Catholic Council Called 'Depressing'

The mood of the Ecumenical Council Vatican II was "generally depressing," despite optimistic reports by the American press, a Protestant observer to the Council reported last night. The Council's second session ended Wednesday.

Heiko A. Oberman, associate professor of Church History, said that the Council had failed to promote wider Christian unity as had been expected.

Oberman, who was in Rome for the first five weeks of the Council, spoke at the Catholie Student Center. He is a member of the Reform Church of Holland.

Image of non-Catholic

Another obstacle to unity was that "the Council accepted the static image of the non-Catholic Christian as simply an individual, not recognising his group tradition of piety, faith, and confession," he said.

He also noted that there was "less willingness to listen to more critical tones" of the non-Catholic observers than at the Council's first session.

Despite these disappointments. Oberman said that the litur a reforms adopted by the Council were encouraging, and will prove very important." He noted that they brought the Catho. He tradition closer to the Protestant. One of the major changes has been the introduction of vernacular language into parts of the mass.

Press reports, he said, gave a general impression of an optimistic Council and portrayed the American bishops as playing a role far greater than the one they actually did play in the proceedings.

Newspaper reports of the Council have declared that changes in the Mass, sacraments, and ecclesiastical calendar will make the church "more comprehensible to all men."