From Vatican II to Amoris Laetitia: The Catholic Social and Sexual Ethics Division and A Way of Ecclesial Interconnection

This paper navigates the development of ethical issues during Vatican II and the impulse to develop a new moral theology just after the Council. This paper argues, on one hand, that Gaudium et Spes develops a new moral theology based on the imperative of conscience mediated by faith in issues of social ethics. On the other hand, the old moral orientation was preserved on sexual ethics. After the council, these two moral faces have led magisterial teaching to two different paths that can be seen chronologically in approaches used for issues of social and sexual ethics. Vatican II encouraged a new moral theology, visible in social ethics in the years immediately following the Council. But the same spirit was not embraced by the Magisterium on issues of sexuality until the publication of Amoris Laetitia with its ecclesiology of pastoral discernment.


Introduction
In Vatican II's documents, moral issues are basically presented in Gaudium et Spes: The Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World (VATICAN II, 1965). This document discusses ethical issues in two directions: one is about the Church and her relationship with secular modern society and another is about internal questions in the Church that have been challenged by this society. In a narrow perspective for focusing our debate, we can generally characterize these two directions, framing moral theology as a discipline: social ethics and sexual ethics. Therefore, I will briefly examine the development of ethical issues during Vatican II, specifically difficulties inherent in debating some of the moral issues in this assembly, and the impulse to develop a new moral theology just after the Council, which was grounded on the imperative of conscience mediated by faith. I will present the Council Fathers' treatment of moral themes amid tensions and controversial issues. Their discussions led to different emphases on issues in which the old moral theology was kept on topics such as sexuality, family, and procreation; and a new moral theology that began to be developed before Vatican II gained prominence in debates connected to social issues in the modern world.
I suggest that, on the one hand, Gaudium et Spes develops a new moral theology based on the imperative of conscience mediated by faith in issues of social justice and the Church's relation with the modern world. On the other hand, heads of the Church retained the old moral orientation on issues of sexuality with a clear option allowing for papal judgment regarding a new orientation on procreation in the future. After the Council, these two moral faces have led theologians to two different avenues of reflection that can be seen chronologically in the way that themes of social justice and sexuality have been treated. The first is the development of a moral theology grounded on human conscience, mediated by faith, which is attentive to challenges of the signs of the times. The second is the return of the natural law as a foundation of moral teaching, especially regarding issues of sexuality. This paper argues that the Spirit of Vatican II encouraged a new moral theology that had been 71 | From Vatican II to Amoris Laetitia Fronteiras, Recife, v. 2, n. 2, p. 69-89, jul./dez., 2019 visible in issues of social justice in the years immediately following the Council, but the same spirit was not embraced by the Magisterium on issues of sexuality until the publication of Amoris Laetitia (AL) in 2016. Stressing the necessity of pastoral discernment and the role of conscience for moral decision in complex situations (AL 37), Pope Francis' Apostolic Exhortation returns to the spirit and teaching of Gaudium et Spes in which the role of conscience and an anthropology that considers the dynamism of reality were central to approach moral issues. 1 The Vatican II perspective on moral conscience as an imperative mediated by faith and the signs of the times is still the spirit to examine moral challenges in our current times irrespective of whether they concern social ethics or sexual ethics. 2 To show the different approaches used by Church's documents to address issues of social ethics and sexual ethics from Vatican II until Amoris Laetitia, I divided this essay into three parts. First, I will present some aspects and controversies during the council, especially around the preparations for the GS and on the topic of procreation. Second, I will present the development of social ethics comparing Catholic social teaching and liberation theology, examining their tensions, differences, and complementarity that contribute to the development of Catholic social ethics following the doors opened by Gaudium et Spes. This will permit us to see the different road that Catholic sexual ethics took after Vatican II that now Amoris Laetitia suggests a return. Therefore, in the third part, I will examine the issues around procreation, family and its challenges, considering the pastoral approach suggested by 1 In a recent article, Todd A. Salzman and Michael G. Lawler suggest that Amoris Laetitia relates questions of social justice and sexual ethics. This creates an anthropological and methodological integration of Catholic social and sexual teachings. According to them, the methodological division between social ethics and sexual ethics -that were visible, for example, in the distinct methodologies used in Populorum Progressio and Humanae Vitae -"is bridged in Pope Francis' apostolic exhortation, Amoris Laetitia" (SALZMAN and M. G. LAWLER, 2018, p.635-636). 2 This distinction between social ethics and sexual ethics (also known as sexual morality) is not absolute. It properly works in didactic terms, but not so when one addresses some specific issues, such as those in which a challenge in terms of sexuality is also a social problem. For example, when the debate regards pre-marital sex is connected to teenage-pregnancy, high vulnerability to STD infections, and lack of education because of poverty and social marginalization. In this paper, I examine these two Catholic moral areas in order to see the different approaches used by the Magisterium in addressing these areas since Vatican II, and also the difficulty to make connections between both areas of morality. Amoris Laetitia, which aims "to promote a genuine culture of discernment in the church" (KELLY, 2016, p.923). 3

Moral Issues and Vatican II
Many achievements of Vatican II were possible because of theological and pastoral efforts for renovation before the Council. Such efforts found support and voices during the Council visible in the three main axes chosen by the Council Fathers: liturgy (Sacrosanctum Concilium), biblical studies (Dei Verbum), and ecclesiology (Lumen Gentium). The same thing did not happen in moral theology, so Vatican II did not present an exclusive document on morality, but rather joined moral issues in Gaudium et Spes, which many consider to be a moral theological text. In this text, the Catholic Church presents a new posture of dialogue with the modern world, including its transformations and challenges. However, unlike other areas, movements for renovation in moral teaching did not find great support in the Council.
Immediately after Vatican II, Phillippe Delhye, who participated in the preparation of moral topics for the Council, affirmed the scarcity of moralists in favor of new tendencies and the expert bishops there had taught exegesis and dogma (DELHAYE, 1972, p.60).
During the council preparations, a commission had been created to elaborate a framework of moral topics to be debated at Vatican II. Many In the depths of his conscience, man detects a law which he does not impose upon himself, but which holds him to obedience. Always summoning him to love good and avoid evil, the voice of conscience when necessary speaks to his heart: do this, shun that. For man has in his heart a law written by God; to obey it is the very dignity of man; according to it he will be judged. Conscience is the most secret core and sanctuary of a man. There he is alone with God, Whose voice echoes in his depths (GS 17).
It is a holistic vision of the human being, that is, an anthropology of the totality of the person that goes beyond a law and the knowledge of moral duties. While belonging to a personal being, the conscience is understood as an expression of human dignity and being faithful to it, unites all people, Christians and non-Christians.
Fourth, by omitting natural law from the final text, Gaudium et Spes abandons this category. It is not an abandonment in the sense that natural law is not important, but in the sense that it needs to be properly situated in history. Fifth, it is the dialogue with human knowledge, especially the sciences, in order to offer new languages for a cooperative way. Finally, it is humanization as a Christian moral criterion. In other words, Christian morality must lead the human being to act for what makes him more human, according to his own dignity. So Christian morality has the mission to present a proposal that can illuminate and guide human activity in the world toward full human realization (GS 35 and 40).
This anthropological and personalist perspective, marked by a deep historical sense, is present in all Vatican II's documents and has influenced moral theological reflection and magisterial documents since then. 5 However, this influence has taken different directions, especially when we look at social ethics and sexual ethics. Now let us see the different roads taken by these areas of Catholic ethics. 5 See James Keenan's article on "Vatican II and Theological Ethics" in which he shows the development of theological ethics promoted by theologians from different parts of the world continuing the legacy of Gaudium at Spes in its anthropological perspective centered in the essential role of conscience for theological ethics and moral choices and decisions. This development was attentive to the different realities and their challenges. Theologians engaged in searching for ways to address the new challenges using GS as source and inspiration. This allows the growth of theological ethics that received new contributions from different parts of the world, such as the Latin American contribution that brought the option for the poor to the ethical discussion (KEENAN, 2013, p.162-190). The dynamism of Catholic theological ethics among theologians presented by Keenan was not followed by magisterial teaching in the same way regarding issues of sexuality and family, with a dismissal of the role of conscience presented by Gaudium et Spes and the return to natural law in the ecclesial documents until Amoris Laetitia.

Catholic Social Ethics and Liberation Theology After Vatican II
Catholic social ethics is best represented by Catholic social teaching  (1971) andEvangelii Nuntianti (1975), provided magisterial support to the Latin American Church's social engagement for justice. Liberation theology was systematized by theological productions from many theologians, such as Gustavo Gutiérrez, who wrote A Theology of Liberation (GUTIERREZ, 1971), and Leonardo Boff, who published Jesus Christ Liberator (BOFF, 1972).
Furthermore, the preferential option for the poor became the heart of this historical praxis of basic ecclesial communities (BOFF, 1977) in Latin America and liberation theology as well. 7 This option was assumed by the Magisterium, first by John Paul II (Sollicitudo Rei Socialis, 1987, 39) and recently by Francis (Evangelii Gaudium, 2013, 198).
CST's and liberation theology's theological and social perspectives are grounded on Christian foundations, assuming Vatican II's perspectives and spirit by embodying its anthropology and historical approach to read reality. Both address issues of social justice, are concerned about the poor, and are inspired in the prophetic ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. Both CST and liberation theology are experienced within the same broad Catholic Church and want to spread the Good-News of the kingdom of God in the world. However, they have different perspectives about main concepts, and they approach social, moral, and ecclesial issues with different methodologies. I argue that the origin of differences between CST and liberation theology is a foundational element of methodological and practical characteristics. In other words, CST approaches social and ecclesial reality from above and liberation theology from below.
These two approaches are not contradictory. Rather, they complement each other in many aspects (e.g., CST provides magisterial and theological foundations for liberation theology, and this new way of doing theology challenges CST to assume new perspectives and reflections). Justice and peace in a world of solidarity is their common goal. However, the way they approach reality and faith leads to different theological reflections and social and ecclesial practices. I will briefly present these different approaches.
Fronteiras, Recife, v. 2, n. 2, p. 69-89, jul./dez., 2019 Catholic social teaching is a teaching from above. (Here I want to be clear; I am not using from above in a pejorative way.) That is, it is a teaching that comes from the official voice of the magisterium, particularly from the pen of the successor of Peter. CST assumes a methodology that begins from a Besides the option for the poor, he emphasizes the crucial importance to be with the poor and to learn from them (EG 198 and 199;LS 149 and 179). It is a dialogical perspective that matches Francis' proposal of a poor Church and a Church of the poor that collaborates with the world to empower the poor, to protect the vulnerable, to care for nature, and to promote justice and peace. 10 Liberation theology is from below because it is among the poor. It is poor gathered in basic ecclesial communities (BOFF, 1988). Therefore, liberation theology, even being from below, is a dialogue with the Christian theological tradition.
Catholic social teaching and liberation theology have different approaches to address social issues from a Christian perspective. As I said before, they are not contradictory, but they complement each other. One has a universalist aspect and another is more contextual. One presents the voice of the ecclesial authority and another reflects the voice of the poor. CST is the fruit of Catholic Church tradition as a magisterial concern about social injustice.

Procreation, Family, and Its Challenges
On the one hand, there is this rich debate, sometimes tense, in social ethics in which the Magisterium and contextual theologies and theologians have engaged in a deep dialogue and in social activism in the Spirit of Vatican II. On the other hand, in the area of sexuality and family, we have not seen the same development between the Council and pre-Amoris Laetitia, which does not change any doctrine, but promotes its development (KEENAN, 2017, p.199).
Dividing the time after Vatican II into two moments, between (1)  Therefore, the conjugal life and its proper acts are considered from a reductive conjugal love. This leads to the conclusion: "Sons of the Church may not undertake methods of birth control which are found blameworthy by the teaching authority of the Church in its unfolding of the divine law" (GS 51). 13 Fifty years after the publication of Humanae Vitae, much controversy has been part of the Catholic theological ethics debate around issues of procreation. For a recent publication on this debate, see: CURRAN, 2018, p.520-542. perspective of biological and juridical aspects. The licit and illicit become more important.
Procreation and other sexual issues are not matters isolated from the social concerns that impact individuals' and families' lives. When sexuality is considered, social issues should be raised in the same way they have been made in social ethics, such as poverty, lack of education, sexism, sexual abuses, sexually transmittable diseases, and specific social and cultural contexts. Moral teaching on sexuality, family, and procreation cannot be seen as unattached from social realities in which these human experiences are embodied. 14 Thus, theological reflections and moral orientations must be considered along-side social and historical realities, according to the Vatican II spirit of reading the signs of the times and interpreting them in light of the Gospel.
Two movements must be considered to address procreation and sexuality theologically. First, it is a movement of knowing the social and personal reality of people and couples inside their historical context and with their dramas, especially in those realities marked by poverty and exploitation.
Second, it is the theological distinction between mutable and immutable. These two movements permit discernment about procreation that goes beyond immediate, biological aspects of proper acts of spouses and provides a space for discernment in a consciousness confronted by the immutable elements of Christian revelation and mutable historical contingencies. This is crucial for meaningful and creative ways to live Christian faith and to respond to the challenges of historical reality. grounded on an anthropology that is not created as a collection of definitions, rather it is grounded on a strong idea of human beings, to whom he constantly refers, who must be affirmed in their daily life: with all problems that this application can have" (FABRIS, 2017, p.182). This human being needs to be cared for with the virtue of tenderness (AL 28) that meets the need of the accompaniment with "mercy and patience the eventual stages of personal growth" (AL 308). In Francis' perspective, a fragile person who has failed does not need to suffer even more with marginalization or excommunication, but rather needs a "respectful accompaniment" that encourages "to participate in the life of the community" (AL 243).

Amoris
Second, it is clear in the Exhortation that history is dynamic and marked by complex realities. According to Fabris, this permits Pope Francis to have a "healthy and patient realism" (FABRIS, 2017, p.184) in which our feet are kept "firmly grounded in reality" (AL 06). The historical consciousness of Francis causes him to recognize the differences among countries, cultures, and contexts. Then he humbly affirms that he cannot provide final answers for any context. Rather, he encourages that a pastoral discernment takes place considering the local challenges. This does not diminish the Church's teaching, but it opens the creativity of the Spirit and the sensitivity of pastors in applying this teaching. "Each country or region, moreover, can seek solutions better suited to its culture and sensitive to its traditions and local needs. For cultures are in fact quite diverse and every general principle… needs to be inculturated, if it is to be respected and applied" (AL 03). It is in a historical reality that Exhortation. It seems that he suggests a theology of grace as the framework for Church pastoral care and the embodiment of the Gospel in history. Look at the text: "God's indulgent love always accompanies our human journey; through grace, it heals and transforms hardened hearts, leading them back to the beginning through the way of the cross" (AL 62). Then, "In considering a pastoral approach towards people who have contracted a civil marriage, who are divorced and remained, or simply living together, the Church has the responsibility of helping them understand the divine pedagogy of grace in their lives and offering them assistance so they can reach the fullness of God's plan 16 The theme of grace is a classical topic in Catholic theology. It has been discussed throughout the history of Christian theology, having its higher moment during the Scholastic period, when the theology of grace acquired the status of a theological discipline as Doctrine of Grace. In his study about grace in the Catholic tradition, Leonardo Boff suggests that there two ways of studying grace: the first focuses on the different approaches and perspectives that the theme of grace was examined by theologians. This is the study of the history of the theology of grace throughout the history of Christian experience. The second is the understanding of grace in its presence in our current history. Considering the second way, Boff presents grace as an encounter between God, in his mercy and generosity, and the human being, in his openness for God. This encounter creates dynamism that lifts the fallen, revives the dead, and liberates the oppressed. This encounter begins with God's mercy and initiative to visit the human being in history. In Boff's words: "Grace is relationship, is Exodus, is communion, is encounter, is dialogue, is openness, is going out, is history of two freedoms and the crossroad of two loves." Leonardo BOFF, 1976, p.15). Pope Francis's theology of grace fits in the second way suggested by Boff. Also based on a perspective of grace as an encounter, Francis develops his theology as an attempt to show and understand the presence of God's grace in our history. for them, something which is always possible by the power of the Holy Spirit" (AL 297).
Amoris Laetita offers a different approach to issues of sexual ethics by going back to Gaudium at Spes' legacy of moral conscience, anthropology, and the reading of history. 17 Hence, it places this area of Catholic ethics close to the way Catholic social ethics has been developed since the Council. Hopefully, this development of approaching issues of sexual ethics will allow the Magisterium to make more connections to social issues and their impact on issues regarding sexuality, family, and procreation.

Conclusion
Vatican II, especially Gaudium et Spes, opened windows to let a new fresh air into the Catholic Church, changing/informing her way of addressing historical challenges. This air has provided a new impulse for moral theology and its renovation in order to reflect and to orient Christian life to be faithful to the Gospel and to respond to the challenges of human reality. Social ethics and sexual ethics have followed different ways since the Council, especially in terms of magisterial teaching. Even among a tense debate, the former has been open to be challenged by historical reality in discerning the signs of the times in light of the Gospel. The latter has repeated what traditionally has been said without properly considering the signs of the times and the new reflections from different theological perspectives. This closeness has led magisterial teaching on sexuality to be far removed from the Spirit of Vatican II. In many aspects, this distance was overcome with the bridge built by Pope Francis' teaching. Now the challenge is to strengthen the return to this spirit towards a courageous dialogue with history, theologians, secular society, sciences, and the faithful, especially those who are excluded from this debate. Seeing things from below, beginning from the lives of the least in our societies and churches can be the way to realize this dialogue and to develop Vatican II's spirit of renovation in social and sexual ethics. This will show that the Church has only one face: the loving and merciful face of Christ incarnated in history.