ABSTRACT
This chapter elaborates upon the philosophical roots of Basic Ecclesial Communities (BECs), beginning with the Second Vatican Council. Vatican II represents a push towards a Church that is much more concerned with secular matters, such as the social conditions of the faithful, and all humanity for that matter. The concept of Church set forth by Vatican II serves as foundation and inspiration for what many in the Philippine clergy hope to accomplish with BECs. Following this, the chapter introduces the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines (PCPII), in many ways the Philippine echo of Vatican II. The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines convened the Council in 1991, and the collected works of the Conference reiterate clerical reflection upon, critique of, and call for action to change, poverty and oppression. The remainder of the chapter grounds the BEC movement within critical development studies, with an historical overview of the shifting concept of development over the last 200 years and culminating with postdevelopment, which is the conceptual framework of the study.
