A momemtous announcement was made on January 25, 1959, when Pope John XXIII declared his plans to convene the Church's twenty-first Ecumenical Council. This would ultimately be known as Vatican Council II. The Council would change the role of the lay apoostolate, as we had known it for several generations. After nearly four years of preparration, the Council was finally convened on October 11, 1962 and dilberations continued until December 8 of that year when the first session ended.

On September 29 of the following yeaar, it fell to Pope Paul VI, successor to Pope John XXIII who had died in the intervening period, to convene the second and future sessions of Vatican II and thus continue the work started by the beloved John XXIII, "il Papa de Populi", the Pope of the People. The fourth and final session began on September 14, 1965, during which the final text of the all-important Decree on the Apostolate of the Laity was promulgated.