Before Vatican II, ecclesiology often emphasized the societas perfecta model—a hierarchical, visible society with the pope at its apex. Lumen Gentium reorients this by beginning with the mystery of the Church (Chapter I), rooting it in Trinitarian and Christological foundations. The document’s title, drawn from Matthew 5:14, signals that the Church exists not for itself but as a sign and instrument of communion with God and unity among all people.
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Before Vatican II, ecclesiology often emphasized the societas perfecta model—a hierarchical, visible society with the pope at its apex. Lumen Gentium reorients this by beginning with the mystery of the Church (Chapter I), rooting it in Trinitarian and Christological foundations. The document’s title, drawn from Matthew 5:14, signals that the Church exists not for itself but as a sign and instrument of communion with God and unity among all people.