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- Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
- Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
- Sprache: Englisch
- Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023
Let there be light -- illuminating info about today's Catholic church Catholicism All-in-One For Dummies, 2nd Edition offers a path toward understanding the beliefs of the Catholic church and how the church operates. Fully updated with information on newly canonized saints, updated teachings from Pope Francis, and how Catholic beliefs intersect with the modern world, this edition gets you up to date with the last 2,000-or-so years of Catholic history. With five minibooks in one, this friendly Dummies guide will answer your pressing questions, such as: What do Catholics believe? What happens in Mass? Who are the saints? What is the role of the Pope? -- and other cool stuff you've been wanting to know about this Christian denomination with over 1 billion members worldwide. With Catholicism All-in-One For Dummies, 2nd Edition, you will: * Discover the core tenets of the Catholic religion * Learn all about the papacy and get to know Pope Francis * Get a primer on the Catholic saints, including those newly canonized * Walk through the traditions of Mass and the seven sacraments This is an excellent resource for anyone who needs a clear guide to the practices and rules of the Catholic faith and wants a fascinating look into a prominent world religion.
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Catholicism All-in-One For Dummies®, 2nd Edition
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Library of Congress Control Number: 2022951783
ISBN: 978-1-394-16501-8 (pbk); ISBN 978-1-394-16503-2 (pbk); ISBN 978-1-394-16502-5 (pbk)
Catholicism All-in-One For Dummies®
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Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Introduction
About This Book
Foolish Assumptions
Icons Used in This Book
Beyond the Book
Where to Go from Here
Book 1: What Do Catholics Believe?
Chapter 1: Catholicism 101
Heavenly Roll Call: Getting Acquainted with the Blessed Trinity
Introducing Earthly Figures Important to the Faith
Looking at Key Catholic Tools, Rituals, and Locations
Considering the Catholic Perspective
Catholic Church Teachings in a Nutshell
Worshipping As a Catholic
Behaving Like a Catholic
Praying as a Catholic: Showing Your Devotion
Defining “The Church” and What Membership Means
Chapter 2: Having Faith in God’s Revealed Word
How Do You Know If You Have Faith?
Having Faith in Revelation
Backing Up Your Faith with Reason: Summa Theologica
Chapter 3: Alpha to Omega: Catholic Teachings on Creation, Original Sin, and End Times
Considering Creation: Making Something out of Nothing
Breathing Life into the World: Creationism or Evolution?
Angels and Devils: Following God or Lucifer
Witnessing the Original Sin
Helping Souls in Purgatory
Anticipating What’s to Come: Moving toward the End of Creation
Chapter 4: Believing in Jesus
Jesus’s Life, Death, and Ministry: An Overview
Understanding Jesus, the God-Man
The Gospel Truth: Examining Four Written Records of Jesus
Chapter 5: Who’s Who in Catholic Practice
The Catholic Church Hierarchy: A Bird’s-Eye View
Getting to Know the Pope
Who’s Next in the Ecclesiastical Scheme of Things
The Non-Ordained Ministers
Book 2: Living the Catholic Faith
Chapter 1: Worshipping Catholic Style
Getting Your Body and Soul into the Act
Understanding Some Symbols and Gestures
Sensing God
Chapter 2: Receiving the Sacraments
Sacraments of Initiation
The Sacraments of Service and Community
The Sacraments of Mercy and Healing
Chapter 3: Obeying the Rules — Catholic Law
Following the Eternal Law of God
Playing by the Church’s Rules
Chapter 4: Loving and Honoring: The Ten Commandments
Demonstrating Love for God
Loving Your Neighbor
Changing the Order, But Keeping the Rules
Using New Tech to Defeat Old Sins
Chapter 5: Being Good When Sinning Is So Easy
Cultivating Good Habits
Steering Clear of the Seven Deadly Sins
Focusing on the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit
Chapter 6: Growing Your Relationship with God: Pray without Ceasing
Prayer Posture
When to Pray
What to Say When You Pray
The Rosary: A Sacramental and a Prayer
Reciting the Divine Mercy Chaplet
St. Michael the Archangel Prayer
Guardian Angel Prayer
Novenas: Putting in Some Extended Prayer Time
Other Prayers to Pray
Sacramentals: Wearing Your Heart on Your Sleeve
Chapter 7: Exploring the Church’s Stance on Some Sticky Issues
Celibacy and the Male Priesthood
Matters of Life and Death
Planning Your Family Naturally
Defending Traditional Family Life
LGBTQ+ Community Rights
Money, Money, Money: The Economy
The Environment
Health Care
Immigration
Book 3: Making Sense of the Catholic Mass
Chapter 1: Understanding Mass and Its Foundations
Introducing the Catholic Mass
Appreciating What Mass Means to Catholics
Different Catholics, Different Masses
Tracing Changes to the Mass over the Years
Discovering Roots of Judaism within the Mass
Establishing the Origins of the Mass: The New Testament
Getting the Most Out of Mass
Running through the Roles
Sign of the Times: Comparing Communion Service to Mass
Chapter 2: Celebrating Mass
Seeing the Mass as Central to Catholicism
Introductory Rites: Opening the Ordinary Mass
Liturgy of the Word
Liturgy of the Eucharist: The Heart and Soul of the Mass
Discovering Variations in the Ordinary Form
Taking a Brief Look at the Extraordinary Form of the Mass
Chapter 3: The Tools of the Catholic Mass
Liturgical Books
Liturgical Vestments — from hats to stockings
Liturgical Vessels, Altar Linens, and Artifacts
Chapter 4: The Look and Sound of Mass — Architecture, Art, and Music
Meeting in Sacred Spaces: Church Buildings
Music in Worship
Art in Churches
When the (Relics of) Saints Come Marching In
Chapter 5: The Church Calendar: A Look at the Liturgical Year
The Liturgical Calendar: A Bird’s-Eye View
Worshipping through the Proper of Time Cycle
Filling in the Gaps with Ordinary Time
Honoring Saints in the Proper of Saints Cycle
Book 4: Meeting Saints and Other Important Figures
Chapter 1: The Blessed Virgin Mary
Catholics Don’t Worship Mary — They Honor Her
What Catholics Believe about Mary
Celebrating Mary’s feast days
Honoring Mary: Getting Up Close and Personal with Devotions
Chapter 2: Understanding Sainthood and Angels
Ordinary Saints versus Official Saints
Making of a Saint: The Canonization Process Then and Now
Serving as Intercessors: Patron Saints
BFFs: Making Friends with the Saints
Venerating the Saints
Following the Saints’ Examples
Understanding Angels (and Why Some Angels Are Considered Saints)
Guardian Angels as (Unofficial) Guides
Chapter 3: Starting at the Beginning with Apostles and Evangelists
St. Peter
St. Andrew
St. James the Greater
St. John the Evangelist
St. James the Less
St. Bartholomew
St. Thomas
St. Jude Thaddeus
St. Matthew
St. Matthias
St. Philip
St. Simon the Zealot
St. Mark
St. Luke
St. Paul
Chapter 4: Incredible Saints
Saints That Didn’t Decay (Incorruptibles)
Saints with Stigmata
Chapter 5: Life-Changing Saints Who Inspire Us
Who You Gonna Call? Saints You Can Connect To
Saints Who Did Whaaat?
Chapter 6: Holy Martyrs
St. Agatha
St. Agnes
St. Anastasia
St. Blasé (Blaise)
St. Boniface
St. Cecilia
St. Denis
Sts. Felicity and Perpetua
St. Fidelis of Sigmaringen
St. George
St. Hippolytus of Rome
St. Ignatius of Antioch
St. Irenaeus
St. Januarius
St. John the Baptist
St. John Fisher
St. Lucy
St. Polycarp
St. Sebastian
St. Thomas Becket
St. Thomas More
Other Notable Martyrs
Chapter 7: Doctor’s Orders: Founding Religious Orders and Doctors of the Church
Saints Who Started a Religious Order
Trust Me, I’m a Doctor…of the Church
Chapter 8: Saints In Our Day and Age
Venerable Augustus Tolton
Sts. Jacinta and Francisco Marto
Blessed Miriam Teresa Demjanovich
Blessed Solanus Casey
Pope St. Paul VI
St. Oscar Romero
Blessed Stanley Rother
St. Teresa of Calcutta (Mother Teresa)
Blessed Carlo Acutis
Chapter 9: Women in the Bible — Eight Impactful Ladies
And Then There Was Woman: Eve
A Famous Mom: Mary, the Mother of Jesus
Befriending Jesus: Mary Magdalene
Faith through Adversity: Meeting Ruth
Getting to Know Judith’s Heroism
Esther: Becoming a Queen
Martha and Mary: Sisters of Lazarus
Book 5: All About His Holiness, the Pope
Chapter 1: Becoming and Leading as Pope
Getting the Job
Is the Pope Really Infallible?
Now That’s Job Security! Serving for Life
What Popes Do All Day
Where the Pope Hangs His Hat
Seeing the Pope in Person: Papal Audiences
Some Popes of Note
A Brief History of the Second Vatican Council and the Popes Who Got Us There
Chapter 2: St. John Paul II — A Man for All Seasons
Groundbreaker, Shepherd, Reformer: Introducing St. John Paul II
Author, Author: Exploring St. John Paul II’s Writings
Becoming a Philosopher-Theologian
Developing Academically and Spiritually
Becoming a Bishop
Moving Up the Ranks
Appreciating JP2’s Legacy
Earning Sainthood
Chapter 3: Pope Francis — The People’s Pope
Leading Up to His Election: The Early Years of Pope Francis
The Unexpected Papacy
Making His Positions Official in Papal Encyclicals
Looking Ahead: The Papacy Moving Forward
Index
About the Authors
Connect with Dummies
End User License Agreement
List of Tables
Book 1 Chapter 5
TABLE 5-1 The Catholic Church Chain of Command
Book 2 Chapter 4
TABLE 4-1 Comparing the Catholic/Lutheran and Protestant Ten Commandments
Book 2 Chapter 5
TABLE 5-1 The Seven Deadly Sins and the Virtues That Defeat Them
List of Illustrations
Book 1 Chapter 1
FIGURE 1-1: The traditional depiction of the Holy Trinity with Jesus (left), th...
FIGURE 1-2: An image of the Virgin Mary.
FIGURE 1-3: A crucifix showing Jesus nailed to the cross.
FIGURE 1-4: A Catholic rosary.
FIGURE 1-5: The bread and wine being turned into the Body and Blood of Jesus Ch...
Book 1 Chapter 4
FIGURE 4-1: A typical Nativity scene put out to celebrate Christmas.
FIGURE 4-2: The writers of the four Gospels are often depicted like this from R...
Book 2 Chapter 1
FIGURE 1-1: A monstrance displaying the Holy Eucharist.
Book 2 Chapter 2
FIGURE 2-1: Typical outfit worn by a child getting baptized.
FIGURE 2-2: A chalice from which Catholics drink consecrated wine.
FIGURE 2-3: Typical outfits worn by children receiving First Communion.
Book 2 Chapter 6
FIGURE 6-1: A rosary.
FIGURE 6-2: The Blessed Sacrament on display in a monstrance.
Book 4 Chapter 1
FIGURE 1-1: A statue of the Virgin Mary.
FIGURE 1-2: The traditional depiction of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
Book 4 Chapter 2
FIGURE 2-1: St. Michael the Archangel.
Book 4 Chapter 3
FIGURE 3-1: St. Paul (left) and Peter.
FIGURE 3-2: A depiction of St. John on the island of Patmos.
Book 4 Chapter 4
FIGURE 4-1: A statue of St. Catherine of Siena inside a Catholic church.
FIGURE 4-2: St. Padre Pio depicted with a halo.
Book 4 Chapter 5
FIGURE 5-1: St. Joseph holding Jesus as an infant.
FIGURE 5-2: A statue of St. Kateri Tekakwitha outside the Cathedral Basilica St...
FIGURE 5-3: A statue showing St. Peregrine in typical fashion.
FIGURE 5-4: St. Maria Goretti, one of the youngest Catholic saints.
Book 4 Chapter 6
FIGURE 6-1: The Virgin Mary visiting her cousin Elizabeth, with Zachary (far le...
FIGURE 6-2: St. Lucy.
Book 4 Chapter 7
FIGURE 7-1: St. Francis.
FIGURE 7-2: St. Ignatius contemplating the Holy Name of Jesus (
IHS
, the first t...
FIGURE 7-3: St. Teresa of Ávila depicted in her religious habit.
Book 4 Chapter 8
FIGURE 8-1: The banner depicting Oscar Romero that hung at his canonization in ...
FIGURE 8-2: A picture of Blessed Carlo Acutis.
Book 5 Chapter 1
FIGURE 1-1: Pope Joseph Benedict XVI
Book 5 Chapter 2
FIGURE 2-1: A statue of Pope St. John Paul II.
Book 5 Chapter 3
FIGURE 3-1: Pope Francis greeting a crowd in Saint Peter’s Square, Rome, 2013.
Guide
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Table of Contents
Begin Reading
Index
About the Authors
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Introduction
Three great religions trace their roots to the prophet Abraham: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. And one of those religions, Christianity, is expressed in three different traditions: Catholicism, Protestantism, and Eastern Orthodoxy. You may already know that. You may also already know that, currently, more than 1.3 billion Catholics occupy the earth. That’s almost 18 percent of the world’s population.
Whether you’re Catholic or not, you may be totally clueless about or just unaware of some aspects of Catholic tradition, history, doctrine, worship, devotion, or culture. No sweat. Regardless of whether you’re engaged, married, or related to a Catholic; your neighbor or co-worker is a Catholic; or you’re just curious about what Catholics really do believe, this book is for you.
Catholicism All-In-One For Dummies realizes that you’re smart and intelligent, but maybe you didn’t attend St. Pius X for grade school, Brebeuf Jesuit Preparatory School for high school, or Marquette University for college. This book’s goal is to give you a taste of Catholicism. It’s not a Catechism or religion textbook but a casual, down-to-earth introduction for non-Catholics and a reintroduction for Catholics. It gives common-sense explanations about what Catholics believe and do in plain English, with just enough why and how thrown in to make solid sense.
This book doesn’t cover everything about Catholicism, but you do get all the basic stuff so that the next time you’re invited to a Catholic wedding, baptism, funeral, confirmation, or First Communion, you won’t be totally confused. And you may have an edge on other people in your life who are less informed about Catholicism than you.
About This Book
This book covers plenty of material on Catholicism — from doctrine to morality, and from worship and liturgy to devotions — but you don’t need a degree in theology to comprehend it. Everything is presented in an informal, easy-to-understand way.
This book is also a reference, unlike the schoolbooks you had as a kid. You don’t have to read the chapters in order, one after the other, from front cover to back cover. You can just pick the topic that interests you from the Table of Contents at the front of the book, or find the page that addresses the specific question you have from the Index at the back of the book. Or you can indiscriminately open the book and pick a place to begin reading.
You’ll notice a few things as you read this book:
We quote from the Bible throughout; that’s the book that contains all the sacred Scriptures. However, you may come across different wording elsewhere. This is due to different translations and because other sects use different wording.
To help locate a verse in the Bible, we cite it by first noting the name of the book in the Bible it comes from, like Genesis, Job, or Matthew (though some book titles may be abbreviated). After the book title, you’ll see the chapter number in that book followed by the verse number. John 3:16 is an example.
While not mandated by the Catholic Church, we’ve chosen to capitalize the pronouns related to Jesus, God, and the Holy Spirit as a sign of respect (more on them in Book 1,
Chapter 1
). However, these are often not capitalized in the Bible itself, so you may not see them capitalized in Bible quotes.
Speaking of capitalization, when you see the word Church capitalized (except maybe at the start of a sentence), it’s referring to the universal Catholic Church as a whole — or if it’s the name of a specific church, like St. Maria Goretti Church.
To make the content more accessible, we divided it into five minibooks or parts:
Book 1
: What Do Catholics Believe?
Book 2
: Living the Catholic Faith
Book 3
: Making Sense of the Catholic Mass
Book 4
: Meeting Saints and Other Important Figures
Book 5
: All About His Holiness, the Pope
Foolish Assumptions
While we couldn’t possibly include everything there is to know about Catholicism in this book (our fingers would hurt from typing, and your eyes would probably hurt from reading…although St. Lucy could help with that), this All-in-One provides an expanded look at the largest Christian denomination in the world. We made the following assumptions about your level of knowledge going into this book, dear reader, as we compiled this insightful guide for you:
You may be a practicing member of the church or someone who’s affiliated with the religion through family ties.
You’re involved in the Catholic faith, either as a practicing Catholic or a convert seeking a deeper understanding of Catholic traditions.
You’re interested in learning about the foundations of the Catholic religion and why Catholics believe what they do.
Or perhaps you’re simply interested in learning more about religion in general.
Whatever the case, we’re just happy you’re here! But we’d be even happier if you left with more Catholic knowledge than you started. Who knows —"Catholic saints who can bilocate” (or appear in two places at one time) may be the topic of a question at your next trivia night — and we’ve got some possible answers for you!
Icons Used in This Book
This book uses icons to point out various types of information:
This icon draws your attention to information that’s worth remembering because it’s basic to Catholicism.
This icon points out useful tidbits to help you make more sense out of something Catholic.
This icon points out cautionary areas of Catholicism, such as the obligation to attend Mass on Sunday or Saturday evening. (Not doing so without a legitimate excuse, such as illness or severe weather, is a grave sin.)
This icon alerts you to technical or historical background stuff that’s not essential to know. Feel free to divert thine eyes whenever you see this icon.
This icon points out references to the topic in the Good Book.
Beyond the Book
In addition to the abundance of information and guidance related to Catholicism that we provide in this book, you get access to even more help and information online at Dummies.com. Check out this book’s online Cheat Sheet. Just go to www.dummies.com and search for “Catholicism All-in-One For Dummies Cheat Sheet.”
Where to Go from Here
Catholicism All-In-One For Dummies is sort of like Sunday dinner at an Italian grandmother’s home. Nonna brings everything to the table: bread, antipasto, cheese, olives, prosciutto and melon, tomatoes and mozzarella; then comes the pasta or macaroni in marinara or meat sauce with sausage and peppers, meatballs, and veal; then comes the chicken, the pork, or the beef; followed by salad; and topped off with fruit and cheese, spumoni, gelato, ricotta pie, zabaglione, and an espresso with a splash of sambuca.
Likewise, in this book, you find a little bit of everything on Catholicism: doctrine, morality, history, theology, canon law, spirituality, and liturgy. You can go to any section to discover Catholicism. You can pick and choose what interests you the most, get answers to specific questions on your mind, or randomly open this book anywhere and begin reading. On the other hand, you may want to start at the beginning and work your way to the end, going through each chapter one by one. You’ll get a good taste of what Catholicism is really about.
Book 1
What Do Catholics Believe?
Contents at a Glance
Chapter 1: Catholicism 101
Heavenly Roll Call: Getting Acquainted with the Blessed Trinity
Introducing Earthly Figures Important to the Faith
Looking at Key Catholic Tools, Rituals, and Locations
Considering the Catholic Perspective
Catholic Church Teachings in a Nutshell
Worshipping As a Catholic
Behaving Like a Catholic
Praying as a Catholic: Showing Your Devotion
Defining “The Church” and What Membership Means
Chapter 2: Having Faith in God’s Revealed Word
How Do You Know If You Have Faith?
Having Faith in Revelation
Backing Up Your Faith with Reason: Summa Theologica
Chapter 3: Alpha to Omega: Catholic Teachings on Creation, Original Sin, and End Times
Considering Creation: Making Something out of Nothing
Breathing Life into the World: Creationism or Evolution?
Angels and Devils: Following God or Lucifer
Witnessing the Original Sin
Helping Souls in Purgatory
Anticipating What’s to Come: Moving toward the End of Creation
Chapter 4: Believing in Jesus
Jesus’s Life, Death, and Ministry: An Overview
Understanding Jesus, the God-Man
The Gospel Truth: Examining Four Written Records of Jesus
Chapter 5: Who’s Who in Catholic Practice
The Catholic Church Hierarchy: A Bird’s-Eye View
Getting to Know the Pope
Who’s Next in the Ecclesiastical Scheme of Things
The Non-Ordained Ministers
Chapter 1
Catholicism 101
IN THIS CHAPTER
Discovering key figures and Catholic tools
Getting a sense of the Catholic perspective
Introducing Church teachings
Participating in Catholic worship
Behaving and praying like a Catholic
While Catholicism is a monotheistic (one God) religion, it is also triune (one God in three divine Persons) and Christ-centered. We’ll get into the basics of what that means in this chapter as we meet several key figures referenced throughout this book — figures who will help you understand why Catholics behave the way they do, study the Bible (the Catholic holy book), and strive to live a Christ-centered life. So on that note, let’s get to it so you can get the fundamentals of what Catholics believe and understand what we even mean by “Christ-centered.”
Heavenly Roll Call: Getting Acquainted with the Blessed Trinity
While Catholics believe in one God, that one God is actually made up of three parts:
Father
Son
Holy Spirit
These three divine Persons make up the Blessed Trinity. Each Person is God, but there are not three Gods. They are unique and yet united as one, which is why it is considered a mystery in the Church because it’s nearly impossible to wrap our human heads around the complexities involved in that arrangement. However, we can help you learn about Them individually so you see how They interact as one.
God, the Father
Catholics believe there is one God (yes, they capitalize His name and pronouns). He is the Creator and Lord of heaven and earth, of everything visible and invisible. He is the father of Jesus Christ, who He sent to earth to redeem all humans for their sins. (Sins are immoral and offensive acts that go against the will and laws of God.)
While various names are used for God in the Bible (some of which are considered unpronounceable), in today’s world, other common names for God that Catholics use include:
Father
Yahweh
the Lord
Lord God
Catholics treat the name of God with reverence and never take it in vain, meaning in any perverse or dishonorable way.
Jesus Christ, the Son of God
Jesus Christ is the Son of God who came to earth, lived and taught among humankind, and died by crucifixion (being nailed to a cross). After being placed in a tomb, He (yes, He is also referenced with capitalization of His name and pronouns) rose from the dead, thereby saving humanity from their sins. But don’t worry; we’ll get into the specifics of all that in Book 1, Chapter 4. For now, just keep in mind that Catholics recognize the fully human and fully divine nature of Jesus. This means that while still maintaining His divine nature, He took on our humanity in order to bridge the gap sin (Book 1, Chapter 3) created between humans and God.
In Hebrew, Jesus means ‘God saves,’ while Christ is derived from the Greek translation of the Hebrew word that means ‘anointed.’ These names are no mere coincidence, as they signify Jesus’s link with God from the very start. However, Jesus obtained many more monikers before and after His death. Some of these include:
Son of God
Lamb of God
Son of Man (because Jesus came to serve, not be served)
Messiah, meaning ‘anointed one’ from the Greek translation
Immanuel, Hebrew for ‘God is with us’
Bread of Life
Redeemer
Only Begotten Son
Good Shepherd
King of the Jews
The Holy Spirit
In the Blessed Trinity, the Holy Spirit might be considered the forgotten middle child because more focus skews toward the Father and Son. Because, let’s be real, it’s harder to understand something that is still referred to as the Holy Ghost. However, He’s not some milky white phantom lurking in abandoned hospitals to scare those who dare to enter. No, the Spirit is as much a divine Person as the other two, and the Spirit is a harder worker than you might think. In fact, you’ve probably encountered the Spirit’s handiwork and didn’t even realize it.
It was the Spirit who inspired the writers of the Bible and guided the apostles (12 followers of Jesus) themselves in their ministry. And the Spirit remains active today. Catholics believe they are filled with the Spirit at Baptism (Book 2, Chapter 2), and they believe that the Spirit acts as a Counselor for Catholics, helping the faithful grow deeper in their learnings and connection to God. Perhaps if your heart is churning as you read this text, it’s a sign that the Spirit is alive within you right now.
In art, the Spirit is often depicted as a white dove with heavenly rays of light, which you can see in the image of the Trinity in Figure 1-1.
© Renáta Sedmáková/Adobe Stock
FIGURE 1-1: The traditional depiction of the Holy Trinity with Jesus (left), the Holy Spirit (center, depicted as a dove), and God (right) pictured together.
Introducing Earthly Figures Important to the Faith
When Jesus came to earth, He didn’t appear as a superstar or millionaire. No, He chose a much humbler path. He was born and raised by humans. Sort of like Superman (except for being born on Krypton and sent to Earth in a spaceship). But they both work to save those around them using super-human abilities. And while Jesus might have been able to do it without an earthly family, He chose not only to have that but to have devoted followers as well. In this section, we’ll outline a few of them for you.
Mary
Mary was an unmarried virgin living her life in Nazareth, Israel, when an angel of God appeared to her (sorry, but since Mary’s not divine, she doesn’t get capitalized pronouns), asking her to bear God’s only Son. After Mary gave what Catholics believe to be the most important “yes” in history, the Holy Spirit came upon her, impregnating her with Jesus. She later gave birth to Him and raised Him with her earthly husband Joseph. You can see a typical depiction of her in Figure 1-2.
© zatletic/Adobe Stock
FIGURE 1-2: An image of the Virgin Mary.
The Virgin Mary is considered one of Jesus’s most faithful disciples. While not an apostle and never holding any authority in the early Church, the Mother of Christ nonetheless has always been a model of humility, virtue, and obedience to the will of God.
Mary is seen as the ‘New Eve,’ and Catholics believe Mary was born free from the stain of original sin that came about during the fall of Adam and Eve. More on original sin in Book 1, Chapter 3.
Mary and the canonized saints (more on them later) of the Church are not objects of worship (which would be idolatry — something condemned by the First Commandment). There are, to be sure, times when other denominations accuse Catholics of worshipping Mary and the saints, but this is not true. For Catholics, Mary and the saints are living examples and models of holiness and sanctity. They are role models and heroes of faith who, in their own way, tried and succeeded in following Jesus as best they could.
We’ll go more in-depth into Mary’s role and her various apparitions around the world in Book 4, Chapter 1. But until then, you might see her referred to as:
The Blessed Virgin Mary
The Virgin Mary
The Blessed Mother
Mother Mary
The Mother of God
The Queen of Peace
The Holy Queen
The Mother of Mercy
Mary is beloved in the Catholic Church. In fact, St. Maximilian Kolbe may have said it best: “Never be afraid of loving the Blessed Virgin too much. You can never love her more than Jesus did.”
Mary, the Virgin Mother, is not to be confused with Mary Magdalene, who was an early female follower of Jesus.
Joseph
Joseph was a humble carpenter engaged to be married to Mary, when he discovered she was pregnant with a baby that wasn’t his. In those days, that was quite a scandal, and Joseph felt he needed to quietly break off his engagement with Mary. However, an angel appeared to Joseph in a dream, telling him it was the child of God. That convinced Joseph to stand by Mary’s side and help her raise and protect Jesus until his death. Most sources agree that Joseph passed away before Jesus began His public ministry, but no clear reason or date is given.
“Now this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found with child through the Holy Spirit. Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.’” (Matthew 1:18-21)
Disciples/Apostles
Different parts of the Bible use these terms interchangeably, but the important part to know is that Jesus chose 12 individuals to be His special followers who would learn and spread His message. They followed Jesus during His public ministry and learned from Him. In many ways, they are true examples of the idea that God does not call the qualified, but rather qualifies the called, since many of them were not what you would consider extraordinary in their time.
The Pope
The pope is the head of the Catholic Church. He is the direct successor of (spoiler alert!) St. Peter, the first pope and leader of the apostles. Each pope is elected (see Book 5, Chapter 1) and has total control over the morals and direction of the Church.
Priests are not popes (although they can become popes). Instead, priests typically run local parishes or churches. They are also the ones who lead the Mass, which is the central Catholic worship celebration. There are also other consecrated religious members of the Church, like religious sisters, nuns, brothers, and monks. Additionally, if you’re not a priest or member of the consecrated religious, then you’re considered a “layperson” by the Church, meaning you’re just an ordinary member of the congregation.
Saints
Saints are individuals who are now in heaven after living heroically faith-filled lives, dying as a martyr for the faith, sacrificing their life for another, or living in such a way that others should strive to imitate it. All souls in heaven are considered “saints,” but recognized saints have gone through a canonization process, meaning the Church considers them worthy of veneration. You’ll also see the abbreviation “St.” used for saint quite often.
Mary and Joseph, mentioned earlier, are saints. And so are over 10,000 other individuals who have gone through the canonization process. You can learn more about saints and the vetting process in Book 4.
For now, remember that every Catholic is called to be a saint by living a worthy life. How can you do that? Read on to see what Catholics believe and how they go about living their faith.
Looking at Key Catholic Tools, Rituals, and Locations
After you know a bit more about who’s who in the Catholic world, you should be ready to dive into what’s what, including a few items you might not be familiar with. These are various objects that Catholics use to understand, practice, and enhance their faith. We won’t go into great depth in these sections, but they’ll serve to get you started as you dive into learning about the Catholic faith.
The Bible
The Bible is the holy book Catholics use to study and learn about their faith. It is made up of texts written by individuals inspired by the Holy Spirit. The Catholic Bible (yes, not all Bibles are considered Catholic) has 73 books and was written over several centuries. It contains both the Old and New Testament sections, with the New Testament containing the Gospels (or stories of Jesus’s life, ministry, and death) along with other books about the work, letters, and communications of the apostles and disciples, among others.
You see Bible passages cited throughout this text. This is done by putting the title of the book and then the chapter number separated by a colon from the verse number(s). For example, if we wanted to cite chapter 3 verse 16 from the Gospel according to John, it would be (John 3:16). Sometimes the name of the book will be abbreviated or a number may precede the book. That occurs when there’s more than one book with that name, like 1 Corinthians and 2 Corinthians.
The crucifix
More than just a cross (which is usually made of wood), a crucifix is a cross that displays the body of Jesus Christ nailed to it, which is how Jesus died. Used by many Christian denominations around the world, it depicts the death of Jesus and is sometimes worn in a miniature version as a necklace (made of either wood or metal) to remind the wearer of Christ’s sacrifice for all of us. It’s also often found in one (or more) rooms of a Catholic home, school, or business — usually hung above a doorframe. Figure 1-3 shows a typical crucifix.
A Rosary
A rosary consists of 59 beads and a crucifix strung together in a particular order. It’s typically longer than most necklaces (it’s not meant to be worn as a necklace, and that can be seen as disrespectful to do so), and the beads can come in a variety of shapes and sizes, as shown in Figure 1-4. It’s used as an aid to pray the Rosary, which is a contemplative prayer asking for Mary to intercede to Jesus on the sayer’s behalf.
© THEPALMER/Getty Images
FIGURE 1-3: A crucifix showing Jesus nailed to the cross.
It’s a devotion, or ‘external piety practice,’ that is made up of smaller prayers that are often said repeatedly. The Hail Mary and the Our Father are two of the most prominent prayers said during the recitation of the Rosary. We cover how to say all these incredibly important prayers in Book 2, Chapter 6.
Church
A church is a structure or building that Catholics use to celebrate and worship in. They can be large, elaborately decorated buildings called cathedrals or small parish churches that often have schools attached to them. Inside, they typically have an altar, sort of like a table, where much of the celebration is focused.
The word church has many meanings. You can find out about them in the section, “Respecting the role of the Church and its leaders,” later in this chapter.
© Algirdas Gelazius/Shutterstock
FIGURE 1-4: A Catholic rosary.
Mass
Catholic Mass is the great celebration of the Church. It’s a specifically formatted way to worship. Catholics are required to attend on Sundays (or Saturday nights) and on holy days of obligation, which are designated days of celebrations tied to important events or figures within the Church.
At most churches, Mass is offered daily, with multiple Masses being said on Sundays to manage the crowds.
Holy days of obligation
Holy days of obligation are days of the year when Catholics must attend Mass in addition to the normal Sunday Mass. The United States has six holy days of obligation.
January 1:
The Feast of Mary, the Mother of God
40 days after Easter Sunday:
Ascension Thursday
August 15:
Assumption of Mary into heaven
November 1:
All Saints’ Day
December 8:
The Feast of the Immaculate Conception
December 25:
Christmas, the Nativity of Our Lord
Easter is not listed as a holy day of obligation because it always falls on a Sunday, which means it is already a day when Catholics go to Mass, whereas these other days fall on specific dates instead of days of the week.
The schedule gets confusing sometimes. If a holy day falls on a Saturday or Monday, they aren’t considered holy days of obligation because they’re back-to-back with Sunday. The concern is that it would be burdensome to many Catholics to have to go to Church two days in a row.
In the United States, however, Christmas Day (December 25) and the Immaculate Conception (December 8) are always days of obligation even when they fall on Saturday or Monday. The reason is that Christmas and Easter are the highest-ranking holy days, and the Immaculate Conception is the patronal feast for the United States. But if All Saints’ Day, the Assumption, or the Feast of Mary, the Mother of God falls on a Saturday or a Monday, the obligation to attend Mass is lifted. If either of those days falls on a Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday, though, attending Mass is obligatory. Believe us, Catholics often get confused with this formula — including the priests.
And to make it even more perplexing, some parts of the United States have moved holy days, such as the Ascension, from Thursday to the closest Sunday. If in doubt, it’s best to call the local Catholic parish or just go to Mass anyway. Attending Mass is never a waste of time, even if it ends up not being a holy day of obligation. Holy days differ around the world, so if you’re traveling abroad, check in with those local parishes to make sure you’re not missing something important.
Note that some countries, including Vatican City, have more holy days of obligation, which are often civil holidays as well. That could mean a national day off and closed government offices. These other holy days include January 6 (Epiphany), March 19 (St. Joseph), Corpus Christi (Thursday after Trinity Sunday, which is the Sunday after Pentecost, which is 50 days after Easter), and the Solemnity of St. Peter and St. Paul (June 29).
Holy days are like Sundays in that Catholics must attend Mass and, if possible, refrain from unnecessary servile work. Some Catholic countries, such as Italy and Spain, give legal holiday status to some of these holy days so that people can attend Mass and be with family instead of at work.
Heaven
If you’re lucky — or more exactly, if you live a worthy life — this is where you’ll end up when you die because it’s paradise. Catholics believe heaven is where they will join Jesus, God, and the saints after death.
Hell
The opposite of heaven, hell is a torturous wasteland ruled over by the devil, who was once an angel of God but revolted against Him and became evil. The devil tempts sinners to turn away from God. If you fall into those temptations, you may end up in hell for eternity.
Considering the Catholic Perspective
Maybe you have some idea of the things Catholics do, participate in, and attend. But being Catholic means more than going to a parochial school or religion class once a week, owning some rosary beads, and going to Mass every Saturday night or Sunday morning. It means more than getting ashes smeared on your forehead at the beginning of Lent, eating fish on Fridays, and giving up chocolate for Lent. Being Catholic means following the example of Jesus Christ by living a Christian life and having a Catholic perspective. Catholicism is not just a set of beliefs; it’s a total way of life.
So what is the Catholic perspective and way of life? In this section, you get a peek at what Catholicism is all about, including the common buzzwords and beliefs — a big picture of the whole shebang. (The rest of this book gets into the nitty-gritty details.)
The cut-to-the-chase answer is that Catholicism is a Christian religion (just as are Protestantism and Eastern Orthodoxy). Catholics are members of the Roman Catholic Church (which means they follow the authority of the bishop of Rome, otherwise known as the pope), and they share various beliefs and ways of worship, as well as a distinct outlook on life. Catholics can be either Latin (Western) or Eastern Catholic; both are equally in union with the pope, but they retain their respective customs and traditions.
Catholics believe that all people are basically good, but sin wounded humankind initially and can kill humankind spiritually if left unchecked. Divine grace is the only remedy for sin, and the best source of divine grace is from the sacraments (Book 2, Chapter 2), which are various rites (like Baptism) that Catholics believe have been created by Jesus and entrusted by Him to His Church.
From the Catholic perspective, here are some of the bottom-line beliefs:
More than an intellectual assent to an idea, Catholicism involves a daily commitment to embrace the will of God — whatever it is and wherever it leads.
Catholicism means cooperation with God on the part of the believer. God offers His divine grace (His gift of unconditional love), and the Catholic must accept it and then cooperate with it by living an exemplary life.
Free will is sacred. God never forces you to do anything against your free will. Yet doing evil not only hurts you but also hurts others because a Catholic is never alone. Catholics are always part of a spiritual family called the
Church
.
More than a place to go on the weekend to worship, the Church is a mother who feeds spiritually, shares doctrine, heals and comforts, and disciplines when needed. Catholicism considers the Church to be as important to salvation as the sacraments because both were instituted by Christ.
The Catholic perspective sees everything as being intrinsically created good but with the potential of turning to darkness. It honors the individual intellect and well-formed conscience, and it encourages members to use their minds to think things through. In other words, the Catholic Church educates its members to use their ability to reason and to apply laws of ethics and a natural moral law in many situations.
Catholicism doesn’t see science or reason as enemies of faith, but as cooperators in seeking the truth. Although Catholicism has an elaborate hierarchy (Book 1, Chapter 5) to provide leadership in the Church, Catholicism also teaches individual responsibility and accountability — for which you will be judged in the afterlife. Education and the secular (non-religious) and sacred sciences are high priorities. This is because using logical and coherent arguments to explain and defend the Catholic faith is important.
Catholicism isn’t a one-day-a-week enterprise. It doesn’t segregate religious and moral dimensions of life from political, economic, personal, and familial dimensions. Catholicism tries to integrate faith into everything.
The general Catholic perspective is that because God created everything, nothing is outside God’s jurisdiction, including your every thought, word, and deed — morning, noon, and night, 24/7/365. There’s even a saying: “Germs and Jesus are everywhere. So wash your hands and say your prayers.”
Catholic Church Teachings in a Nutshell
The Catholic religion was built by Christ on four pillars of faith: the creed (teachings), the sacraments (liturgical worship), the Ten Commandments (moral code), and the Lord’s Prayer or Our Father (prayer and spirituality).
Church doctrine and dogma can be very sophisticated, which may intimidate some people. But the fundamentals are rooted in the Church’s creed: the first pillar of faith. Either the Nicene Creed or the Apostles’ Creed (which you find out about in Book 1, Chapter 2) is said every Sunday and holy day to reaffirm what the Church actually teaches and expects her members to believe and profess. Catholics also read the Bible and the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC), the definitive book explaining the official teachings of the Catholic Church on faith and morals.
This section runs through the fundamental tenets of the Church, including what the Church is and who leads it.
Grasping the basic beliefs
Catholics are first and foremost Christians, but that is the overarching term for all denominations. Just like that old math phrase, “all squares are rectangles, but not all rectangles are square,” all Catholics are Christians, but not all Christians are Catholics. Usually, it is transubstantiation — the belief that the Holy Eucharist is the body and blood of Christ (more on that later on in this chapter) — that many consider to be what sets Catholics apart from most other denominations. Catholics also believe the following:
The Bible is the inspired, error-free, and revealed word of God.
See Book 1,
Chapter 2
for an introduction to the Bible.
Baptism, the rite of becoming a Christian, is necessary for salvation.
This is true whether the Baptism occurs by water, blood, or desire (see Book 2,
Chapter 2
).
God’s Ten Commandments provide a moral compass — an ethical standard to live by.
You find out about the Ten Commandments in detail in Book 2,
Chapter 4
.
There is one God in three persons called the Holy Trinity.
As mentioned earlier, Catholics embrace the belief that God, the one Supreme Being, is made up of three persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
Catholics recognize the unity of body and soul for each human being. So the whole religion centers on the truth that humankind stands between the two worlds of matter and spirit. The physical world is considered part of God’s creation and is, therefore, inherently good until an individual misuses it.
The seven sacraments — Baptism, Penance, Holy Eucharist, Confirmation, Matrimony, Holy Orders, and the Anointing of the Sick — are outward signs that Christ instituted to give grace. These Catholic rites (Book 2, Chapter 2) are based on this same premise of the union of body and soul, matter and spirit, physical and spiritual.
Grace is a totally free, unmerited gift from God that is necessary for our salvation. Grace is a sharing in the divine; it’s God’s help — the inspiration that’s needed to do His will. Grace inspired martyrs in the early days of Christianity to suffer death rather than deny Christ. Grace bolstered St. Bernadette Soubirous (Book 4, Chapter 4) to sustain the derision of the locals who didn’t believe she’d seen the Virgin Mary appear to her. You can’t see, hear, feel, smell, or taste grace because it’s invisible. Catholic belief, however, maintains that grace is the life force of the soul. Like a spiritual megavitamin, grace inspires a person to selflessly conform to God’s will, and like the battery in the mechanical bunny, grace keeps the soul going, going, going, and going. Because grace is a gift, you can accept or reject it; if you reject it, you won’t be saved, and if you accept it, you have to put it into action.
Respecting the role of the Church and its leaders
Catholics firmly believe that Jesus Christ personally founded the Church, and He entrusted it to the authority and administration of St. Peter and his successors. This section explains what Catholics believe the Church really is, as well as how its leadership is structured.
What “the Church” really is
The word church has many meanings. Most obviously, it can signify a building where sacred worship takes place. The Catholic Church is not one particular building, even though the head of the Church (the pope) lives near Saint Peter’s Basilica (the largest church in the world) in Rome.
People who use the church building — the body or assembly of believers — are also known as the church. When that body is united under one tradition of worship, it is called a liturgical church, such as the Eastern Catholic Church, the Melkite Church, the Ruthenian Church, or the Latin or Roman Rite Church.
Catholic Churches may differ liturgically, but they’re still Catholic. The two main lungs of the Church are the Latin (Western) Church and the Eastern Catholic Church. The Latin (Western) Church follows the ancient traditions of the Christian community in Rome since the time of St. Peter and St. Paul; most parishes in the United States, Canada, Central America, and South America celebrate this type of Mass, said in either the location’s common tongue or Latin. The Eastern Catholic Church, which includes the Byzantine Rite, celebrates its Mass like Greek or Russian Eastern Orthodox Churches. Both Masses are cool by the pope, though.
At an even more profound level, the entire universal
