The work presented here is variously known as The Catechism of the Council of Trent, the Roman Catechism, or the Catechism of Pius V.
This electronic version was produced using a scanner. It was spell-checked, but that’s all.
The first editions of the Catechism were printed without headings of any kind, and with hardly any break in the text beyond an occasional paragraph. This arrangement, however, appeared unsatisfactory to Pius V who therefore ordered that in subsequent editions the book should be divided into parts, chapters, and paragraphs. The divisions and headings in this text of the Catechism form no part of the original work and were supplied by the translators.
This translation used as its basis the Manutian text as reflected in the Maredsous edition of 1902, the fourth Roman edition of 1907 and the Turin edition of 1914. The purpose in the present version has been to reproduce the sense of the original as exactly as possible in clear, dignified, modern English.
The translation and preface (minus spell-check list) are by John A. McHugh, O.P. and Charles J. Callan, O.P. (circa 1923)
Please note that if this file does not end with the words END OF CATECHISM then you didn’t copy it all down.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Preface
LIST OF WORDS NOT PASSED BY SPELL-CHECK PROGRAM
ORIGIN OF THE ROMAN CATECHISM
AUTHORITY AND EXCELLENCE OF THE ROMAN CATECHISM
CATECHISM OF THE COUNCIL OF TRENT FOR PARISH PRIESTS
INTRODUCTORY
The Necessity Of Religious Instruction
Need of an Authoritative Catholic Catechism
The Nature of this Work
The Ends of Religious Instruction
Knowledge Of Christ
Observance Of The Commandments
Love Of God
The Means Required for Religious Instruction
Instruction Should Be Accommodated To The Capacity Of The Hearer
Zeal
Study Of The Word Of God
Division of this Catechism
How This Work Is To Be Used
PART I : THE CREED
Faith
Necessity Of Faith
Unity Of Faith
The Creed
Division Of The Creed
ARTICLE I : "I BELIEVE IN GOD, THE FATHER ALMIGHTY, CREATOR OF HEAVEN AND EARTH"
Meaning Of This Article
"I Believe"
Faith Excludes Doubt
Faith Excludes Curiosity
Faith Requires Open Profession
"In God"
Knowledge Of God More Easily Obtained Through Faith Than Through Reason
Knowledge Of God Obtained Through Faith Is Clearer
Knowledge Of God Obtained Through Faith Is More Certain
Knowledge Of God Obtained Through Faith Is More Ample And Exalted
The Unity Of Nature In God
The Trinity Of Persons In God
"The Father"
God Is Called Father Because He Is Creator And Ruler
God Is Called Father Because He Adopts Christians Through Grace
The Name Father Also Discloses The Plurality Of Persons In God
The Doctrine Of The Trinity
Practical Admonitions Concerning The Mystery Of The Trinity
"Almighty"
Meaning Of The Term Almighty"
Why Omnipotence Alone Is Mentioned In The: Creed
Advantages Of Faith In God’s Omnipotence
Not Three Almighties But One Almighty
"Creator"
"Of Heaven and Earth"
Creation Of The World Of Spirits
Formation Of The Universe
Production Of Man
"Of all Things Visible and Invisible"
God Preserves, Rules And Moves All Created Things
Creation Is The Work Of The Three Persons
ARTICLE II : "AND IN JESUS CHRIST, HIS ONLY SON, OUR LORD"
Advantages Of Faith In This Article
Necessity Of Faith In This Article
"Jesus"
"Christ"
"His Only Son"
"Our Lord"
Duties Owed To Christ Our Lord
ARTICLE III : "WHO WAS CONCEIVED BY THE HOLY GHOST, BORN OF THE VIRGIN MARY"
Importance Of This Article
First Part of this Article:
"Who was Conceived,'
"By the Holy Ghost"
In The Incarnation Some Things Were Natural, Others Supernatural
How To Profit By The Mystery Of The Incarnation
Second Part Of This Article: "Born Of The Virgin Mary"
The Nativity Of Christ Transcends The Order Of Nature
Christ Compared to Adam" Mary to Eve
Types and Prophecies of the Conception and Nativity
Lessons which this Article Teaches
Humility And Poverty Of Christ
Elevation And Dignity Of Man
Duty Of Spiritual Nativity
ARTICLE IV : "SUFFERED UNDER PONTIUS PILATE, WAS CRUCIFIED, DEAD, AND BURIED'"
Importance Of This Article
First Part of this Article: '"Suffered Under Pontius Pilate, was Crucified,,
"Suffered,"
"Under Pontius Pilate"
"Was Crucified"
Importance Of The History Of The Passion
Figures And Prophecies Of The Passion And Death Of The Saviour
Second Part Of This Article: "Dead, And Buried"
Christ Really Died
Christ Died Freely
The Thought Of Christ's Death Should Excite Our Love And Gratitude
Christ Was Really Buried
Circumstances Of Christ’s Burial
Useful Considerations on the Passion
The Dignity Of The Sufferer
Reasons Why Christ Suffered
Christ Was Delivered Over To Death By The Father And By Himself
The: Bitterness Of Christ's Passion
Fruits Of Christ's Passion
Christ’s Passion, -- A Satisfaction, A Sacrifice, A Redemption An Example
Admonition
ARTICLE V : "HE DESCENDED INTO HELL, THE THIRD DAY HE ROSE AGAIN FROM THE DEAD"
Importance Of This Article
First Part of this Article: "He Descended into Hell"
"Hell"
Different Abodes Called Hell"
"He Descended"
Why He Descended into Hell
To Liberate The Just
To Proclaim His Power
Second Part of this Article: "The Third Day He arose again from the Dead"
"He arose Again"
"From the Dead"
"The Third Day"
"According to the Scriptures"
Three Useful Considerations on this Article
Necessity Of The Resurrection
Ends Of The Resurrection
Advantages Of The: Resurrection
Signs Of Spiritual Resurrection
ARTICLE VI : "HE ASCENDED INTO HEAVEN, SITTETH AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD THE FATHER ALMIGHTY"
Importance Of This Article
First Part of this Article: "He Ascended into Heaven"
"Into Heaven"
"He Ascended"
Second Part of this Article: "Sitteth at the Right Hand of God the Father Almighty"
"At the Right Hand"
"Sitteth"
Reflections on the Ascension:
Its History
Greatness Of This Mystery
Reasons Of The Ascension
Results Of The Ascension
Virtues Promoted By The Ascension.
The Ascension Benefits The Church And The Individual
ARTICLE VII : "FROM THENCE HE SHALL COME TO JUDGE THE LIVING AND THE DEAD"
Meaning Of This Article
"From Thence He Shall Come"
"To Judge the Living and the Dead"
Two Judgments
Reasons For General Judgment
This Truth has Rightly been made an Article of the Creed
Circumstances of the Judgment:
The Judge
Signs Of The General Judgment
The Sentence Of The Just
The Sentence Of The Wicked
Importance of Instruction on this Article
ARTICLE VIII : "I BELIEVE IN THE HOLY GHOST"
Importance Of This Article
"Holy Ghost"
"I Believe in the Holy Ghost"
The Holy Ghost Is Equal To The Father And The Son
The Holy Ghost Is Distinct From The Father And The Son
"The Lord"
"Life-Giver"
"Who Proceedeth from the Father and the Son"
Certain Divine Works are Appropriated to the Holy Ghost
Creation, Government, Life
The Seven Gifts
Justifying Grace
ARTICLE IX : "I BELIEVE IN THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH; THE COMMUNION OF SAINTS"
The Importance Of This Article
First Part Of This Article : "I Believe In The Holy Catholic Church
"Church"
Mysteries Which The Word Church Comprises
Other Names Given The Church In Scripture
The Parts of the Church
The Members Of The Church Militant
Those Who Are Not Members Of The Church
Other Uses of the Word "Church"
The Marks Of The Church
"One'
Unity In Government
Unity In Spirit, Hope And Faith
"Holy"
"Catholic"
Apostolic
Figures of the Church
"I Believe the Holy Catholic Church"
Second Part of this Article: "The Communion of Saints"
Importance Of This Truth
Meaning of "The Communion of Saints"
Communion Of Sacraments
Communion Of Good Works
Those Who Share In This Communion
Communion In Other Blessings
ARTICLE X : "THE FORGIVENESS OF SINS"
Importance Of This Article
The Church Has the Power of Forgiving Sins
Extent of this Power:
All Sins That Precede Baptism
All Sins Committed After Baptism
Limitation of this Power:
It Is Not Limited As To Sins, Persons, Or Time
It Is Limited As To Its Ministers And Exercise
Greatness of this Power
Sin Can Be Forgiven Only By The Power Of God
This Power Communicated To None Before Christ
Sin Remitted Through The Blood Of Christ
The Great Evil From Which Forgiveness Delivers Man
Exhortation:
This Remedy To Be Used
Abuse To Be Guarded Against
ARTICLE XI : "THE RESURRECTION OF THE BODY"
Importance Of This Article
"The Resurrection of the Body"
The Fact of the Resurrection:
Examples And Proofs Derived From Scripture
Analogies From Nature
Arguments Drawn From Reason
All Shall Rise
The Body Shall Rise Substantially the Same
Restoration Of All That Pertains To The Nature And Adornment Of The Body
Restoration Of All That Pertains To The Integrity Of The Body
The Condition of the Risen Body Shall be Different
Immortality
The Qualities Of A Glorified Body
Impassibility
Brightness
Agility
Subtility
Advantages of Deep Meditation on this Article
ARTICLE XII : "LIFE EVERLASTING"
Importance Of This Article
"Life Everlasting"
"Everlasting"
Life
Negative and Positive Elements of Eternal Life
The Negative
The Positive
Essential Happiness
The Light Of Glory
The Beatific Vision
An Illustration Of This Truth
Accessory Happiness
Glory
Honour
Peace
How to Arrive at the Enjoyment of this Happiness
PART II : THE SACRAMENTS
Importance Of Instruction On The Sacraments
The Word "Sacrament"
Definition of a Sacrament
"A Sacrament is a Sign"
Proof From Reason
Proof From Scripture
"Sign of a Sacred Thing" : Kind of Sign Meant Here
Natural Signs
Signs Invented By Man,
Signs Instituted By God
Kind of Sacred Thing Meant Here
Other Sacred Things Signified By The Sacraments
All The Sacraments Signify Something Present, Something Past, Something Future:
A Sacrament Sometimes Signifies The Presence Of More Than One Thing
Why the Sacraments were Instituted
Constituent Parts of the Sacraments
Ceremonies Used in the Administration of the Sacraments
The Number Of The Sacraments
Comparisons among the Sacraments
The Author of the Sacraments
The Ministers of the Sacraments
Unworthiness Of The Minister And Validity
Lawfulness Of Administration
Effects of the Sacraments
First Effect: Justifying Grace
Second Effect: Sacramental Character
How to Make Instruction on the Sacraments Profitable
THE SACRAMENT OF BAPTISM
Importance Of Instruction On Baptism
Names of this Sacrament
Definition Of Baptism
Constituent Elements Of Baptism
Matter of Baptism
Testimony Of Scripture Concerning The Matter Of Baptism
Figures
Prophecies
Fitness
Chrism Added To Water For Solemn Baptism
Form of Baptism
Words Of The Form
Essential And Non-Essential Words Of The Form
Baptism In The Name Of Christ
Administration of Baptism
Institution Of Baptism
Baptism Instituted At Christ's Baptism
Baptism Made Obligatory After Christ's Resurrection
Reflection
The Ministers of Baptism
Bishops And Priests The Ordinary Ministers
Deacons Extraordinary Ministers Of Baptism
Ministers In Case Of Necessity
The Sponsors at Baptism
Why Sponsors Are Required At Baptism
Antiquity Of This Law
Affinity Contracted By Sponsors
Duties Of Sponsors
Who May Not Be Sponsors
Number Of Sponsors
Necessity of Baptism
Infant Baptism: It's Necessity
Infants Receive The Graces Of Baptism
Baptism Of Infants Should Not Be Delayed
Baptism Of Adults
They Should Not Delay Their Baptism Unduly
Ordinarily They Are Not Baptised At Once
In Case Of Necessity Adults May Be: Baptised At Once
Dispositions for Baptism
Intention
Faith
Repentance
Advantages To Be Derived From These Reflections
Effects of Baptism
First Effect Of Baptism: Remission Of Sin
Concupiscence Which Remains After Baptism Is No Sin
Further Proof Of The First Effect Of Baptism
The Second Effect Of Baptism: Remission Of All Punishment Due To Sin
Baptism Does Not Exempt From Penalties Of The Civil Law
Baptism Remits The Punishment Due To Original Sin After Death
Baptism Does Not Free Us From The Miseries Of Life
Baptism A Source Of Happiness To The Christian Even In This Life
Third Effect Of Baptism: Grace Of Regeneration
Fourth Effect Of Baptism: Infused Virtues And Incorporation With Christ
Why The Practice Of Virtue Is Difficult Even After Baptism
Fifth Effect Of Baptism: Character Of Christian
Baptism Not To Be Repeated
In Conditional Baptism The Sacrament Is Not Repeated
Sixth Effect Of Baptism: Opening The Gates Of Heaven
Effects Of Baptism Foreshadowed In The Baptism Of Christ
Measure In Which Those Effects Are Obtained
Ceremonies of Baptism
Their Importance
Three Classes Of Ceremonies In Baptism
Ceremonies That Are Observed Before Coming To The Font: Consecration Of Baptismal Water
The Person To Be Baptised Stands At The Church Door
Catechetical Instruction
The Exorcism
The Salt
The Sign Of The Cross
The Saliva
The Ceremonies Observed After Coming To The Font
The Renunciation Of Satan
The Profession Of Faith
The Wish To Be Baptised
The Ceremonies That Follow Baptism: Chrism
The White Garment
The Lighted Candle
The Name Given In Baptism
Recapitulation
THE SACRAMENT OF CONFIRMATION
Importance Of Instruction On Confirmation
Name of this Sacrament
Confirmation is a Sacrament
Confirmation is Distinct from Baptism
Institution of Confirmation
Component Parts of Confirmation
The Matter
The Remote Matter Of Confirmation Is Chrism
The Appropriateness Of Chrism
Chrism To Be Consecrated By The Bishop
The Form Of Confirmation
Minister of Confirmation
Sponsors at Confirmation
The Subject of Confirmation
All Should Be Confirmed
The Proper Age For Confirmation
Dispositions For Receiving Confirmation
The Effects of Confirmation
The Grace Of Strength
Increase In Grace
Character Of Soldier Of Christ
Ceremonies Of Confirmation
The Anointing Of The Forehead
The Sign Of The Cross
Time When Confirmation Should Be Conferred
The Slap On The Cheek
The Pax
Admonition
THE SACRAMENT OF THE EUCHARIST
Importance Of Instruction On The Eucharist
Institution of the Eucharist
Meaning of the Word "Eucharist"
Other Names Of This Sacrament
The Eucharist Is a Sacrament Properly So Called
In What Respect The Eucharist Is A Sacrament
How The Eucharist Differs From All The Other Sacraments
The Eucharist Is But One Sacrament
The Eucharist Signifies Three Things
Constituent Parts of the Eucharist
The Matter
The First Element Of The Eucharist Is Bread
The Sacramental Bread Must Be Wheaten
The Sacramental Bread Should Be Unleavened
Unleavened Bread Not Essential
Quantity Of The Bread
The Second Element Of The Eucharist Is Wine
Water Should Be Mixed With The Wine
No Other Elements Pertain To This Sacrament
Peculiar Fitness Of Bread And Wine
Form Of The Eucharist
Form To Be Used In The Consecration Of The Bread
Not All The Words Used Are Essential
Form To Be Used In The Consecration Of The Wine
Explanation Of The Form Used In The Consecration Of The Wine
Three Mysteries Of The Eucharist
The Mystery of the Real Presence
Proof From Scripture
Proof From The Teaching Of The Church
Testimony Of The Fathers
Teaching Of The Councils
Two Great Benefits Of Proving The Real Presence
Faith Is Strengthened
The Soul Is Gladdened
Meaning of the Real Presence
Christ Whole And Entire Is Present In The Eucharist
Presence In Virtue Of The Sacrament And In Virtue Of Concomitance
Christ Whole And Entire Present Under Each Species
Christ Whole And Entire Present In Every Part Of Each Species
The Mystery of Transubstantiation
Proof From The Dogma Of The Real Presence
Proof From The Councils
Proof From Scripture
Proof From The Fathers
Why The Eucharist Is Called Bread After Consecration
The Meaning of Transubstantiation
Transubstantiation A Total Conversion
A Consequence Of Transubstantiation
The Mystery of the Accidents without a Subject
Proof From The Preceding Dogmas
Proof From The Teaching Of The Church
Advantages Of This Mystery
The Effects of the Eucharist
The Eucharist Contains Christ And Is The Food Of The Soul
The Eucharist Gives Grace
The Grace Of The Eucharist Sustains
The Grace Of The Eucharist Invigorates And Delights
The Eucharist Remits Venial Sins
The Eucharist Strengthens Against Temptation
The Eucharist Facilitates The Attainment Of Eternal Life
How The Effects Of The Eucharist May Be Developed And Illustrated
Recipient of the Eucharist
Threefold Manner Of Communicating
Necessity Of Previous Preparation For Communion
Preparation Of Soul
Preparation Of Body
The Obligation of Communion
How Often Must Communion Be Received?
The Church Desires The Faithful To Communicate Daily
The Church Commands; The Faithful To Communicate Once A Year
Who Are Obliged By The Law Of Communion
The Rite of Administering Communion
Why The Celebrant Alone Receives Under Both Species
The Minister of the Eucharist
Only Priests Have Power To Consecrate And Administer The Eucharist
The Laity Prohibited To Touch The Sacred Vessels
The Unworthiness Of The Minister Does Not Invalidate The Sacrament
The Eucharist as a Sacrifice
Importance Of Instruction On The Mass
Distinction of Sacrament and Sacrifice
The Mass Is a True Sacrifice
Proof From The Council Of Trent
Proof From Scripture
Excellence of the Mass
The Mass Is The Same Sacrifice As That Of The Cross
The Mass A Sacrifice Of Praise, Thanksgiving And Propitiation
The Mass Profits Both The Living And The Dead
The Rites and ceremonies of the Mass
THE SACRAMENT OF PENANCE
Importance Of Instruction On This Sacrament
Different Meanings of the Word "Penance"
The Virtue of Penance
Meaning Of Penance
Penance Proved To Be A Virtue
The Steps Which Lead Up To This Virtue
Fruits Of This Virtue
Penance as a Sacrament
Why Christ Instituted This Sacrament
Penance Is a Sacrament
This Sacrament May Be Repeated
The Constituent Parts of Penance
The Matter
The Form Of Penance
The Rites Observed in the Sacrament of Penance
Effects of the Sacrament of Penance
The Necessity of the Sacrament of Penance
The Three Integral Parts of Penance
Their Existence
Their Nature
Necessity Of These Integral Parts
The First Part of Penance
Contrition
The Meaning Of Contrition
Contrition Is A Detestation Of Sin
Contrition Produces Sorrow
Names Of Sorrow For Sin
Qualities of Sorrow for Sin
It Should Be Supreme
Sorrow For Sin Should Be Intense
Sorrow For Sin Should Be Universal
Conditions Required for Contrition
Detestation Of Sin
Intention Of Confession And Satisfaction
Purpose Of Amendment
Reasons For These Conditions
Forgiveness Of Injuries
The Effects of Contrition
Means of Arousing True Contrition
The Second Part of Penance
Confession
Necessity Of Confession
Advantages Of Confession
Definition Of Confession
Confession Instituted By Christ
Rites Added By The Church
The Law of Confession
Proof Of The Obligation
The Age At Which The Law Of Confession Obliges
At What Time The Law Of Confession Obliges
The Qualities of Confession
Confession Should Be Entire
Sins Concealed
Sins Forgotten
Confession Should Be Plain, Simple, Sincere
Confession Should Be Prudent, Modest, Brief
Confession Should Be Made Privately And Often
The Minister of the Sacrament of Penance
The Usual Minister
The Minister In Danger Of Death
Qualifications Of The Minister
The Confessor Must Observe The Seal Of Confession
Duties of the Confessor towards Various Classes of Penitents
The Well Disposed Should Be Exhorted To Thanksgiving And Perseverance
The Indisposed Should Be Helped
Those Who Seek To Excuse Their Sins Should Be Corrected
Those Who Are Ashamed To Confess Their Sins Should Be Instructed
The Careless Should Be Rebuked
The Unprepared Should Be Dismissed Or Led To Good Disposition
The Pastor Should Show The Wrong Of Human Respect
The Third Part of Penance
Satisfaction
General Meaning Of The Word "Satisfaction,"
Various Kinds Of Satisfaction To God
Elements Of Sacramental Satisfaction
Necessity Of Satisfaction
Advantages of Satisfaction
It Is Required By God’s Justice And Mercy
Satisfaction Atones To The Church
Satisfaction Deters Others From Sin
By Satisfaction We Are Made Like Unto Christ
Satisfaction Heals The Wounds Of Sin
Satisfaction Disarms The Divine Vengeance
Source of the Efficacy of Satisfactory Works
Conditions for Satisfaction
Works Of Satisfaction Are Of Three Kinds
One Can Satisfy For Another
Duties of the Confessor as Regards Satisfaction
Restitution Must Be Insisted On
Quantity And Quality Of Penances Should Be Reasonable
Voluntary Works Of Penance Should Be Recommended
Admonition
THE SACRAMENT OF EXTREME UNCTION
Importance Of Instruction On Extreme Unction
Names of this Sacrament
Extreme Unction Is a True Sacrament
Extreme Unction Is But One Sacrament
Essential Parts of Extreme Unction
The Matter Of Extreme Unction
The Form Of Extreme Unction
The Ceremonies Of Extreme Unction
Institution of Extreme Unction
The Subject of Extreme Unction
The Subject Must Be In Danger Of Death
The Danger Must Arise From Sickness
The Person Anointed Must Have Attained The Use Of Reason
Administration of Extreme Unction
Dispositions for the Reception of Extreme Unction
The Minister of Extreme Unction
The Effects of Extreme Unction
Admonition
THE SACRAMENT OF HOLY ORDERS
Importance Of Instruction On This Sacrament
Dignity of this Sacrament
Requirements in Candidates for Orders
Holiness, Knowledge, Prudence
Divine Call
Right Intention
The Twofold Power Conferred by this Sacrament
The Power Of Orders
Greatness Of This Power
Names of this Sacrament
Holy Orders Is a Sacrament
Number of Orders
Tonsure
The Name "Cleric"
Origin And Meaning Of Tonsure
The Minor Orders
Porter
Reader
Exorcist
Acolyte
The Major Orders
Subdeacon
Deacon
Priest
Twofold Priesthood
The Internal Priesthood
The External Priesthood
Functions of the Priesthood
Degrees of the Priesthood
Priests
Bishops
Archbishops
Patriarchs
The Pope
The Minister of Holy Orders
The Recipient of Holy Orders
Qualifications for the Priesthood
Holiness Of Life
Competent Knowledge
Canonical Fitness
Effects of Holy Orders
Admonition
THE SACRAMENT OF MATRIMONY
Importance Of Instruction On This Sacrament
Nature and Meaning of Marriage
Names Of This Sacrament
Definition Of Matrimony
Essence And Cause Of Marriage
The Kind of Consent Required in Matrimony
Mutual
External
Present
The Essence of Marriage Constituted by the Consent
Twofold Consideration of Marriage
Marriage As A Natural Contract
Instituted By God
Marriage Is Indissoluble By Divine Law
Marriage Not Obligatory On All
The Motives And Ends Of Marriage
Marriage Considered as a Sacrament
Marriage Is A Sacrament
Marriage before Christ
It Was Not A Sacrament
Before Christ Marriage Had Fallen From Its Primitive Unity And Indissolubility
Christ Restored to Marriage its Primitive Qualities
Unity Of Marriage
Indissolubility Of Marriage
Advantages Of Indissolubility
The Three Blessings of Marriage
Offspring
Fidelity
Sacrament
The Duties of Married People
Duties Of A Husband
Duties Of A Wife
The Law of the Church on Marriage
The Rite To Be Observed
The Impediments Of Marriage
The Recipient of Matrimony
Dispositions With Which The Sacrament Is To Be Approached
Consent Of Parents
The Use Of Marriage
PART III : THE DECALOGUE
Importance Of Instruction On The Commandments
Motives for Observing the Commandments
God Is The Giver Of The Commandments
The Commandments Were Proclaimed With Great Solemnity
The Observance Of The Commandments Is Not Difficult
The Observance Of The Commandments Is Necessary
The Observance Of The Commandments Is Attended By Many Blessings
God's Goodness Invites Us To Keep His Commandments
The Promulgation of the Law
The People To Whom The Law Was Given
Epitome Of Jewish History
Lessons To Be Drawn From Jewish History
The Time And Place In Which The Law Was Promulgated
THE FIRST COMMANDMENT : "I am the lord thy god, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt not have strange gods before me. Thou shalt not make to thyself a graven thing, nor the likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or in the earth beneath, nor of those things that are in the waters under the earth. Thou shalt not adore them, nor serve them. I am the lord thy god, mighty, jealous, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, to the third and fourth generation of them that hate me, and showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments."
"I am the Lord thy God"
"Who Brought thee out of the Land of Egypt, out of the House of Bondage"
"Thou shalt not have Strange Gods before Me"
The Above Words Contain A Command And A Prohibition
What They Command
What They Forbid
Importance Of This Commandment
Sins Against This Commandment
Veneration And Invocation Of Angels And Saints Not Forbidden By This Commandment
It Is Lawful To Honour And Invoke The Angels
It Is Lawful To Honour And Invoke The Saints
Objections Answered
The Honour And Invocation Of Saints Is Approved By Miracles
The Above Words Do Not Forbid All Images
They Forbid Idols And Representations Of The Deity
They Do Not Forbid Representations Of The Divine Persons And Angels
They Do Not Forbid Images Of Christ And The Saints
Usefulness Of Sacred Images
How The Sanction Contained In The Above Words Should Be Proposed
Mighty
Jealous
Zeal In The Service Of God
"Visiting The Iniquity," Etc.
"And Showing Mercy, Etc.
"Of Them That Hate Me"
Of Them That Love Me
THE SECOND COMMANDMENT : "Thou shalt not take the name of the lord thy god in vain"
Why This Commandment Is Distinct From The First
Importance Of Instruction On This Commandment
Positive Part of this Commandment
Various Ways Of Honouring God's Name
Public Profession Of Faith
Respect For The Word Of God
Praise And Thanksgiving
Prayer
Oaths
Meaning Of An Oath
Oaths Are Affirmatory And Promissory
Conditions Of A Lawful Oath
First Condition: Truth
Second Condition: Judgment
Third Condition: Justice
Lawfulness Of Oaths
An Objection Against Oaths
Negative Part of this Commandment
Various Ways In Which Cod's Name Is Dishonoured: False Oaths
Unjust Oaths
Rash Oaths
Oaths By False Gods
Irreverent Speech
Neglect Of Prayer
Blasphemy
Sanction of this Commandment
THIRD COMMANDMENT : "Remember that thou keep holy the sabbath day. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy works; but on the seventh day is the sabbath of the lord thy god; thou shalt do no work on it, neither thou nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy man-servant, nor thy maid-servant, nor thy beast, nor the stranger that is within thy gates. For in six days the lord made heaven and earth, and the sea, and all things that are in them, and rested on the seventh day; wherefore the lord blessed the seventh day and sanctified it."
Reasons For This Commandment
Importance Of Instruction On This Commandment
How The Third Differs From The Other Commandments
How The Third Is Like The Other Commandments
The Jewish Sabbath Changed To Sunday By The Apostles
Four Parts Of This Commandment
First Part of this Commandment
"Remember"
Sabbath
"Keep Holy"
Second Part of this Commandment
"The Seventh Day Is The Sabbath Of The Lord Thy God"
Other Festivals Observed By The Jews
The Sabbath, Why Changed To Sunday
Other Festivals Observed By The Church
"Six Days Shalt Thou Labour And Do All Thy Work"
Third Part of this Commandment
Works Forbidden
Works Permitted
Why Animals Are Not To Be Employed On The Sabbath
Works Commanded Or Recommended
Motives for the Observance of this Commandment
Reasonableness Of This Duty
The Observance Of This Commandment Brings Many Blessings
Neglect Of This Commandment A Great Crime
THE FOURTH COMMANDMENT : "Honour thy father and thy mother, that thou mayest be long lived upon the land which the lord thy god will give thee."
Relative Importance Of The Preceding And The Following Commandments
Importance Of Instruction On The Fourth Commandment
The Two Tables Of The Law
Explanation of the Fourth Commandment: "Honour"
"Thy Father"
Why Parents Should Be Honoured
"And Thy Mother"
Manner Of Honouring Parents
Manner Of Honouring Other Superiors
The Honour Due To Bishops And Priests
The Honour Due To Civil Rulers
'That Thou Mayest be Long-lived," etc.
Reward Promised For Observance Of This Commandment
Why This Reward Is Not Always Conferred On Dutiful Children
Punishment For Violation Of This Commandment
Duties of Parents Towards their Children
Three Things To Be Avoided By Parents
THE FIFTH COMMANDMENT : "Thou shalt not kill"
Importance Of Instruction On This Commandment
Two Parts Of This Commandment
The Prohibitory Part of this Commandment
Exceptions: The Killing Of Animals
Execution Of Criminals
Killing In A Just War
Killing By Accident
Killing In Self-Defence
Negative Part Of This Commandment Forbids Murder And Suicide
Sinful Anger Is Also Forbidden By The Fifth Commandment
Remedies Against The Violation Of This Commandment
Positive Part of this commandment
Love Of Neighbour Inculcated
Charity To All Commanded
Patience, Beneficence And Mildness Commanded
Forgiveness Of Injuries Commanded
How to Persuade Men to Forgive Injuries
All We Have To Endure Comes From God
Advantages Of Forgiveness
Disadvantages Of Revenge
Remedies Against Hatred
THE SIXTH COMMANDMENT : "Thou shalt not commit adultery"
The Position Of This Commandment In The Decalogue Is Most Suitable
Importance Of Careful Instruction On This Commandment
Two Parts Of This Commandment
What this Commandment Prohibits
Adultery Forbidden
Other Sins Against Chastity Are Forbidden
Why Adultery Is Expressly Mentioned
What this Commandment Prescribes
Purity Enjoined
Reflections which Help one to Practice Purity
Impurity Excludes From Heaven
Impurity Is A Filthy Sin
Adultery Is A Grave Injustice
Adultery Is Disgraceful
Impurity Severely Punished
Impurity Blinds The Mind And Hardens The Heart
means of practicing purity
Avoidance Of Idleness
Temperance
Custody Of The Eyes
Avoidance Of Immodest Dress
Avoidance Of Impure Conversation, Reading, Pictures
Frequentation Of The Sacraments
Mortification
THE SEVENTH COMMANDMENT : "Thou shalt not steal"
Importance Of Instruction On This Commandment
This Commandment A Proof Of The Love Of God Towards Us And A Claim On Our Gratitude
Two Parts Of This Commandment
Negative Part of this Commandment
Stealing Forbidden
Theft And Robbery Forbidden
Various Names Given To Stealing
Desire Of Stealing Forbidden
Gravity Of The Sin Of Stealing
The Chief Kinds Of Stealing
Various Forms Of Theft
Various Forms Of Robbery
Positive Part of this Commandment
Restitution Enjoined
Who Are Held To Restitution
Almsdeeds Enjoined
Inducements To Practice Almsgiving
Ways Of Giving Alms
Frugality Is Enjoined
Sanction Of This Commandment
The Punishment Of Its Violation
The Reward Of Observing This Commandment
Excuses for Stealing Refuted
The Plea Of Rank And Position
The Plea Of Greater Ease And Elegance
The Plea Of The Other's Wealth
The Plea Of Force Of Habit
The Plea Of Favourable Opportunity
The Plea Of Revenge
The Plea Of Financial Embarrassment
THE EIGHTH COMMANDMENT : "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour"
Importance Of Instruction On This Commandment
This Commandment Should Call Forth Our Gratitude
Two Parts Of This Commandment
Negative Part Of This Commandment
"Against Thy Neighbour"
False Testimony In Favour Of A Neighbour Is Also Forbidden
"Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness"
All Falsehoods In Lawsuits Are Forbidden
False Testimony Out Of Court Is Forbidden
This Commandment Forbids Detraction
Various Kinds Of Detraction
This Commandment Forbids Flattery
This Commandment Forbids Lies Of All Kinds
This Commandment Forbids Hypocrisy
Positive Part of this Commandment
Judges Must Pass Sentence According To Law And Justice
Witnesses Must Give Testimony Truthfully
Lawyers And Plaintiffs Must Be Guided By Love Of Justice
All Must Speak Truthfully And With Charity
Inducements To Truthfulness
How To Avoid Lying
Excuses for Lying Refuted
The Plea Of Prudence
The Plea Of Revenge
The Pleas Of Frailty, Habit, And Bad. Example
The Pleas Of Convenience, Amusement, And Advantage
THE NINTH AND TENTH COMMANDMENTS : "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house: neither shalt thou desire his wife, nor his servant, nor his hand-maid, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is his."
Importance Of Instruction On These Two Commandments
Why These Two Commandments Are Explained Here Together
Necessity Of Promulgating These Two Commandments
These Two Commandments Teach God's Love For Us And Our Need Of Him
Two Parts Of These Commandments
Negative Part
"Thou Shalt Not Covet"
What Sort Of Concupiscence Is Not Forbidden
What Sort Of Concupiscence Is Here Prohibited
Two Kinds Of Sinful Concupiscence
The Various Objects We Are Forbidden To Covet
Thy Neighbour’s House
"Nor His Ox, Nor His Ass'
"Nor His Servant
"Thy Neighbour's"
Goods For Sale Not Included Under This Prohibition
"His Wife"
Positive Part
Detachment From Riches Enjoined
The Desire Of Heavenly And Spiritual Things Enjoined
Thoughts which Help one to Keep these Commandments
Chief Ways in which These two Commandments are Violated
PART IV : THE LORD'S PRAYER
PRAYER
Importance Of Instruction On Prayer
Necessity of Prayer
The Fruits of Prayer
Prayer Honours God
Prayer Obtains What We Request
Proof
Unwise And Indevout Prayers Unheard
To Devout Prayer And Dispositions God Grants More Than Is Asked
Prayer Exercises And Increases Faith
Prayer Strengthens Our Hope In God
Prayer Increases Charity
Prayer Disposes The Soul For Divine Blessings
Prayer Makes Us Realise Our Own Needfulness
Prayer Is A Protection Against The Devil
Prayer Promotes A Virtuous Life
Prayer Disarms The Divine Vengeance
The Parts Of Prayer
The Two Chief Parts Of Prayer Petition And Thanksgiving
Degrees Of Petition And Thanksgiving
The Highest Degree Of Prayer: The Prayer Of The Just
The Second Degree Of Prayer: The Prayer Of Sinners
The Third Degree Of Prayer: The Prayer Of Unbelievers
The Lowest Degree Of Prayer: The Prayer Of The Impenitent
What We Should Pray For
Spiritual Goods
External Goods And Goods Of Body
Goods Of The Mind
For Whom We Ought to Pray
The Prayer Of Petition Should Be Offered For All
Those For Whom We Should Especially Offer Our Petitions: Pastors
Rulers Of Our Country
The Just
Enemies And Those Outside The Church
The Dead
Sinners
The Prayer Of Thanksgiving Should Be Offered For All
Our Thanksgiving Should Especially Be Offered: For The Saints
For The Blessed Virgin Mary
To Whom We Should Pray
To God
To The Saints
God And The Saints Addressed Differently
Preparation for Prayer
Humility
Sorrow For Sin
Freedom From Violence, Anger, Hatred And Inhumanity
Freedom From Pride And Contempt Of God's Word
Faith And Confidence
Motives Of Confidence In Prayer
Correspondence With God's Will
Fraternal Charity
How to Pray Well
We Must Pray In Spirit And In Truth
Mental Prayer
Vocal Prayer
Private And Public Prayer
Those Who Do Nor Pray In Spirit
Those Who Do Not Pray In Truth
We Must Pray With Perseverance
We Must Pray In The Name Of Jesus Christ
We Must Pray With Fervour, Uniting Petition To Thanksgiving
Fasting And Almsdeeds Should Be Joined To Prayer
OPENING WORDS OF THE LORD'S PRAYER
Importance Of Instruction On These Words
"Father"
God Is Called Father Because He Created Us
God Is Called Father Because He Provides For Us
God's Care For Us Is Seen In The Appointment Of Guardian Angels
How We Are Helped By The Angels
God's Care For Us Seen In The Love He Has Ever Shown To Man
God Is Called Father Because He Has Granted Us Redemption
Duties We Owe Our Heavenly Father
"Our"
Dispositions That Should Accompany The Words, "Our Father": Fraternal Regard
Filial Confidence And Piety
"Who art in Heaven"
Meaning Of These Words
Lessons Taught By The Words, "Who Art In Heaven"
THE FIRST PETITION OF THE LORD'S PRAYER : "HALLOWED BE THY NAME"
Why This Petition Is Placed First
Object Of The First Three Petitions
Hallowed Be Thy Name
On Earth As It Is In Heaven"
What Sanctification of God's Name we should Pray For
That The Faithful May Glorify Him
That Unbelievers May Be Converted
That Sinners May Be Converted
That God May Be Thanked For His Favours
That The Church May Be Recognised By All
What Sanctification Of God's Name We Should Practice
THE SECOND PETITION OF THE LORD'S PRAYER : "THY KINGDOM COME"
Importance Of Instruction On This Petition
Greatness Of This Petition
Necessity Of Rightly Making This Petition
Motives For Adopting The Necessary Means
"Thy Kingdom"
The Kingdom Of Nature
The Kingdom Of Grace
The Kingdom Of Glory
"Come"
We Pray For The Propagation Of The Church
For The Conversion Of Sinners
That Christ May Reign Over All
Dispositions That Should Accompany This Petition
We Should Prize God's Kingdom Above All Things
We Must Realise That We Are Exiles
We Must Labor To Obtain God's Kingdom
Recapitulation
THE THIRD PETITION OF THE LORD'S PRAYER : "THY WILL BE DONE"
The Relation Of This Petition To The Previous One
Necessity Of This Petition
Man’s Proneness To Act Against God’s Will
Man’s Blindness Concerning God’s Will
Man’s Weakness In Fulfilling God’s Will
Remedy For These Evils
Man's Passions Rebel Against God's Will
"Thy Will"
"Be Done"
We Ask That We May Fulfil What God Desires Of Us
We Ask That We May Not Yield To Our Own Inordinate Desires
We Ask That Our Mistaken Requests Be Not Granted
We Ask That Even Our Good Requests Be Granted Only When They Are According To God’s Will
We Ask That God May Perfect In Us What His Grace Has Begun
We Ask That All May Know God’s Will
"On Earth as it is in Heaven"
This Petition Contains an Act of Thanksgiving
The Dispositions that should Accompany this Petition
A Sense Of Our Own Weakness Of Will
Appreciation Of The Dignity Of Doing God's Will
Resignation To God’s Will
THE FOURTH PETITION OF THE LORD'S PRAYER : "GIVE US THIS DAY OUR DAILY BREAD"
The Relation Of The Following Petitions To Those That Preceded
How To Pray For Temporal Blessings
Means Of Ascertaining Purity Of Intention In Offering This Petition
Necessity of the Fourth Petition
Man Needs Many Things For His Bodily Life
To Supply His Bodily Wants Man Must Labor
Without God’s Help Man’s Labor Is Vain
Inducements to Use this Petition
"Bread"
We Ask For Temporal Blessings
It Is Lawful To Pray For Temporal Blessings
The Wants, Not The Luxuries Of This Life Are Meant By The Word "Bread"
"Our"
"Daily"
"Give"
"us"
"This Day"
The Spiritual Bread Asked for in this Petition
The Word Of God Is Our Spiritual Bread
Christ Is Our Spiritual Bread, Especially In The Holy Eucharist
Why The Holy Eucharist Is Called Our "Daily" Bread
Exhortations
THE FIFTH PETITION OF THE LORD'S PRAYER : "AND FORGIVE US OUR DEBTS, AS WE FORGIVE OUR DEBTORS"
The Importance Of Explaining This Petition
Difference Between This And The Preceding Petitions
Dispositions with which this petition should be Offered
Acknowledgment Of Sin
Sorrow For Sin
Motives For Sorrow Over Sin: The Baseness Of Sin
The Consequences Of Sin
Confidence In God's Mercy
"Debts"
"Our"
"Forgive Us"
"As we Forgive our Debtors"
Necessity Of Forgiveness
Reasons For Forgiveness
This Petition Should Not be Neglected
Those Unable To Forget Injuries
Those Who Do Not Love Their Enemies
How to Make this Petition Fruitful
Penitential Dispositions
Avoidance Of Dangers Of Sin
Imitation Of Fervent Penitents
Frequent Use Of The Sacraments
Almsdeeds
The Spirit Of Forgiveness
THE SIXTH PETITION OF THE LORD'S PRAYER : "AND LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION."
Importance Of Instruction On This Petition
Necessity of the Sixth Petition
Human Frailty
The Assaults Of The Flesh
The Temptations Of The Devil
Audacity Of The Demons
Number Of The Demons
Malignity And Power Of The Demons
Prayer Protects Man's Weakness Against The Enemies Of His Soul
"Temptation"
"Lead us not into Temptation"
Objects of the Sixth Petition
What We Do Not Pray For
What We Pray For In This Petition
Dispositions which should Accompany this Petition
Distrust Of Self And Confidence In God
Remembrance Of The Victory Of Christ And His Saints
Watchfulness
The Author of victory over Temptation
The Rewards of Victories over temptation
THE SEVENTH PETITION OF THE LORD'S PRAYER : "BUT DELIVER US FROM EVIL"
The Importance Of Instruction On This Petition
Necessity Of This Petition
How this Petition should be Made
Our Chief Hope Of Deliverance Should Be In God
We Must Confidently Expect His Help
"From Evil"
What We Do Not Pray For
What We Do Pray For
"Deliver Us"
Deliverance From Satan Especially Asked For
Patience and Joy under Continued Affliction
THE SEAL OF THE LORD'S PRAYER
Necessity Of Explaining The Conclusion Of The Lord's Prayer
fruits that Come at the Conclusion of Prayer
Assurance That We Have Been Heard
Fervour And Illumination
Sweetness
Confidence And Gratitude
Illustrations From The Psalms
Meaning of the Word "Amen"
First Explanation
Other Explanations Of The Word "Amen"
Advantages of Terminating our Prayer with this Word
LIST OF WORDS NOT PASSED BY SPELL-CHECK PROGRAM
Abel, Abimelech, Abraham, Absalom, Achan, Affirmatory, Agde, Almighties, Alphonsus, Amaltheus, Aman, Ambrose, Ambrose's, Amos, Anacletus, Ananias, Anaxagoras, Antioch, Antiochus, Antonianus, Aquila, Areopagite, Aristotle, Assuerus, Augustine, Benjamites, Berengarius, Bethlehem, Bethsabee, Bethsaida, Caesarea, Calini, Callan, Candace, Capys, Carthage, Chrysostom, Chrysostom's, Colossians, Concilii, Constantinople, Contreras, Corinth, Cornelius, Corozain, Cosmas, Crescentius, Damasus, Damiani, Deuteronomy, Dishonored, Dominicans, Donatist, Donatists, Donovan, Ecclesiastes, Ecclesiasticus, Egidio, Eglon, Elias, Eliseus, Empedocles, Ephesians, Ephesus, Eucharistic, Eusebius, Eustachius, Ezechias, Ezechiel, Ferdinand, Fernandez, Foreiro, Foscarari, Francesco, Franciscan, Gabriel, Galatia, Galatians, Galesini, Gangra, Giulio, Godhead, Granada, Habacuc, Heli, Herba, Herod, Honorius, Horeb, Hyginus, Hymeneus, II, III, IV, IX, Ignatius, Indevout, Irenaeus, Isaias, Jeremias, Jerome, Joel, Jona, Jonas, Josedech, Josias, Josue, Jovinian, Juda, Judah, Judas, Judea, Justin, Lanciano, Laodiceans, Lateran, Latins, Lazarus, Leander, Leonardo, Levi, Leviticus, Lia, Locatelli, Luke, McHugh, Macedonius, Machabees, Malachias, Malachy, Manasses, Mani, Manriquez, Manutian, Manutius, Mardochaeus, Maredsous, Marini, Mediatorship, Melchiades, Melchisedech, Merob, Micheas, Milevi, Moab, Moabites, Modena, Montanus, Moses, Muzio, Naaman, Nabuchodonosor, Nazianzen, Nicene, Ninivites, Noah, Novatians, Novatus, Oceanus, Omnis, Optatus, Ormanetus, Osee, Ozias, Paleotti, Paulus, Petilian, Pharaoh, Pharisee, Pharisees, Pharoah, Philemon, Philetus, Philippians, Pietro, Pii, Pilate, Pius, Plato, Pogiani, Pont, Pontius, Portugese, Priscilla, Proba, Raca, Rahab, Raphael, Rechabites, Sabeans, Sadducees, Samaria, Samaritan, Samaritans, Samuel, Sanctotisio, Saul, Scythians, Semei, Seripandi, Sichem, Sichemites, Sichimites, Sidon, Siloe, Silvius, Simon, Sion, Sirlet, Socrates, Statius, Subtility, Syrian, Thessalonians, Tiberius, Titus, Tobias, Trent, Trent's, Tridentini, Turin, Urias, VII, VIII, Vercelli, Vigilantius, XII, Xenophanes, Zachary, Zara
abideth, affirmatory, afflicteth, almighties, almsdeeds, anointings, artfully, articuli, asketh, baptizeth, baptizo, begetteth, behooved, blotteth, boasteth, brilliancy, bringeth, buyeth, chaseth, chastiseth, cherisheth, christs, comest, cometh, commandest, commandeth, committeth, concupiscences, confoundeth, conjugium, continueth, crieth, cureth, curseth, deceiveth, decreto, defense, defilements, delighteth, deprecative, despiseth, detesteth, deviseth, dieth, differeth, dissensions, draweth, drinketh, dwelleth, eateth, ecclesiam, editus, endureth, engraven, entereth, episcopal, exagoreusis, exomologesis, extortioners, fainteth, falleth, fillest, fleeth, foreswear, fornications, gathereth, gavest, gehenna, givest, giveth, goeth, groanings, hadst, hangeth, hateth, heapeth, heaven.l, hideth, highminded, holydays, honoureth, humbleth, incorruption, ingrafted, jussu, keepeth, killeth, kindleth, knowest, knoweth, lendeth, litigations, liveth, longeth, loveth, maketh, ministereth, mocketh, murmurings, needeth, nourisheth, offerest, ordereth, oughtest, outstep, outstepping, overcometh, pasch, passest, passeth, planteth, pleasest, preachest, preeminently, proceedeth, prohibitory, proyer, purgeth, questionings, raineth, receiveth, reenter, refraineth, reigneth, remaineth, rememberest, resisteth, ruleth, sabaoth, sabbath, sacramenta, sacramentum, satisfactions, scourgeth, seeketh, seeth, selleth, serveth, sextary, sexus, shew, showeth, sinnest, sinneth, sitten, sitteth, sleepest, sowest, soweth, speaketh, spiration, standeth, stealest, stoppeth, striketh, striveth, subdeaconship, subtility, suffereth, suffrages, sweareth, takest, taketh, teachest, teacheth, tempteth, thanksgivings, threatenest, tranquilize, turneth, unchangeableness, uncleanness, upholdeth, utriusque, uttereth, walketh, watereth, wavereth, wiIt, willest, worketh, woundeth
ORIGIN OF THE ROMAN CATECHISM
The Church at the Council of Trent, assembled December 13, 1545, seeing the need of a uniform and comprehensive manual which would supply parish priests with an official book of instruction for the faithful, ordered the preparation of the work which has ever since been variously known as the Catechism of the Council of Trent, the Catechism for Parish Priests, the Roman Catechism, or the Catechism of Pius V. It was some months, however, after the opening of the Council before mention was made of any kind of catechism. This was during the fourth session, on April 5, 1546. Eight days later the draft of a decree was read proposing that there be published in Latin and in the vernacular a catechism to be compiled by capable persons for children and uninstructed adults, "who are in need of milk rather than solid food." The purpose of such a manual was to afford instruction for beginners in the primary duties of a Christian life and to prepare them for further and higher religious education. The idea met with general approval, but as the Council was occupied with matters more pressing, we hear nothing further about it until sixteen years later, in 1562. According to some the question of the Catechism was brought up by St. Charles Borromeo during the eighteenth session and a commission actually appointed on February 26, 1562. What is certain is that the Papal Legates, after a protracted discussion, had named a committee before the end of that year; for on January 3, 1563, they informed the procurators of Charles IX and of Ferdinand I of the existence of such a committee and assured them that work on the Catechism was already under way. The principal members of this committee, besides its president, Cardinal Seripandi, O. S. A., were Leonardo Marini, O. P., Archbishop of Lanciano, Egidio Foscarari, O. P., Bishop of Modena, Muzio Calini, Bishop of Zara, and Francesco Foreiro, O.P. There were many other collaborators, chief among whom were Michael Medina, a Franciscan, and Christopher Sanctotisio, O. S. A., who assisted with the fourth and ninth Articles of the Creed respectively; four French theologians to whom were assigned the first four Commandments; the Dominicans, John de Luderna, Benedict Herba, Eliseus Capys, and the Franciscan, Alphonsus Contreras, to whom were given respectively the fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth Commandments; a theologian of Granada was entrusted with the last two Commandments of the Decalogue. The following appear to have collaborated on the Sacraments: three Flemish theologians, on Baptism, Confirmation, and the Eucharist; Nicholas Ormanetus, on the Sacrament of Penance; Peter Fernandez, O. P., on Matrimony; Cosmas Damiani, Abbot of the Augustinian Canons Regular, on Orders; Arias Montanus, on Extreme Unction. All those who had part in the work of the Catechism were instructed to avoid in its composition the particular opinions of individuals and schools, and to express the doctrine of the universal Church, keeping especially in mind the decrees of the Council of Trent.
During the twenty-fourth session, the work on the Catechism was brought to the attention of the Council itself, at a meeting on September II, 1563. After various discussions a new plan was adopted. Instead of a manual for children and uninstructed adults, it was decided to prepare a much more extensive and more thorough work to be used by parish priests in their instruction of the faithful. A final decree regarding such a catechism was passed in a general meeting of November 2nd, of the same year, wherein it was enjoined on all Bishops to see that the Catechism should be faithfully translated into the vulgar tongue and expounded to the people by all parish priests.
As the Council was about to close, the Catechism committee, as it appears, were ordered to submit to the assembled Fathers the work they had so far accomplished. This was done at the general meetings between the 22nd and the 25th of November, and as the work was not finished the Holy Father was requested to take charge of it and to see that the Catechism was brought to completion and published. The manuscript was, therefore, carried to Rome, and the work was continued with little delay. Meanwhile Cardinal Seripandi died, and St. Charles Borromeo was appointed to succeed him as president of the Catechism committee. On December 21, 1564, Bishop Foscarari also died. To complete the work the new president enlisted the services of several more theologians, such as Gabriel Paleotti and the Portugese Statius.
In order that the literary style of the Catechism might be in keeping with the sublimity of its doctrine, St. Charles called to its service the greatest masters of the Latin tongue of that age. These were Paulus Manutius, Giulio Pogiani, Cornelius Amaltheus, Silvius Antonianus, and Pietro Galesini. When the work was finished a first revision of the style was undertaken. The polishing of the first two parts was done by Calini, who had already been engaged in the composition of the Catechism. The third part was attended to by Galesini, and the fourth by Pogiani. This revision seems to have been completed by the end of the year 1564. Early in the following year, by order of St. Charles, who desired to secure absolute uniformity in the style, a second literary revision of the entire work was made by Pogiani.
Meanwhile Pius IV died and was succeeded on January 17, 1566, by Pius V. One of the first acts of the new Pontiff was to appoint a number of expert theological revisers to examine every statement in the Catechism from the viewpoint of doctrine. Chief among these revisers were Cardinal Sirlet and the two Dominicans, Thomas Manriquez and Eustachius Locatelli. By July of that year the work on the Catechism was finished. But it was not until the close of the year that it appeared under the title, Catechismus ex decreto Concilii Tridentini ad Parochos Pii V Pont. Max. jussu editus.
AUTHORITY AND EXCELLENCE OF THE ROMAN CATECHISM
The Roman Catechism is unlike any other summary of Christian doctrine, not only because it is intended for the use of priests in their preaching, but also because it enjoys a unique authority among manuals. In the first place, as already explained, it was issued by the express command of the Ecumenical Council of Trent, which also ordered that it be translated into the vernacular of different nations to be used as a standard source for preaching. Moreover it subsequently received the unqualified approval of many Sovereign Pontiffs. Not to speak of Pius IV who did so much to bring the work to completion, and of St. Pius V under whom it was finished, published and repeatedly commended, Gregory XIII, as Possevino testifies, so highly esteemed it that he desired even books of Canon Law to be written in accordance with its contents. In his Bull of June 14, 1761, Clement XIII said that the Catechism contains a clear explanation of all that is necessary for salvation and useful for the faithful, that it was composed with great care and industry and has been highly praised by all, that by it in former times the faith was strengthened, and that no other catechism can be compared with it. He concluded then, that the Roman Pontiffs offered this work to pastors as a norm of Catholic teaching and discipline so that there might be uniformity and harmony in the instructions of all. Nor have the Sovereign Pontiffs in our own days been less laudatory of the Catechism. Pope Leo XIII, in an Encyclical Letter of September 8, 1899, to the Bishops and clergy of France, recommended two books which all seminarians should possess and constantly read and study, namely, the Summa Theologica of St. Thomas and "that golden book," the Catechismus ad Parochos. Regarding the latter work he wrote: "This work is remarkable at once for the richness and exactness of its doctrine, and for the elegance of its style; it is a precious summary of all theology, both dogmatic and moral. He who understands it well, will have always at his service those aids by which a priest is enabled to preach with fruit, to acquit himself worthily of the important ministry of the confessional and of the direction of souls, and will be in a position to refute the objections of unbelievers."
Likewise Pius X in his Encyclical Acerbo nimis of April 15, 1905, declared that adults, no less than children, need religious instruction, especially in these days. And hence he prescribed that pastors and all who have care of souls should give catechetical instruction to the faithful in simple language, and in a way suited to the capacity of their hearers, and that for this purpose they should use the Catechism of the Council of Trent Still more recently, on February 14, 1921, speaking in the name of Benedict XV, Cardinal Gasparri, Papal Secretary of State, thus wrote to the Archbishop of New York relative to the latter's Program for A Parochial Course of Doctrinal Instructions, based on the Catechism: "It is superfluous to add that the value of the work is enhanced by the fact that it has been planned and executed in perfect harmony with the admirable Catechism of the Council of Trent."
Besides the Supreme Pontiffs who have extolled and recommended the Catechism, so many Councils have enjoined its use that it would be impossible here to enumerate them all. Within a few years after its first appearance great numbers of provincial and diocesan synods had already made its use obligatory. Of these the Preface to the Paris edition of 1893 mentions eighteen held before the year 1595. In five different Councils convened at Milan St. Charles Borromeo ordered that the Catechism should be studied in seminaries, discussed in the conferences of the clergy, and explained by pastors to their people on occasion of the administration of the Sacraments. In short, synods repeatedly prescribed that the clergy should make such frequent use of the Catechism as not only to be thoroughly familiar with its contents, but almost have it by heart.
In addition to Popes, and Councils, many Cardinals, Bishops and other ecclesiastics, distinguished for their learning and sanctity, vied with one another in eulogizing the Catechism of Trent. Among other things they have said that not since the days of the Apostles has there been produced in a single volume so complete and practical a summary of Christian doctrine as this Catechism, and that, after the Sacred Scriptures, there is no work that can be read with greater safety and profit.
In particular, Cardinal Valerius, the friend of St. Charles Borromeo, wrote of the Catechism: "This work contains all that is needful for the instruction of the faithful; and it is written with such order, clearness and majesty that through it we seem to hear holy Mother the Church herself, taught by the Holy Ghost, speaking to us.... It was composed by order of the Fathers of Trent under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, and was published by the authority of the Vicar of Christ."
Salmanticenses, the great Carmelite commentators on St. Thomas, paid the following high tribute to the Catechism: "The authority of this Catechism has always been of the greatest in the Church, because it was composed by the command of the Council of Trent, because its authors were men of highest learning, and because it was approved only after the severest scrutiny by Popes Pius V and Gregory XIII, and has been recommended in nearly all the Councils that have been held since the Council of Trent."
Antonio Possevino, an illustrious Jesuit, and the preceptor of St. Francis de Sales, said: "The Catechism of the Council of Trent was inspired by the Holy Ghost."
In his immortal Apologia Cardinal Newman writes: "The Catechism of the Council of Trent was drawn up for the express purpose of providing preachers with subjects for their sermons; and, as my whole work has been a defense of myself, I may here say that I rarely preach a sermon but I go to this beautiful and complete Catechism to get both my matter and my doctrine."
"Its merits," says Dr. Donovan, "have been recognized by the universal Church. The first rank which has been awarded the Imitation among spiritual books, has been unanimously given to the Roman Catechism as a compendium of Catholic theology. It was the result of the aggregate labors of the most distinguished of the Fathers of Trent, . . . and is therefore stamped with the impress of superior worth."
Doctor John Hogan, the present Rector of the Irish College in Rome, writes thus: "The Roman Catechism is a work of exceptional authority. At the very least it has the same authority as a dogmatic Encyclical, -- it is an authoritative exposition of Catholic doctrine given forth, and guaranteed to be orthodox by the Catholic Church and her supreme head on earth. The compilation of it was the work of various individuals; but the result of their combined labors was accepted by the Church as a precious abridgment of dogmatic and moral theology. Official documents have occasionally been issued by Popes to explain certain points of Catholic teaching to individuals, or to local Christian communities; whereas the Roman Catechism comprises practically the whole body of Christian doctrine, and is addressed to the whole Church. Its teaching is not infallible; but it holds a place between approved catechisms and what is de tide."
We are enabled to realize from the foregoing testimonies how invaluable is the treasure we possess in the Tridentine Catechism. It is a Vade Mecum for every priest and ecclesiastical student. In it the latter will find a recapitulation of all the more important and necessary doctrines he has learned throughout his theological course; while to the priest it is not only a review of his former studies, but an ever-present and reliable guide in his work as pastor, preacher, counselor, and spiritual director of souls. Moreover, to the educated layman, whether Catholic or non-Catholic, who desires to study an authoritative statement of Catholic doctrine, no better book could be recommended than this official manual; for in its pages will be found the whole substance of Catholic doctrine and practice, arranged in order, expounded with perspicuity, and sustained by argument at once convincing and persuasive.
Finally, it can be said without fear of exaggeration that there is no single-volume work which so combines solidity of doctrine and practical usefulness with unction of treatment as does this truly marvelous Catechism. From beginning to end it not only reflects the light of faith, but it also radiates, to an unwonted degree, the warmth of devotion and piety. In its exposition of the Creed and the Sacraments, while dealing with the profoundest mysteries, it is full of thoughts and reflections the most fervent and inspiring. The part on the Decalogue, which might well be called a treatise on ascetical theology, teaches us in words burning with zeal both what we are to avoid and what we are to do to keep the Commandments of God. In the fourth, and last part o this beautiful work we have what is doubtless the most sublime and heavenly exposition of the doctrine of prayer ever written.
The Roman Catechism is, therefore, a handbook of dogmatic and moral theology, a confessor's guide, a book of exposition for the preacher, and a choice directory of the spiritual life for pastor and flock alike. With a view, consequently, to make it more readily available for these high purposes among English-speaking peoples this new translation has been prepared and is herewith respectfully submitted to its readers.
JOHN A. MCHUGH, O. P.
CHARLES J. CALLAN, O. P.
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CATECHISM OF THE COUNCIL OF TRENT FOR PARISH PRIESTS
Issued by order of Pope Pius V
INTRODUCTORY
The Necessity Of Religious Instruction
Such is the nature of the human mind and intellect that, although by means of diligent and laborious inquiry it has of itself investigated and discovered many other things pertaining to a knowledge of divine truths; yet guided by its natural lights it never could have known or perceived most of those things by which is attained eternal salvation, the principal end of man's creation and formation to the image and likeness of God.
It is true that the invisible things of God from the creation of the world are, as the Apostle teaches, clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made: his eternal power also, and divinity. But the mystery which hath been hidden from ages and generations so far transcends the reach of man's understanding, that were it not made manifest by God to His Saints, to whom He willed to make known by the gift of faith, the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ, man could by no effort attain to such wisdom.
But, as faith comes by hearing, it is clear how necessary at all times for the attainment of eternal salvation has been the labour and faithful ministry of an authorised teacher; for it is written, how shall they hear, without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they be sent?
And, indeed, never, from the very creation of the world, has God, most merciful and benignant, been wanting to His own; but at sundry times and in divers manners spoke to the fathers by the prophets, and pointed out to them in a manner suited to the times and circumstances, a sure and direct path to the happiness of heaven. But, as He had foretold that He would give a teacher of justice to be the light of the Gentiles, that His salvation might reach even to the ends of the earth, in these last days he hath spoken to us by his Son, whom also by a voice from heaven, from the excellent glory, He has commanded all to hear and to obey. Furthermore, the Son gave some to be apostles, and some prophets, and others pastors and teachers, to announce the word of life; that we might not be carried about like children tossed to and fro with every wind of doctrine, but holding fast to the firm foundation of the faith, we might be built together into an habitation of God in the Spirit.
Lest any should receive the Word of God from the ministers of the Church, not as the word of Christ, which it really is, but as the word of man, the same Saviour has ordained that their ministry should be invested with so great authority that He says to them: He that hears you, hears me; and he that despises you despises me. These words He spoke not only of those to whom His words were addressed, but likewise of all who, by legitimate succession, should discharge the ministry of the word, promising to be with them all days even to the consummation of the world.
Need of an Authoritative Catholic Catechism
But while the preaching of the divine Word should never be interrupted in the Church, surely in these, our days, it becomes necessary to labour with more than ordinary zeal and piety to nourish and strengthen the faithful with sound and wholesome doctrine, as with the food of life. For false prophets have gone forth into the world, to corrupt the minds of the faithful with various and strange doctrines, of whom the Lord has said: I did not send prophets, yet they ran; I spoke not to them, yet they prophesied.
In this work, to such extremes has their impiety, practiced in all the arts of Satan, been carried, that it would seem almost impossible to confine it within any bounds; and did we not rely on the splendid promises of the Saviour, who declared that He had built His Church on so solid a foundation that the gates of hell shall not prevail against it, we should have good reason to fear lest, beset on every side by such a host of enemies and assailed and attacked by so many machinations, it would, in these days, fall to the ground.
For - to say nothing of those illustrious States which heretofore professed, in piety and holiness, the true Catholic faith transmitted to them by their ancestors, but are now gone astray wandering from the paths of truth and openly declaring that their best claims to piety are founded on a total abandonment of the faith of their fathers - there is no region, however remote, no place, however securely guarded, no corner of Christendom, into which this pestilence has not sought secretly to insinuate itself.
For those who intended to corrupt the minds of the faithful, knowing that they could not hold immediate personal intercourse with all, and thus pour into their ears their poisoned doctrines, adopted another plan which enabled them to disseminate error and impiety more easily and extensively. Besides those voluminous works by which they sought the subversion of the Catholic faith - to guard against which (volumes) required perhaps little labour or circumspection, since their contents were clearly heretical - they also composed innumerable smaller books, which, veiling their errors under the semblance of piety, deceived with incredible facility the unsuspecting minds of simple folk.
The Nature of this Work
The Fathers, therefore, of the General Council of Trent, anxious to apply some healing remedy to so great and pernicious an evil, were not satisfied with having decided the more important points of Catholic doctrine against the heresies of our times, but deemed it further necessary to issue, for the instruction of the faithful in the very rudiments of faith, a form and method to be followed in all churches by those to whom are lawfully entrusted the duties of pastor and teacher.
To works of this kind many, it is true, had already given their attention, and earned the reputation of great piety and learning. But the Fathers deemed it of the first importance that a work should appear, sanctioned by the authority of the Council, from which pastors and all others on whom the duty of imparting instruction devolves, may be able to seek and find reliable matter for the edification of the faithful; that, as there is one Lord, one faith, there may also be one standard and prescribed form of propounding the dogmas of faith, and instructing Christians in all the duties of piety.
As, therefore, the design of the work embraces a variety of matters, it cannot be supposed that the Council intended that in one volume all the dogmas of Christianity should be explained with that minuteness of detail to be found in the works of those who profess to treat the teaching and doctrines of religion in their entirety. Such a task would be one of almost endless labour, and manifestly ill suited to attain the proposed end. But, having undertaken to instruct pastors and such as have care of souls in those things that belong peculiarly to the pastoral office and are accommodated to the capacity of the faithful, the Council intended that such things only should be treated of as might assist the pious zeal of pastors in discharging the duty of instruction, should they not be very familiar with the more abstruse questions of theology.
The Ends of Religious Instruction
Hence, before we proceed to develop in detail the various parts of this summary of doctrine, our purpose requires that we premise a few observations which the pastor should consider and bear in mind in order to know to what end, as it were, all his plans and labours and efforts are to be directed, and how this desired end may be more easily attained.
Knowledge Of Christ
The first thing is ever to recollect that all Christian knowledge is reduced to one single head, or rather, to use the words of the Apostle, this is eternal life: That they may know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. A teacher in the Church should, therefore, use his best endeavours that the faithful earnestly desire to know Jesus Christ, and him crucified, that they be firmly convinced, and with the most heartfelt piety and devotion believe, that there is no other name under heaven given to men, whereby we must be saved, for he is the propitiation for our sins.
Observance Of The Commandments
But since by this we know that we have known him, if we keep his commandments, the next consideration, and one intimately connected with the preceding, is to press also upon the attention of the faithful that their lives are not to be wasted in ease and indolence, but that we are to walk even as he walked, and pursue with all earnestness, justice, godliness, faith, charity, patience, mildness; for He gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and might cleanse to himself a people acceptable, a pursuer of good works. These things the Apostle commands pastors to speak and exhort.
Love Of God
But as our Lord and Saviour has not only declared, but has also proved by His own example, that the Law and the Prophets depend on love, and as, according to the Apostle, charity is the end of the commandment, and the fulfilment of the law, it is unquestionably a chief duty of the pastor to use the utmost diligence to excite the faithful to a love of the infinite goodness of God towards us, that, burning with a sort of divine ardour, they may be powerfully attracted to the supreme and all-perfect good, to adhere to which is true and solid happiness, as is fully experienced by him who can say with the Prophet: What have I in heaven? and besides thee what do I desire upon earth?
This, assuredly, is that more excellent way pointed out by the Apostle when he sums up all his doctrines and instructions in charity, which never falleth away. For whatever is proposed by the pastor, whether it be the exercise of faith, of hope, or of some moral virtue, the love of our Lord should at the same time be so strongly insisted upon as to show clearly that all the works of perfect Christian virtue can have no other origin, no other end than divine love.
The Means Required for Religious Instruction
But as in imparting instruction of any sort the manner of communicating it is of highest importance, so in conveying religious instruction to the people, the method should be deemed of the greatest moment.
Instruction Should Be Accommodated To The Capacity Of The Hearer
Age, capacity, manners and condition must be borne in mind, so that he who instructs may become all things to all men, in order that he may be able to gain all to Christ, prove himself a dutiful minister and steward, and, like a good and faithful servant, be found worthy to be placed by his Lord over many things The priest must not imagine that those committed to his care are all on the same level, so that he can follow one fixed and unvarying method of instruction to lead all in the same way to knowledge and true piety; for some are as new-born infants, others are growing up in Christ, while a few are, so to say, of full maturity. Hence the necessity of considering who they are that have occasion for milk, who for more solid food, and of affording to each such nourishment of doctrine as may give spiritual increase, until we all meet in the unity of faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the age of the fullness of Christ. This the Apostle inculcates for all by his own example when he says that he is a debtor to the Greeks and to the Barbarians, to the wise and to the unwise, thus giving all who are called to this ministry to understand that in announcing the mysteries of faith and the precepts of life, the instruction is to be so accommodated to the capacity and intelligence of the hearers, that, while the minds of the strong are filled with spiritual food, the little ones be not suffered to perish with hunger, asking for bread, while there is none to break it unto them.
Zeal
Nor should our zeal in communicating Christian knowledge be relaxed because it has sometimes to be exercised in expounding matters apparently humble and unimportant, and whose exposition is usually irksome, especially to minds accustomed to the contemplation of the more sublime truths of religion. If the Wisdom of the eternal Father descended upon the earth in the meanness of our flesh to teach us the maxims of a heavenly life, who is there whom the love of Christ does not constrain to become little in the midst of his brethren, and, as a nurse fostering her children, so anxiously to wish for the salvation of his neighbours as to be ready, as the Apostle says of himself, to give them not only the gospel of God, but even his own life.
Study Of The Word Of God
Now all the doctrines in which the faithful are to be instructed are contained in the Word of God, which is found in Scripture and tradition. To the study of these, therefore, the pastor should devote his days and his nights, keeping in mind the admonition of St. Paul to Timothy, which all who have the care of souls should consider as addressed to themselves: Attend to reading, to exhortation, and to doctrine, for all Scripture divinely inspired is profitable to teach, to reprove, to correct, to instruct injustice, that the man of God may be perfect, furnished to every good work.
Division of this Catechism
The truths revealed by Almighty God are so many and so various that it is no easy task to acquire a knowledge of them, or, having done so, to remember them so well as to be able to explain them with ease and readiness when occasion requires. Hence our predecessors in the faith have very wisely reduced all the doctrines of salvation to these four heads: The Apostles' Creed, the Sacraments, the Ten Commandments, and the Lord's Prayer.
The part on the Creed contains all that is to be held according to Christian faith, whether it regard the knowledge of God, the creation and government of the world, or the redemption of man, the rewards of the good and the punishments of the wicked. The part devoted to the Seven Sacraments teaches us what are the signs, and, as it were, the instruments of grace. In the part on the Decalogue is described whatever has reference to the law, whose end is charity. Finally, the Lord's Prayer contains whatever can be the object of the Christian's desires, or hopes, or prayers. The exposition, therefore, of these four parts, which are, as it were, the general heads of Sacred Scripture, includes almost everything that a Christian should learn.
How This Work Is To Be Used
We therefore deem it proper to inform pastors that, whenever they have occasion, in the ordinary discharge of their duty, to expound any passage of the Gospel or any other part of Holy Scripture. they will find its subject-matter treated under some one of the four heads already enumerated, to which they recur, as to the source from which their instruction is to be drawn.
Thus, if the Gospel of the first Sunday of Advent is to be explained, There shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, etc., whatever regards its explanation is contained under the Article of the Creed, He shall come to judge the living and the dead; and by embodying the substance of that Article in his exposition, the pastor will at once instruct his people in the Creed and in the Gospel. Whenever, therefore, he has to communicate instruction and expound the Scriptures, he will observe the same rule of referring all to these four principal heads under which, as we observed, the whole teaching and doctrine of Holy Scripture is contained. As for order, however, he is free to follow that which he deems best suited to the circumstances of persons and time.
PART I : THE CREED
Faith
In preparing and instructing men in the teachings of Christ the Lord, the Fathers began by explaining the meaning of faith. Following their example, we have thought it well to treat first what pertains to that virtue.
Though the word faith has a variety of meanings in the Sacred Scriptures, we here speak only of that faith by which we yield our entire assent to whatever has been divinely revealed.
Necessity Of Faith
That faith thus understood is necessary to salvation no man can reasonably doubt, particularly since it is written: Without faith it is impossible to please God. For as the end proposed to man as his ultimate happiness is far above the reach of human understanding, it was therefore necessary that it should be made known to him by God. This knowledge, however, is nothing else than faith, by which we yield our unhesitating assent to whatever the authority of our Holy Mother the Church teaches us to have been revealed by God; for the faithful cannot doubt those things of which God, who is truth itself, is the author. Hence we see the great difference that exists between this faith which we give to God and that which we yield to the writers of human history.
Unity Of Faith
Faith differs in degree; for we read in Scripture these words: O thou of little faith, why didst thou doubt; and Great is thy faith; and Increase our faith. It also differs in dignity, for we read: Faith without works is dead; and, Faith that worketh by charity. But although faith is so comprehensive, it is yet the same in kind, and the full force of its definition applies equally to all its varieties. How fruitful it is and how great are the advantages we may derive from it we shall point out when explaining the Articles of the Creed.
The Creed
Now the chief truths which Christians ought to hold are those which the holy Apostles, the leaders and teachers of the faith, inspired by the Holy Ghost' have divided into the twelve Articles of the Creed. For having received a command from the Lord to go forth into the whole world, as His ambassadors, and preach the Gospel to every creature, they thought it advisable to draw up a formula of Christian faith, that all might think and speak the same thing, and that among those whom they should have called to the unity of the faith no schisms would exist, but that they should be perfect in the same mind, and in the same judgment.
This profession of Christian faith and hope, drawn up by themselves, the Apostles called a symbol; either because it was made up of various parts, each of which was contributed by an Apostle, or because by it, as by a common sign and watchword, they might easily distinguish deserters from the faith and false brethren unawares brought in, adulterating the word of God, from those who had truly bound themselves by oath to serve under the banner of Christ.
Division Of The Creed
Christianity proposes to the faithful many truths which, either separately or in general, must be held with an assured and firm faith. Among these what must first and necessarily be believed by all is that which God Himself has taught us as the foundation and summary of truth concerning the unity of the Divine Essence, the distinction of Three Persons, and the actions which are peculiarly attributed to each. The pastor should teach that the Apostles, Creed briefly comprehends the doctrine of this mystery.
For, as has been observed by our predecessors in the faith, who have treated this subject with great piety and accuracy, the Creed seems to be divided into three principal parts: one describing the First Person of the Divine Nature, and the stupendous work of the creation; another, the Second Person, and the mystery of man's redemption; a third, the Third Person, the head and source of our sanctification; the whole being expressed in various and most appropriate propositions. These propositions are called Articles, from a comparison frequently used by the Fathers; for as the members of the body are divided by joints (articuli), so in this profession of faith, whatever is to be believed distinctly and separately from anything else is rightly and suitably called an Article.
ARTICLE I : "I BELIEVE IN GOD, THE FATHER ALMIGHTY, CREATOR OF HEAVEN AND EARTH"
Meaning Of This Article
The meaning of the above words is this: I believe with certainty, and without a shadow of doubt profess my belief in God the Father, the First Person of the Trinity, who by His omnipotence created from nothing and preserves and governs the heavens and the earth and all things which they contain; and not only do I believe in Him from my heart and profess this belief with my lips, but with the greatest ardour and piety I tend towards Him, as the supreme and most perfect good.
Let this serve as a brief summary of this first Article. But since great mysteries lie concealed under almost every word, the pastor must now give them a more careful consideration, in order that, as far as God has permitted, the faithful may approach, with fear and trembling, to contemplate the glory of His majesty.
"I Believe"
The word believe does not here mean to think, to suppose, lo be of opinion; but, as the Sacred Scriptures teach, it expresses the deepest conviction, by which the mind gives a firm and unhesitating assent to God revealing His mysterious truths. As far, therefore, as regards use of the word here, he who firmly and without hesitation is convinced of anything is said to believe.
Faith Excludes Doubt
The knowledge derived through faith must not be considered less certain because its objects are not seen; for the divine light by which we know them, although it does not render them evident, yet suffers us not to doubt them. For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath himself shone in our hearts, that the gospel be not hidden to us, as to those that perish.
Faith Excludes Curiosity
From what has been said it follows that he who is gifted with this heavenly knowledge of faith is free from an inquisitive curiosity. For when God commands us to believe He does not propose to us to search into His divine judgments, or inquire into their reason and cause, but demands an unchangeable faith, by which the mind rests content in the knowledge of eternal truth. And indeed, since we have the testimony of the Apostle that God is true; and every man a liar, and since it would argue arrogance and presumption to disbelieve the word of a grave and sensible man affirming anything as true, and to demand that he prove his statements by arguments or witnesses, how rash and foolish are those, who, hearing the words of God Himself, demand reasons for His heavenly and saving doctrines? Faith, therefore, must exclude not only all doubt, but all desire for demonstration.
Faith Requires Open Profession
The pastor should also teach that he who says, I believe, besides declaring the inward assent of the mind, which is an internal act of faith, should also openly profess and with alacrity acknowledge and proclaim what he inwardly and in his heart believes. For the faithful should be animated by the same spirit that spoke by the lips of the Prophet when he said: I believe; and therefore did I speak, and should follow the example of the Apostles who replied to the princes of the people: We cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard. They should be encouraged by these noble words of St. Paul: I am not ashamed of the gospel. For it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; and likewise by those other words; in which the truth of this doctrine is expressly confirmed: With the heart we believe unto justice; but with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
"In God"
From these words we may learn how exalted are the dignity and excellence of Christian wisdom, and what a debt of gratitude we owe to the divine goodness. For to us it is given at once to mount as by the steps of faith to the knowledge of what is most sublime and desirable.
Knowledge Of God More Easily Obtained Through Faith Than Through Reason
There is a great difference between Christian philosophy and human wisdom. The latter, guided solely by the light of nature, advances slowly by reasoning on sensible objects and effects, and only after long and laborious investigation is it able at length to contemplate with difficulty the invisible things of God, to discover and understand a First Cause and Author of all things. Christian philosophy, on the contrary, so quickens the human mind that without difficulty it pierces the heavens, and, illumined with divine light, contemplates first, the eternal source of light, and in its radiance all created things: so that we experience with the utmost pleasure of mind that we have been called, as the Prince of the Apostles says, out of darkness into his admirable light, and believing we rejoice with joy unspeakable.
Justly, therefore, do the faithful profess first to believe in God, whose majesty, with the Prophet Jeremias, we declare incomprehensible. For, as the Apostle says, He dwells in light inaccessible, which no man hath seen, nor can see; as God Himself, speaking to Moses, said: No man shall see my face and live. The mind cannot rise to the contemplation of the Deity, whom nothing approaches in sublimity, unless it be entirely disengaged from the senses, and of this in the present life we art naturally incapable.
Knowledge Of God Obtained Through Faith Is Clearer
But while this is so, yet God, as the Apostle says, left not himself without testimony, doing good from heaven, giving rains and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with food and gladness. Hence it is that the philosophers conceived no mean idea of the Divinity, ascribed to Him nothing corporeal, gross or composite. They considered Him the perfection and fullness of all good, from whom, as from an eternal, inexhaustible fountain of goodness and benignity, flows every perfect gift to all creatures. They called Him the wise, the author and lover of truth, the just, the most beneficent, and gave Him also many other appellations expressive of supreme and absolute perfection. They recognised that His immense and infinite power fills every place and extends to all things
These truths the Sacred Scriptures express far better and much more clearly, as in the following passages: God is a spirit; Be ye perfect, even as also your heavenly Father is perfect; All things are naked and open to his eyes; O the depth of the riches of the wisdom and of the knowledge of God! God is true; I am the way, the truth, and the life; Thy right hand is full of justice; Thou openest thy hand, and fillest with blessing every living creature; and finally: Whither shall go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy face? If I ascend into heaven, thou art there; if I descend into hell, thou art there. If I take my wings early in the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, etc., and Do I not fill heaven and earth, saith the Lord?
Knowledge Of God Obtained Through Faith Is More Certain
These great and sublime truths regarding the nature of God, which are in full accord with Scripture, the philosophers were able to learn from an investigation of God's works. But even here we see the necessity of divine revelation if we reflect that not only does faith, as we have already observed, make known clearly and at once to the rude and unlettered, those truths which only the learned could discover, and that by long study; but also that the knowledge obtained through faith is much more certain and more secure against error than if it were the result of philosophical inquiry.
Knowledge Of God Obtained Through Faith Is More Ample And Exalted
But how much more exalted must not that knowledge of the Deity be considered, which cannot be acquired in common by all from the contemplation of nature, but is peculiar to those who are illumined by the light of faith ?
This knowledge is contained in the Articles of the Creed, which disclose to us the unity of the Divine Essence and the distinction of Three Persons, and show also that God Himself is the ultimate end of our being, from whom we are to expect the enjoyment of the eternal happiness of heaven, according to the words of St. Paul: God is a rewarder of them that seek Him. How great are these rewards, and whether they are such that human knowledge could aspire to their attainment, we learn from these words of Isaias uttered long before those of the Apostle: From the beginning of the world they have not heard, nor perceived with the ears: the eye hath not seen besides thee, O God, what things thou hast prepared for them that wait for thee.
The Unity Of Nature In God
From what is said it must also be confessed that there is but one God, not many gods. For we attribute to God supreme goodness and infinite perfection, and it is impossible that what? is supreme and most perfect could be common to many. If a being lack anything that constitutes supreme perfection, it is therefore imperfect and cannot have the nature of God.
The unity of God is also proved from many passages of Sacred Scripture. It is written: Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord; again the Lord commands: Thou shalt not have strange gods before me; and further He often admonishes us by the Prophet: I am the first, and I am the last, and besides me there is no God. The Apostle also openly declares: One Lord, one faith, one baptism.
It should not, however, excite our surprise if the Sacred Scriptures sometimes give the name of God to creatures. For when they call the Prophets and judges gods, they do not speak according to the manner of the Gentiles, who, in their folly and impiety, formed to themselves many gods; but express, by a manner of speaking then in use, some eminent quality or function conferred on such persons by the gift of God.
The Trinity Of Persons In God
The Christian faith, therefore, believes and professes, as is declared in the Nicene Creed in confirmation of this truth, that God in His Nature, Substance and Essence is one.- But soaring still higher, it so understands Him to be one that it adores unity in trinity and trinity in unity. Of this mystery we now proceed to speak, as it comes next in order in the Creed.
"The Father"
As God is called Father for more reasons than one, we must first determine the more appropriate sense in which the word is used in the present instance.
God Is Called Father Because He Is Creator And Ruler
Even some on whose darkness the light of faith never shone conceived God to be an eternal substance from whom all things have their beginning, and by whose Providence they are governed and preserved in their order and state of existence. Since, therefore, he to whom a family owes its origin and by whose wisdom
derived from human things these persons gave the name Father to God, whom they acknowledge to be the Creator and Governor of the universe. The Sacred Scriptures also, when they wish to show that to God must be ascribed the creation of all things, supreme power and admirable Providence, make use of the same name. Thus we read: Is not he thy Father, that hath possessed thee, and made thee and created thee? And: Have we not all one Father? hath not one God created us?
God Is Called Father Because He Adopts Christians Through Grace
But God, particularly in the New Testament, is much more frequently, and in some sense peculiarly, called the Father of Christians, who have not received the spirit of bondage again in fear; but have received the spirit of adoption of sons (of God), whereby they cry: Abba (Father). For the Father hath bestowed upon us that manner of charity that we should be called, and be the sons of God, and if sons, heirs also; heirs indeed of God, and joint-heirs with Christ, who is the first-born amongst many brethren, and is not ashamed to call us brethren. Whether, therefore, we look to the common title of creation and Providence, or to the special one of spiritual adoption, rightly do the faithful profess their belief that God is their Father.
The Name Father Also Discloses The Plurality Of Persons In God
But the pastor should teach that on hearing the word Father, besides the ideas already unfolded, the mind should rise to more exalted mysteries. Under the name Father, the divine oracles begin to unveil to us a mysterious truth which is more abstruse and more deeply hidden in that inaccessible light in which God dwells, and which human reason and understanding could not attain to, nor even conjecture to exist.
This name implies that in the one Essence of the Godhead is proposed to our belief, not only one Person, but a distinction of persons; for in one Divine Nature there are Three Persons-the Father, begotten of none; the Son, begotten of the Father before all ages; the Holy Ghost, proceeding from the Father and the likewise, from all eternity
The Doctrine Of The Trinity
In the one Substance of the Divinity the Father is the First Person, who with His Only-begotten Son, and the Holy Ghost, is one God and one Lord, not in the singularity of one Person, but in the trinity of one Substance. These Three Persons, since it would be impiety to assert that they are unlike or unequal in any thing, are understood to be distinct only in their respective properties. For the Father is unbegotten, the Son begotten of the Father, and the Holy Ghost proceeds from both. Thus we acknowledge the Essence and the Substance of the Three Persons to be the same in such wise that we believe that in confessing the true and eternal God we are piously and religiously to adore distinction in the Persons, unity in the Essence, and equality in the Trinity.
Hence, when we say that the Father is the First Person, we are not to be understood to mean that in the Trinity there is anything first or last, greater or less. Let none of the faithful be guilty of such impiety, for the Christian religion proclaims the same eternity, the same majesty of glory in the Three Persons. But since the Father is the Beginning without a beginning, we truly and unhesitatingly affirm that He is the First Person, and as He is distinct from the Others by His peculiar relation of paternity, so of Him alone is it true that He begot the Son from eternity. For when in the Creed we pronounce together the words God and Father, it means that He was always both God and Father.
Practical Admonitions Concerning The Mystery Of The Trinity
Since nowhere is a too curious inquiry more dangerous, or error more fatal, than in the knowledge and exposition of this, the most profound and difficult of mysteries, let the pastor teach that the terms nature and person used to express this mystery should be most scrupulously retained; and let the faithful know that unity belongs to essence, and distinction to persons.
But these are truths which should not be made the subject of too subtle investigation, when we recollect that he who is a searcher of majesty shall be overwhelmed by glory. We should be satisfied with the assurance and certitude which faith gives us that we have been taught these truths by God Himself, to doubt whose word is the extreme of folly and misery. He has said: Teach ye all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost; and again, there are three who give testimony in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost; and these three are one.
Let him, however, who by the divine bounty believes these truths, constantly beseech and implore God and the Father, who made all things out of nothing, and ordereth an things sweetly, who gave us power to become the sons of God, and who made known to the human mind the mystery of the Trinity -- let him, I say, pray unceasingly that, admitted one day into the eternal tabernacles, he may be worthy to see how great is the fecundity of the Father, who contemplating and understanding Himself, begot the Son like and equal to Himself, how a love of charity in both, entirely the same and equal, which is the Holy Ghost, proceeding from the Father and the Son, connects the begetter and the begotten by an eternal and indissoluble bond; and that thus the Essence of the Trinity is one and the distinction of the Three Persons perfect.
"Almighty"
The Sacred Scriptures, in order to mark the piety and devotion with which the most holy name of God is to be adored, usually express His supreme power and infinite majesty in a variety of ways; but the pastor should, first of all, teach that almighty power is most frequently attributed to Him. Thus He says of Himself: I am the almighty Lord and again, Jacob when sending his sons to Joseph thus prayed for them: May my almighty God make him favourable to you. In the Apocalypse also it is written: The Lord God, who is, and who was, and who is to come, the almighty; and in another place the last day is called the great day of the almighty God. Sometimes the same attribute is expressed in many words; thus: No word shall be impossible with God; Is the hand of the Lord unable? Thy power is at hand when thou wiIt, and so on.
Meaning Of The Term Almighty"
From these various modes of expression it is clearly perceived what is comprehended under this single word almighty. By it we understand that there neither exists nor can be conceived in thought or imagination anything which God cannot do. For not only can He annihilate all created things, and in a moment summon from nothing into existence many other worlds, an exercise of power which, however great, comes in some degree within our comprehension; but He can do many things still greater, of which the human mind can form no conception.
But though God can do all things, yet He cannot lie, or deceive, or be deceived; He cannot sin, or cease to exist, or be ignorant of anything. These defects are compatible with those beings only whose actions are imperfect; but God, whose acts are always most perfect, is said to be incapable of such things, simply because the capability of doing them implies weakness, not the supreme and infinite power over all things which God possesses. Thus we so believe God to be omnipotent that we exclude from Him entirely all that is not intimately connected and consistent with the perfection of His nature.
Why Omnipotence Alone Is Mentioned In The: Creed
The pastor should point out the propriety and wisdom of having omitted all other names of God in the Creed, and of having proposed to us only that of almighty as the object of our belief. For by acknowledging God to be omnipotent, we also of necessity acknowledge Him to be omniscient, and to hold all things in subjection to His supreme authority and dominion. When we do not doubt that He is omnipotent, we must be also convinced of everything else regarding Him, the absence of which would render His omnipotence altogether unintelligible.
Besides, nothing tends more to confirm our faith and animate our hope than a deep conviction that all things are possible to God; for whatever may be afterwards proposed as an object of faith, however great, however wonderful, however raised above the natural order, is easily and without hesitation believed, once the mind has grasped the knowledge of the omnipotence of God. Nay more, the greater the truths which the divine oracles announce, the more willingly does the mind deem them worthy of belief. And should we expect any favour from heaven, we are not discouraged by the greatness of the desired benefit, but are cheered and confirmed by frequently considering that there is nothing which an omnipotent God cannot effect.
Advantages Of Faith In God’s Omnipotence
With this faith, then, we should be specially fortified whenever we are required to render any extraordinary service to our neighbour or seek to obtain by prayer any favour from God. Its necessity in the one case we learn from the Lord Himself, who, when rebuking the incredulity of the Apostles, said: If you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you shall say to this mountain: Remove from hence thither, and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible to you; and in the other case, from these words of St. James: Let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea, which is moved and carried about by the wind. Therefore let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.
This faith brings with it also many advantages and helps. It forms us, in the first place, to all humility and lowliness of mind, according to these words of the Prince of the Apostles: Be you humbled therefore under the mighty hand of God. It also teaches us not to fear where there is no cause of fear, but to fear God alone, in whose power we ourselves and all that we have are placed; for our Saviour says: I will shew you whom you shall fear; fear ye him, who after he hath killed, hath power to cast into hell. This faith is also useful to enable us to know and exalt the infinite mercies of God towards us. For he who reflects on the omnipotence of God, cannot be so ungrateful as not frequently to exclaim: He that is mighty, hath done great things to me.
Not Three Almighties But One Almighty
When, however, in this Article we call the Father almighty, let no one be led into the error of thinking that this attribute is so ascribed to Him as not to belong also to the Son and the Holy Ghost. As we say the Father is God, the Son is God, the Holy Ghost is God, and yet there are not three Gods but one God; so in like manner we confess that the Father is almighty, the Son almighty, and the Holy Ghost almighty, and yet there are not three almighties but one almighty.
The Father, in particular, we call almighty, because He is the Source of all being; as we also attribute wisdom to the Son, because He is the eternal Word of the Father; and goodness to the Holy Ghost, because He is the love of both. These, however, and similar appellations, may be given indiscriminately to the Three Persons, according to the teaching of Catholic faith.
"Creator"
The necessity of having previously imparted to the faithful a knowledge of the omnipotence of God will appear from what we are now about to explain with regard to the creation of the world. The wondrous production of so stupendous a work is more easily believed when all doubt concerning the immense power of the Creator has been removed.
For God formed the world not from materials of any sort, but created it from nothing, and that not by constraint or necessity, but spontaneously, and of His own free will. Nor was He impelled to create by any other cause than a desire to communicate His goodness to creatures. Being essentially happy in Himself He stands not in need of anything, as David expresses it: I have said to the Lord, thou art my God, for thou hast no need of my goods.
As it was His own goodness that influenced Him when He did all things whatsoever He would, so in the work of creation He followed no external form or model; but contemplating, and as it were imitating, the universal model contained in the divine intelligence, the supreme Architect, with infinite wisdom and power-attributes peculiar to the Divinity -- created all things in the be ginning. He spoke and they were made: he commanded and they were created.
"Of Heaven and Earth"
The words heaven and earth include all things which the heaven's and the earth contain; for besides the heavens, which the Prophet has called the works of his fingers, He also gave to the sun its brilliancy, and to the moon and stars their beauty; and that they might be for signs, and for seasons, and for days and years. He so ordered the celestial bodies in a certain and uniform course, that nothing varies more than their continual revolution, while nothing is more fixed than their variety.
Creation Of The World Of Spirits
Moreover, He created out of nothing the spiritual world and Angels innumerable to serve and minister to Him; and these He enriched and adorned with the admirable gifts of His grace and power.
That the devil and the other rebel angels were gifted from the beginning of their creation with grace, clearly follows from these words of the Sacred Scriptures: He (the devil) stood not in the truth. On this subject St. Augustine says: In creating the Angels He endowed them with good will, that is, with pure love that they might adhere to Him, giving them existence and adorning them with grace at one and the same time. Hence we are to believe that the holy Angels were never without good will, that is, the love of God.
As to their knowledge we have this testimony of Holy Scripture: Thou, my Lord, O king, art wise, according to the wisdom of an angel of God, to understand all things upon earth.' Finally, the inspired David ascribes power to them, saying that they are mighty in strength, and execute his word; and on this account they are often called in Scripture the powers and the armies of the Lord.
But although they were all endowed with celestial gifts, very many, having rebelled against God, their Father and Creator, were hurled from those high mansions of bliss, and shut up in the darkest dungeon of earth, there to suffer for eternity the punishment of their pride. Speaking of them the Prince of the Apostles says: God spared not the angels that sinned, but delivered them, drawn by infernal ropes to the lower hell, unto torments, to be reserved unto judgment.
Formation Of The Universe
The earth also God commanded to stand in the midst of the world, rooted in its own foundation, and made the mountains ascend, and the plains descend into the place which he had founded for them. That the waters should not inundate the earth, He set a bound which they shall not pass over; neither shall they return to cover the earth. He next not only clothed and adorned it with trees and every variety of plant and flower, but filled it, as He had already filled the air and water, with innumerable kinds of living creatures.
Production Of Man
Lastly, He formed man from the slime of the earth, so created and constituted in body as to be immortal and impassible, not, however, by the strength of nature, but by the bounty of God. Man's soul He created to His own image and likeness; gifted him with free will, and tempered all his motions and appetites so as to subject them, at all times, to the dictates of reason. He then added the admirable gift of original righteousness, and next gave him dominion over all other animals. By referring to the sacred history of Genesis the pastor will easily make himself familiar with these things for the instruction of the faithful.
"Of all Things Visible and Invisible"
What we have said, then, of the creation of the universe is to be understood as conveyed by the words heaven and earth, and is thus briefly set forth by the Prophet: Thine are the heavens, and thine is the earth: the world and the fullness thereof thou hast founded. Still more briefly the Fathers of the Council of Nice expressed this truth by adding in their Creed these words: of all things visible and invisible. Whatever exists in the universe, whatever we confess to have been created by God, either falls under the senses and is included in the word visible, or is an object of mental perception and intelligence and is expressed by the word invisible.
God Preserves, Rules And Moves All Created Things
We are not, however, to understand that God is in such wise the Creator and Maker of all things that His works, when once created and finished, could thereafter continue to exist unsupported by His omnipotence. For as all things derive existence from the Creator's supreme power, wisdom, and goodness, so unless preserved continually by His Providence, and by the same power which produced them, they would instantly return into their nothingness. This the Scriptures declare when they say: How could anything endure if thou wouldst not? or be preserved, if not called by thee?
Not only does God protect and govern all things by His Providence, but He also by an internal power impels to motion and action whatever moves and acts, and this in such a manner that, although He excludes not, He yet precedes the agency of secondary causes. For His invisible influence extends to all things, and, as the Wise Man says, reaches from end to end mightily, and ordereth all things sweetly. This is the reason why the Apostle, announcing to the Athenians the God whom, not knowing, they adored, said: He is not far from every one of us: for in him we live, and move, and are.
Creation Is The Work Of The Three Persons
Let so much suffice for the explanation of the first Article of the Creed. It may not be superfluous, however, to add that creation is the common work of the Three Persons of the Holy and undivided Trinity, -- of the Father, whom according to the doctrine of the Apostles we here declare to be Creator of heaven and earth; of the Son, of whom the Scripture says, all things were made by him; and of the Holy Ghost, of whom it is written: The spirit of God moved over the waters, and again, By the word of the Lord the heavens were established; and all the power of them by the spirit of his mouth.
ARTICLE II : "AND IN JESUS CHRIST, HIS ONLY SON, OUR LORD"
Advantages Of Faith In This Article
That wonderful and superabundant are the blessings which flow to the human race from the belief and profession of this Article we learn from these words of St. John: Whosoever shall