Editing Catechism of the Catholic Church (section)

== Origins, development and publication ==
In 1985, Saint Pope John Paul II convened a special Synod of Bishops to assess the status of the implementation of "Vatican II," a "ecumenical council" that met from 1962 to 1965 in order to "update" Church practices in the growingly secular world of the mid-Twentieth Century.

The 1085 Synod recognized the need create a working compendium (collection) of Church doctrine, faith and morals, with the goal to create a manual for what here we will call "life in Christ" according to Catholic principles.

The brilliant Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, later Pope Benedict XVI chaired a small committee that guided the development and drafting of the Catechism.