2nd Vatican Council

According to Britannica this is the day in history when Pope John XXIII called the 2nd Vatican Council in session in 1962. This would be a momentous event for the Roman Catholics and would bring about significant changes in the RC church. One item was to allow the mass to be given in the vernacular rather than in Latin. For aeons the belief had been held that Latin was the language of heaven, so it needed to be used in the church. Of course, anyone who knows anything at all knows that the language of heaven is Hebrew. What other language would God have used when talking to Moses? But if you are a red-blooded American, you will believe that the language of heaven is English.

Pope John XXIII was the greatest pope of the 20th century. He was old when he was elected to the position and the Curia (the ruling body of cardinals in the RC church) chose him because they assumed he would die soon. In the meantime they could figure out who they really wanted to be the next pope. But John fooled them and lived long enough to bring about momentous changes in the Roman Catholic church. I believe this man was a true man of God. He did not enjoy all the pomp and circumstance that accompanied the papacy and repeatedly told his secretary not to refer to him as "Your holiness." You should read a good biography about this great man. What was supposed to be a "temp" on the job turned out to be the best pope the church experienced for at least 100 years.