(Death, Heaven, Purgatory, Hell)
Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults
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Glossary of the Catechism of the Catholic Church
Prefatory Note to the Glossary
Even before the
promulgation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, a Glossary had been
proposed to provide assistance to those who would use the new Catechism. This
Glossary has been prepared by Archbishop William J. Levada, who served as a
member of the Editorial Committee of the Special Commission of the Holy See for
the Catechism of the Catholic Church. It has been reviewed by the NCCB ad hoc
Committee to Oversee the Use of the Catechism, as well as by the chairman and
staff of the NCCB Committee on Doctrine.
This Glossary has been composed with reference to the language of the Catechism
itself: the numbers in parentheses refer to the number(s) in the Catechism where
the term or concept is explained. The criterion for the selection of words
included in this Glossary is twofold: (1) unfamiliar or technical terms are
defined, in order to assist readers who are not acquainted with them through
formal religious or theological studies; and (2) multiple meanings or uses of
familiar terms are presented, thus alerting readers to the various uses of the
term in Church doctrine. Common words and most proper names are not listed in
this Glossary, nor are religious terms which are not directly or indirectly
present in the Catechism.
It is important to remember that this Glossary, like the Catechism's Indexes, is
an additional instrument by which readers may find assistance in their use of
the Catechism itself. While the Glossary is faithful to the language of the
Catechism, it does not participate in the approval of the text of the Catechism
given in the Apostolic Constitution Fidei depositum of Pope John Paul II.
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ABORTION: Deliberate termination of pregnancy by killing the unborn child. Such direct abortion, willed either as an end or a means, is gravely contrary to the moral law. The Church attaches the canonical penalty of excommunication to this crime against human life (2271-2272).
ABRAHAM: The man of faith and patriarch of Israel with whom God made a covenant which promised him land in which to live and many descendants, a great people for whom the Lord would be their God. Through Abraham God formed the people to whom he would later give the law by revelation to Moses. With the advent of Christ, the people of Israel would serve as the root to which the Gentiles would be grafted by their coming to believe (59, 72, 145, 705, 762, 2570).
ABSOLUTION: An essential element of the Sacrament of Penance in which the priest, by the power entrusted to the Church by Christ, pardons the sin(s) of the penitent (1424, 1442, 1449, 1453, 1480).
ACEDIA: A less common synonym for sloth, one of the seven "capital" sins (1866). See Sloth.
ACOLYTE: A liturgical minister appointed to assist at liturgical celebrations. Priests and deacons receive this ministry before they are ordained. Lay men may be installed permanently in the ministry of acolyte through a rite of institution and blessing (903, 1672).
ADAM: According to the creation story in Genesis, the first man. From this story the Church has learned that humanity was originally created in a state of holiness and justice and that the first ancestors of the human race lost this state for themselves and all humanity by their sin ("original sin"). Christ is called the "second" or "new Adam" because he ushered in the new creation by forgiving sin and restoring humanity to the grace of God's friendship lost by original sin (359, 375, 388, 390, 402-404, 504; cf. 635, 655).
ADORATION: The acknowledgment of God as God, Creator and Savior, the Lord and Master of everything that exists. Through worship and prayer, the Church and individual persons give to God the adoration which is the first act of the virtue of religion. The first commandment of the law obliges us to adore God (2096, 2628; cf. 1083).
ADULTERY: Marital infidelity, or sexual relations between two partners, at least one of whom is married to another party. The sixth commandment and the New Testament forbid adultery absolutely (2380; cf. 1650).
ADVENT: The liturgical season of four weeks devoted to preparation for the coming of Christ at Christmas (524).
ALMSGIVING: Money or goods given to the poor as an act of penance or fraternal charity. Almsgiving, together with prayer and fasting, are traditionally recommended to foster the state of interior penance (1434; cf. 1969, 2447).
ALTAR: The center and focal point of a church, where the sacrifice of Christ on the cross is made present under sacramental signs in the Mass. Among the Israelites the altar was the place where sacrifices were offered to God. The Christian altar represents two aspects of the mystery of the Eucharist, as the altar of sacrifice where Christ as the sacrificial victim offers himself for our sins and as the table of the Lord where Christ gives himself to us as food from heaven (1182, 1383).
AMEN: A Hebrew word meaning "truly; it is so; let it be done," signifying agreement with what has been said. The prayers of the New Testament and of the Church's liturgy, and the Creeds, conclude with "amen." Jesus used the word to introduce solemn assertions, to emphasize their trustworthiness and authority (1061, 1345, 1396, 2856, 2865).
ANALOGY OF FAITH: The coherence of the truths of the faith among themselves and within the whole plan of Revelation (114).
ANAMNESIS: The "remembrance" of God's saving deeds in history in the liturgical action of the Church, which inspires thanksgiving and praise (1103). Every Eucharistic Prayer contains an anamnesis or memorial in which the Church calls to mind the Passion, Resurrection, and glorious return of Christ Jesus (1354, 1362).
ANAPHORA: The Eucharistic Prayer--the prayer of thanksgiving and consecration--which is the heart and summit of the celebration of the Mass (1352).
ANGEL: A spiritual, personal, and immortal creature, with intelligence and free will, who glorifies God without ceasing and who serves God as a messenger of his saving plan (329-331). See Guardian Angels.
ANGER: An emotion which is not in itself wrong, but which, when it is not controlled by reason or hardens into resentment and hate, becomes one of the seven capital sins. Christ taught that anger is an offense against the fifth commandment (1765, 1866, 2262).
ANNUNCIATION: The visit of the angel Gabriel to the virgin Mary to inform her that she was to be the mother of the Savior. After giving her consent to God's word, Mary became the mother of Jesus by the power of the Holy Spirit (484, 494).
ANOINTING: A symbol of the Holy Spirit, whose "anointing" of Jesus as Messiah fulfilled the prophecies of the Old Testament. Christ (in Hebrew Messiah) means the one "anointed" by the Holy Spirit. Anointing is the sacramental sign of Confirmation, called Chrismation in the Churches of the East. Anointings form part of the liturgical rites of the catechumenate, and of the Sacraments of Baptism and Holy Orders (695). See Christ.
ANOINTING OF THE SICK: One of the seven sacraments, also known as the "sacrament of the dying," administered by a priest to a baptized person who begins to be in danger of death because of illness or old age, through prayer and the anointing of the body with the oil of the sick. The proper effects of the sacrament include a special grace of healing and comfort to the Christian who is suffering the infirmities of serious illness or old age, and the forgiving of the person's sins (1499, 1520, 1523, 1526-1532).
ANTICHRIST: The "deceitful one" referred to in the New Testament, associated with the "mystery of iniquity" which will precede the second coming of Christ, through which people will be led away from the truth to follow a false "messianism," by which man glorifies himself and human achievement in place of God and his Messiah come in the flesh, in whom the kingdom will be fulfilled (675-677).
APOSTASY: The total repudiation of the Christian faith (2089; cf. 817).
APOSTLE: A term meaning one who is sent as Jesus was sent by the Father, and as he sent his chosen disciples to preach the Gospel to the whole world. He called the Twelve to become his Apostles, chosen witnesses of his Resurrection and the foundation on which the Church is built (857).
The apostolic office is permanent in the Church, in order to ensure that the divine mission entrusted to the Apostles by Jesus will continue to the end of time. The bishops receive their office as successors of the Apostles through the Sacrament of Holy Orders (860). See Apostolic Succession.
APOSTLES' CREED: A statement of Christian faith developed from the baptismal creed or "symbol" of the ancient Church of Rome, the see of St. Peter, first of the Apostles. The Apostles' Creed is considered to be a faithful summary of the faith of the Apostles (194).
APOSTOLATE: The activity of the Christian which fulfills the apostolic nature of the whole Church by working to extend the reign of Christ to the entire world (863).
APOSTOLIC SUCCESSION: The handing on of apostolic preaching and authority from the Apostles to their successors the bishops through the laying on of hands, as a permanent office in the Church (77, 861).
APPARITION: An appearance to people on earth of a heavenly being--Christ, Mary, an angel, or a saint. The apparitions of Jesus in his risen body to his disciples occurred between Easter and his Ascension into heaven (641, 659).
ASCENSION: The entry of Jesus' humanity into divine glory in God's heavenly domain, forty days after his Resurrection (659, 665).
ASCESIS: The practice of penance, mortification, and self-denial to promote greater self-mastery and to foster the way of perfection by embracing the way of the cross (2015).
ASSUMPTION: The dogma which recognizes the Blessed Virgin Mary's singular participation in her Son's Resurrection by which she was taken up body and soul into heavenly glory, when the course of her earthly life was finished (966).
ATHEISM: The denial in theory and/or practice that God exists. Atheism is a sin against the virtue of religion required by the first commandment of the law (2124-2125).
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BAPTISM: The first of the seven sacraments, and the "door" which gives access to the other sacraments. Baptism is the first and chief sacrament of forgiveness of sins because it unites us with Christ, who died for our sins and rose for our justification. Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist constitute the "sacraments of initiation" by which a believer receives the remission of original and personal sin, begins a new life in Christ and the Holy Spirit, and is incorporated into the Church, the Body of Christ. The rite of Baptism consists in immersing the candidate in water, or pouring water on the head, while pronouncing the invocation of the Most Holy Trinity: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (977, 1213 ff.; 1275, 1278).
BEATIFIC VISION: The contemplation of God in heavenly glory, a gift of God which is a constitutive element of the happiness (or beatitude) of heaven (1028, 1720).
BEATITUDE: Happiness or blessedness, especially the eternal happiness of heaven, which is described as the vision of God, or entering into God's rest by those whom He makes "partakers of the divine nature" (1024, 1721).
BEATITUDES: The teachings of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount on the meaning and way to true happiness (cf. Mt 5:1-12; Lk 6: 20-23). These teachings reflect the promises made to the chosen people since Abraham; they portray the countenance of Christ and describe his charity. More- over, by shedding light on the actions and attitudes characteristic of the Christian life, they describe the vocation of all the faithful (1716).
BIBLE: Sacred Scripture: the books which contain the truth of God's Revelation and were composed by human authors inspired by the Holy Spirit (105). The Bible contains both the forty-six books of the Old Testament and the twenty-seven books of the New Testament (120). See Old Testament; New Testament.
BIBLICAL INSPIRATION: The gift of the Holy Spirit which assisted a human author to write a biblical book so that it has God as its author and teaches faithfully, without error, the saving truth that God has willed to be consigned to us (105).
BISHOP: One who has received the fullness of the Sacrament of Holy Orders, which makes him a member of the episcopal college and a successor of the Apostles. He is the shepherd of a particular church entrusted to him (1557; cf. 861, 886).
BLASPHEMY: Speech, thought, or action involving contempt for God or the Church, or persons or things dedicated to God. Blasphemy is directly opposed to the second commandment (2148).
BLESSED SACRAMENT: A name given to the Holy Eucharist, especially the consecrated elements reserved in the tabernacle for adoration, or for the sick (1330).
BLESSING: A blessing or benediction is a prayer invoking God's power and care upon some person, place, thing, or undertaking. The prayer of benediction acknowledges God as the source of all blessing. Some blessings confer a permanent status: consecration of persons to God, or setting things apart for liturgical usage (1671, 2626).
BODY OF CHRIST: (1) The human body which the Son of God assumed through his conception in the womb of Mary and which is now glorified in heaven (467, 476, 645). (2) This same Body and Blood, together with the soul and divinity, of our Lord Jesus Christ are sacramentally present in the Eucharist under the appearances of bread and wine (1374). (3) The Church is called the (mystical) Body of Christ because of the intimate communion which Jesus shares with his disciples; the metaphor of a body, whose head is Christ and whose members are the faithful, provides an image which keeps in focus both the unity and the diversity of the Church (787, 790, 1396).
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CALUMNY: A false statement which harms the reputation of others and gives occasion for false judgments concerning them (2477).
CANON LAW: The rules (canons or laws) which provide the norms for good order in the visible society of the Church. Those canon laws that apply universally are contained in the Codes of Canon Law. The most recent Code of Canon Law was promulgated in 1983 for the Latin (Western) Church and in 1991 for the Eastern Church (The Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches).
CANON OF THE MASS: The central part of the Mass, also known as the Eucharistic Prayer or "anaphora," which contains the prayer of thanksgiving and consecration (1352).
CANON OF SCRIPTURE: The Church's complete list of sacred books of the Bible (120).
CANONIZATION: The solemn declaration by the Pope that a deceased member of the faithful may be proposed as a model and intercessor to the Christian faithful and venerated as a saint on the basis of the fact that the person lived a life of heroic virtue or remained faithful to God through martyrdom (828; cf. 957).
CAPITAL SINS: Sins which engender other sins and vices. They are traditionally numbered as seven: pride, covetousness, envy, anger, gluttony, lust, and sloth (1866).
CARDINAL VIRTUES: Four pivotal human virtues (from the Latin carbo, "pivot"): prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance. The human virtues are stable dispositions of the intellect and will that govern our acts, order our passions, and guide our conduct in accordance with reason and faith (1805, 1834).
CATECHESIS: An education of children, young people, and adults in the faith of the Church through the teaching of Christian doctrine in an organic and systematic way to make them disciples of Jesus Christ. Those who perform the ministry of catechists in the Church are called "catechists" (5, 426-427).
CATECHISM: A popular summary or compendium of Catholic doctrine about faith and morals and designed for use in catechists (11).
CATECHUMEN: A person who is preparing for Baptism. The catechumenate is the formation of these catechumens in preparation for their Christian Initiation, and aims at bringing their conversion and their faith to maturity within the occlusal community (1248). The candidates are anointed with oil of catechumens by which they are strengthened in their conversion from sin and renunciation of Satan (1237).
CATHEDRAL: The official church of the bishop of a diocese. The Greek word cathedra means chair or throne; the bishop's "chair" symbolizes his teaching and governing authority, and is located in the principal church or "cathedral" of the local diocese of which he is the chief pastor (cf. 1572).
CATHOLIC: One of the four marks or notes of the Church, taken from the Nicene Creed. The Church is catholic or universal both because she possesses the fullness of Christ's presence and the means of salvation, and because she has been sent out by Christ on a mission to the whole of the human race (750, 830).
CATHOLIC CHURCH: The Church established by Christ on the foundation of the Apostles, possessing the fullness of the means of salvation which he has willed: correct and complete confession of faith, full sacramental life, and ordained ministry in apostolic succession (830).
CELIBACY: The state or condition of those who have chosen to remain unmarried for the sake of the kingdom of heaven in order to give themselves entirely to God and to the service of his people. In the Latin Church, celibacy is obligatory for bishops and priests. In some Eastern Churches, celibacy is a prerequisite for the ordination only of bishops; priests may not marry after they have been ordained (1579, 1580).
CHARACTER, SACRAMENTAL: An indelible spiritual mark which is the permanent effect of the Sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, and Holy Orders, by which a person is given a new permanent configuration to Christ and a specific standing in the Church; the reception of these sacraments is never repeated (1272, 1304, 1582).
CHARISM: A specific gift or grace of the Holy Spirit which directly or indirectly benefits the Church, given in order to help a person live out the Christian life, or to serve the common good in building up the Church (799, 951).
CHARITY: The theological virtue by which we love God above all things for his own sake, and our neighbor as ourselves for the love of God (1822).
CHASTITY: The moral virtue which, under the cardinal virtue of temperance, provides for the successful integration of sexuality within the person leading to the inner unity of the bodily and spiritual being (2337). Chastity is called one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit (1832).
CHOIR: A group of persons trained to lead in the singing at liturgical celebrations (1143).
CHRISM: Perfumed oil, consecrated by the bishop, which signifies the gift of the Holy Spirit. Chrism is used for consecration in the Sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, and Holy Orders (1241, 1289, 1291, 1294).
CHRISMATION: The name used in the Eastern Churches for the Sacrament of Confirmation, from the "chrism" or "myron" used in the anointing (1289).
CHRIST: From the Greek translation of the Hebrew Messiah, which means "anointed." It became the name proper to Jesus because he accomplished perfectly the divine mission of priest, prophet, and King, signified by his anointing as Messiah, "Christ" (436). See Jesus Christ; Messiah; Anointing.
CHRISTIAN: A name derived from that of Christ himself. The name refers to all those who have been anointed through the gift of the Holy Spirit in Baptism; hence, the followers of Christ, the members of the Christian Church. According to Acts 11:26 "it was in Antioch that the disciples were first called Christians" (1289).
CHRISTMAS: The feast of the Nativity, the birth of Jesus (1171).
CHURCH: The name given the "convocation" or "assembly" of the People God has called together from "the ends of the earth." In Christian usage, the word "Church" has three inseparable meanings: the People that God gathers in the whole world; the particular or local church (diocese); and the liturgical (above all Eucharistic) assembly. The Church draws her life from the Word and the Body of Christ, and so herself becomes Christ's Body (752). In the Creed, the sole Church of Christ is professed to be one, holy, catholic, and apostolic (811).
CIRCUMCISION: The rite prescribed in Judaism and other cultures which involves cutting off the foreskin of a male. Circumcision was a sign of the covenant between God and his people Israel and prefigured the rite of Christian initiation in Baptism. Jesus was circumcised eight days after his birth in accord with Jewish law (527).
COLLEGIALITY: The principle that all the bishops of the Church with the Pope at their head form a single "college," which succeeds in every generation the "college" of the Twelve Apostles, with Peter at their head, which Christ instituted as the foundation of the Church. This college of bishops together with, but never without, the Pope has supreme and full authority over the universal Church (861, 880, 883).
COMMANDMENT: A norm of moral and/or religious action; above all, the Ten Commandments given by God to Moses. Jesus summarized all the commandments in the twofold command of love of God and love of neighbor (2052).
COMMANDMENTS OF THE CHURCH: See Precepts of the Church.
COMMUNION: Holy Communion, the reception of the Body and Blood of Christ in the Eucharist (1382). More generally, our fellowship and union with Jesus and other baptized Christians in the Church, which has its source and summit in the celebration of the Eucharist. In this sense, Church as communion is the deepest vocation of the Church (959).
COMMUNION OF SAINTS: The unity in Christ of all the redeemed, those on earth and those who have died. The communion of saints is professed in the Apostles' Creed, where it has also been interpreted to refer to unity in the "holy things" (communio sanctorum), especially the unity of faith and charity achieved through participation in the Eucharist (948, 957, 960, 1474).
CONCUPISCENCE: Human appetites or desires which remain disordered due to the temporal consequences of original sin, which remain even after Baptism, and which produce an inclination to sin (1264, 1426, 2515).
CONFESSION: An essential element of the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation, which consists in telling one's sins to the priestly minister. By extension, the word confession is used to refer to the Sacrament of Penance itself (1455).
CONFIRMATION: One of the ensemble of the Sacraments of Initiation into the Church, together with Baptism and Eucharist. Confirmation completes the grace of Baptism by a special outpouring of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, which seal or "confirm" the baptized in union with Christ and equip them for active participation in the worship and apostolic life of the Church (1285).
CONSCIENCE: The interior voice of a human being, within whose heart the inner law of God is inscribed. Moral conscience is a judgment of practical reason about the moral quality of a human action. It moves a person at the appropriate moment to do good and to avoid evil (1777-1778). An examination of conscience is recommended as a preparation for the reception of the Sacrament of Penance (1454).
CONSECRATED LIFE: A permanent state of life recognized by the Church, entered freely in response to the call of Christ to perfection, and characterized by the profession of the evangelical counsels of poverty, chastity, and obedience (914). See Vow.
CONSECRATED VIRGINS: Women who have decided with the Church's approval to cling only to the Lord and to live in a state of virginity "for the sake of the kingdom of heaven" and are consecrated in that state by a solemn rite (922-924).
CONSECRATION: The dedication of a thing or person to divine service by a prayer or blessing. The consecration at Mass is that part of the Eucharistic Prayer during which the Lord's words of institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper are recited by the priestly minister, making Christ's Body and Blood--his sacrifice offered on the cross once for all--sacramentally present under the species of bread and wine (1352, 1353).
CONTEMPLATION: A form of wordless prayer in which mind and heart focus on God's greatness and goodness in affective, loving adoration; to look on Jesus and the mysteries of his life with faith and love (2628, 2715).
CONTRACEPTION, ARTIFICIAL: The use of mechanical, chemical, or medical procedures to prevent conception from taking place as a result of sexual intercourse; contraception offends against the openness to procreation required of marriage and also the inner truth of conjugal love (2370).
CONTRITION: Sorrow of the soul and hatred for the sin committed, together with a resolution not to sin again. Contrition is the most important act of the penitent, and is necessary for the reception of the Sacrament of Penance (1451).
CONVERSION: A radical reorientation of the whole life away from sin and evil, and toward God. This change of heart or conversion is a central element of Christ's preaching, of the Church's ministry of evangelization, and of the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation (1427, 1431, 1423; cf. 821).
COUNCIL, ECUMENICAL: A gathering of all the bishops of the world, in the exercise of their collegial authority over the universal Church. An ecumenical council is usually called by the successor of St. Peter, the Pope, or at least confirmed or accepted by him (884).
COUNSEL: See Evangelical Counsels; Gifts of the Holy Spirit.
COVENANT: A solemn agreement between human beings or between God and a human being involving mutual commitments or guarantees. The Bible refers to God's covenants with Noah, Abraham, and Moses as leader of the chosen people, Israel. In the Old Testament or Covenant, God revealed his law through Moses and prepared his people for salvation through the prophets. In the New Testament or Covenant, Christ established a new and eternal covenant through his own sacrificial death and Resurrection. The Christian economy is the new and definitive Covenant which will never pass away, and no new public revelation is to be expected before the glorious manifestation of our Lord Jesus Christ (56, 62, 66). See Old Testament; New Testament.
COVETOUSNESS: A disordered inclination or desire for pleasure or possessions. One of the capital sins, it is proscribed by the ninth and tenth commandments (2514, 2534).
CREATION: The act by which the eternal God gave a beginning to all that exists outside of himself. Creation also refers to the created universe or totality of what exists, as often expressed by the formula "the heavens and the earth" (290).
CREED: A brief, normative summary statement or profession of Christian faith, e.g., the Apostles' Creed, the Nicene Creed. The word "Creed" comes from the Latin Credo, meaning "I believe," with which the Creed begins. Creeds are also called Symbols of Faith (187).
CROSS: The instrument of execution on which Christ died; a symbol of the unique sacrifice of Christ as sole mediator between God and man. Jesus invited his disciples to take up their cross and follow him, in order to associate with his redeeming sacrifice those who were to be its first beneficiaries. Catholics begin their prayers and actions with the Sign of the Cross "in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen." A devotional cross with the figure of Jesus suspended on it is called a "crucifix" (616, 618, 2166).
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DEACON, DIACONATE: A third degree of the hierarchy of the Sacrament of Holy Orders, after bishop and priest. The deacon is ordained not to priesthood but for ministry and service. Deacons are ordained to assist the bishop and priests in the celebration of the divine mysteries, above all the Eucharist, in the distribution of Holy Communion, in assisting at and blessing marriages, in the proclamation of the Gospel and preaching, in presiding over funerals, and in dedicating themselves to the various ministries of charity. While the Churches of the East have always had a functioning order of deacons, in the West the permanent diaconate was reestablished by the Second Vatican Council (1569, 1571).
DECALOGUE: The Ten Commandments (literally, "ten words") given by God to Moses on Sinai. In order to be faithful to the teaching of Jesus, the Decalogue must be interpreted in the light of the great commandment of love of God and neighbor (2055, 2056). See Commandment.
DEFINITION, DOGMATIC: A solemn declaration by an ecumenical council or by the Pope that a doctrine is revealed by God and must be believed by the universal Church; such definitions are called infallible, and must be adhered to with the obedience of faith (891).
DEMON: See Devil/Demon.
DEPOSIT OF FAITH: The heritage of faith contained in Sacred Scripture and Tradition, handed on in the Church from the time of the Apostles, from which the Magisterium draws all that it proposes for belief as being divinely revealed (84; cf. 1202).
DESCENT INTO HELL: An article in the Apostles' Creed referring to the victory over death and sin which Christ won by being "raised from the dead." Jesus, like all people, experienced death and in his soul joined the others in the realm of the dead, where he descended as Savior, proclaiming the Gospel to the spirits imprisoned there in order to free the just ones who had gone before him (632).
DESPAIR: The abandonment of hope in salvation and the forgiveness of sins (2091).
DETRACTION: Disclosure of another's faults and sins, without an objectively valid reason, to persons who did not know about them, thus causing unjust injury to that person's reputation (2477).
DEVELOPMENT, DOCTRINAL: Growth in the understanding of God's revelation, which continues though the contemplation and study of believers, theological research, and the preaching of the Magisterium (94).
DEVIL/DEMON: A fallen angel, who sinned against God by refusing to accept his reign. Satan or the devil, the Evil One, and the other demons were at first good angels, created naturally good, who became evil by their own doing (391, 1707; cf. 2851).
DIACONATE: See Deacon, Diaconate.
DIOCESE: A "particular church," a community of the faithful in communion of faith and sacraments whose bishop has been ordained in apostolic succession. A diocese is usually a determined geographic area; sometimes it may be constituted as a group of people of the same rite or language. In Eastern churches, an eparchy (833).
DISCIPLE: Those who accepted Jesus' message to follow him are called his disciples. Jesus associated his disciples with his own life, revealed the mystery of the Kingdom to the disciples and gave them a share in his mission, his joy, and his sufferings (767, 787).
DIVINE OFFICE: The Liturgy of the Hours, the public prayer of the Church which sanctifies the whole course of the day and night. Christ thus continues his priestly work through the prayer of his priestly people (1174).
DIVORCE: The claim that the indissoluble marriage bond validly entered into between a man and a woman is broken. A civil dissolution of the marriage contract (divorce) does not free persons from a valid marriage before God; remarriage would not be morally licit (2382; cf. 1650).
DOCTRINE/DOGMA: The revealed teachings of Christ which are proclaimed by the fullest extent of the exercise of the authority of the Church's Magisterium. The faithful are obliged to believe the truths or dogmas contained in divine Revelation and defined by the Magisterium (88).
DOXOLOGY: Christian prayer which gives praise and glory to God, often in a special way to the three divine persons of the Trinity. Liturgical prayers traditionally conclude with the doxology "to the Father, through the Son, in the Holy Spirit"; the final doxology of the Lord's Prayer renews the prayer's first three petitions in the form of adoration and praise (2639, 2855).
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EASTER: The greatest and oldest Christian feast, which celebrates Christ's Resurrection from the dead. Easter is the "feast of feasts," the solemnity of solemnities, the "Great Sunday." Christians prepare for it during Lent and Holy Week, and catechumens usually receive the Sacraments of Christian Initiation (Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist) at the Easter Vigil (1169; cf. 647).
EASTERN CHURCHES: Churches of the East in union with Rome (the Western Church), but not of Roman rite, with their own liturgical, theological, and administrative traditions, such as those of the Byzantine, Alexandrian or Coptic, Syriac, Armenian, Maronite, and Chaldean rites. The variety of particular churches with dis- tinctive traditions witnesses to the catholicity of the one Church of Christ, which takes root in distinct cultures (1202-1203; cf. 835).
ECCLESIASTIC/ECCLESIASTICAL: Pertaining to or of the Church (Greek/Latin: ecclesia). Hence ecclesiastical government is church government (857); an ecclesiastical province is a grouping of church jurisdictions or dioceses (887); an ecclesiastic is a church official.
ECONOMY: The structure and organization of productive work or activity in a society, forming the basis for financial support and stability of individuals, families, and society. The morality of economic activity is judged according to the seventh commandment; economic activity is one of the principal points addressed by the Church's social doctrine (2426, 2430).
ECONOMY OF SALVATION (DIVINE ECONOMY): From a Greek word (oikonomia, literally "management of a household" or "stewardship") which refers to God's revelation and communication of himself to the world in time for the sake of the salvation of all humanity; hence, the economy of salvation (258, 1066). The Fathers of the Church distinguished oikonomia from theologia; the latter term refers to the mystery of the internal life of the Trinity (236). The economy of salvation, on the other hand, refers to God's activity in creating and governing the world, particularly with regard to his plan for the salvation of the world in the person and work of Jesus Christ, a plan which is being accomplished through his Body the Church, in its life and sacraments; hence, the "sacramental economy" (1076, 1093).
ECUMENICAL COUNCIL: See Council, Ecumenical.
ECUMENISM: Promotion of the restoration of unity among all Christians, the unity which is a gift of Christ and to which the Church is called by the Holy Spirit. For the Catholic Church, the Decree on Ecumenism of the Second Vatican Council provides a charter for ecumenical efforts (8l6, 820-822).
ENCYCLICAL: A pastoral letter written by the Pope and sent to the whole Church and even to the whole world, to express Church teaching on some important matter. Encyclicals are expressions of the ordinary papal magisterium (cf. 892).
ENVY: Resentment or sadness at another's good fortune, and the desire to have it for oneself. One of the seven capital sins, envy is contrary to the tenth commandment (2539).
EPARCHY: See Diocese.
EPICLESIS: The prayer petitioning God to send the Holy Spirit so that the offerings at the Eucharist may become the Body and Blood of Christ and thus the faithful, by receiving them, may themselves become a living offering to God. In every sacrament, the prayer asking for the sanctifying power of God's Holy Spirit is an "epiclesis" (1105, 1127).
EPIPHANY: The feast which celebrates the manifestation to the world of the newborn Christ as Messiah, Son of God, and Savior of the world. The feast of Epiphany celebrates the adoration of Jesus by the wise men (magi) from the East, together with his baptism in the Jordan and the wedding feast of Cana in Galilee (528; cf. 535).
EPISCOPAL/EPISCOPATE: Pertaining to the office of bishop (Greek: episkopos), hence episcopal consecration, the episcopal college, episcopal conferences (883, 887, 1557). "Episcopate" is a collective noun referring to all those who have received sacramental ordination as bishops.
EREMITICAL LIFE: The life of a hermit, separate from the world in praise of God and for the salvation of the world, in the silence of solitude, assiduous prayer, and penance (920).
ESCHATOLOGY: From the Greek word eschaton, meaning "last." Eschatology refers to the area of Christian faith which is concerned about "the last things," and the coming of Jesus on "the last day": our human destiny, death, judgment, resurrection of the body, heaven, purgatory, and hell--all of which are contained in the final articles of the Creed (1001, 1020-1050; cf. 2771).
ETERNAL LIFE: Living forever with God in the happiness of heaven, entered after death by the souls of those who die in the grace and friendship of God (988, 1020). In preaching the kingdom of heaven, Jesus called all people to eternal life, which is anticipated in the grace of union with Christ: "This is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent" (Jn 17:3).
EUCHARIST: The ritual, sacramental action of thanksgiving to God which constitutes the principal Christian liturgical celebration of and communion in the paschal mystery of Christ. The liturgical action called the Eucharist is also traditionally known as the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. It is one of the seven sacraments of the Church; the Holy Eucharist completes Christian initiation (1322 ff.). The Sunday celebration of the Eucharist is at the heart of the Church's life (2l77). See Mass.
EUCHARISTIC PRAYER: See Canon of the Mass.
EUTHANASIA: An action or an omission which, of itself or by intention, causes the death of handicapped, sick, or dying persons--sometimes with an attempt to justify the act as a means of eliminating suffering. Euthanasia violates the fifth commandment of the law of God (2277).
EVANGELICAL COUNSELS: In general, the teachings of the New Law proposed by Jesus to his disciples which lead to the perfection of Christian life. In the New Law, the precepts are intended to remove whatever is incompatible with charity; the evangelical counsels are to remove whatever might hinder the development of charity, even if not contrary to it (1973). The public profession of the evangelical counsels of poverty, chastity, and obedience is a constitutive element of state of consecrated life in the Church (915).
EVANGELIST: One of the four authors to whom is ascribed the writing of the Gospels, i.e., Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John (125, 120). The term is also used for one who works actively to spread and promote the Christian faith.
EVANGELIZATION: The proclamation of Christ and his Gospel (Greek: evangelion) by word and the testimony of life, in fulfillment of Christ's command (905; cf. 861).
EVE: According to the creation story in Genesis, the first woman; wife of Adam. God did not create man a solitary being; from the beginning, "male and female he created them" (Gen 1:29) (369, 375). Because she is the mother of the eternal Son of God made man, Jesus Christ the "new Adam," Mary is called the "new Eve," the "mother of the living" in the order of grace (511). See Adam.
EVIL: The opposite or absence of good. One form of evil, physical evil, is a result of the "state of journeying" toward its ultimate perfection in which God created the world, involving the existence of the less perfect alongside the more perfect, the constructive and the destructive forces of nature, the appearance and disappearance of certain beings (310). Moral evil, however, results from the free choice to sin which angels and men have; it is permitted by God, who knows how to derive good from it, in order to respect the freedom of his creatures (311). The entire revelation of God's goodness in Christ is a response to the existence of evil (309, 385, 1707). The devil is called the Evil One. See Devil/Demon.
EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE: Prayerful self-reflection on our words and deeds in the light of the Gospel to determine how we may have sinned against God. The reception of the Sacrament of Penance ought to be prepared for by such an examination of conscience (1454).
EXCOMMUNICATION: A severe ecclesiastical penalty, resulting from grave crimes against the Catholic religion, imposed by ecclesiastical authority or incurred as a direct result of the commission of an offense. Excommunication excludes the offender from taking part in the Eucharist or other sacraments and from the exercise of any ecclesiastical office, ministry, or function (1463).
EXODUS: God's saving intervention in history by which he liberated the Hebrew people from slavery in Egypt, made a covenant with them, and brought them into the Promised Land. The Book of Exodus, the second of the Old Testament, narrates this saving history (62). The exodus is commemorated by the Jewish people at Passover, which for Christians is a foreshadowing of the "passover" of Jesus Christ from death to life and is celebrated in the memorial of the Eucharist (1363).
EXORCISM: The public and authoritative act of the Church to protect or liberate a person or object from the power of the devil (e.g., demonic possession) in the name of Christ (1673). A simple exorcism prayer in preparation for Baptism invokes God's help in overcoming the power of Satan and the spirit of evil (1237).
EXPIATION: The act of redemption and atonement for sin which Christ won for us by the pouring out of his Blood on the cross, by his obedient love "even to the end" (Jn 13:1) (433, 616, 1475). The expiation of sins continues in the mystical body of Christ and the communion of saints by joining our human acts of atonement to the redemptive action of Christ, both in this life and in Purgatory.
EXTREME UNCTION: See Anointing of the Sick.
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FAITH: Both a gift of God and a human act by which the believer gives personal adherence to God who invites his response, and freely assents to the whole truth that God has revealed. It is this revelation of God which the Church proposes for our belief, and which we profess in the Creed, celebrate in the sacraments, live by right conduct that fulfills the twofold commandment of charity (as specified in the ten commandments), and respond to in our prayer of faith. Faith is both a theological virtue given by God as grace, and an obligation which flows from the first commandment of God (26, 142, 150, 1814, 2087).
FAITHFUL, THE CHRISTIAN: Those who have been incorporated into Christ in Baptism and constituted as the people of God, the Church (871). The term "lay faithful" refers to the laity, all the faithful except those in Holy Orders and those who belong to a religious state approved by the Church (897).
FALL: (1) Biblical revelation about the reality of sin in human history. The Biblical story begins with the original sin freely committed by the first human beings. This primeval event is narrated in figurative language in the Book of Genesis, which describes this sin as a "fall" from God's friendship and grace, which they had received from God not only for themselves but for the whole human race (388, 390). (2) In the "fall" of angels, Scripture and Church tradition see the emergence of Satan and the "devil"; the "fall" of these angelic spirits was due to their freely chosen rejection of God and His reign (391-392).
FASTING: Refraining from food and drink as an expression of interior penance, in imitation of the fast of Jesus for forty days in the desert. Fasting is an ascetical practice recommended in Scripture and the writings of the Church Fathers; it is sometimes prescribed by a precept of the Church, especially during the liturgical season of Lent (538, 1434, 2043).
FATHER, GOD, THE: God, the first Person of the Blessed Trinity. Jesus revealed that God is Father in a unique way: not only as Creator, the origin of all things, but also as eternal Father in his relationship to his only Son, who is eternally begotten of the Father and consubstantial with the Father (240, 242).
FATHERS OF THE CHURCH: Church teachers and writers of the early centuries whose teachings are a witness to the Tradition of the Church (78, 688).
FEAR OF THE LORD: One of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit which ensures our awe and reverence before God (1831).
FEAST DAYS: The annual cycle of liturgical celebrations commemorating the saving mysteries of Christ's life, as a participation in the Paschal Mystery, which is celebrated annually at Easter, the "Feast of feasts." Feast days commemorating Mary, the Mother of God, and the saints are also celebrated, providing the faithful with examples of those who have been glorified with Christ (1169, 1173).
FILIOQUE: A word meaning "and (from) the Son," added to the Latin version of the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed, by which the Latin tradition of the Creed confesses that the Holy Spirit "proceeds from the Father and the Son" (246).
FORNICATION: Sexual intercourse between an unmarried man and an unmarried woman. Fornication is a serious violation of the sixth commandment of God (2353).
FORTITUDE: One of the four cardinal moral virtues which ensures firmness in difficulties and constancy in doing the good (1808). Fortitude (sometimes called strength, courage, or might) is also one of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit (1299; cf. 712).
FRUITS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT: The perfections that the Holy Spirit forms in us as the "first fruits" of eternal glory. The tradition of the Church identifies twelve fruits of the Holy Spirit (1832).
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GENERAL CONFESSION AND ABSOLUTION: A communal form of the Sacrament of Penance in which, in a case of grave necessity, a priest may give absolution to all persons present at one time, after they have made a general, but not individual, confession of their sins. For the absolution to be valid, the faithful must have the intention of individually confessing their sins in their next individual reception of the Sacrament of Penance (1483).
GENESIS: The first book of Bible, which describes God's creation of the world and humanity, and the drama of sin and the hope for salvation (120; cf. 289, 337, 355).
GENUFLECTION: A reverence made by bending the knee, especially to express adoration of the Blessed Sacrament (1378).
GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT: Permanent dispositions that make us docile to follow the promptings of the Holy Spirit. The traditional list of seven gifts of the Spirit is derived from Isaiah 11:1-3: wisdom, understanding, knowledge, counsel, piety, fortitude, and fear of the Lord (1830).
GLUTTONY: Overindulgence in food or drink. Gluttony is one of the seven capital sins (1866).
GOD: The infinite divine being, one in being yet three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. God has revealed himself as the "One who is," as truth and love, as creator of all that is, as the author of divine revelation, and as the source of salvation (198, 279).
GODPARENT: The sponsor of one who is baptized, who assumes a responsibility to assist the newly-baptized--child or adult--on the road of Christian life (1255).
GOSPEL: The "good news" of God's mercy and love revealed in the life, death, and resurrection of Christ. It is this Gospel or good news that the Apostles, and the Church following them, are to proclaim to the entire world (571, 1946). The Gospel is handed on in the apostolic tradition of the Church as the source of all-saving truth and moral discipline (75). The four Gospels are the books written by the evangelists Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John which have for their central object Jesus Christ, God's incarnate Son: his life, teachings, Passion and glorification, and his Church's beginnings under the Spirit's guidance (124, 514).
GOSPEL, LAW OF THE: The New Law, prepared for by the Old Law in the time of the Old Covenant, is the perfection here on earth of the divine law, natural and revealed. It is the work of Christ, expressed particularly in the Sermon on the Mount, and of the Holy Spirit, by whose grace it becomes for us the interior law of charity (1965).
GRACE: The free and undeserved gift that God gives us to respond to our vocation to become his adopted children. As sanctifying grace, God shares his divine life and friendship with us in a habitual gift, a stable and supernatural disposition that enables the soul to live with God, to act by his love. As actual grace, God gives us the help to conform our lives to his will. Sacramental grace and special graces (charisms, the grace of one's state of life) are gifts of the Holy Spirit to help us live out our Christian vocation (1996, 2000; cf. 654).
GUARDIAN ANGELS: Angels assigned to protect and intercede for each person (336). See Angel.
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HAIL MARY: The prayer known in Latin as the Ave Maria. The first part of the prayer praises God for the gifts he gave to Mary as Mother of the Redeemer; the second part seeks her maternal intercession for the members of the Body of Christ, the Church, of which she is the Mother (2676).
HAPPINESS: Joy and beatitude over receiving the fulfillment of our vocation as creatures: a sharing in the divine nature and the vision of God. God put us into the world to know, love, and serve him, and so come to the happiness of paradise (1720).
HEAVEN: Eternal life with God; communion of life and love with the Trinity and all the blessed. Heaven is the state of supreme and definitive happiness, the goal of the deepest longings of humanity (1023).
HELL: The state of definitive self-exclusion from communion with God and the blessed, reserved for those who refuse by their own free choice to believe and be converted from sin, even to the end of their lives (1033).
HERESY: The obstinate denial after Baptism of a truth which must be believed with divine and Catholic faith (2089; cf. 465).
HERMIT: One who lives the eremitical life. Through silence and solitude, in prayer and penance, the hermit or anchorite vows, although not necessarily publicly, to follow the evangelical counsels out of love for God and desire for the salvation of the world (920).
HIERARCHY: The Apostles and their successors, the college of bishops, to whom Christ gave the authority to teach, sanctify, and rule the Church in his name (873).
HIERARCHY OF TRUTHS: The order (hierarchy) of the truths in Catholic doctrine, insofar as they vary in their relation to the central mystery and foundation of Christian faith, the mystery of the Holy Trinity (90, 234).
HOLY DAYS OF OBLIGATION: Principal feast days on which, in addition to Sundays, Catholics are obliged by Church law to participate in the Eucharist; a precept of the Church (2043, 2180).
HOLY ORDERS: See Orders, Holy
HOLY SEE: The seat of the central administration of the worldwide Catholic Church; the name is taken from the seat or diocese of the Pope, Bishop of Rome and successor of St. Peter as Vicar of Christ and pastor of the universal Church (cf. 882).
HOLY SPIRIT: The third divine Person of the Blessed Trinity, the personal love of Father and Son for each other. Also called the Paraclete (Advocate) and Spirit of Truth, the Holy Spirit is at work with the Father and the Son from the beginning to the completion of the divine plan for our salvation (685; cf. 152, 243).
HOLY WATER: Blessed water, a sacramental whose sprinkling or use is a reminder of Baptism and a means of sanctification (1668).
HOLY WEEK: The week preceding Easter, beginning with Palm (Passion) Sunday, called the "Great Week" in the liturgies of the Eastern Churches. It marks the Church's annual celebration of the events of Christ's Passion, death, and Resurrection, culminating in the Paschal Mystery (1169).
HOMILY: Preaching by an ordained minister to explain the Scriptures proclaimed in the liturgy and to exhort the people to accept them as the Word of God (132, 1100, 1349).
HOMOSEXUALITY: Sexual attraction or orientation toward persons of the same sex and/or sexual acts between persons of the same sex. Homosexual acts are morally wrong because they violate God's purpose for human sexual activity (2357).
HOPE: The theological virtue by which we desire and expect from God both eternal life and the grace we need to attain it (1817).
HUMILITY: The virtue by which a Christian acknowledges that God is the author of all good. Humility avoids inordinate ambition or pride, and provides the foundation for turning to God in prayer (2559). Voluntary humility can be described as "poverty of spirit" (2546).
HYMN: Sacred poetry set to music and meant to raise the hearts of Christian people to God, especially during liturgical services (1156).
HYPOSTATIC UNION: The union of the divine and human natures in the one divine Person (Greek: hypostasis) of the Son of God, Jesus Christ (252, 468).
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ICON: Religious painting traditional among many Eastern Christians. Christian iconography expresses in images the same Gospel message that Scripture communicates by words (1160).
ICONOCLASM: A heresy which maintained that veneration of religious images is unlawful. Iconoclasm was condemned as unfaithful to Christian tradition at the Second Ecumenical Council of Nicaea in 787 A.D. (2131).
IDOLATRY: The divinization of a creature in place of God; the substitution of some one (or thing) for God; worshiping a creature (even money, pleasure, or power) instead of the Creator (2112).
IMMACULATE CONCEPTION: The dogma proclaimed in Christian Tradition and defined in 1854, that from the first moment of her conception, Mary--by the singular grace of God and by virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ--was preserved immune from original sin (491).
IMMORTALITY: The quality of the spiritual human soul whereby it survives the death of the body and remains in existence without end, to be reunited with the body at the final resurrection (366).
IMPEDIMENT: An obstacle that makes a person ineligible for performing an act or receiving a sacrament, e.g., Holy Orders or Matrimony (cf. 1635).
INCARNATION: The fact that the Son of God assumed human nature and became man in order to a