Article updated: 10/11/2012 10:31 AM

Pope marks 50th anniversary of Vatican II

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Bishops attend a mass celebrated by Pope Bemedict XVI marking the 50th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council, in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Thursday, Oct. 11, 2012. Benedict, after celebrating mass, will greet churchmen, including a dozen original Vatican II participants, re-enacting the great procession into St. Peter's that launched the council in 1962.

Associated Press

A nun wears a hat made with newspaper pages as she waits for Pope Benedict XVI to celebrate a mass marking the 50th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council, in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican.

Associated Press

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Pope Benedict XVI arrives to celebrate a mass marking the 50th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council, in St. Peter's square at the Vatican, Thursday, Oct. 11, 2012.

Associated Press

Pope Benedict XVI is silhouetted as he arrives to celebrate a mass marking the 50th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council, in St. Peter's square at the Vatican, Thursday, Oct. 11, 2012.

Associated Press

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Pope Benedict XVI on Thursday marked the 50th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council — the church meetings he attended as a young priest that brought the Catholic Church into the modern world but whose true meaning is still hotly debated.