The Dynamics of Hierocracy

The neglected sociological significance of Vatican II is explored. The Council is seen as a typical instance of the process of continuity-in-change of the Roman Catholic religious system. The latent crisis threatening the pre-conciliar church precipitated the reemergence of prophetic activity within Roman Catholicism, which led to successful modification of power positions in the church and initiated deep ideological readjustments. This process of adaptation holds potential capability for new avenues of church influence and task performance. Modernization of the church appears to be a function of systemic interplay between membership pressure, forms of religious power and legitimate doctrinal reformulations

Adaptation (eye) · Holy See · Ideology · Modernization theory · Political science · Politics · Power (physics) · Sociology · Theology · American Constitutional Law and Politics · Catholicism and Religious Studies · Law · Neuroscience · Philosophy · Psychology · Religion and Society Interactions