OurCatechism

OC 03/12 Episode 071 Catechism 0541-0546

Brother Porter — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 17:39:03 +0000

Catechism 0541-0546 “The kingdom of God is at hand” 541 “Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying: ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent, and believe in the gospel.’“ [246] “To carry out the will of the Father Christ inaugurated the kingdom [...]

OC 03/11 Episode 070 Catechism 0535-0540

Brother Porter — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 17:25:42 +0000

Catechism 0535-0540 III. THE MYSTERIES OF JESUS’ PUBLIC LIFE The baptism of Jesus 535 Jesus’ public life begins with his baptism by John in the Jordan. [228] John preaches “a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins”. [229] A crowd of sinners [230] – tax collectors and soldiers, Pharisees and Sadducees, and prostitutes – come to be [...]

OC 03/10 Episode 069 Catechism 0531-0534

Brother Porter — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 17:09:30 +0000

Catechism 0531-0534 The mysteries of Jesus’ hidden life 531 During the greater part of his life Jesus shared the condition of the vast majority of human beings: a daily life spent without evident greatness, a life of manual labour. His religious life was that of a Jew obedient to the law of God, [221] a life in [...]

OC 02/06 Episode 037 Catechism 0295-0301

Brother Porter — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 14:58:11 +0000

Catechism 0295-0301 IV. THE MYSTERY OF CREATION God creates by wisdom and love 295 We believe that God created the world according to his wisdom. [141] It is not the product of any necessity whatever, nor of blind fate or chance. We believe that it proceeds from God’s free will; he wanted to make his creatures share in [...]

OC 02/05 Episode 036 Catechism 0290-0294

Brother Porter — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 22:07:55 +0000

Catechism 0290-0294 Today’s Question: 297. Who says that “the world was created for the glory of God”? II. CREATION – WORK OF THE HOLY TRINITY 290 “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth”: [128] three things are affirmed in these first words of Scripture: the eternal God gave a beginning to all that exists outside [...]

OC 02/04 Episode 035 Catechism 0282-0289

Brother Porter — Sun, 07 Feb 2010 16:34:25 +0000

Catechism 0282-0289 Today’s Question: What are the four major non-Christian accounts of the world’s origin and end? I. CATECHESIS ON CREATION 282 Catechesis on creation is of major importance. It concerns the very foundations of human and Christian life: for it makes explicit the response of the Christian faith to the basic question that men of all times have [...]

OC 02/03 Episode 034 Catechism 0275-0281

Brother Porter — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 16:57:07 +0000

Catechism 0275-0281 Today’s question: Why does the Church often address the almighty God in her prayers? IN BRIEF 275 With Job, the just man, we confess: “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted” ( Job 42:2). 276 Faithful to the witness of Scripture, the Church often addresses her prayer to [...]

OC 02/02 Episode 033 Catechism 0268-0274

Brother Porter — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 14:45:54 +0000

Catechism 0268-0274 Today’s question: What is the only attribute of God mentioned in the Creed? Paragraph 3. THE ALMIGHTY 268 of all the divine attributes, only God’s omnipotence is named in the Creed: to confess this power has great bearing on our lives. We believe that his might is universal, for God who created everything also rules everything and [...]

OC 02/01 Episode 032 Catechism 0257-0267

Brother Porter — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 23:06:38 +0000

Catechism 0257-0267 Today’s question: When are we called to share in the life of the Blessed Trinity? IV. THE DIVINE WORKS AND THE TRINITARIAN MISSIONS 257 “O blessed light, O Trinity and first Unity!” [93] God is eternal blessedness, undying life, unfading light. God is love: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. God freely wills to communicate the glory of [...]

OC 01/31 Episode 031 Catechism 0249-0256

Brother Porter — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 17:52:10 +0000

Catechism 0249-0256 Today’s question: Where is the first appearance of the Holy Trinity in the teaching of the Faith? III. THE HOLY TRINITY IN THE TEACHING OF THE FAITH The formation of the Trinitarian dogma 249 From the beginning, the revealed truth of the Holy Trinity has been at the very root of the Church’s living faith, principally by [...]

OC 01/30 Episode 030 Catechism 0238-0248

Brother Porter — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 01:36:28 +0000

Catechism 0238-0248 Today’s question: Who was the first pope to confess the “filióque”? II. THE REVELATION OF GOD AS TRINITY The Father revealed by the Son 238 Many religions invoke God as “Father”. the deity is often considered the “father of gods and of men”. In Israel, God is called “Father” inasmuch as he is Creator of the world. [...]

OC 01/29 Episode 029 Catechism 0232-0237

Brother Porter — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 00:38:09 +0000

Catechism 0232-0237 Today’s question: Why is the Trinity a “mystery of Faith in the strict sense”? Paragraph 2. THE FATHER I. “IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER AND OF THE SON AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT” 232 Christians are baptized “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” [53] Before receiving the sacrament, [...]

OC 01/28 Episode 028 Catechism 0222-0231

Brother Porter — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 19:54:08 +0000

Catechism 0222-0231 Today’s question: As what has God revealed Himself? IV. THE IMPLICATIONS OF FAITH IN ONE GOD 222 Believing in God, the only One, and loving him with all our being has enormous consequences for our whole life. 223 It means coming to know God’s greatness and majesty: “Behold, God is great, and we know him not.” [46] Therefore, [...]

OC 01/26 Episode 026 Catechism 0210-0213

Brother Porter — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 20:20:27 +0000

Catechism 0210-0213 Today’s question: What is God, “He who is” chiefly and essentially? “A God merciful and gracious” 210 After Israel’s sin, when the people had turned away from God to worship the golden calf, God hears Moses’ prayer of intercession and agrees to walk in the midst of an unfaithful people, thus demonstrating his love. [18] When [...]

OC 01/27 Episode 027 Catechism 0214-0221

Brother Porter — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 20:20:09 +0000

Catechism 0214-0221 Today’s question: In what three ways does God’s truth particularly shine forth? III. GOD, “HE WHO IS”, IS TRUTH AND LOVE 214 God, “HE WHO IS”, revealed himself to Israel as the one “abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness”. [27] These two terms express summarily the riches of the divine name. In all his works God displays, [...]

OC 01/25 Episode 015 Catechism 0203-0209

Brother Porter — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 20:10:20 +0000

Today is January 25 Episode 025 Catechism 0203-0209 Today’s question: How is God commonly called in the Hebrew Bible? II. GOD REVEALS HIS NAME 203 God revealed himself to his people Israel by making his name known to them. A name expresses a person’s essence and identity and the meaning of this person’s life. God has a name; he is [...]

OC 01/24 Episode 024 Catechism 0198-0202

Brother Porter — Sat, 23 Jan 2010 20:00:47 +0000

Catechism 0198-0202 Today’s question: 223. What name of His does God reveal to Moses from the burning bush? CHAPTER ONE I BELIEVE IN GOD THE FATHER 198 Our profession of faith begins with God, for God is the First and the Last, [1] The beginning and the end of everything. the Credo begins with God the Father, for the Father [...]

OC 01/23 Episode 023 Catechism 0185-0197

Brother Porter — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 13:28:14 +0000

Catechism 0185-0197 Today’s question: When is the first profession of Faith made in the life of a Christian? The Credo The Apostles Creed I believe in God the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin [...]

OC 01/22 Episode 022 Catechism 0172-0184

Brother Porter — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 13:07:37 +0000

Catechism 0172-0184 Today’s question: What do we believe? III. Only One Faith 172 Through the centuries, in so many languages, cultures, peoples and nations, the Church has constantly confessed this one faith, received from the one Lord, transmitted by one Baptism, and grounded in the conviction that all people have only one God and Father. [58] St. Irenaeus of [...]

OC 01/21 Episode 021 Catechism 0166-0171

Brother Porter — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 12:14:13 +0000

Catechism 0166-0171 Follow to discover the answer to today’s question: What does the “I believe” of the Apostolic Creed express? Article 2 WE BELIEVE 166 Faith is a personal act – the free response of the human person to the initiative of God who reveals himself. But faith is not an isolated act. No one can believe alone, just as [...]

OC 01/20 Episode 020 Catechism 0160-0165

Brother Porter — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 00:19:30 +0000

Catechism 0160-0165 Follow to discover the answer to today’s question: Can anybody obtain eternal life without Faith? Today is January 20 Episode 020 Catechism 0160-0165 Follow to discover the answer to today’s question: Can anybody obtain eternal life without Faith? The freedom of faith 160 To be human, “man’s response to God by faith must be free, and… therefore nobody is to be [...]

OC 01/19 Episode 019 Catechism 0150-0159

Brother Porter — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 00:02:50 +0000

Catechism 0150-0159 Follow to discover the answer to today’s question: How are the seven characteristics of Faith connected? II. “I Know Whom I Have Believed” [16] To believe in God alone 150 Faith is first of all a personal adherence of man to God. At the same time, and inseparably, it is a free assent to the whole truth that [...]

OC 01/18 Episode 018 Catechism 0142-0149

Brother Porter — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 15:16:00 +0000

Catechism 0142-0149 Follow to discover the answer to today’s question: What does man do in the act of Faith with his intellect and will? CHAPTER THREE MAN’S RESPONSE TO GOD 142 By his Revelation, “the invisible God, from the fullness of his love, addresses men as his friends, and moves among them, in order to invite and receive them into [...]

OC 01/17 Episode 017 Catechism 0131-0141

Brother Porter — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 14:34:59 +0000

Catechism 0121-0141 Follow to discover the answer to today’s question: How many are the books of the Old Testament and New Testament respectively? 131 “and such is the force and power of the Word of God that it can serve the Church as her support and vigour, and the children of the Church as strength for their faith, [...]

OC 01/16 Episode 016 Catechism 0120-0130

Brother Porter — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 11:35:09 +0000

Catechism 0120-0130 Follow to discover the answer to today’s question: What is Marcionism? IV. The Canon of Scripture 120 It was by the apostolic Tradition that the Church discerned which writings are to be included in the list of the sacred books. [90] This complete list is called the canon of Scripture. It includes 46 books for the Old Testament [...]

OC 01/15 Episode 015 Catechism 0109-0119

Brother Porter — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 10:45:02 +0000

Catechism 0109-0119 Follow to discover the answer to today’s question: 121. To what must the faithful be attentive in order to interpret Scripture correctly? III. The Holy Spirit, Interpreter of Scripture 109 In Sacred Scripture, God speaks to man in a human way. To interpret Scripture correctly, the reader must be attentive to what the human authors truly wanted [...]

OC 01/14 Episode 014 Catechism 0101-0108

Brother Porter — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 10:37:01 +0000

Catechism 0101-0108 Follow to discover the answer to today’s question: What do we mean when we say that Christ is the unique Word of Scripture? Article 3 SACRED SCRIPTURE I. Christ – The Unique Word of Sacred Scripture 101 In order to reveal himself to men, in the condescension of his goodness God speaks to them in human words: “Indeed the [...]

OC 01/13 Episode 013 Catechism 0091-0100

Brother Porter — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 10:09:28 +0000

Catechism 0091-100 In which three ways does the Church’s understanding of the Faith grow? The supernatural sense of faith 91 All the faithful share in understanding and handing on revealed truth. They have received the anointing of the Holy Spirit, who instructs them [53] and guides them into all truth. [54] 92 “The whole body of the faithful. . [...]

OC 01/12 Episode 012 Catechism 0080-0090

Brother Porter — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 18:19:59 +0000

Catechism 0080-0090 How are Scripture and Tradition two distinct modes of transmission of Revelation? II. The Relationship Between Tradition and Sacred Scripture One common source. . . 80 “Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture, then, are bound closely together, and communicate one with the other. For both of them, flowing out from the same divine well-spring, come together in [...]

OC 01/11 Episode 011 Catechism 0074-0079

Brother Porter — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 21:35:12 +0000

How did the Apostolic Tradition begin and continue? Catechism 0074-0079 Article 2 THE TRANSMISSION OF DIVINE REVELATION 74 God “desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth”: [29] that is, of Christ Jesus. [30] Christ must be proclaimed to all nations and individuals, so that this revelation may reach to the ends [...]

OC 01/10 Episode 010 Catechism 0065-0073

Brother Porter — Sun, 10 Jan 2010 21:30:53 +0000

Catechism 0065-0073 Whom does the covenant with Noah include and how long will it remain in force? III. Christ Jesus — “Mediator and Fullness of All Revelation” [25] God has said everything in his Word 65 “In many and various ways God spoke of old to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken [...]

OC 01/09 Episode 009 Catechism 0054-0064

Brother Porter — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 17:20:31 +0000

Catechism 0054-0064 II. The Stages of Revelation In the beginning God makes himself known 54 “God, who creates and conserves all things by his Word, provides men with constant evidence of himself in created realities. and furthermore, wishing to open up the way to heavenly salvation – he manifested himself to our first parents from the very beginning.” [...]

OC 01/08 Episode 008 Catechism 0050-0053

Brother Porter — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 17:15:27 +0000

Catechism 0050-0053 CHAPTER TWO GOD COMES TO MEET MAN 50 By natural reason man can know God with certainty, on the basis of his works. But there is another order of knowledge, which man cannot possibly arrive at by his own powers: the order of divine Revelation. [1] Through an utterly free decision, God has revealed himself [...]

OC 01/07 Episode 007 Catechism 0039-0049

Brother Porter — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 17:10:34 +0000

Catechism 0039-0049 IV. How Can We Speak about God? 39 In defending the ability of human reason to know God, the Church is expressing her confidence in the possibility of speaking about him to all men and with all men, and therefore of dialogue with other religions, with philosophy and science, as well as with unbelievers and [...]

OC 01/06 Episode 006 Catechism 0031-0038

Brother Porter — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 17:05:07 +0000

Catechism 0031-0038 II. Ways of Coming to Know God 31 Created in God’s image and called to know and love him, the person who seeks God discovers certain ways of coming to know him. These are also called proofs for the existence of God, not in the sense of proofs in the natural sciences, but rather in [...]

OC 01/05 Episode 005 Catechism 0026-0030

Brother Porter — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 17:00:58 +0000

Catechism 0026-0030 PART ONE: THE PROFESSION OF FAITH SECTION ONE “I BELIEVE” – “WE BELIEVE” 26 We begin our profession of faith by saying: “I believe” or “We believe”. Before expounding the Church’s faith, as confessed in the Creed, celebrated in the liturgy and lived in observance of God’s commandments and in prayer, we must first ask what “to believe” [...]

OC 01/04 Episode 004 Catechism 0018-0025

Brother Porter — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 15:15:12 +0000

Catechism 0018-0025 V. Practical Directions for Using this Catechism 18 This catechism is conceived as an organic presentation of the Catholic faith in its entirety. It should be seen therefore as a unified whole. Numerous cross-references in the margin of the text (numbers found at the end of a sentence referring to other paragraphs that deal with [...]

OC 01/03 Episode 003 Catechism 0011-0017

Brother Porter — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 15:00:08 +0000

Catechism 0011-0017 III. The Aim and Intended Readership of the Catechism 11 This catechism aims at presenting an organic synthesis of the essential and fundamental contents of Catholic doctrine, as regards both faith and morals, in the light of the Second Vatican Council and the whole of the Church’s Tradition. Its principal sources are the Sacred Scriptures, [...]

OC 01/02 Episode 002 Catechism 0001-0010

Brother Porter — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 15:56:20 +0000

Catechism 0001-0010 PROLOGUE “FATHER,… this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” [1] “God our Saviour desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” [2] “There is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be [...]

OC 01/01 Episode 001 Catechism: Introduction

Brother Porter — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 21:33:44 +0000

APOSTOLIC LETTER FIDEI DEPOSITUM ON THE PUBLICATION OF THE CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH PREPARED FOLLOWING THE SECOND VATICAN ECUMENICAL COUNCIL JOHN PAUL, BISHOP SERVANT OF THE SERVANTS OF GOD FOR EVERLASTING MEMORY To my Venerable Brother Cardinals, Patriarchs, Archbishops, Bishops, Priests, Deacons and to all the People of God. GUARDING THE DEPOSIT OF FAITH IS THE MISSION WHICH THE LORD [...]

OC 12/30 Episode 364 Catechism 2850-2856

Brother Porter — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 20:15:45 +0000

Catechism 2850-2856 VII “BUT DELIVER US FROM EVIL” 2850 The last petition to our Father is also included in Jesus’ prayer: “I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but I ask you to protect them from the evil one.” [163] It touches each of us personally, but it is always “we” who [...]

OC 12/31 Episode 365 Catechism 2857-2865

Brother Porter — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 20:15:35 +0000

Catechism 2857-2865 IN BRIEF 2857 In the Our Father, the object of the first three petitions is the glory of the Father: the sanctification of his name, the coming of the kingdom, and the fulfillment of his will. the four others present our wants to him: they ask that our lives be nourished, healed of sin, and [...]

OC 12/29 Episode 363 Catechism 2846-2849

Brother Porter — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 20:10:42 +0000

Catechism 2846-2849 VI. “And Lead Us not into Temptation” 2846 This petition goes to the root of the preceding one, for our sins result from our consenting to temptation; we therefore ask our Father not to “lead” us into temptation. It is difficult to translate the Greek verb used by a single English word: the Greek means [...]

OC 12/28 Episode 362 Catechism 2842-2845

Brother Porter — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 20:05:08 +0000

Catechism 2842-2845 2842 This “as” is not unique in Jesus’ teaching: “You, therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect”; “Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful”; “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.” [139] It [...]

OC 12/27 Episode 361 Catechism 2838-2841

Brother Porter — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 20:00:31 +0000

Catechism 2838-2841 V. “And Forgive Us Our Trespasses, as We Forgive Those Who Trespass AGAINST US” 2838 This petition is astonishing. If it consisted only of the first phrase, “and forgive us our trespasses,” it might have been included, implicitly, in the first three petitions of the Lord’s Prayer, since Christ’s sacrifice is “that sins may be [...]