After a period of disruption people often talk about “getting back to normal”. Generally this means that people are hoping to get back to how things were before the disruptive event happened. But the reality is that the events that happen to us not only interrupt the flow of life - they change it. Often something new emerges that moves us beyond where we used to be. It is not possible or even desirable to go back to exactly the way things were. If the change is of sufficient scale or importance it may trigger a significant rethinking of priorities and perhaps a general re-orientation of life. 
St Peter and Paul’s church, Lower Hutt, New Zealand.
I am reminded here of Jesus’ parables about not putting an old patch on a new garment or new wine in old wineskins. These are images that speak to the experience that people had when they met Jesus. Many of these people were doing fine and had a clear orientation and sense of direction in life. Then an encounter with Jesus disorients them. Their usual way of operating is disrupted by the fact that he operates out of a different set of assumptions about life. His pattern of relating to God and neighbour challenges what is normal for them. They are left with a choice – go back to how life was before they met him or undergo a reorientation based on the principles and values of the reign of God as revealed by and in Jesus.
For some Vatican II represented this kind of re orientation in the life of the church. After a long period in what was essential a defensive position in relation to the modern world the Council called for an engagement with it. Underpinning this shift was an acknowledgement of the missionary vocation of the church. It does not exist for its own sake but to serve the mission of God. As the Father sent Jesus so Jesus sends the church into the world to proclaim the gospel for all to hear. Vatican II was noted for not using the language of condemnation that was a feature of previous councils. The kind of language it uses is much more positive. It adopted a stance of solidarity with the whole human family, a stance that finds particular expression in the opening lines of the document on the Church in the Modern World" “The joy and the hope, the grief and anguish of the people of our time, especially of those who are poor or afflicted in any way, are the joy and hope, the grief and anguish of the followers of Christ as well”. Many other dimensions of the reorientation that the council instituted are directly related to this fundamental shift in perspective. It included a changed response to the great religious traditions of the world and internally found expression in the use of the vernacular in the liturgy.
I get the impression these days that there are some who see Vatican II as the disruption and they are longing to get back to how things used to be before it happened.
All this is in my mind as the people of St Peter and Paul’s parish are preparing to move back into their church on the last weekend of July. Will it be a case of “back to normal” or will the experiences they have had during the disruption be the start of something new for the community.
The good news from the Hutt Valley in New Zealand is that a number of churches that were closed, due to earthquake risk, are now able to reopen. Upper Hutt has already done so and Lower Hutt started using St Peter and Paul’s church on the last weekend in July.
The preliminary assessment of these churches, which lead to the decision to close them, was based on a visual inspection, structural documentation and latest standards for structural performance in an earthquake. Since then a more detailed assessment has been carried out that exposed and checked concrete columns, foundation beams and roof trusses and this work brought about the welcome shift in status. More work will be done to bring these churches to an even higher standard of safety. But for now it will be a great relief for the people to be back home again.
Fr Pat O'Shea lives at St Columbans Lower Hutt, New Zealand.
Read another Reflection
or
Read more articles from the current E-News