This Course falls into Two Parts:
Part I: Council Documents
There are 16 Documents which are categorized in three different parts:
i.
a). 4 Constitutions
b). 9 Degrees
c). 3 Declarations
The students will go through most of the major documents during the whole academic year and
these documents must be studied not only with regard to their wording but in the light of
their history and background so that their full intent may be realized.
ii. The sixteen documents will help the students to understand the Church and her role in the
modern world today. They constitute a call for action. At present, they are merely words on
printed page. These words must be given life and flesh and sinews by devoted action of all
the members of the Church – the pope, the bishops, the clergy, the religious and the laity
(including the seminarians).
Part II: Priestly Formation
(Optatam Totius/ Presbyterorum Ordinis/
Pastores Dabo Vobis)
This part of the course helps the students to be specifically aware of the type of priestly
formation required, according to the Vatican Council II Decree on the Training of Priests
(Optatam Totius), The Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests (Presbyterorum Ordinis) and
the Post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation (Pastores Dabo Vobis) covers the following topics:
the seminary as the heart of the diocese; priestly training according to the local
conditions; vision and mission of the local church; human, spiritual, intellectual, pastoral
formation; ministry of the word, ministry of worship and sanctification; ministry of
service.