After Vatican II, a number of official documents began to refer to pastoral councils.
From 1971 to 1973, less than a decade after Vatican II, the Vatican issued three documents pertaining to pastoral councils. The third of these documents, a “Circular Letter” to the bishops of the world, is the only Vatican document entirely devoted to pastoral councils.
- Sacerdotio ministeriali, The Ministerial Priesthood, 1971
- Ecclesiae imago, The Directory on Bishops, 1973
- Omnes Christifideles, Circular Letter on Pastoral Councils, 1973
