''Signs of the times'' is a phrase strongly associated with the
Catholic Church in the era of the
Second Vatican Council of the 1960s. It was taken to mean that the church should listen to, and learn from, the world around it. In other words, it should learn to read the 'signs of the times'. This phrase comes from , and was used by
Pope John XXIII atin: "signa temporum"when he convoked the council, in the statement ''Humanae Salutis'' (1961)
Humanae Salutis
/ref> and also in Pacem in Terris
''Pacem in terris'' () was a papal encyclical issued by Pope John XXIII on 11 April 1963 on the rights and obligations of individuals and of the state, as well as the proper relations between states. It emphasized human dignity and equality a ...
(1963). It came to signify a new understanding that the Church needed to attend more closely to the world if it was to remain faithful to its calling, and marked a significant shift in theological method. The phrase "sign of the times" was used four times in the Vatican II documents:
* Unitatis redintegratio §4
* Dignitatis humanae §15
* Presbyterorum ordinis §9 (including invitation to cooperate with laity in recognizing the signs of the times)
* Gaudium et spes §4
The phrase has continued to be used in papal encyclicals and the Catechism of the Catholic Church
The ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' ( la, Catechismus Catholicae Ecclesiae; commonly called the ''Catechism'' or the ''CCC'') is a catechism promulgated for the Catholic Church by Pope John Paul II in 1992. It aims to summarize, in book for ...
since then.
See also
* Humanae vitae
References
Catholic terminology
Second Vatican Council
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