Vatican II and ecuminicalism

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Montie_Claunch

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I was wondering what the Vatican II said about Ecuminicalism and our relationship with Non-Catholic? I have heard contrary things about what the Vatican II teaches. I have heard that it teaches that Protestantism (and to a lesser dagree non-Christian religions) and that before the Vatican II was an all Non-Catholics are going to hell and you are not to talk to them. This leads me rather confused and (Not knowing what Vatican II document to look to or where to find it) rather high and dry. Could someone please tell me what the Vatican II and the Catholic Church teaches about ecuminicalism and our relationship with our seperated brothers and non-Christian neighbors? Thanks and God bless.
 
Contrary to the popular opinion of liberals and angry “trads” alike, there was nothing new in Vatican II:

From the Catechism of Pius X (1910):

29 Q. But if a man through no fault of his own is outside the Church, can he be saved?

A. If he is outside the Church through no fault of his, that is, if he is in good faith, and if he has received Baptism, or at least has the implicit desire of Baptism; and if, moreover, he sincerely seeks the truth and does God’s will as best he can such a man is indeed separated from the body of the Church, but is united to the soul of the Church and consequently is on the way of salvation

From an 1846 Catechism:

Q. *Do Catholics charge all that are apparently out of their communion with the crimes of heresy and schism, and consequently exclude them from salvation *

A. No; all baptized children who die before they sin mortally, and before they embrace and believe error, are members of the true Church. Again, all those sincere people belong to the soul of the Church, who, being baptized, and believing the great fundamental truths of Christianity, and who are prevented from believing it in all its details, not by carelessness, nor temporal interest, nor human respect, nor the spirit of obstinacy, nor by malice, but simply because they never doubted, and never had sufficient means of knowing the truth, which they would embrace at once, and with gladness, could they only discover it,*—*all these, we say, belong to the soul of the Church, and will be saved, if they lead good lives and do not violate God’s law.

Q. *What do you mean by the soul of the Church? *

A. All those belong to the body of the Church who are openly professing Catholics; to the soul of the Church belong all such as I have above described, who, being baptized, and believing the fundamental truths of religion, are living separate from the body of the Church, not by any fault of their own, but purely by not having sufficient means to lead them into a knowledge of the whole truth.

Check out these two articles from the Catholic Encyclopedia:

Ecumenism

treatment of non-Catholics (infidels, heretics, and schismatics)
 
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