records his earlier interest in defining the bishops' powers.
Continuation and direction (pp. 76-85). The day after his election he pledged to continue the Council. He revised its rules, distinguished the Presidency's supervisory work from the Moderators' direction of meetings and appointed Döpfner, Suenens, Lercaro and Agagianian as Moderators. The revised rules broadened access to commissions and minority reports and required a simple majority to reject a draft or postpone debate, while retaining two thirds for approval.
Authority and procedural limits (pp. 109, 128-130, 136, 147). He referred the Bishops' Secretariat's petition on religious life for careful study and encouraged its work. The Moderators did not obtain the general power Lercaro requested to frame directive questions for future debates. Paul enlarged the commissions to thirty members, with four additional members elected and one appointed. He issued restrictions on experts' public campaigning and on distribution of papers. In July 1964 he approved stricter notice requirements and the seventy-signature rule for speaking after closure; Wiltgen criticizes their effect on less organized minorities.
Liturgy and its implementation (pp. 138-141). He promulgated the liturgy constitution and established its implementation body under Lercaro. Wiltgen describes the confusion around the first published version of Sacram liturgiam, the criticisms it provoked and its subsequent revision. The account of Felici's alterations comes through Father Marsili and Wiltgen's reporting.
Observers and other religions (pp. 124-125, 170-175, 184-185, 282-283). He received Christian observers, visited the Holy Land and established the Secretariat for Non-Christians under Marella. He admitted additional lay auditors, including women. Near the end he led a prayer service with the Council Fathers and observers and received their farewell address.
Collegiality (pp. 228-234). He sought scriptural advice and submitted amendments before the third session; the Theological Commission accepted most of them. In November 1964 he required further precision about papal consent and an explanatory note. The commission drafted the note, he revised and approved it, and it was read with instructions governing interpretation of the Church document. Wiltgen also tells a story of an unnamed cardinal presenting an unnamed theologian's paper and of the Pope weeping. The book does not identify the paper's author or reproduce the paper; that anecdote remains Wiltgen's report. In the related procedural dispute, Paul had ordered an investigation of alleged violations; Felici announced on November 16 that the examination had found no breach of the rules. The doctrinal objections had separately been sent to the Theological Commission.
Religious freedom, ecumenism and Mary (pp. 234-243, 250-252). He upheld the November 1964 postponement of the religious-freedom vote on procedural grounds, while promising renewed treatment. He asked Bea's Secretariat to consider amendments to ecumenism and promulgated the amended decree. He proclaimed Mary Mother of the Church after promulgating the Church constitution. Bea and Schillebeeckx subsequently defended aspects of his actions. The religious-freedom declaration was revised further and promulgated in December 1965.
Revelation (pp. 177-184). He sought further work on tradition, scriptural inerrancy and the historical character of the Gospels. The Theological Commission reconsidered its text and adopted revised formulations. When warned that reconvening it would exert improper pressure, Paul replied that he had a duty to reach doctrinal certainty and a right to collaborate in improving the draft. He promulgated the constitution on November 18, 1965.
Missions (pp. 193-198, 256-259). He praised aspects of the short propositions while leaving room for improvement; the assembly nevertheless asked for a full document. Agagianian denied inviting him to the meeting to secure approval of the short text. Paul later commented on the new Nemi draft, asking that missionary obedience be included. Wiltgen reports that Paul's appointment of Bolte to the Missions Commission departed from the ordinary succession by election returns.
The Synod and priestly celibacy (pp. 250, 262-267). He established the Synod of Bishops as an organ of consultation and collaboration, without replacing the Curia. He asked that proposed observations on Latin-rite priestly celibacy be sent in writing rather than debated publicly and stated his intention to preserve and strengthen the discipline.
Marriage and birth control (pp. 268-272). Certain questions were reserved to his special commission. In November 1965 he sent four amendments to the marriage section: language against contraceptive practices, removal of a word that appeared to subordinate procreation, stronger language about forbidden methods and emphasis on conjugal chastity. Wiltgen records both the commission's rephrasing and the elements it retained. Paul required restoration of precise references to Casti Connubii before the final vote.
Communism and peace (pp. 256, 272-278, 280-282). He addressed the United Nations and founded the Secretariat for Non-Believers under König. After the mishandling of the signed communism intervention, he ordered a reference to previous papal teaching. Wiltgen also reports and then checks a rumor that Paul had ordered Spellman by telegram to withdraw support from Hannan's nuclear-weapons campaign: Spellman's secretary denied it.
Eastern churches, final texts and implementation (pp. 199-205, 261-262, 283-288). He ordered distinct seating for the Eastern patriarchs. With Athenagoras he issued the declaration removing the 1054 excommunications from memory; full communion was still a future aim. Wiltgen reports that he stopped an implementation instruction from restoring school-control language not accepted by the Council. He reorganized the Holy Office, promulgated the final documents, closed the Council and established five post-conciliar commissions with interpretive rather than legislative authority.

Gregorio Agagianian

Offices and procedural position (pp. 75, 77, 82-84). He headed Propaganda Fide, presided over the Missions Commission and became a Moderator. Wiltgen's statement that he was less forceful than the other Moderators is an assessment. In the earlier non-Christian-secretariat campaign, Agagianian was absent when approached; Sigismondi anticipated his approval, and Wiltgen later described his support as presumed.
The short missions text (pp. 194-198). He was to forward the Commission's request for ordinary debate and introduced its text when Paul VI attended. After the assembly rejected the abbreviated approach, accusations circulated that he had invited the Pope to secure support. Agagianian emphatically denied this, saying the Pope had decided to attend spontaneously.
Reserved marriage questions (p. 268). As Moderator, he announced that some questions were reserved to the Pope's birth-control commission and that written observations would be considered by it.

Giacomo Lercaro

Revelation and moderation (pp. 50, 82-84, 128). He criticized the two-thirds rule after the vote to interrupt the revelation debate failed despite a majority favoring interruption. Later, as Moderator, he proposed wider use of directive votes on the main issues in debates. The general authorization he sought was not granted.
Communications media (pp. 133-136). Wiltgen connects him with an effort to obtain rejection of the media draft. After Felici intervened against the petition's distribution and Tisserant condemned it, the attempted blocking action was dropped. Eighteen signers protested that no rule then prohibited such circulation; Tisserant defended the action as protection of proper order after chapter-by-chapter approval.
Implementing the liturgy constitution (pp. 139-141). He objected to the first published version of Sacram liturgiam and announced his intention to see the Pope. He then became president of the implementation commission, with Bugnini as secretary.
Other documents (pp. 173, 209-210). He favored retaining and improving the declaration on Jews and other religions. On the modern-world draft, he argued for enough time to examine and revise it, even if final approval had to wait for another session.

Francesco Roberti

Wiltgen gives two substantive episodes. As chairman of the Administrative Tribunal, Roberti received Carli's November 19, 1964 appeal against deciding by an assembly vote whether the religious-freedom vote could proceed. The Presidency then announced postponement under the rules; Wiltgen does not reproduce a separate judgment by Roberti (pp. 235-238). Roberti also headed the Curia-reorganization commission whose proposed weakening of the missionary representatives' role was largely overcome in the revised missions text (pp. 258-259).

Marcel Lefebvre

Minority organization (pp. 89-90). He and Sigaud formed a small committee early in the Council and later brought Carli into it. In an interview with Wiltgen, Lefebvre described powerful national conferences as a threat to the individual bishop's teaching and pastoral responsibility, rather than to the papacy. He favored international grouping by theological positions instead. Congar also warned against conferences overriding personal episcopal responsibility.
Religious freedom (pp. 247-249). Lefebvre, Sigaud and Abbot Prou planned interventions and appeals. Their group requested minority reports, time for preparation and rebuttal. Cicognani's reply conveyed papal concern that an organized alliance might impair freedom and intensify divisions. Lefebvre answered that they could dispense with the group's title, denied moral pressure and maintained that mutual help remained legitimate. Wiltgen sets the dispute beside rules encouraging Fathers with similar arguments to combine and choose spokesmen.
Communism (pp. 274-278). Lefebvre and Sigaud distributed Carli's letter and delivered the signed intervention. Sigaud publicly stated that both had handed it in before the deadline. After contrary accounts of lateness, Garrone acknowledged that the material had arrived in time but had unintentionally not been transmitted to commission members. Wiltgen names Glorieux as responsible on the basis of four unnamed sources. The accounts disagree about signature totals. Paul VI ordered a reference to earlier papal condemnations; the resulting text did not adopt the group's requested explicit treatment in full.

Victor-Alain Berto and Pierre Martin Ngô-Dinh-Thục

No named episode was found for Berto or Thục in the complete searchable text, including accent and plausible OCR-variant checks, or in the printed index. Their earlier entries on this page rest on other records; this Wiltgen review adds no intervention or role for either man.

Pericle Felici

Preparing the record (pp. 16-22, 287). As secretary in the preparatory machinery, he and his staff classified the bishops', Roman congregations' and universities' proposals. As Council Secretary General, he explained procedures, announced election postponement and oversaw the circulation of texts. Wiltgen describes the preservation of documents, ballots and recordings under the General Secretariat.
Information and correspondence (pp. 30-32, 50-52, 69-72, 81-82). He transmitted instructions affecting press information, read the papal decision to revise revelation, announced changes to session arrangements and corresponded about revised drafts. He also helped publish the explanation that the Fulda meeting continued earlier cooperation and had sent its findings to the proper authorities.
Speaking and distribution rules (pp. 107, 133-136, 147). Wiltgen says Felici gave up oral interventions because of his office. He acted against distribution of the media-draft petition; the signers and Tisserant exchanged contrary explanations of the incident. Later rules expressly restricted distribution in or near the hall. He communicated the stricter speaking requirements and the third-session agenda.
Liturgy: criticism and prior assistance (pp. 139-141). Father Marsili blamed Felici's alterations for the problems in the first published Sacram liturgiam. Wiltgen then gives another side: Bugnini supported Felici's appointment to the implementation commission because he had earlier brought the stalled preparatory liturgy text to John XXIII's attention and helped secure its approval.
Priests, missions and the supplement (pp. 189-195, 208-210). He announced the Moderators' changing directions for discussion and revision of propositions. When his first description of the modern-world supplement was criticized, he issued a further explanation. He denied press allegations of conservative intrigue and said the second announcement had been his initiative, with the Moderators' authorization.
Patriarchs and papal clarifications (pp. 199-201, 229, 233-234, 265). He received Maximos IV's request concerning the Eastern patriarchs and promised to put it before John XXIII. He transmitted Paul's collegiality inquiries, announced the explanatory note and its interpretive force, and read the Pope's letter on priestly celibacy.
Final business (pp. 189, 283, 285-287). He corrected the final count for the lay-apostolate decree after damaged computer ballots were checked by notaries. He read the Jubilee announcement and the Brief closing the Council. Wiltgen records prolonged applause for him and praises his administrative work, humor and Latin verse.

Valerian Gracias

On the first Church draft he asked for greater care in treating Church-state relations because of the dangers to Catholics under hostile governments (p. 57). He favored the proposed Secretariat for Non-Christians (p. 77). During debate on the modern-world draft, he reported that five Indian laymen had studied an English translation and praised its relevance to contemporary problems (p. 254). These are the named interventions and contacts Wiltgen supplies; the original page's separate agenda proposal is not established by these passages.

Yves Congar

Episcopal conferences (p. 90). He warned that conferences must not extinguish a bishop's personal responsibility or threaten Catholic unity, a concern Wiltgen places beside Lefebvre's criticism.
Revelation drafting (pp. 176-177). Wiltgen lists him among the experts of the subcommission revising revelation in 1964. Its members worked privately before meeting in Rome, and its revision went to Bea's Secretariat and the Theological Commission.
Ambiguity (p. 242). In Wiltgen's account of Schillebeeckx's article, Schillebeeckx recalled Congar's earlier objection to deliberately ambiguous conciliar language. The Dutch original and Congar's original remark are not reproduced there.
Missions (pp. 256-257). The five-member drafting subcommission chose Congar and Ratzinger to prepare the theological groundwork. It met at Nemi in January 1965; the draft then went to commission members, experts and selected cardinals for comment. This is a drafting assignment, beyond his role as a witness through his journal.

Joseph Ratzinger

Assessment of the first session (p. 59). He welcomed its failure to approve any text as evidence of a reaction against the spirit of the preparatory work. Wiltgen presents this as Ratzinger's assessment.
Fulda and the Marian draft (pp. 80, 91, 176). As Frings's consultant, he reviewed Rahner's analyses with Grillmeier and Semmelroth. Rahner described the Marian draft as causing concern to all four theologians. Their comments also entered the Fulda consideration of revelation.
Opposition encountered (p. 150). Wiltgen reports a conversation in which Ratzinger said that the expected freedom of action after obtaining commission majorities had been limited by resistance in speeches and voting. Sigaud overheard the remark.
Collegiality and missions (pp. 231, 256-257). He was among the experts on the subcommission examining qualifications to the collegiality chapter. With Congar, he was later chosen to prepare the theological groundwork for the new missions document.
Wiltgen's closing judgment (p. 285). Wiltgen portrays him as initially close to Rahner's views but increasingly conscious of disagreements. The same passage calls him Rahner's former student; it does not document a formal teacher-student relationship.

Assessment after the evidence

In this source, the popes, Presidency, Moderators and commission leaders could direct work through distinct offices. Theological experts also supplied texts and advice: Schillebeeckx's circulated criticism and Congar's and Ratzinger's missions assignment are specific examples. The commentary's circulation, the Fulda submissions and the missions draft give specific routes to follow, rather than only associations between names. The evidence also resists treating the figures as uniform parties. Frings and König criticized the theological balance of the modern-world draft; Suenens sought stronger Marian teaching; Bea defended papal interventions; Congar shared concerns about over-powerful episcopal conferences; Schillebeeckx opposed deliberate ambiguity and defended Paul VI's note. Rejection, amendment and acceptance were separate outcomes, as the religious-life debate also shows. Exact drafting effects and Wiltgen's explanations still require comparison with official proceedings, commission papers and the participants' publications.

Source ledger

The full Latin roster with co-option dates (vaticano2)
The Coordinating Commission's membership (vaticano2)
Ralph M. Wiltgen, The Rhine Flows into the Tiber: The Unknown Council, Hawthorn Books, New York, first edition, March 1967. The Wiltgen review above cites printed pagination. Complete scanned edition.
Robert Schreiter, The Relevance of Professor Edward Schillebeeckx, O.P. for the Twenty-First Century, Bricker Memorial Lecture, October 8, 2009. Cited for Schillebeeckx's study at Le Saulchoir. Lecture text.