The Synod of Pistoia and Vatican II

Jansenism and the Struggle for Catholic Reform

Shaun Blanchard

Oxford Studies in Historical Theology

Provides an in-depth analysis of Auctorem fidei as the eighteenth-century event and document most often evoked at Vatican II
Contributes to a recalibration of the study of the roots of Vatican II
Further illuminates doctrinal development, aggiornamento, ressourcement, and the growth of historical consciousness in Catholic theology and teaching

The Synod of Pistoia and Vatican II

Jansenism and the Struggle for Catholic Reform

Shaun Blanchard

Oxford Studies in Historical Theology

Description

In this book, Shaun Blanchard argues that the roots of the Vatican II reforms must be pushed back beyond the widely acknowledged twentieth-century forerunners of the Council, beyond Newman and the Tübingen School in the nineteenth century, to the eighteenth century, when a variety of reform movements attempted ressourcement and aggiornamento. This close study of the Synod of Pistoia (1786) sheds surprising new light on the nature of church reform and the roots of the Second Vatican Council (1962-65). The high-water mark of the late Jansenist reform movement, this Tuscan diocesan synod was harshly condemned by Pope Pius VI in the Bull Auctorem fidei (1794), and in the increasingly ultramontane nineteenth-century Church the late Jansenist movement was totally discredited. Nevertheless, much of the Pistoian agenda--an exaltation of the role of the local bishop, an emphasis on infallibility as a gift to the entire believing community, religious liberty, a more comprehensible liturgy that incorporates the vernacular, and the encouragement of lay Bible reading and Christocentric devotions--would be officially promulgated at Vatican II.
Investigating the theological and historical context and nature of the reforms enacted by the Synod of Pistoia, he notes their parallels with the reforms of Vatican II, and argues that these connections are deeper than mere affinity. The tumultuous events surrounding the reception of the Synod explain why these reforms failed at the time. This book also offers a measured theological judgment on whether the Synod of Pistoia was "true or false reform." Although the Pistoians were completely rejected in their own day, the Second Vatican Council struggled with, and ultimately enacted, remarkably similar ideas.

The Synod of Pistoia and Vatican II

Jansenism and the Struggle for Catholic Reform

Shaun Blanchard

Oxford Studies in Historical Theology

Introduction: How Far Back do the Roots of the Council Go?
Chapter I: A Hermeneutic of True Reform: Interpreting Vatican II
Chapter II: Ressourcement and Aggiornamento in the Eighteenth Century
Chapter III: Radical Reform in Tuscany: Scipione de'Ricci and Late Jansenism
Chapter IV: The Synod of Pistoia: Radical Forerunner of Vatican II
Chapter V: The Spirit of Pistoia: The Reception and Failure of a Bold Reformist Vision
Chapter VI: The Ghost of Pistoia: The Legacy of Auctorem Fidei at Vatican II
Conclusion: The Memory of Pistoia and the Hermeneutic of True Reform
Bibliography
Sources on Scipione de'Ricci, the Synod of Pistoia, and Italian Jansenism
Other Early Modern Sources
Other Contemporary Sources

The Synod of Pistoia and Vatican II

Jansenism and the Struggle for Catholic Reform

Shaun Blanchard

Oxford Studies in Historical Theology

Author Information

Shaun Blanchard is Assistant Professor of Theology at Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. His work in early modern and modern Catholic theology and history has appeared in Pro Ecclesia, New Blackfriars, Theological Studies, and US Catholic Historian.

The Synod of Pistoia and Vatican II

Jansenism and the Struggle for Catholic Reform

Shaun Blanchard

Oxford Studies in Historical Theology

Reviews and Awards

"Blanchard's discussion...makes excellent reading and offers an important contribution to Vatican Il studies. This significant and engaging volume calls out for a wide readership for it addresses vital themes for the Church, not least the way in which Vatican II is to be interpreted in the life of the Church, and in the renewal of interest in synodality under Pope Francis." -- Peter Phillips , Catholic Archives

"[A] ground-breaking study...As the Roman Catholic Church embarks on a new engagement with synodality, this book is essential reading for a proper understanding of that church's modern history. Blanchard is eirenically and scrupulously balanced in his analysis, determined both that justice should be done to Jansenism as an alternative stream of catholic teaching, while at the same time acknowledging its weaknesses, errors, and the historical contexts for its failure." -- Peter Doll, Ecclesiology

"This study of the often neglected eighteenth-century Catholic reform offers a better understanding of the menaing and achievements of Vatican II. The study demonstrates the importance of understanding the past for a nuanced approach to contemporary Vatican II research and ecumenism." -- Els Agten, Augustiniana

"This volume is a striking contribution to the field of historical theology ... Blanchard's writing style is approachable and engaging, inviting the reader to enjoy the excitement of what he has discovered ... His ability to make connections across three centuries that are too often studied in isolation from one another ensures that this work will be an essential reference for many years to come." -- Kenneth L. Parker, Newman Studies Journal

"a striking contribution to the field of historical theology, an important contextual study for a wide range of subdisciplines in Catholic theology, and a reminder that responsible historical research is an enterprise that Roman Catholics need not fear." -- Professor Kenneth Parker, Newman Studies Journal

"Shaun Blanchard simultaneously offers us...a new look at the history of the Synod of Pistoia, its closed possibilities and the shadows it cast for more than a century and a half within Catholicism, and a renewed perspective on the historical-theological influences of the Second Vatican Council." -- Nicolás Perrone, Itinerantes, Revista de Historia y Religión

"...the proposal of a 'hermeneutic of reform' is acceptable, according to Blanchard... provided one writes a history of this continuity that is, if you will, a little more Pistoian and a little less ultramontane. It is an interesting proposal, supported by Blanchard with erudition and a writing style at the same time pleasant and passionate." -- Glauco Schettini , Modernism

"This monograph is well-written and thoroughly researched. It ought to be read by any Catholic who desires to have a better grasp of their tradition or by the student of eighteenth-century church history. It would also be of benefit for those who are involved in ecumenical endeavors, especially given its clear demonstration of the importance of the past for the present regarding the Catholic Church." -- Thomas Haviland-Pabst, Themelios

"This book is a game changer for modern religious history and Catholic theology. It uncovers Jansenist and Catholic Enlightenment precursors of the Second Vatican Council. To describe it as 'dynamite' would be an understatement." -- Ulrich L. Lehner, Warren Professor of Theology, University of Notre Dame

"The eighteenth-century Pistoians, vindicated in significant ways by Vatican II, were largely forgotten when post-conciliar Catholicism turned its' back upon the previous five centuries of the Church's life. Thankfully, a new generation is reclaiming the contributions of these centuries. As Blanchard brilliantly shows, much hinges, then and now, upon distinguishing rationalistic enlightenment from enlightened gospel-grounded reform." -- Matthew Levering, James N. and Marry D. Perry Jr. Chair of Theology, Mundelein Seminary

"The history of episcopalism is not quite past, as the failure of episcopal leadership in dealing with the Catholic abuse crisis cannot be separated from a certain episcopalism of Vatican II - episcopalism in the sense of an emphasis on the rights of bishops in order to limit the power of the papacy. The Catholic abuse crisis casts a new light on the history of two and half centuries of Catholic ecclesiology: and for this, Shaun Blanchard's book is an essential contribution." -- Massimo Faggioli, Professor of Historial Theology, Villanova University