Pope Francis marked the 60th anniversary of Vatican II Tuesday, reminding Catholics of the impact it has had throughout the Church.

"#Pope Francis: Vatican II taught the church to look around, 'being in the world without feeling superior to others, being servants of that higher realm, the Kingdom of God, bringing the good news of the Gospel into people's lives & languages; sharing their joys and hopes,'" Catholic News Service tweeted, quoting Pope Francis.

Pope St. John XXIII called for the Second Vatican Council, or Vatican II, in early 1959, Britannica said. The ecumenical council was designed to serve as a chance for spiritual renewal and for Catholics from around the world to unite in Rome. The pastoral needs of the council were several, but the most important was the “Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy,” which brought the laity more into the liturgy and introduced the “novus ordo,” or new order, that most Catholics are familiar with today. During its tenure, Vatican II produced 16 documents. It came to an end in 1965 under Pope Paul VI.

“Beloved Pope St. John XXIII, founder of the Diocese of Allentown, intercede for all our pastoral works of evangelization,” Bishop Alfred Schlert, of the Diocese of Allentown, tweeted this week.

Pope St. John XXIII was born Angelo Roncalli, his Vatican biography said. He became pope in 1958, when he was 76 years old, and served until his death in 1963.

Originally, the electors thought he would be a transitional pope, with few thinking “the pontificate of this man of 76 years would mark a turning point in history and initiate a new age for the Church,” the biography said. The Vatican II is said to be his greatest accomplishment.

“Since his death on June 3, 1963, much has been written and spoken about the warmth and holiness of the beloved Pope John,” the biography added. “Perhaps the testimony of the world was best expressed by a newspaper drawing of the earth shrouded in mourning with the simple caption, ‘A Death in the Family.’"

Pope Francis canonized him in 2014.

The Catholic News Agency published an article by A.C. Wimmer about Vatican II. He said the council addressed many topics but the common theme was to usher the Church into the modern world. Four sessions in St. Peter’s Basilica resulted in “four constitutions” that altered the course of the Catholic Church.

Wimmer detailed the Vatican II timeline: Pope St. John Paul XXIII, also known as the “Good Pope,” laid out plans for the council in 1959 and established 11 commissions in 1960, by HUMANAE SALUTIS. The council convened in Rome in 1961, bringing together approximately 2,500 bishops. Productive sessions began in 1962.

The first session addressed “the collegiality of bishops, the relationship with other religions and religious freedom,” and some other minor topics, Wimmer said.

In 1963, Pope St. John XXIII died. Pope Paul VI was elected to succeed him three weeks later. On Dec. 4, 1963, the Church officially adopted the use of other languages besides Latin in the liturgy.

In 1964, Lumen Gentium, the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, was issued. Other famous documents include the Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation (Dei Verbum) and the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World (Gaudium et Spes).

The council ended in 1965, proclaiming a Jubilee Year to help the Church get used to the new changes. 

To learn more about Vatican II, check out “To Sanctify the World: the Vital Legacy of Vatican II,” the latest book by George Weigel, a Catholic author and the official biographer of Pope St. John Paul II. It can be purchased on Amazon.