Penance in General

1 Q. What is the sacrament of Penance?
A. The sacrament of Penance, also called Confession, is a sacrament instituted by Jesus Christ to remit the sins committed after Baptism.

2 Q. Why is the name of Penance given to this sacrament?
A. The name of Penance is given to this sacrament, because to obtain pardon for sins it is necessary to detest them penitently; and because he who has committed a fault must submit to the penance which the priest imposes.

3 Q. Why is this sacrament also called Confession?
A. This sacrament is also called Confession, because to obtain pardon for sins it is not enough to detest them, but it is necessary also to accuse oneself of them to the priest, that is, to make a confession of them.

4 Q. When did Jesus Christ institute the sacrament of Penance?
A. Jesus Christ instituted the sacrament of Penance on the day of His resurrection when, entering the Supper Room, He solemnly gave His Apostles the power of remitting sin.

5 Q. How did Jesus Christ give His Apostles the power of remitting sin?
A. Jesus Christ gave His Apostles the power of remitting sin thus: Breathing upon them He said: “Receive ye the Holy Ghost; whose sins you shall forgive they are forgiven; and whose sins you shall retain they are retained.”

6 Q. What is the matter of the sacrament of Penance?
A. The matter of the sacrament of Penance is divided into remote and proximate. The remote matter consists of the sins committed by the penitent after Baptism; and the proximate matter are the acts of the penitent himself, that is, contrition, confession and satisfaction.

7 Q. What is the form of the sacrament of Penance?
A. The form of the sacrament of Penance is this: “I absolve thee from thy sins.”

8 Q. Who is the minister of the sacrament of Penance?
A. The minister of the sacrament of Penance is a priest authorized by the Bishop to hear confessions.

9 Q. Why do you say that a priest must be authorized by the Bishop?
A. A priest must be authorized by the Bishop to hear confessions because to administer this sacrament validly the power of Orders is not enough, but there is also necessary the power of jurisdiction, that is, the power to judge, which must be given by the Bishop.

10 Q. Which are the parts of the sacrament of Penance?
A. The parts of the sacrament of Penance are contrition, confession, and satisfaction on the part of the penitent, and absolution on the part of the priest.

11 Q. What is contrition or sorrow for sins?
A. Contrition or sorrow for sin is a grief of the soul leading us to detest sins committed and to resolve not to commit them any more.

12 Q. What does the word contrition mean?
A. Contrition means a crushing or breaking up into pieces as when a stone is hammered and reduced to dust.

13 Q. Why is the name of contrition given to sorrow for sin?
A. The name of contrition is given to sorrow for sin to signify that the hard heart of the sinner is in a certain way crushed by sorrow for having offended God.

14 Q. In what does confession of sins consist?
A. Confession of sins consists in a distinct accusation of our sins made to the confessor in order to obtain absolution and receive penance for them.

15 Q. Why is confession called an accusation?
A. Confession is called an accusation, because it must not be a careless recital, but a true and sorrowful manifestation of our sins.

16 Q. What is satisfaction or penance?
A. Satisfaction or penance is that prayer or other good work which the confessor enjoins on the penitent in expiation of his sins.

17 Q. What is absolution?
A. Absolution is the sentence which the priest pronounces in the name of Jesus Christ when remitting the penitent’s sins.

18 Q. Of all the parts of the sacrament of Penance which is the most necessary?
A. Of all the parts of the sacrament of Penance the most necessary is contrition, because without it no pardon for sins is obtainable, while with it alone, perfect pardon can be obtained, provided that along with it there is the desire, at least implicit, of going to confession.

The Effects and the Necessity of the Sacrament of Penance and the Dispositions to
Receive It Properly

19 Q. Which are the effects of the sacrament of Penance?
A. The sacrament of Penance confers sanctifying grace by which are remitted the mortal sins and also the venial sins which we confess and for which we are sorry; it changes eternal punishment into temporal punishment, of which it even remits more or less according to our dispositions; it revives the merits of the good works done before committing mortal sin; it gives the soul aid in due time against falling into sin again, and it restores peace of conscience.

20 Q. Is the sacrament of Penance necessary to all for salvation?
A. The sacrament of Penance is necessary for salvation to all who have committed a mortal sin after Baptism.

21 Q. Is it a good thing to go to confession often?
A. Yes, it is an excellent thing to go to confession often, because the sacrament of Penance, besides taking away sin, gives the graces necessary to avoid sin in the future.

22 Q. Has the sacrament of Penance the power of remitting all sins, no matter how numerous or how great they are?
A. The sacrament of Penance has the power of remitting all sins no matter how numerous and great they are, provided it is received with the requisite dispositions.

23 Q. How many conditions are necessary to make a good confession?
A. To make a good confession five things are necessary: (1) Examination of conscience; (2) Sorrow for having offended God; (3) A resolution of sinning no more; (4) Confession of our sins; (5) Satisfaction or penance

24 Q. What should we do first of all to make a good confession?
A. To make a good confession we should first of all earnestly beseech God to give us light to know all our sins and strength to detest them. Examination of Conscience

25 Q. What is the examination of conscience?
A. The examination of conscience is a diligent search for the sins committed since the last good confession.

26 Q. How is the examination of conscience made?
A. The examination of conscience is made by carefully calling to mind before God all the sins committed but not confessed, in thought, word, deed and omission, against the Commandments of God and the Church, and against the duties of our state.

27 Q. On what else should we examine ourselves?
A. We should also examine ourselves on our bad habits and on the occasions of sin.

28 Q. In our examination should we also try to discover the number of our sins?
A. In our examination we should also try to discover the number of our mortal sins.

29 Q. What is required for a sin to be mortal?
A. For a sin to be mortal three things are required: (1) Grave matter, (2) Full advertence, (3) Perfect consent of the will.

30 Q. When is the matter to be considered grave?
A. The matter is grave when the thing under examination is seriously contrary to the laws of God and His Church.

31 Q. When is there full advertence in sinning?
A. Full advertence in sinning is had when we know perfectly well that we are doing a serious evil.

32 Q. When is perfect consent of the will verified in sinning?
A. Perfect consent of the will is verified in sinning when we deliberately determine to do a thing although we know that thing to be sinful.

33 Q. What diligence should be used in the examination of conscience?
A. In the examination of conscience the same diligence is demanded as is used in a matter of great importance.

34 Q. How much time should be spent in the examination of conscience?
A. More or less time should be spent in the examination of conscience according to the needs of each case, that is, according to the number or kind of sins that burden the conscience and according to the time that has elapsed since the last good confession.

35 Q. How may the examination of conscience be rendered easy?
A. The examination of conscience is rendered easy by making An examination of conscience every evening upon the actions of the day.

Sorrow

36 Q. What is sorrow for sin?
A. Sorrow for sin consists in grief of soul and in a sincere detestation of the offence offered to God.

37 Q. How many kinds of sorrow are there?
A. Sorrow is of two kinds: perfect sorrow or contrition; and imperfect sorrow or attrition.

38 Q. What is perfect sorrow or contrition?
A. Perfect sorrow is a grief of soul for having offended God because He is infinitely good and worthy of being loved for His own sake.

39 Q. Why do you call the sorrow of contrition perfect sorrow?
A. I call the sorrow of contrition perfect sorrow for two reasons: (1) Because it considers the goodness of God alone and not our own advantage or loss; (2) Because it enables us at once to obtain pardon for sins, even though the obligation to confess them still remains.

40 Q. Perfect sorrow, then, obtains us pardon of our sins independently of confession?
A. Perfect sorrow does not obtain us pardon of our sins independently of confession, because it always includes the intention to confess them.

41 Q. Why does perfect sorrow or contrition produce the effect of restoring us to the grace of God?
A. Perfect sorrow or contrition produces this effect, because it proceeds from charity which cannot exist in the soul together with sin.

42 Q. What is imperfect sorrow or attrition?
A. Imperfect sorrow or attrition is that by which we repent of having offended God because He is our Supreme Judge, that is, for fear of the chastisement deserved in this life
or in the life to come, or because of the very foulness of sin itself.

43 Q. What qualities must sorrow have to be true sorrow?
A. Sorrow in order to be true must have four qualities: It must be internal, supernatural, supreme and universal.

44 Q. What is meant by saying that sorrow must be internal?
A. It means that it must exist in the heart and will, and not in words alone.

45 Q. Why must sorrow be internal?
A. Sorrow must be internal because the will, which has been alienated from God by sin, must return to God by detesting the sin committed.

46 Q. What is meant by saying that sorrow must be supernatural?
A. It means that it must be excited in us by the grace of God and conceived through motives of faith.

47 Q. Why must sorrow be supernatural?
A. Sorrow must be supernatural because the end to which it is directed is supernatural, namely, God’s pardon, the acquisition of sanctifying grace, and the right to eternal glory.

48 Q. Explain more clearly the difference between natural and supernatural sorrow.
A. He who repents of having offended God because God is infinitely good and worthy of being loved for His own sake; of having lost Heaven and merited hell; or because of the intrinsic malice of sin, has supernatural sorrow, since all these are motives of faith. On the contrary, he who repents only because of the dishonor or chastisement inflicted by men, or because of some purely temporal loss, has a natural sorrow, since he repents from human motives alone.

49 Q. Why must sorrow be supreme?
A. Sorrow must be supreme because we must look upon and hate sin as the greatest of all evils, being as it is an offence against God.

50 Q. To have sorrow for sin, is it necessary to weep, as we sometimes do, in consequence of the misfortunes of this life?
A. It is not necessary to shed tears of sorrow for our sins; it is enough if in our heart we make more of having offended God than of any other misfortune whatsoever.

51 Q. What is meant by saying that sorrow must be universal?
A. It means that it must extend to every mortal sin committed.

52 Q. Why should sorrow extend to every mortal sin committed?
A. Because he who does not repent of even one mortal sin still remains an enemy to God.

53 Q. What should we do to have sorrow for our sins?
A. To have sorrow for our sins we should ask it of God with our whole heart, and excite it in ourselves by the thought of the great evil we have done by sinning.

54 Q. What should you do to excite yourself to detest your sins?
A. To excite myself to detest my sins: (1) I will consider the rigor of the infinite justice of God And the foulness of sin which has defiled my soul and made me worthy of the eternal punishment of hell; (2) I will consider that by sin I have lost the grace, friendship and sonship of God and the inheritance of Heaven; (3) That I have offended my Redeemer who died for me And that my sins caused His death; (4) That I have despised my Creator and my God, that I have turned my back upon Him who is my Supreme Good and worthy of being loved above everything else And of being faithfully served.

55 Q. In going to confession should we be extremely solicitous to have a true sorrow for our sins?
A. In going to confession we should certainly be very solicitous to have a true sorrow for our sins, because this is of all things the most important; and if sorrow is wanting the confession is no good.

56 Q. If one has only venial sins to confess, must he be sorry for all of them?
A. If one has only venial sins to confess it is enough to repent of some of them for his confession to be valid; but to obtain pardon of all of them it is necessary to repent of all he remembers having committed.

57 Q. If one has only venial sins to confess and if he does not repent of even one of them, does he make a good confession?
A. If one confesses only venial sins without having sorrow for at least one of them, his confession is in vain; moreover it would be sacrilegious if the absence of sorrow was conscious.

58 Q. What should be done to render the confession of only venial sins more secure?
A. To render the confession of venial sins more secure it is prudent also to confess with true sorrow some grave sin of the past, even though it has been already confessed.

59 Q. Is it well to make an act of contrition often?
A. It is well and most useful to make an act of contrition often, especially before going to sleep or when we know we have or fear we have fallen into mortal sin, in order to recover God’s grace as soon as possible; and this practice will make it easier for us to obtain from God the grace of making a like act at time of our greatest need, that is, when in danger of death.

Resolution of Sinning No More

60 Q. In what does a good resolution consist?
A. A good resolution consists in a determined will not to commit sin for the future and to use all necessary means to avoid it.

61 Q. What conditions should a resolution have in order to be good?
A. A resolution, in order to be good, should have three principal conditions: It ought to be absolute, universal, and efficacious.

62 Q. What is meant by an absolute resolution?
A. It means that the resolution ought to be without any restrictions of time, place or person.

63 Q. What is meant by a universal resolution?
A. It means that we should avoid all mortal sins, both those already committed as well as those which we can possibly commit.

64 Q. What is meant by an efficacious resolution?
A. It means that there must be a determined will to lose everything rather than commit another sin; to avoid the dangerous occasions of sin; to stamp out our bad habits; and to discharge the obligations that may have been contracted in consequence of our sins.

65 Q. What is meant by a bad habit?
A. By a bad habit is meant an acquired disposition to fall easily into those sins to which we have become accustomed.

66 Q. What must be done to correct bad habits?
A. To correct bad habits we must watch over ourselves, pray much, go often to confession, have one good director, and put into practice the counsels and remedies which he gives us.

67 Q. What is meant by dangerous occasions of sin?
A. By dangerous occasions of sin are meant all those circumstances of time, place, person, or things, which, of their very nature or because of our frailty, lead us to commit sin.

68 Q. Are we strictly bound to shun dangerous occasions?
A. We are strictly bound to shun those dangerous occasions which ordinarily lead us to commit mortal sin, and which are called the proximate occasions of sin.

69 Q. What should a person do who cannot avoid a certain occasion of sin?
A. A person who cannot avoid a certain occasion of sin should lay the matter before his confessor and follow his advice.

70 Q. What considerations will help us to make a good resolution?
A. The same considerations help us to make a good resolution as are efficacious in exciting sorrow; that is, a consideration of the motives we have to fear God’s justice and to love His infinite goodness.

The Accusation of Sins to the Confessor

71 Q. Having prepared properly for confession by an examination of conscience, by exciting sorrow, and by forming a good resolution, what do you do next?
A. Having prepared properly for confession by an examination of conscience, by sorrow, and by a purpose of amendment, I will go to make an accusation of my sins to the confessor in order to get absolution.

72 Q. What sins are we bound to confess?
A. We are bound to confess all our mortal sins; it is well, however, to confess our venial sins also.

73 Q. Which are the qualities the accusation of sins, or confession, ought to have?
A. The principal qualities which the accusation of our sins ought to have are five: It ought to be humble, entire, sincere, prudent and brief.

74 Q. What is meant by saying that the accusation ought to be humble?
A. That the accusation ought to be humble, means that the penitent should accuse himself to his confessor without pride or boasting; but with the feelings of one who is guilty, who confesses his guilt, and who appears before his judge.

75 Q. What is meant by saying that the accusation ought to be entire?
A. That the accusation ought to be entire means that all mortal sins we are conscious of having committed since our last good confession must be made known, together with the circumstances and number.

76 Q. What circumstances must be made known for the accusation to be entire?
A. For the accusation to be entire, the circumstances which change the species of the sin must be made known.

77 Q. Which are the circumstances which change the species of a sin?
A. The circumstances which change the species of a sin are: (1) Those by which a sinful action from being venial becomes mortal; (2) Those by means of which a sinful action contains the malice of two or more mortal sins.

78 Q. Give an example of a circumstance making a venial sin mortal.
A. If, to excuse himself, a man were to tell a lie and by doing so occasion serious harm to another, he would be bound to make known this circumstance, which changes the lie from an officious lie to a seriously harmful lie.

79 Q. Give an example of a circumstance on account of which a single sinful action contains the malice of two or more sins.
A. If a man were to steal a sacred object he would be bound to accuse himself of this circumstance which adds to the theft the malice of sacrilege.

80 Q. If a penitent is not certain of having committed a sin must he confess it?
A. If a penitent is not certain of having committed a sin he is not bound to confess it; and if he does confess it, he should add that he is not certain of having committed it.

81 Q. What should he do who does not remember the exact number of his sins?
A. He who does not distinctly remember the number of his sins must mention the number as nearly as he can.

82 Q. Does he who through forgetfulness does not confess a mortal sin, or a necessary circumstance, make a good confession?
A. He who through pure forgetfulness does not confess a mortal sin, or a necessary circumstance, makes a good confession, provided he has been duly diligent in trying to remember it.

83 Q. If a mortal sin, forgotten in confession, is afterwards remembered, are we bound to confess it in another confession?
A. If a mortal sin forgotten in confession is afterwards remembered we are certainly bound to confess it the next time we go to confession.

84 Q. What does he commit who, through shame or some other motive, willfully conceals a mortal sin in confession?
A. He who, through shame or some other motive, willfully conceals a mortal sin in confession, profanes the sacrament and is consequently guilty of a very great sacrilege.

85 Q. In what way must he relieve his conscience who has willfully concealed a mortal sin in confession?
A. He who has willfully concealed a mortal sin in confession, must reveal to his confessor the sin concealed, say in how many confessions he has concealed it, and make all these confessions over again, from the last good confession.

86 Q. What reflection should a penitent make who is tempted to conceal a sin in confession?
A. He who is tempted to conceal a mortal sin in confession should reflect: (1) That he was not ashamed to sin, in the presence of God who sees all; (2) That it is better to manifest his sin secretly to the confessor than to live tormented by sin, die an unhappy death, and be covered with shame before the whole world on the day of general judgment; (3) That the confessor is bound by the seal of confession under the gravest sin and under threat of the severest punishments both temporal and eternal.

87 Q. What is meant by saying that the accusation ought to be sincere?
A. By saying that the accusation ought to be sincere, is meant that we must unfold our sins as they are, without excusing them, lessening them, or increasing them.

88 Q. What is meant by saying that the confession ought to be prudent?
A. That the confession ought to be prudent, means that in confessing our sins we should use the most careful words possible and be on our guard against revealing the sins of others.

89 Q. What is meant by saying the confession ought to be short?
A. That the confession ought to be short, means that we should say nothing that is useless for the purpose of confession.

90 Q. Is it not a heavy burden to be obliged to confess one’s sins to another, especially when these are shameful sins?
A. Although it may be a heavy burden to confess one’s sins to another, still it must be done, because it is of divine precept, and because pardon can be obtained in no other way; and, moreover, because the difficulty is compensated by many advantages and great consolations.

How to Make a Good Confession

91 Q. How do you present yourself to the confessor?
A. I kneel at the feet of the confessor and I say: “Bless me, Father, for I have sinned.”

92 Q. What do you do while the confessor blesses you?
A. I humbly bow my head to receive the blessing and I make the Sign of the Cross.

93 Q. Having made the sign of the Cross what should you say?
A. Having made the sign of the Cross, I say: “I confess to Almighty God, to blessed Mary ever Virgin, to all the Saints, and to you, my spiritual Father, that I have sinned.”

94 Q. And then what must you say?
A. Then I must say: “I was at confession such a time; by the grace of God I received absolution, performed my penance, and went to Holy Communion.” Then I accuse myself of my sins.

95 Q. When you have finished the accusation of your sins what do you do?
A. When I have finished the accusation of my sins I say: “I accuse myself also of all the sins of my past life, especially of those against such or such a virtue” — for example, against purity or against the Fourth Commandment, etc.

96 Q. After this accusation what should you say?
A. I should say: “For all these sins and for those I do not remember, I ask pardon of God with my whole heart, and penance and absolution of you, my spiritual Father.”

97 Q. Having thus finished the accusation of your sins what remains to be done?
A. Having finished the accusation of my sins I should listen respectfully to what the confessor says, accept the penance with a sincere intention of performing it; and, from my heart, renew my act of contrition while he gives me absolution.

98 Q. Having received absolution what remains to be done?
A. Having received absolution I should thank the Lord, perform my penance as soon as possible, and put in practice the advice of the confessor.

Absolution

99 Q. Must confessors always give absolution to those who go to confession to them?
A. Confessors should give absolution to those only whom they judge properly disposed to receive it.

100 Q. May confessors sometimes defer or refuse absolution?
A. Confessors not only may, but must defer or refuse absolution in certain cases so as not to profane the sacrament.

101 Q. Who are those penitents who are to be accounted badly disposed and to whom absolution must as a rule be refused or deferred?
A. Penitents who are to be accounted badly disposed are chiefly the following: (1) Those who do not know the principal mysteries of their faith, or who neglect to learn those other truths of Christian Doctrine which they are bound to know According to their state; (2) Those who are gravely negligent in examining their conscience, who show no signs of sorrow or repentance; (3) Those who are able but not willing to restore the goods of others, or the reputations they have injured; (4) Those who do not from their heart forgive their enemies; (5) Those who will not practise the means necessary to correct their bad habits; (6) Those who will not abandon the proximate occasions of sin.

102 Q. Is not a confessor too severe, who defers absolution because he does not believe the penitent is well enough disposed?
A. A confessor who defers absolution because he does not believe the penitent well enough disposed, is not too severe; on the contrary, he is very charitable and acts as a good physician who tries all remedies, even those that are disagreeable and painful, to save the life of his patient.

103 Q. Should the sinner to whom absolution is deferred or refused, despair or leave off going to confession altogether?
A. A sinner to whom absolution is deferred or refused, should not despair or leave off going to confession altogether; he should, on the contrary, humble himself, acknowledge his deplorable state, profit by the good advice his confessor gives him, and thus put himself as soon as possible in a state deserving of absolution.

104 Q. What should a penitent do with regard to selecting a confessor?
A. A genuine penitent should earnestly recommend himself to God for help to enable him to select a pious, learned, and prudent confessor, into whose hands he should put himself, obeying him as his judge and physician.

Satisfaction or Penance

105 Q. What is satisfaction?
A. Satisfaction, which is also called sacramental penance, is one of the acts of the penitent by which he makes a certain reparation to the justice of God for his sins, by performing the works the confessor imposes on him.

106 Q. Is the penitent bound to accept the penance imposed on him by the confessor?
A. Yes, the penitent is bound to accept the penance imposed on him by the confessor if he can perform it; and if he cannot, he should humbly say so, and ask some other penance.

107 Q. When should the penance be performed?
A. If the confessor has fixed no time, the penance should be performed as soon as convenient, and as far as possible while in the state of grace.

108 Q. How should the penance be performed?
A. The penance should be performed entirely and devoutly.

109 Q. Why is a penance imposed in confession?
A. A penance is imposed because, after sacramental absolution which remits sin and its eternal punishment, there generally remains a temporal punishment to be undergone, either in this world or in Purgatory.

110 Q. Why has our Lord willed to remit all the punishment due to sin in the sacrament of Baptism, and not in the sacrament of Penance?
A. Our Lord has willed to remit all the punishment due to sin in the sacrament of Baptism, and not in the sacrament of Penance, ‘because the sins after Baptism are much more grievous, being committed with fuller knowledge and greater ingratitude for God’s benefits, and also in order that the obligation of satisfying for them may restrain us from falling into sin again.

111 Q. Can we of ourselves make satisfaction to God?
A. Of ourselves we cannot make satisfaction to God, but we certainly can do so by uniting ourselves to Jesus Christ, who gives value to our actions by the merits of His passion and death.

112 Q. Does the penance which the confessor imposes always suffice to discharge the punishment which remains due to our sins?
A. The penance which the confessor imposes does not ordinarily suffice to discharge the punishment remaining due to our sins; and hence we must try to supply it by other voluntary penances.

113 Q. Which are the works of penance?
A. The works of penance may be reduced to three kinds: Prayer, Fasting, and Almsdeeds.

114 Q. What is meant by prayer?
A. By prayer is meant every kind of pious exercise.

115 Q. What is meant by fasting?
A. By fasting is meant every kind of mortification.

116 Q. What is meant by almsgiving?
A. By almsgiving is meant every spiritual or corporal work of mercy.

117 Q. Which penance is the more meritorious, that which the confessor gives, or that which we do of our own choice?
A. The penance which the confessor imposes is the most meritorious, because being part of the sacrament it receives greater virtue from the merits of the passion of Jesus Christ.

118 Q. Do those who die after having received absolution but before they have fully satisfied the justice of God, go straight to Heaven?
A. No, they go to Purgatory there to satisfy the justice of God and be perfectly purified.

119 Q. Can the souls in Purgatory be relieved of their pains by us?
A. Yes, the souls in Purgatory can be relieved by our prayers, alms-deeds, all our other good works, and by indulgences, but above all by the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

120 Q. Besides his penance, what else must the penitent do after confession?
A. Besides performing his penance after confession, the penitent, if he has justly injured another in his goods or reputation, or if he has given him scandal, must as soon as possible, and as far as he is able, restore him his goods, repair his honor, and remedy the scandal.

121 Q. How can the scandal given be remedied?
A. The scandal given can be remedied by removing the occasion of it and by edifying by word and example those whom we have scandalized.

122 Q. How should we make satisfaction to one whom we have offended?
A. We should make satisfaction to one whom we have offended, by asking his pardon, or by some other suitable reparation.

123 Q. What fruits does a good confession produce in us?
A. A good confession: (1) Remits the sins we have committed and gives us the grace of God; (2) Restores us peace and quiet of conscience; (3) Reopens the gates of Heaven and changes the eternal punishment of hell into a temporal punishment; (4) Preserves us from falling again, and renders us capable of partaking of the treasury of Indulgences.

Indulgences

124 Q. What is an Indulgence?
A. An Indulgence is the remission of the temporal punishment due on account of our sins which have been already pardoned as far as their guilt is concerned — a remission accorded by the Church outside the sacrament of Penance.

125 Q. From whom has the Church received the power to grant Indulgences?
A. The Church has received the power to grant Indulgences from Jesus Christ.

126 Q. In what way does the Church by means of Indulgences remit this temporal punishment?
A. The Church by means of Indulgences remits this temporal punishment by applying to us the superabundant merits of Jesus Christ, of the Blessed Virgin and of the Saints, which constitute what is known as the Treasure of the Church.

127 Q. Who has the power to grant Indulgences?
A. The Pope alone has the power to grant Indulgences in the whole Church, and the Bishop in his own diocese, according to the faculty given him by the Pope.

128 Q. How many kinds of Indulgences are there?
A. Indulgences are of two kinds: plenary and partial.

129 Q. What is a plenary Indulgence?
A. A plenary Indulgence is that by which the whole temporal punishment due to our sins is remitted. Hence, if one were to die after having gained such an Indulgence, he would go straight to Heaven, being, as he is, perfectly exempt from the pains of Purgatory.

130 Q. What is a partial Indulgence?
A. A partial Indulgence is that by which is remitted only a part of the temporal punishment due to our sins.

131 Q. Why does the Church grant Indulgences?
A. In granting Indulgences the Church intends to aid our incapacity to expiate all the temporal punishment in this world, by enabling us to obtain by means of works of piety and Christian charity that which in the first ages Christians gained by the rigor of Canonical penances.

132 Q. What is meant by an Indulgence of forty or a hundred days or of seven years, and the like?
A. By an Indulgence of forty or a hundred days, or of seven years and the like, is meant the remission of so much of the temporal punishment as would have been paid by penances of forty or a hundred days, or seven years, anciently prescribed in the Church.

133 Q. What value should we set on Indulgences?
A. We should set the greatest value on Indulgences because by them we satisfy the justice of God and obtain possession of Heaven sooner and more easily.

134 Q. Which are the conditions necessary to gain Indulgences?
A. The conditions necessary to gain Indulgences are: (1) The state of grace (at least at the final completion of the work), and freedom from those venial faults, the punishment of which we wish to cancel; (2) The fulfillment of all the works the Church enjoins in order to gain the Indulgence; (3) The intention to gain it.

135 Q. Can Indulgences be applied also to the souls in Purgatory?
A. Yes, Indulgences can be applied also to the souls in Purgatory, when he who grants them says that they may be so applied.

136 Q. What is a Jubilee?
A. A Jubilee, which as a rule is granted every twenty-five years, is a Plenary Indulgence to which are attached many privileges and special concessions, such as that of being able to obtain absolution from certain reserved sins and from censures, and the commutation of certain vows.

The Essence, Institution and Ends of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass

1 Q. Should the Holy Eucharist be considered only as a sacrament?
A. The Holy Eucharist, besides being a sacrament, is also the permanent Sacrifice of the New Law, which Jesus Christ left to His Church to be offered to God by the hands of His priests.

2 Q. In what in general does a sacrifice consist?
A. In general a sacrifice consists in the offering of some sensible thing to God and in some way destroying it as an acknowledgment of His Supreme Dominion over us and over all things.

3 Q. What is this Sacrifice of the New Law called?
A. This Sacrifice of the New Law is called the Holy Mass.

4 Q. What, then, is the Holy Mass?
A. The Holy Mass is the Sacrifice of the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ offered on our altars under the appearances of bread and wine, in commemoration of the Sacrifice of the Cross.

5 Q. Is the Sacrifice of the Mass the same as that of the Cross?
A. The Sacrifice of the Mass is substantially the same as that of the Cross, for the same Jesus Christ, Who offered Himself on the Cross, it is Who offers Himself by the hands of the priests, His ministers, on our altars; but as regards the way in which He is offered, the Sacrifice of the Mass differs from the Sacrifice of the Cross, though retaining the most intimate and essential relation to it.

6 Q. What difference and relation then is there between the Sacrifice of the Mass and that of the Cross?
A. Between the Sacrifice of the Mass and that of the Cross there is this difference and relation, that on the Cross Jesus Christ offered Himself by shedding His Blood and meriting for us; whereas on our altars He sacrifices Himself without the shedding of His Blood, and applies to us the fruits of His passion And death.

7 Q. What other relation has the Sacrifice of the Mass to that of the Cross?
A. Another relation of the Sacrifice of the Mass to that of the Cross is, that the Sacrifice of the Mass represents in a sensible way the shedding of the Blood of Jesus Christ on the Cross, because, in virtue of the words of consecration, only the Body of our Savior is made present under the species of the bread and only His Blood under the species of the wine; although by natural concomitance and by the hypostatic union, the living And real Jesus Christ is present under each of the species.

8 Q. Is not the Sacrifice of the Cross the one only Sacrifice of the New Law?
A. The Sacrifice of the Cross is the one only Sacrifice of the New Law, inasmuch as through it Our Lord satisfied Divine Justice, acquired all the merits necessary to save us, and thus, on His part, fully accomplished our redemption. These merits, however, He applies to us through the means instituted by Him in His Church, among which is the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

9 Q. For what ends then is the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass offered?
A. The Sacrifice of the Mass is offered to God for four ends: (1) To honor Him properly, and hence it is called Latreutical; (2) To thank Him for His favors, and hence it is called Eucharistical; (3) To appease Him, make Him due satisfaction for our sins, and to help the souls in Purgatory, and hence it is called Propitiatory; (4) To obtain all the graces necessary for us, and hence it is called Impetratory.

10 Q. Who is it that offers to God the Sacrifice of the Holy Mass?
A. The first and principal Offeror of the Sacrifice of the Holy Mass is Jesus Christ, while the priest is the minister who in the Name of Jesus Christ offers the same Sacrifice to the Eternal Father.

11 Q. Who instituted the Sacrifice of the Holy Mass?
A. Jesus Christ Himself instituted the Sacrifice of the Holy Mass when He instituted the Sacrament of the Blessed Eucharist and said that this should be done in memory of His passion.

12 Q. To whom is the Holy Mass offered?
A. The Holy Mass is offered to God alone.

13 Q. If the Holy Mass is offered to God alone why are so many Masses celebrated in honor of the Blessed Virgin And the Saints?
A. Mass celebrated in honor of the Blessed Virgin and the Saints is always a sacrifice offered to God alone; it is said to be celebrated in honor of the Blessed Virgin and the Saints to thank God for the gifts He has given them, and through their intercession to obtain from Him more abundantly the graces of which we have need.

14 Q. Who shares in the fruits of the Mass?
A. The entire Church shares in the fruits of the Mass, but more particularly: (1) The priest and those who assist at Mass, the latter being united with the priest; (2) Those for whom the Mass is applied, both living and dead. The Way to Assist at Mass

15 Q. What is required in order to assist at Holy Mass well and profitably?
A. To assist at Holy Mass well and profitably two things are necessary: (1) Modesty of person and (2) Devotion of heart.

16 Q. In what does modesty of person consist?
A. Modesty of person consists especially in being modestly dressed, in observing silence and recollection and, as far as possible, in remaining kneeling, except during the time of the two Gospels which are heard standing.

17 Q. In hearing Holy Mass which is the best way to practice true devotion?
A. In hearing Holy Mass the best way to practice true devotion is the following: (1) From the very beginning to unite our intention with that of the priest, offering the Holy Sacrifice to God for the ends for which it was instituted. (2) To accompany the priest in each prayer and action of the Sacrifice. (3) To meditate on the passion and death of Jesus Christ and to heartily detest our sins, which have been the cause of them. (4) To go to Communion, or at least to make a spiritual Communion while the priest communicates.

18 Q. What is spiritual Communion?
A. Spiritual Communion is a great desire to be united sacramentally with Jesus Christ. saying, for example: “My Lord Jesus Christ, I desire with my whole heart to be united with Thee now and forever;” and then make the same acts that are to be made before and after sacramental Communion.

19 Q. Does the recitation of the Rosary or other prayers during Mass prevent us from hearing it with profit?
A. The recitation of the Rosary and other prayers during Mass does not prevent us from hearing it with profit, provided we try As far as possible to follow the parts of the Holy Sacrifice.

20 Q. Is it advisable to pray for others while assisting at Mass?
A. Yes it is advisable to pray for others while assisting at Mass; nay more, the time of Holy Mass is the most suitable of all times to pray for the living and the dead.

21 Q. What should we do after Mass?
A. After Mass we should give God thanks for having allowed us to assist at this great Sacrifice, and we should ask pardon for all the faults we may have committed while assisting at it.

The Nature of This Sacrament — The Real Presence

1 Q. What is the sacrament of the Eucharist?
A. The Eucharist is a sacrament in which, by the marvelous conversion of the whole substance of bread into the Body of Jesus Christ, and that of wine into His precious Blood, is contained truly, really, and substantially, the Body, the Blood, the Soul and Divinity of the same Lord Jesus Christ, under the appearance of bread and wine as our spiritual food.

2 Q. In the Eucharist is there the same Jesus Christ who is in heaven, and who was born on earth of the Blessed Virgin?
A. Yes, in the Eucharist there is truly the same Jesus Christ who is in heaven, and who was born on earth of the Blessed Virgin.

3 Q. Why do you believe that in the Eucharist Jesus Christ is really present?
A. I believe that in the Eucharist Jesus Christ is truly present, because He Himself has said it, and holy Church teaches it.

4 Q. What is the matter of the sacrament of the Eucharist?
A. The matter of the sacrament of the Eucharist is that which was used by Jesus Christ Himself, that is, wheaten bread and wine of the vine.

5 Q. What is the form of the sacrament of the Eucharist?
A. The form of the sacrament of the Eucharist consists of the words used by Jesus Christ Himself: “This is My Body: This is My Blood.”

6 Q. What is the host before consecration?
A. The host before consecration is bread.

7 Q. After consecration what is the host?
A. After consecration the host is the true Body of our Lord Jesus Christ under the species of bread

8 Q. What is in the chalice before consecration?
A. In the chalice before consecration there is wine with a few drops of water.

9 Q. After consecration what is in the chalice?
A. After consecration there is in the chalice the true Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, under the species of wine.

10 Q. When does the change of the bread into the Body and of the wine into the Blood of Jesus Christ take place?
A. The change of the bread into the Body and of the wine into the Blood of Jesus Christ is made in the very moment in which the priest pronounces the words of consecration during holy Mass.

11 Q. What is the consecration?
A. The consecration is the renewal, by means of the priest, of the miracle wrought by Jesus Christ at the Last Supper, of changing bread and wine into His adorable Body and Blood by saying: “This is My Body: This is My Blood.”

12 Q. What does the Church call the miraculous change of bread and of wine into the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ?
A. The Church calls the miraculous change which is daily wrought upon our altars transubstantiation.

13 Q. Who gave this great power to the words of consecration?
A. Our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, who is Almighty God, gave this great power to the words of consecration.

14 Q. Is there nothing left of the bread and of the wine after consecration?
A. After consecration the species of the bread and of the wine alone are left.

15 Q. What are the species of the bread and of the wine?
A. The species of the bread and of the wine are the quantity and sensible qualities of the bread and of the wine, such as the form, the color, and the taste.

16 Q. How can the species of the bread and of the wine remain without their substance?
A. The species of the bread and of the wine remain without their substance in a wonderful way by the power of God Almighty.

17 Q. Under the species of the bread is there only the Body of Jesus Christ and under the species of the wine only His Blood?
A. Both under the species of the bread and under the species of the wine the living Jesus Christ is all present, with His Body, His Blood, His Soul and His Divinity.

18 Q. Can you tell me why Jesus Christ is whole and entire both in the host and in the chalice?
A. Both in the host and in the chalice Jesus Christ is whole and entire, because He is living and immortal in the Eucharist as He is in heaven; hence where His Body is, there also are His Blood, His Soul, and His Divinity; and where His Blood is, there also are His Body, His Soul and His Divinity, all these being inseparable in Jesus Christ.

19 Q. When Jesus Christ is in the host does He cease to be in heaven?
A. When Jesus Christ is in the host He does not cease to be in heaven, but is at one and the same time in heaven and in the Blessed Sacrament.

20 Q. Is Jesus Christ present in all the consecrated hosts in the world?
A. Yes, Jesus Christ is present in all consecrated hosts in the world.

21 Q. How can Jesus Christ be present in all the consecrated hosts in the world?
A. Jesus Christ is present in all the consecrated hosts in the world by the Omnipotence of God, to whom nothing is impossible.

22 Q. When the host is broken is the Body of Jesus Christ broken also?
A. When the host is broken, the Body of Jesus Christ is not broken, but only the species of the bread are broken.

23 Q. In which part of the host is the Body of Jesus Christ?
A. The Body of Jesus Christ is entire in all the parts into which the host is broken.

24 Q. Is Jesus Christ just as much in a particle of a host as in a whole host?
A. Yes, the same Jesus Christ is just as much in a particle of a host as in a whole host.

25 Q. Why is the Most Blessed Eucharist preserved in our churches?
A. The Most Blessed Eucharist is preserved in our churches that It may be adored by the faithful, and brought to the sick when necessary.

26 Q. Ought the Eucharist to be adored?
A. The Eucharist ought to be adored by all, because it contains really, truly, and substantially, our Lord Jesus Christ Himself. The Institution and Effects of the Sacrament of the Eucharist

27 Q. When did Jesus Christ institute the sacrament of the Eucharist?
A. Jesus Christ instituted the sacrament of the Eucharist at the last supper, which He took with His disciples, the evening before His passion.

28 Q. Why did Jesus Christ institute the Most Holy Eucharist?
A. Jesus Christ instituted the Most Holy Eucharist for three principal reasons: (1) To be the Sacrifice of the New Law; (2) To be the food of our souls; (3) To be a perpetual memorial of His passion and death and a precious pledge both of His love for us and of eternal life.

29 Q. Why did Jesus Christ institute this sacrament under the appearances of bread and wine?
A. Jesus Christ instituted this sacrament under the appearances of bread and wine, because, the Eucharist being intended to be our spiritual nourishment, it was therefore fitting that it should be given to us under the form of food and drink.

30 Q. What are the effects which the Most Holy Eucharist produces in us?
A. The principal effects which the Most Holy Eucharist produces in those who worthily receive it are these: (1) It preserves and increases the life of the soul, which is grace, just as natural food sustains and increases the life of the body; (2) It remits venial sins and preserves us from mortal sin; (3) It produces spiritual consolation.

31 Q. Does not the Most Holy Eucharist produce other effects in us?
A. Yes; the Most Holy Eucharist produces three other effects in (1) It weakens our passions, and in particular it allays in us the fires of concupiscence; (2) It increases in us the fervour of charity towards God and our neighbor, and aids us to act in conformity with the will of Jesus Christ; (3) It gives us a pledge of future glory and of the resurrection of our body.

The Dispositions necessary to Receive Holy Communion worthily

32 Q. Does the sacrament of the Eucharist always produce its marvelous effects in us?
A. The sacrament of the Eucharist produces its marvelous effects in us when it is received with the requisite dispositions

33 Q. What conditions are necessary to make a good Communion?
A. To make a good communion three conditions are necessary: (1) To be in the grace of God (2) To be fasting from midnight until the moment of Holy Communion; (3) To know what we are about to receive, and to approach Holy Communion devoutly. [The fast from midnight was the old Eucharistic discipline. In view of evening Masses which became more frequent at his time, Pope Pius XII gave permission to reduce the fast to three hours for solid food and alcoholic drink, and to one hour for non-alcoholic drink (Christus Dominus, 6 Jan. 1953). Later, Pope Paul VI reduced the fast to one hour for everything (see 1983 Code #919). This last regulation practically reduces fasting to nothing! Thus the faithful are encouraged to follow the old rules of fast for morning Masses, and Pope Pius XII’s regulations for later Masses, keeping the spirit of the Church as Pope Pius XII wrote: “We intend by this Apostolic Letter to confirm the full force of the law and custom concerning the Eucharistic fast; and We also wish to remind those who are able to comply with that law, that they diligently continue to do so, so that only those who need these concessions may make use of them, according to their need.’ (Ibid.)]

34 Q. What is meant by being in the grace of God?
A. To be in the grace of God means to have a pure conscience And to be free from every mortal sin.

35 Q. What should one who knows that he is in mortal sin do before receiving Communion?
A. One who knows that he is in mortal sin must make a good confession before going to Holy Communion, for even an act of perfect contrition is not enough without confession to enable one who is in mortal sin to receive Holy Communion properly.

36 Q. Why does not even an act of perfect contrition suffice to enable one who knows he is in mortal sin to go to Communion?
A. Because the Church, out of respect for this sacrament, has ordained that no one in mortal sin should dare to go to Communion without first going to confession.

37 Q. Does he who goes to Communion in mortal sin receive Jesus Christ?
A. He who goes to Communion in mortal sin receives Jesus Christ but not His grace; moreover, he commits a sacrilege and renders himself deserving of sentence of damnation.

38 Q. What sort of fast is required before Communion?
A. Before communion there is required a natural fast which is broken by taking the least thing by way of food or drink.

39 Q. If one were to swallow a particle that had remained between the teeth, or a drop of water while washing, might he still go to Communion?
A. If one were to swallow a particle that had remained between the teeth, or a drop of water while washing, he might still go to Communion, because in both cases these things would either not be taken as food or drink, or they would have already lost the nature of either.

40 Q. Is it ever allowed to go to Communion after having broken the fast?
A. To go to Communion after having broken the fast is permitted to the sick, who are in danger of death, and to those who on account of prolonged illness have received a special dispensation from the Pope. Communion given to the sick in danger of death is called viaticum, because it supports them on their way from this life to eternity.

41 Q. What is meant by the words: To know what we are about to receive?
A. To know what we are about to receive means to know and firmly believe what is taught in Christian doctrine concerning this sacrament.

42 Q. What do the words: To receive Holy Communion with devotion mean?
A. To receive Holy Communion with devotion means to approach Holy Communion with humility and modesty in person And dress; and to make a preparation before, and an act of thanksgiving after, Holy Communion.

43 Q. In what does the preparation before Communion consist?
A. Preparation before Communion consists in meditating for some time on Whom we are about to receive, and on who we are; and in making acts of faith, hope, charity, contrition, adoration, humility, and desire to receive Jesus Christ.

44 Q. In what does the thanksgiving after Communion consist?
A. Thanksgiving after Communion consists in keeping ourselves recollected in order to honor the Lord who is within us; renewing our acts of faith, of hope, of charity, of adoration, of thanksgiving, of offerings, and of requests, especially for those graces which are most necessary for ourselves and for those for whom we are bound to pray.

45 Q. What should we do during the day on which we have received Communion?
A. During the day on which we have received Communion we should remain as recollected as possible, occupy ourselves in works of piety, and discharge the duties of our state with greater diligence.

46 Q. How long does Jesus Christ abide within us after Holy Communion?
A. After Holy Communion Jesus Christ abides within us by His grace as long as we commit no mortal sin; and He abides within us by His Real Presence until the sacramental species are consumed.

The Way to Go to Communion

47 Q. How should we act while receiving Holy Communion?
A. In the act of receiving Holy Communion we should be kneeling, hold our head slightly raised, our eyes modest and fixed on the sacred Host, our mouth sufficiently open, and the tongue slightly out over the lips.

48 Q. How should the Communion cloth be held?
A. The Communion cloth should be held in such a way as to receive the sacred Host in case it should fall.

49 Q. When should the sacred Host be swallowed?
A. We should try to swallow the sacred Host as soon as possible, and we should avoid spitting for some time.

50 Q. If the sacred Host should cling to the palate what should be done?
A. If the sacred Host should cling to the palate it should be removed with the tongue, but never with the finger.

The Precept of Holy Communion

51 Q. When are we bound to receive Communion?
A. We are bound to go to Communion once a year, at Easter, each one in his own parish; and also when in danger of death.

52 Q. At what age does the precept of paschal Communion begin to bind?
A. The precept of paschal Communion begins to bind as soon As a child is capable of receiving with the requisite dispositions.

53 Q. Do they sin who are old enough to receive Communion And do not?
A. They who are old enough to receive Communion and do not either because they are unwilling, or because, through their own fault, they are not instructed, undoubtedly sin. Their parents or guardians also sin if the delay of Communion is owing to their fault, and they shall have to render a strict account to God for it.

54 Q. Is it a good and useful thing to go often to Communion?
A. It is an excellent thing to go to Communion often, and even daily in accordance with the desire of the Church, provided we do so with the requisite dispositions.

55 Q. How often may we go to Holy Communion?
A. We may go to Holy Communion as often as we are advised to do so by a pious and learned confessor.

Chrism or Confirmation

1 Q. What is the sacrament of Confirmation?
A. Confirmation is a sacrament which gives us the Holy Ghost, imprints on our souls the mark of a soldier of Jesus Christ, and makes us perfect Christians.

2 Q. How does the sacrament of Confirmation make us perfect Christians?
A. The sacrament of Confirmation makes us perfect Christians by confirming us in the faith and perfecting the other virtues and gifts received in Baptism; hence it is called Confirmation.

3 Q. What gifts of the Holy Ghost are received in Confirmation?
A. The gifts of the Holy Ghost received in Confirmation are these seven: Wisdom, Understanding, Counsel, Fortitude, Knowledge, Piety, and the Fear of the Lord.

4 Q. What is the matter of this sacrament?
A. The matter of this sacrament, besides the imposition of hands by the bishop, is the anointing of the forehead of the baptized with sacred chrism; and for this reason it is also called the sacrament of Chrism, that is Anointing.

5 Q. What is sacred Chrism?
A. Sacred Chrism is oil of olive mingled with balsam, and consecrated by the bishop on Holy Thursday.

6 Q. What do the oil and balsam in this sacrament signify?
A. In this sacrament the oil, which is unctuous and strengthening, signifies the abounding grace which is diffused over the soul of the Christian to confirm him in his faith; and the balsam, which is fragrant and prevents corruption, signifies that the Christian, strengthened by this grace, is enabled to give forth a good odor of Christian virtue and preserve himself from the corruption of vice.

7 Q. What is the form of the sacrament of Confirmation?
A. The form of the sacrament of Confirmation is this: “I sign thee with the Sign of the Cross, and I confirm thee with the chrism of salvation, in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.”

8 Q. Who is the minister of the sacrament of Confirmation?
A. The ordinary minister of the sacrament of Confirmation is the bishop alone.

9 Q. How does the bishop administer Confirmation?
A. In administering the sacrament of Confirmation the bishop first stretches his hands over those to be confirmed, and invokes the Holy Ghost upon them; next, he anoints the forehead of each one with sacred chrism in the form of a cross, saying the words of the form; then he gives each one confirmed a light stroke on the cheek with his right hand, saying: Peace be with you; finally, he solemnly blesses all those he has confirmed.

10 Q. Why is the anointing made on the forehead?
A. The anointing is made on the forehead, where signs of fear and shame appear, in order that he who is confirmed may understand that he should not blush at the name and profession of a Christian, nor fear the enemies of his faith.

11 Q. Why is a light stroke given to the person confirmed?
A. A light stroke is given to the person confirmed to show him that he should be ready to bear all insults and endure all sufferings for the faith of Jesus Christ.

12 Q. Should all endeavor to receive the sacrament of Confirmation?
A. Yes, all should endeavor to receive the sacrament of Confirmation and to have those under them receive it.

13 Q. At what age is it advisable to receive the sacrament of Confirmation?
A. The age at which it is advisable to receive the sacrament of Confirmation is about the seventh year, because it is then that temptations usually begin, and the grace of the sacrament can be sufficiently discerned and a recollection be had of having received it.?

14 Q. What dispositions are required to receive worthily the sacrament of Confirmation?
A. To receive worthily the sacrament of Confirmation it is necessary to be in the grace of God; know the principal mysteries of our holy faith; and approach it with reverence and devotion.

15 Q. Would he who received Confirmation a second time be guilty of sin?
A. He would commit a sacrilege; because Confirmation is one of the sacraments that imprint a character on the soul and hence may be received only once.

16 Q. What should a Christian do to preserve the grace of Confirmation?
A. To preserve the grace of Confirmation a Christian should pray often, do good works, and live according to the laws of Jesus Christ, in spite of human respect.

17 Q. Why are there also godfathers and godmothers in Confirmation?
A. In order that, by word and example, they may show the confirmed the way to eternal life and help him in the spiritual combat.

18 Q. What qualifications are required in sponsors?
A. They should be of proper age, Catholics, confirmed, instructed in the necessary truths of religion, and persons of good life.

19 Q. Does a sponsor in Confirmation contract any relationship with the confirmed and the parents of the confirmed?
A. The sponsor in Confirmation contracts the same spiritual relationship as is contracted in Baptism.

Nature and Effects of Baptism

1 Q. What is the sacrament of Baptism?
A. Baptism is a sacrament by which we are born again to the grace of God, and become Christians.

2 Q. What are the effects of the sacrament of Baptism?
A. The sacrament of Baptism confers first sanctifying grace by which original sin is washed away, as well as all actual sin if any such exists; it remits all punishment due on account of such sins; it imprints the character of a Christian; it makes us children of God, members of the Church, and heirs to Paradise, and enables us to receive the other sacraments.

3 Q. What is the matter of Baptism?
A. The matter of Baptism is natural water which is poured on the head of the person to be baptized in such a quantity as to flow.

4 Q. What is the form of Baptism?
A. The form of Baptism is: “I baptize thee in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost.”

Minister of Baptism

5 Q. To whom does it belong to confer Baptism?
A. To confer Baptism belongs by right to bishops and parish priests, but in case of necessity any person, whether man or woman, even a heretic or an infidel, can administer it, provided he carries out the rite of Baptism, and has the intention of doing what the Church does.

6 Q. If it were necessary to baptize a person in danger of death, and if several people were present, who should administer the sacrament?
A. If it were necessary to baptize a person in danger of death, and if several people were present, a priest, if such were at hand, should administer the Sacrament, and, in his absence, one of the inferior clergy; and in the absence of such, a layman in preference to a woman, unless in the case in which the greater skill on the part of the woman, or the claims of propriety, should demand otherwise.

7 Q. What intention should the person baptizing have?
A. The person baptizing should have the intention of doing what Holy Church does in baptizing. The Rite of Baptism and the Disposition of the Adult who Receives It

8 Q. How is Baptism given?
A. Baptism is given by pouring water on the head of the person to be baptized — and if it cannot be poured on the head, then on some other principal part of the body — saying at the same time: “I baptize thee in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.”

9 Q. If one were to pour the water and another to pronounce the words would the person be baptized?
A. If one poured the water and another said the words the person would not be baptized; because it is necessary that the person who pours the water should pronounce the words.

10 Q. When in doubt whether the person is dead, is it right to omit baptizing him?
A. When in doubt whether the person is dead, he should be baptized conditionally, saying: “If thou art alive I baptize thee in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.”

11 Q. When should infants be brought to the Church to be baptized?
A. Infants should be brought to the Church to be baptized as soon as possible.

12 Q. Why such anxiety to have infants receive Baptism?
A. There should be the greatest anxiety to have infants baptized because, on account of their tender age, they are exposed to many dangers of death, and cannot be saved without Baptism.

13 Q. Do parents sin, then, who, through negligence, allow their children to die without Baptism, or who defer it?
A. Yes, fathers and mothers who, through negligence, allow their children to die without Baptism sin grievously, because they deprive their children of eternal life; and they also sin grievously by putting off Baptism for a long time, because they expose them to danger of dying without having received it.

14 Q. When the person who is being baptized is an adult, what dispositions should he have?
A. An adult who is being baptized, besides faith, should have at least imperfect contrition for the mortal sins he may have committed.

15 Q. If an adult in mortal sin was baptized without such sorrow, what would he receive?
A. If an adult was baptized in mortal sin without such sorrow he would receive the character of Baptism, but not the remission of his sins nor sanctifying grace. And these two effects would be suspended, until the obstacle is removed by perfect contrition or by the sacrament of Penance. Necessity of Baptism and Obligations of the Baptized

16 Q. Is Baptism necessary to salvation?
A. Baptism is absolutely necessary to salvation, for our Lord has expressly said: “Unless a man be born again of water and the Holy Ghost, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God.”

17 Q. Can the absence of Baptism be supplied in any other way?
A. The absence of Baptism can be supplied by martyrdom, which is called Baptism of Blood, or by an act of perfect love of God, or of contrition, along with the desire, at least implicit, of Baptism, and this is called Baptism of Desire.

18 Q. To what is the person baptized bound?
A. The person baptized is bound to always profess the faith and observe the Law of Jesus Christ and of His Church.

19 Q. In receiving holy Baptism what do we renounce?
A. In receiving holy Baptism we renounce, forever, the devil, his works and pomps.

20 Q. What is meant by the works and pomps of the devil?
A. By the works and pomps of the devil we mean sin and the maxims of the world that are contrary to the maxims of the Gospel.

Names and Sponsors

21 Q. Why is the name of a saint given to him who is being baptized?
A. To him who is being baptized is given the name of a saint in order to put him under the protection of a heavenly patron and to animate him to imitate that saint’s example.

22 Q. Who are the godfathers and godmothers in Baptism?
A. The godfathers and godmothers in Baptism are those persons who, in accordance with the decree of the Church, hold the infants at the font, answer for them, and become guarantees in the sight of God for their Christian education, especially in the absence of the parents.

23 Q. Are we obliged to keep the promises and renunciations made for us by our sponsors?
A. We are certainly obliged to observe the promises and renunciations made for us by our sponsors, because it is only on this condition that God has received us into His grace.

24 Q. What sort of persons should be chosen as godfathers and godmothers?
A. There should be chosen as godfathers and godmothers Catholics of good life, and obedient to the laws of the Church.

25 Q. What are the obligations of godfathers and godmothers?
A. Godfathers and godmothers are bound to see that their spiritual children are instructed in the truths of faith, and live as good Christians and they should edify them by their good example.

26 Q. What tie do sponsors contract in Baptism?
A. Sponsors contract a spiritual relationship with the baptized and with the parents of the baptized, which causes an impediment to marriage with these persons.

Nature of the Sacraments

1 Q. What is treated of in the fourth part of the Christian Doctrine?
A. In the fourth part of the Christian Doctrine the sacraments are treated of.

2 Q. What is meant by the word sacrament?
A. By the word sacrament is meant a sensible and efficacious sign of grace, instituted by Christ to sanctify our souls.

3 Q. Why do you call the sacraments sensible and efficacious signs of grace?
A. I call the sacraments sensible and efficacious signs of grace because all the sacraments signify by means of sensible things, the divine grace which they produce in our souls.

4 Q. Show by an example how the sacraments are sensible and efficacious signs of grace.
A. In Baptism the pouring of water on the head of the person, and the words: “I baptize thee,” that is, I wash thee, “in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost,” are a sensible sign of that which Baptism accomplishes in the soul; just as water washes the body, so in like manner does the grace given in Baptism cleanse the soul from sin.

5 Q. How many sacraments are there, and what are they called?
A. There are seven sacraments: Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Penance, Extreme Unction, Holy Orders and Matrimony.

6 Q. What is necessary to constitute a sacrament?
A. To constitute a sacrament it is necessary to have the matter, the form, and the minister, who must have the intention to do what the Church does.

7 Q. What is the matter of the sacraments?
A. The matter of the sacraments is the sensible thing made use of in effecting the sacrament; such as, for example, natural water in Baptism, oil and balsam in Confirmation.

8 Q. What is the form of the sacraments?
A. The form of the sacraments is the words which are pronounced in order to effect the sacrament.

9 Q. Who is the minister of the sacraments?
A. The minister of the sacraments is the person who administers or confers the sacrament. The Principal Effect of the Sacraments: Grace

10 Q. What is grace?
A. Grace is an inward and supernatural gift given to us without any merit of our own, but through the merits of Jesus Christ in order to gain eternal life.

11 Q. How is grace distinguished?
A. Grace is divided into sanctifying grace, which is also called habitual grace, and actual grace.

12 Q. What is sanctifying grace?
A. Sanctifying grace is a supernatural gift inherent in our soul, and rendering us just, adopted children of God and heirs to Paradise.

13 Q. How many kinds of sanctifying grace are there?
A. Sanctifying grace is of two kinds: first grace and second grace.

14 Q. What is first grace?
A. First grace is that by means of which one passes from the state of mortal sin to the state of justice.

15 Q. And what is second grace?
A. Second grace is an increase of first grace.

16 Q. What is actual grace?
A. Actual grace is a supernatural gift which enlightens the mind, moves and strengthens the will in order to enable us to do good and avoid evil.

17 Q. Can we resist the grace of God?
A. Yes, we can resist the grace of God because it does not destroy our free will.

18 Q. By the aid of our own powers alone can we do anything available to life eternal?
A. Without the help of the grace of God, and by our own powers alone, we cannot do anything helpful to life everlasting.

19 Q. How is grace given us by God?
A. Grace is given us by God chiefly through the sacraments.

20 Q. Do the sacraments confer any other grace besides sanctifying grace?
A. Besides sanctifying grace the sacraments also confer sacramental grace.

21 Q. What is sacramental grace?
A. Sacramental grace consists in the right acquired in the reception of a sacrament, to have at the proper time the actual graces necessary to fulfill the obligations arising from the sacrament received. Thus when we were baptized we received the right to have the grace to live a Christian life.

22 Q. Do the sacraments always confer grace on those who receive them?
A. The sacraments always confer grace provided they are received with the necessary dispositions.

23 Q. Who gave to the sacraments the power of conferring grace?
A. Jesus Christ by His passion and death gave to the sacraments the power of conferring grace.

24 Q. What sacraments confer first sanctifying grace?
A. The sacraments which confer first sanctifying grace, and render us friends of God, are two: Baptism and Penance.

25 Q. How are these two sacraments called on that account?
A. These two sacraments, Baptism and Penance, are on that account called sacraments of the dead, because they are instituted chiefly to restore to the life of grace the soul dead by sin.

26 Q. Which are the sacraments that increase grace in those who already possess it?
A. The sacraments which increase grace in those who already possess it are the other five: Confirmation, Eucharist, Extreme Unction, Holy Orders and Matrimony, all of which confer second grace.

27 Q. On this account how are they called?
A. These five sacraments — Confirmation, Eucharist, Extreme Unction, Holy Orders and Matrimony — are on that account called sacraments of the living, because those who receive them must be free from mortal sin, that is, already alive through sanctifying grace.

28 Q. What sin does he commit who, conscious that he is not in a state of grace, receives one of the sacraments of the living?
A. He who conscious that he is not in a state of grace, receives one of the sacraments of the living, commits a serious sacrilege.

29 Q. What sacraments are most necessary for salvation?
A. The sacraments most necessary to salvation are two: Baptism and Penance. Baptism is necessary to all, and Penance is necessary to all who have sinned mortally after Baptism.

30 Q. What is the greatest of all the sacraments?
A. The greatest of all the sacraments is the Eucharist, because it contains not only grace, but also Jesus Christ the Author of Grace and of the sacraments. The Character Impressed by some of the Sacraments

31 Q. What sacraments can be received only once?
A. The sacraments that can be received only once are three: Baptism, Confirmation, and Holy Orders.

32 Q. Why can the three sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Orders be received only once?
A. The three sacraments, Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Orders can be received only once, because each of them imprints a special character on the soul.

33 Q. What is the character that each of the three sacraments, Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Orders imprints on the soul?
A. The character that each of the three sacraments, Baptism, Confirmation, and Holy Orders imprints on the soul is a spiritual mark that is never effaced.

34 Q. What is the purpose of the character that these three sacraments impress on the soul?
A. The character that these three sacraments imprint on the soul, serves to mark us as members of Jesus Christ at Baptism, as His soldiers at Confirmation, and as His ministers at Holy Orders.

The Hail Mary

1 Q. What prayer do we usually say after the Our Father?
A. After the Our Father we say the Angelic Salutation, that is, the Hail Mary, through which we have recourse to the Blessed Virgin.

2 Q. Why is the Hail Mary called the Angelic Salutation?
A. The Hail Mary is called the Angelic Salutation, because it begins with the salutation addressed by the Archangel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary.

3 Q. Whose are the words of the Hail Mary?
A. The words of the Hail Mary are partly the Archangel Gabriel’s, partly St. Elizabeth’s, and partly the Church’s.

4 Q. Which are the words of the Archangel Gabriel?
A. The words of the Archangel Gabriel are these: Hail, full of grace, The Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women.

5 Q. When was it that the angel said these words to Mary?
A. The angel said these words to Mary when he went to announce to her, on the part of God, the mystery of the Incarnation that was to be wrought in her.

6 Q. What is our object in saluting the Blessed Virgin with the very words of the Archangel?
A. In saluting the Blessed Virgin with the words of the Archangel we congratulate her by recalling to mind the singular privileges and gifts which God has granted her in preference to all other creatures.

7 Q. Which are the words of St. Elizabeth?
A. The words of St. Elizabeth are these: Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.

8 Q. When was it that St. Elizabeth said these words?
A. St. Elizabeth, inspired by God, said these words when, three months before she gave birth to St. John the Baptist, she was visited by the Blessed Virgin, who then bore her Divine Son in her womb.

9 Q. What do we intend by saying these words?
A. In saying the words of St. Elizabeth we congratulate the Blessed Virgin on her high dignity as Mother of God, and we bless God and thank Him for having given us Jesus Christ through Mary.

10 Q. Whose are the other words of the Hail Mary?
A. All the other words of the Hail Mary have been added by the Church.

11 Q. What do we ask in the last part of the Hail Mary?
A. In the last part of the Hail Mary we beg the protection of the Blessed Virgin during this life and especially at the hour of death, when we shall have greater need of it.

12 Q. Why do we say the Hail Mary, rather than any other prayer, after the Our Father?
A. Because the Blessed Virgin is our most powerful advocate with Jesus Christ, and hence, after having said the prayer taught us by Jesus Christ, we pray the Blessed Virgin to obtain for us the graces we have asked therein.

13 Q. Why is the Blessed Virgin so powerful?
A. The Blessed Virgin is so powerful, because, being the Mother of God, she cannot but be heard by Him.

14 Q. What do the Saints teach us on devotion to Mary?
A. Regarding devotion to Mary the Saints teach us that those who are truly devout to her are loved and protected by her with a most tender Mother’s love, and that with her help they are sure to find Jesus find and obtain Paradise

15 Q. What form of devotion to Mary does the Church recommend in a very special manner?
A. The devotion to the Blessed Virgin which the Church specially recommends is the Holy Rosary.

The Lord’s Prayer in General

1 Q. Which is the most excellent of all vocal prayers?
A. The most excellent of all vocal prayers is that which Jesus Christ taught us, that is to say, the Our Father.

2 Q. Why is the Our Father the most excellent of all prayers?
A. The Our Father is the most excellent of all prayers because Jesus Christ Himself composed it and taught it to us; because it contains clearly and in a few words all we can hope for from God; and because it is the standard and model of all other prayers.

3 Q. Is the Our Father also the most efficacious of prayers?
A. Yes, it is also the most efficacious of prayers, because it is the most acceptable to God, since in it we pray in the very words His Divine Son has taught us.

4 Q. Why is the Our Father called the Lord’s Prayer?
A. The Our Father is called the Lord’s Prayer, precisely because Jesus Christ our Lord has taught it to us with His own lips.

5 Q. How many petitions are there in the Our Father?
A. In the Our Father there are seven petitions preceded by an introduction.

6 Q. Say the Our Father.
A. (1) Our Father who art in Heaven: (2) Hallowed be Thy Name; (3) Thy kingdom come; (4) Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven; (5) Give us this day our daily bread; (6) And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us; (7) And lead us not into temptation; (8) But deliver us from evil. Amen.

7 Q. When invoking God in the beginning of the Lord’s Prayer, why do we call Him Our Father?
A. In the beginning of the Lord’s Prayer we call God Our Father, to foster confidence in His infinite goodness by the remembrance that we are his children.

8 Q. How can we say that we are the children of God?
A. We are the children of God: first, because He has created us in His own image, and preserves and governs us by His providence; and secondly, because by an Act of special benevolence He has adopted us in Baptism as brothers of Jesus Christ and co-heirs with Him to eternal glory.

9 Q. Why do we call God Our Father and not my Father?
A. We call God Our Father and not my Father, because we are all His children, and hence we should look on and love one another as brothers and pray for one another.

10 Q. God being in every place, why do we say: Who art in heaven?
A. God is in every place; but we say: Our Father who art in heaven, to raise our hearts to heaven, where God manifests His glory to His children.

The First Petition

11 Q. What do we ask in the First Petition when we say: Hallowed be Thy Name?
A. In the First Petition: Hallowed be Thy Name, we ask that God may be known, loved, honored and served by the whole world and by ourselves in particular.

12 Q. What do we intend when we ask that God may be known, loved, honored and served by the whole world?
A. We intend to beg that infidels may come to the knowledge of the Lord God, that heretics may recognize their errors, that schismatics may return to the unity of the Church, that sinners may repent, and that the just may persevere in well-doing.

13 Q. Why do we first of all ask that the Name of God may be sanctified?
A. We first of all ask that the Name of God may be sanctified, because the glory of God should be nearer our hearts than all other goods and interests.

14 Q. How can we promote the glory of God?
A. We can promote the glory of God by prayer, by good example, and by directing to Him all our thoughts, affections and actions.

The Second Petition

15 Q. What do we mean by the Kingdom of God?
A. By the Kingdom of God we mean a threefold spiritual Kingdom; that is, the reign of God in us, or the reign of grace; the reign of God on earth, or the Holy Catholic Church; and the reign of God in heaven, or Paradise.

16 Q. In the words: Thy Kingdom come, what do we ask with regard to grace?
A. With regard to grace we beg that God may reign in us by His sanctifying grace, by which He deigns to dwell within us as a king in his palace; and that He may keep us ever united to Himself by the virtues of faith, hope and charity, through which He reigns over our intellect, our heart and our will.

17 Q. In the words: Thy Kingdom come, what do we ask regarding the Church?
A. Regarding the Church we ask that she may be spread and propagated ever more and more throughout the world for the salvation of mankind.

18 Q. In the words: Thy Kingdom come, what do we ask regarding Heaven?
A. Regarding Heaven we beg to be one day admitted into that Paradise for which we were created and where we shall be perfectly happy.

The Third Petition

19 Q. What do we ask in the Third Petition: Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven?
A. In the Third Petition: Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven, we beg the grace to do the will of God in all things by obeying His Commandments as promptly as the Angels and Saints obey Him in Heaven; and we also beg the grace to correspond to divine inspirations and to live resigned to the will of God should He send us tribulations.

20 Q. Is it necessary to do the will of God?
A. It is as necessary to do the will of God as it is to work out our salvation because Jesus Christ has said that they alone who have done the will of His Father shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.

21 Q. In what way can we know the will of God?
A. We can know the will of God especially by means of the Church and of the spiritual superiors appointed by God to guide us along the way of salvation; we may also learn His most holy will from the divine inspirations that come to us and from the very surroundings in which the Lord has placed us.

22 Q. Should we always recognize the will of God in adversity as well as in prosperity?
A. Both in prosperity and adversity we should always recognize the will of God, who directs or permits all things for our good.

The Fourth Petition

23 Q. What do we ask in the Fourth Petition: Give us this day our daily bread?
A. In the Fourth Petition we beg of God all that is daily necessary for soul and body.

24 Q. What do we ask of God for our soul?
A. For our soul we ask of God the sustenance of our spiritual life, that is, we pray the Lord to give us His grace of which we stand in continual need.

25 Q. How is the life of the soul nourished?
A. The life of the soul is nourished principally by the food of the word of God and by the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar.

26 Q. What do we ask of God for our body?
A. For the body we ask all that is necessary for the sustainment of our temporal life.

27 Q. Why do we say: Give us this day our daily bread, rather than: Give us bread this day?
A. We say: Give us this day our daily bread, rather than: Give us bread this day, to exclude all desire of what is another’s; and hence we beg the Lord to help us in acquiring just and lawful gains, so that we may procure our maintenance by our own toil And without theft or fraud.

28 Q. Why do we say: Give us bread, and not: Give me bread?
A. We say: Give us, rather than, Give me, to remind us that as everything comes from God, so if He gives us His gifts in abundance, He does it in order that we may share what we do not need with the poor.

29 Q. Why do we add: Daily?
A. We add, Daily, because we should desire that which is necessary to life, and not an abundance of food and other goods of the earth.

30 Q. What more does Daily signify in the Fourth Petition?
A. The word Daily signifies that we should not be too solicitous regarding the future, but that we should simply ask what we need at present.

The Fifth Petition

31 Q. What do we ask in the Fifth Petition; And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us?
A. In the Fifth Petition: And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive them that trespass against us, we ask God to pardon us our sins as we pardon those who offend us.

32 Q. Why are our sins called debts?
A. Our sins are called debts, because we must satisfy God’s justice for them either in this life or in the next.

33 Q. Can those who do not forgive their neighbor hope that God will pardon them?
A. Those who do not forgive their neighbor have no reason to hope that God will pardon them; especially since they condemn themselves when they ask God to forgive them as they forgive their neighbor.

The Sixth Petition

34 Q. What do we ask in the Sixth Petition: And lead us not into temptation?
A. In the Sixth Petition: And lead us not into temptation, we ask God to deliver us from temptation either by not allowing us to be tempted, or by giving us grace not to be conquered.

35 Q. What are temptations?
A. Temptations are an incitement to sin that comes from the devil, or from the wicked, or from our own evil passions.

36 Q. Is it a sin to have temptations?
A. No, it is no sin to have temptations; but it is a sin to consent to them, or voluntarily to expose oneself to the danger of consenting to them.

37 Q. Why does God allow us to be tempted?
A. God allows us to be tempted so as to test our fidelity, increase our virtue, and augment our merits.

38 Q. What should we do to avoid temptations?
A. To avoid temptation we should fly dangerous occasions, guard our senses, receive the
sacraments frequently, and have recourse to the practice of prayer.

The Seventh Petition

39 Q. What do we ask in the Seventh Petition: But deliver us from evil?
A. In the Seventh Petition: But deliver us from evil, we ask God to free us from evils, past, present, and future, and particularly from the greatest of all evils which is sin, and from eternal damnation, which is its penalty.

40 Q. Why do we say: Deliver us from evil and not: From evils?
A. We say: Deliver us from evil, and not, from evils, because we should not desire to be exempt from all the evils of this life, but only from those which are not good for our souls; and hence we beg liberation from evil in general, that is, from whatever God sees would be bad for us.

41 Q. Is it not lawful to beg liberation from some evil in particular, for example, from sickness?
A. Yes, it is lawful to beg liberation from some evil in particular but always in bowing to the will of God, who may even ordain that particular affliction for the good of our soul.

42 Q. How do the tribulations, which God sends us, help us?
A. Tribulations help us to do penance for our sins, to practice virtue, and above all to imitate Jesus Christ, our Head, to whom it is fitting we should conform ourselves in our sufferings, if we wish to have a share in His glory.

43 Q. What is the meaning of Amen at the end of the Our Father?
A. Amen means: So be it; So I do desire; Thus do I pray the Lord; Thus do I hope.

44 Q. To obtain the graces asked in the Our Father is it enough to recite it any way at all?
A. To obtain the graces asked in the Our Father we must recite it without haste and with attention; and we must put our heart into it.

45 Q. When should we say the Our Father?
A. We should say the Our Father every day, because every day we have need of God’s help.

Prayer in General

1 Q. What does this Part of Christian Doctrine treat of?
A. This Part of Christian Doctrine treats of Prayer in general and of the Our Father in particular.

2 Q. What is prayer?
A. Prayer is an elevation of the mind to God to adore Him, to thank Him, and to ask Him for what we need.

3 Q. How is prayer divided?
A. Prayer is divided into mental and vocal prayer. Mental prayer is that made with the mind alone; and vocal prayer is that expressed in words accompanied by attention of
mind and devotion of heart.

4 Q. Can prayer be divided in any other way?
A. Prayer may also be divided into private and public prayer.

5 Q. What is private prayer?
A. Private prayer is that which each one says individually for himself or for others.

6 Q. What is public prayer?
A. Public prayer is that said by the Sacred Ministers in the name of the Church and for the salvation of the faithful. That prayer also which is said in common and publicly by the faithful, in processions, pilgrimages and in God’s house, may also be called public prayer.

7 Q. Have we a well-founded hope of obtaining by means of prayer the helps and graces of which we stand in need?
A. The hope of obtaining from God the graces of which we stand in need is founded on the promises of the omnipotent, merciful and all-faithful God, and on the merits of Jesus Christ.

8 Q. In whose name should we ask of God the graces we stand in need of?
A. We should ask of God the graces we stand in need of in the Name of Jesus Christ, as He Himself has taught us and as is done by the Church, which always ends her prayers with these words: Through our Lord Jesus Christ.

9 Q. Why should we beg graces of God in the Name of Jesus Christ?
A. We should beg graces of God in the Name of Jesus Christ because He is our Mediator, and it is through Him alone that we can approach the throne of God.

10 Q. If prayer is so powerful how is it that many times our prayers are not heard?
A. Many times our prayers are not heard, either because we ask things not conducive to our eternal salvation, or because we do not ask properly.

11 Q. Which are the chief things we should ask of God?
A. The chief things we should ask of God are His own glory, our eternal salvation and the means of obtaining it.

12 Q. Is it not also lawful to ask for temporal goods?
A. Yes, it is lawful to ask God for temporal goods, but always with the condition that these be in conformity with His Holy will and not a hindrance to our salvation.

13 Q. If God knows all that is necessary for us, why should we pray?
A. Although God knows all that is necessary for us, He nevertheless wills that we should pray to Him so as to acknowledge Him as the Giver of every good gift, to attest our humble submission to Him, and to merit His favors for ourselves.

14 Q. What is the first and best disposition to render our prayers efficacious?
A. The first and best disposition to render our prayers efficacious is to be in the state of grace; or if we are not in that state, to desire to put ourselves in it.

15 Q. What other dispositions are required in order to pray well?
A. To pray well we specially require recollection, humility, confidence, perseverance and resignation.

16 Q. What is meant by praying with recollection?
A. It means remembering that we are speaking to God; and hence we should pray with all respect and devotion, as far as possible avoiding distractions, that is, every thought foreign to our prayers.

17 Q. Do distractions lessen the merit of prayer?
A. Yes, when we ourselves bring them about, or when we do not promptly drive them away; but if we do all we can to be recollected in God, then our distractions do not lessen the merit of our prayer, and may even increase it

18 Q. What is required to pray with recollection?
A. Before prayer we should banish all occasions of distraction, and during prayer we should reflect that we are in the presence of God who sees and hears us.

19 Q. What is meant by praying with humility?
A. It means sincerely acknowledging our own unworthiness, powerlessness and misery, and as well as this observing a respectful posture.

20 Q. What is meant by praying with confidence?
A. It means that we should have a firm hope of being heard, if it is to God’s glory and our own true welfare.

21 Q. What is meant by praying with perseverance?
A. It means that we should not grow tired of praying, if God does not at once hear us, but that we should ever continue to pray with increased fervor.

22 Q. What is meant by praying with resignation?
A. It means that we should conform our will to the will of God, even when our prayers are not heard, because He knows better than we do what is necessary for our eternal salvation.

23 Q. Does God always hear prayers when well said?
A. Yes, God always hears prayers when well said; but in the way He knows to be most conducive to our eternal salvation, and not always in the way we wish.

24 Q. What effects does prayer produce in us?
A. Prayer makes us recognize our dependence on God, the Supreme Lord, in all things; it makes us think on heavenly things; it makes us advance in virtue; it obtains for us God’s mercy; it strengthens us against temptation; it comforts us in tribulation; it aids us in our needs; and it obtains for us the grace of final perseverance.

25 Q. When should we especially pray?
A. We should especially pray when in danger, in temptation, and at the hour of death; moreover, we should pray often, and it is advisable we should do so morning and night, and when beginning the more important actions of the day.

26 Q. For whom should we pray?
A. We should pray for all; first, for ourselves, then for our relatives, superiors, benefactors, friends and enemies; for the conversion of poor sinners, and of those outside the true Church, and for the Holy Souls in Purgatory.

The Creed in General

1 Q. What is the first part of Christian Doctrine?
A. The first part of Christian Doctrine is the Symbol of the Apostles, commonly called the Creed.

2 Q. Why do you call the Creed the Symbol of the Apostles?
A. The Creed is called the Symbol of the Apostles because it is a summary of the truths of faith taught by the Apostles.

3 Q. How many articles are there in the Creed?
A. There are twelve articles in the Creed.

4 Q. Recite them.
(1) I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth;
(2) And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord;
(3) Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost; born of the Virgin Mary;
(4) Suffered under Pontius Pilate: was crucified, dead, and buried;
(5) He descended into hell: the third day He rose again from the dead;
(6) He ascended into Heaven: sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty;
(7) From thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.
(8) I believe in the Holy Ghost;
(9) The Holy Catholic Church; the Communion of Saints;
(10) The forgiveness of sins;
(11) The resurrection of the body;
(12) Life everlasting. Amen.

5 Q. What is meant by the word: “I believe”, which you say at the beginning of the Symbol?
A. The word: I believe, means I hold everything that is contained in these twelve articles to be perfectly true; and I believe these truths more firmly than if I saw them with my eyes, because God, who can neither deceive nor be deceived, has revealed them to the Holy Catholic Church and through this Church to us.

6 Q. What do the articles of the Creed contain?
A. The articles of the Creed contain the principal truths to be believed concerning God, Jesus Christ, and the Church, His Spouse.

7 Q. Is it useful to recite the Creed frequently?
A. It is most useful to recite the Creed frequently, so as to impress the truths of faith more and more deeply on our hearts.

The First Article of the Creed

God the Father Almighty

1 Q. What does the First Article of the Creed: I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, teach us?
A. The First Article of the Creed teaches us that there is one God, and only one; that He is omnipotent and has created heaven and earth and all things contained in them, that is to say, the whole Universe.

2 Q. How do we know that there is a God?
A. We know that there is a God because reason proves it and faith confirms it.

3 Q. Why do we call God the Father?
A. We call God the Father because by nature He is the Father of the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity, that is to say, of the Son begotten of Him; because God is the Father of all men, whom He has created and whom He preserves and governs; finally, because by grace He is the Father of all good Christians, who are hence called the adopted sons of God.

4 Q. Why is the Father the First Person of the Blessed Trinity?
A. The Father is the First Person of the Blessed Trinity, because He does not proceed from any other Person, but is the Principle of the other two Persons, that is, of the Son and of the Holy Ghost.

5 Q. What is meant by the word Omnipotent?
A. The word Omnipotent means that God can do all that He wills.

6 Q. God can neither sin nor die, how then do we say He can do all things?
A. Though He can neither sin nor die, we say God can do all things, because to be able to sin or die is not an effect of power, but of weakness which cannot exist in God who is most perfect.

On the Creation

7 Q. What is meant by the words: Creator of heaven and earth?
A. To create means to make out of nothing; hence, God is called the Creator of heaven and of earth, because He made heaven and earth and all things contained therein, that is, the whole Universe, out of nothing.

8 Q. Was the world created by the Father alone?
A. The world was created by all the Three Divine Persons, because whatever one Person does with regard to creatures is done by the other two Persons in one and the selfsame act.

9 Q. Why then is creation specially attributed to the Father?
A. Creation is specially attributed to the Father because creation is a work of Divine Omnipotence, which is specially attributed to the Father, just as wisdom is attributed to the Son, and goodness to the Holy Ghost, though all three Persons possess the same Omnipotence, Wisdom, and Goodness.

10 Q. Does God take any interest in the world and in the things created by Him?
A. Yes, God takes an interest in the world and in all things created by Him; He preserves them, and governs them by His infinite goodness and wisdom; and nothing happens here below that He does not either will or permit.

11 Q. Why do you say that nothing happens here below that He does not either will or permit?
A. We say that nothing happens here below that He does not either will or permit, because there are some things which God wills and commands, while there are others which He simply does not prevent, such as sin.

12 Q. Why does not God prevent sin?
A. God does not prevent sin, because even from the very abuse man makes of the liberty with which He is endowed, God knows how to bring forth good and to make His mercy or His justice become more and more resplendent.

The Angels

13 Q. Which are the noblest of God’s creatures?
A. The noblest creatures created by God are the Angels.

14 Q. Who are the Angels?
A. The Angels are intelligent and purely spiritual creatures.

15 Q. Why did God create the Angels?
A. God created the Angels so as to be honoured and served by them, and to give them eternal happiness.

16 Q. What form and figure have the Angels?
A. The Angels have neither form nor material figure of any kind, because they are pure spirits created by God in such a way as to exist without having to be united to a body.

17 Q. Why then are the angels represented under sensible forms?
A. The Angels are represented under sensible forms: (1) As a help to our imagination; (2) Because they have thus appeared many times to men, as we read in Sacred Scripture.

18 Q. Were all the angels faithful to God?
A. No, the Angels were not all faithful to God, many of them through pride claimed to be His equals and independent of Him — for which sin they were banished for ever from Paradise and condemned to hell.

19 Q. What are the Angels called who were banished forever from Paradise and condemned to hell?
A. The Angels banished forever from Paradise and condemned to hell are called demons, and their chief is called Lucifer or Satan.

20 Q. Can the demons do us any harm?
A. Yes, the demons can do us great harm both in soul and body, especially by tempting us to sin, provided God permits them to do so.

21 Q. Why do they tempt us?
A. The demons tempt us because of the envy they bear us, which makes them desire our eternal damnation; and because of their hatred of God whose image is reflected in us. God on the other hand permits these temptations in order that we may overcome them by His grace, and thus practice virtue and acquire merit for Heaven.

22 Q. How are temptations conquered?
A. Temptations are conquered by watchfulness, prayer and Christian mortification.

23 Q. What are the angels called who remained faithful to God?
A. The Angels who remained faithful to God are called the good Angels, heavenly Spirits, or simply Angels.

24 Q. What became of the Angels who remained faithful to God?
A. The Angels who remained faithful to God were confirmed in grace, forever enjoy the vision of God, love Him, bless Him, and praise Him eternally.

25 Q. Does God use the Angels as His ministers?
A. Yes, God uses the Angels as His ministers, and especially does He entrust to many of them the office of acting as our guardians and protectors.

26 Q. Should we have a particular devotion to our Guardian Angel?
A. Yes, we should have a particular devotion to our Guardian Angel; we should honour him, invoke his aid, follow his inspirations, and be grateful to him for the continual assistance he affords us.

Man

27 Q. Which is the noblest creature God has placed on earth?
A. The noblest creature God has placed on earth is man.

28 Q. What is man?
A. Man is a rational creature composed of soul and body.

29 Q. What is the soul?
A. The soul is the noblest part of man, because it is a spiritual substance, endowed with intelligence and will, capable of knowing God and of possessing Him for all eternity.

30 Q. Can the human soul be seen and touched?
A. Our soul can neither be seen nor touched, because it is a spirit.

31 Q. Does the human soul die with the body?
A. The human soul never dies; faith and our very reason prove that it is immortal.

32 Q. Is man free in his actions?
A. Yes, man is free in his actions and each one feels within himself that he can do a thing or leave it undone, or do one thing rather than another.

33 Q. Explain human liberty by an example.
A. If I voluntarily tell a lie, I know that I could have left it unsaid or that I could have remained silent, and that, on the other hand, I could also speak differently and tell the truth.

34 Q. Why do we say that man was created to the image and likeness of God?
A. We say that man was created to the image and likeness of God because the human soul is spiritual and rational, free in its operations, capable of knowing and loving God and of enjoying Him for ever — perfections which reflect a ray of the infinite greatness of the Lord in us.

35 Q. In what state did God place our first parents, Adam and Eve?
A. God placed our first parents, Adam and Eve, in the state of innocence and grace; but they soon fell away by sin.

36 Q. Besides innocence and sanctifying grace did God confer any other gifts on our first parents?
A. Besides innocence and sanctifying grace, God conferred on our first parent’s other gifts, which, along with sanctifying grace, they were to transmit to their descendants; these were: (1) Integrity, that is, the perfect subjection of sense reason; (2) Immortality; (3) Immunity from all pain and sorrow; (4) A knowledge in keeping with their state.

37 Q. What was the nature of Adam’s sin?
A. Adam’s sin was a sin of pride and of grave disobedience.

38 Q. What chastisement was meted out to the sin of Adam and Eve?
A. Adam and Eve lost the grace of God and the right they had to Heaven; they were driven out of the earthly Paradise, subjected to many miseries of soul and body, and condemned to death.

39 Q. If Adam and Eve had not sinned, would they have been exempt from death?
A. If Adam and Eve had not sinned and if they had remained faithful to God, they would, after a happy and tranquil sojourn here on earth, and without dying, have been transferred by God into Heaven, to enjoy a life of unending glory.

40 Q. Were these gifts due to man?
A. These gifts were in no way due to man, but were absolutely gratuitous and supernatural; and hence, when Adam disobeyed the divine command, God could without any injustice deprive both Adam and his posterity of them.

41 Q. Is this sin proper to Adam alone?
A. This sin is not Adam’s sin alone, but it is also our sin, though in a different sense. It is Adam’s sin because he committed it by an act of his will, and hence in him it was a personal sin. It is our sin also because Adam, having committed it in his capacity as the head and source of the human race, it was transmitted by natural generation to all his descendants: and hence in us it is original sin.

42 Q. How is it possible for original sin to be transmitted to all men?
A. Original sin is transmitted to all men because God, having conferred sanctifying grace and other supernatural gifts on the human race in Adam, on the condition that Adam should not disobey Him; and Adam having disobeyed, as head and father of the human race, rendered human nature rebellious against God. And hence, human nature is transmitted to all the descendants of Adam in a state of rebellion against God, and deprived of divine grace and other gifts.

43 Q. Do all men contract original sin?
A. Yes, all men contract original sin, with the exception of the Blessed Virgin, who was preserved from it by a singular privilege of God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ our Saviour.

44 Q. Could not men be saved after Adam’s sin?
A. After Adam’s sin men could not be saved, if God had not shown mercy towards them.

45 Q. What was the mercy shown by God to the human race?
A. The mercy shown by God to the human race was that of immediately promising Adam a divine Redeemer or Messiah, and of sending this Messiah in His own good time to free men from the slavery of sin and of the devil.

46 Q. Who is the promised Messiah?
A. The promised Messiah is Jesus Christ, as the Second Article of the Creed teaches.

The Second Article of the Creed

1 Q. What are we taught in the Second Article: And in Jesus Christ His only Son our Lord?
A. The Second Article of the Creed teaches us that the Son of God is the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity; that, like the Father, He is God eternal, omnipotent, Creator and Lord; that He became man to save us; and that the Son of God, made man, is called Jesus Christ.

2 Q. Why is the Second Person called the Son?
A. The Second Person is called the Son, because He is begotten by the Father from all eternity by way of intelligence; and for this reason, He is also called the Eternal Word of the Father.

3 Q. Since we also are sons of God, why is Jesus Christ called the only Son of God the Father?
A. Jesus Christ is called the only Son of God the Father, because He alone is His Son by nature, whereas we are His sons by creation and adoption.

4 Q. Why is Jesus Christ called our Lord?
A. Jesus Christ is called our Lord, because, not only did He as God, together with the Father and the Holy Ghost, create us; but He has also as God and Man redeemed us.

5 Q. Why is the Son of God, made man, called Jesus?
A. The Son of God, made man, is called Jesus, that is to say, Saviour, because He has saved us from the eternal death merited by our sins.

6 Q. Who gave the name of Jesus to the Son of God, made man?
A. The Eternal Father Himself, through the Archangel Gabriel, gave the name of Jesus to the Son of God made man, at the moment when the Archangel announced to the Blessed Virgin the mystery of the Incarnation.

7 Q. Why is the Son of God made man also called Christ?
A. The Son of God made man is also called Christ , that is to say, anointed or consecrated, because kings, priests and prophets were anointed of old; and Jesus is the King of kings, High Priest, and supreme Prophet.

8 Q. Was Jesus Christ really anointed and consecrated with a material anointing?
A. The anointing of Jesus Christ was not material, like that of the kings, priests and prophets of old, but wholly spiritual and divine, because the fullness of the Divinity dwells in Him substantially.

9 Q. Had men any idea of Jesus Christ previous to His coming?
A. Yes, previous to His coming men had some idea of Jesus Christ in the promise of the Messiah, which God made to our first parents, Adam and Eve, and which He renewed to the holy Patriarchs; and also in the prophecies and the many figures which foreshadowed Him.

10 Q. How do we know that Jesus Christ is truly the Messiah and Promised Redeemer?
A. We know that Jesus Christ is truly the Messiah and Promised Redeemer from the fact that in Him are verified: (1) All that the prophecies foretold, (2) And all that the figures of the Old Testament foreshadowed.

11 Q. What did the prophecies foretell of the Redeemer?
A. Regarding the Redeemer, the prophecies foretold the tribe and the family from which He was to come; the place and time of His birth; His miracles and the most minute circumstances of His Passion and Death; His Resurrection and Ascension into heaven; and His spiritual, perpetual and universal Kingdom, that is, the Holy Catholic Church.

12 Q. Which are the principal figures of the Redeemer in the Old Testament?
A. The principal figures of the Redeemer in the Old Testament are: the innocent Abel; the High Priest Melchisedech; the sacrifice of Isaac; Joseph sold by his brethren; the prophet Jonas; the Paschal Lamb; and the Brazen Serpent set up by Moses in the desert.

13 Q. How do you know that Jesus Christ is true God?
A. We know that Jesus Christ is true God: (1) From the testimony of the Father saying: This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased, hear ye Him; (2) From the attestation of Jesus Christ Himself, confirmed by the most stupendous miracles; (3) From the teaching of the Apostles; (4) From the unvarying tradition of the Catholic Church.

14 Q. Mention the chief miracles wrought by Jesus Christ?
A. Besides His Resurrection, the chief miracles wrought by Jesus Christ are; the restoring of health to the sick, of sight to the blind, of hearing to the deaf, and of life to the dead.

The Third Article of the Creed

1 Q. What is taught in the Third Article: Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary?
A. The Third Article of the Creed teaches that by the operation of the Holy Ghost the Son of God took a body and soul like ours, in the chaste womb of the Virgin Mary, and that He was born of that Virgin.

2 Q. Did the Father and the Son also take part in forming the body and creating the soul of Jesus Christ?
A. Yes, the whole three divine Persons co-operated in forming the body and in creating the soul of Jesus Christ.

3 Q. Why then is it simply said: He was conceived by the Holy Ghost?
A. It is simply said: He was conceived by the Holy Ghost, because the Incarnation of the Son of God is a work of goodness and love, and the works of goodness and love are attributed to the Holy Ghost.

4 Q. In becoming man did the Son of God cease to be God?
A. No, the Son of God became man without ceasing to be God.

5 Q. Jesus Christ, then, is God and man at the same time?
A. Yes, the incarnate Son of God, that is, Jesus Christ, is both God and man, perfect God and perfect man.

6 Q. Are there then two natures in Jesus Christ?
A. Yes, in Jesus Christ, who is both God and man, there are two natures, the divine and the human.

7 Q. In Jesus Christ are there also two Persons, the divine and the human?
A. No, in the Son of God made man there is only one Person, namely, the divine.

8 Q. How many wills are there in Jesus Christ?
A. In Jesus Christ there are two wills, the one divine, the other human.

9 Q. Did Jesus Christ possess free will?
A. Yes, Jesus Christ possessed free will, but He could not do evil, since to be able to do evil is a defect, and not a perfection, of liberty.

10 Q. Are the Son of God and the Son of Mary one and the same Person?
A. Yes, the Son of God and the Son of Mary are one and the same Person, that is, Jesus Christ, true God and true man.

11 Q. Is the Blessed Virgin the Mother of God?
A. Yes, the Blessed Virgin is the Mother of God, because she is the Mother of Jesus Christ, who is true God.

12 Q. How did Mary become the Mother of Jesus Christ?
A. Mary became the Mother of Jesus Christ solely through the operation and power of the Holy Ghost.

13 Q. Is it of faith that Mary was always a Virgin?
A. Yes, it is of faith that the most holy Mary was always a Virgin, and she is called the Virgin of virgins.

The Fourth Article of the Creed

1 Q. What are we taught in the Fourth Article: Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried?
A. The Fourth Article of the Creed teaches us that to redeem the world by His Precious Blood Jesus Christ suffered under Pontius Pilate, the Governor of Judea, died on the tree of the Cross, and, on being taken down there from, was buried.

2 Q. What does the word suffered denote?
A. The word suffered denotes all the pains endured by Jesus during His Passion.

3 Q. Did Jesus Christ suffer as God or as man?
A. Jesus Christ suffered as man alone; as God He could neither suffer nor die.

4. Q. What class of punishment was that of the Cross?
A. The punishment of the Cross in those days was the cruelest and the most ignominious of all punishments.

5. Q. Who was it that condemned Jesus Christ to be crucified?
A. He who condemned Jesus Christ to be crucified was Pontius Pilate, the Governor of Judea who, through recognizing His innocence, cravenly yielded to the threats of the people of Jerusalem.

6 Q. Could not Jesus Christ have freed Himself from the hands of Pilate and the Jews?
A. Yes, Jesus Christ could have freed Himself from the hands of Pilate and the Jews, but knowing it was His Eternal Father’s will that He should suffer and die for our salvation, He voluntarily submitted; nay, He Himself went forth to meet His enemies and freely permitted Himself to be taken and led to death.

7 Q. Where was Jesus Christ crucified?
A. Jesus Christ was crucified on Mount Calvary.

8 Q. What did Jesus Christ do while on the Cross?
A. On the Cross Jesus Christ prayed for His enemies; gave His own Most Blessed Mother as a Mother to St. John, and, in his person, to all of us; offered up His death in sacrifice; and satisfied the justice of God for the sins of men.

9 Q. Would it not have been enough for an Angel to come and make satisfaction for us?
A. No, it would not have been enough for an Angel to come and make satisfaction for us, because the offence given to God by sin was, in a certain sense, infinite, and to satisfy for it a person possessing infinite merit was required.

10 Q. To satisfy divine justice, was it necessary that Jesus Christ should be both God and man?
A. Yes; to be able to suffer and die it was necessary that Jesus Christ should be man; while for His sufferings to be of infinite value it was necessary that He should be God.

11 Q. Why was it necessary that the merits of Jesus Christ should be of infinite value?
A. It was necessary that the merits of Jesus Christ should be of infinite value, because God’s Majesty, which had been offended by sin, is infinite.

12 Q. Was it necessary for Jesus Christ to suffer as much as He actually did?
A. No, it was not absolutely necessary for Jesus Christ to suffer as much as He did, because each of His acts being of infinite value, the least of His sufferings would have sufficed for our redemption.

13 Q. Why, then, did Jesus suffer so much?
A. Jesus Christ suffered so much in order to satisfy divine justice all the more abundantly; to display His love for us still more; and to inspire us with the deepest horror of sin.

14 Q. Did anything remarkable happen at the death of Jesus Christ?
A. Yes, at the death of Jesus Christ, the sun was darkened the earth trembled, graves opened and many of the dead arose.

15 Q. Where was the Body of Jesus Christ buried?
A. The Body of Jesus Christ was buried in a new grave, hewn out of a rock, on the mount not far from where He had been crucified.

16 Q. Was the Divinity separated from the Body and Soul of Jesus Christ by His death?
A. The Divinity was separated from neither the Body nor the Soul of Christ in death; only the Soul was separated from the Body.

17 Q. For whom did Jesus Christ die?
A. Jesus Christ died for the salvation of all men, and made satisfaction for all.

18 Q. If Jesus Christ died for the salvation of all men, why are not all men saved?
A. Jesus Christ died for all, but not all are saved, because not all will acknowledge Him; all do not observe His Law; all do not avail themselves of the means of salvation He has left us.

19 Q. To be saved is it enough that Jesus Christ has died for us?
A. No, it is not enough for our salvation that Jesus Christ has died for us; it is also necessary that the fruit of His Passion and death be applied to each one of us, which is accomplished especially by means of the Sacraments instituted for this end by Jesus Christ Himself; and as many either do not receive the Sacraments at all, or do not receive them well, they thus render the death of Jesus Christ useless in their regard.

The Fifth Article of the Creed

1 Q. What are we taught in the Fifth Article: He descended into hell; the third day He rose again from the dead?
A. The Fifth Article of the Creed teaches us that the Soul of Jesus Christ, on being separated from His Body, descended to the Limbo of the holy Fathers, and that on the third day it became united once more to His Body, never to be parted from it again.

2 Q. What is here meant by hell?
A. Hell here means the Limbo of the holy Fathers, that is, the place where the souls of the just were detained, in expectation of redemption through Jesus Christ.

3 Q. Why were not the souls of the Holy Fathers admitted into heaven before the death of Jesus Christ?
A. The souls of the holy Fathers were not admitted into heaven before the death of Jesus Christ, because heaven was closed by the sin of Adam, and it was but fitting that Jesus Christ, who reopened it by His death, should be the first to enter it.

4 Q. Why did Jesus Christ defer His own resurrection until the third day?
A. Jesus Christ deferred His own resurrection until the third day to show clearly that He was really dead.

5 Q. Was the resurrection of Jesus Christ like the resurrection of other men who had been raised from the dead?
A. No, the resurrection of Jesus Christ was not like the resurrection of other men who had been raised from the dead, because He rose by His own power, while the others were raised by the power of God.

The Sixth Article of the Creed

1 Q. What are we taught in the Sixth Article: He ascended into heaven, sitteth at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty?
A. The Sixth Article of the Creed teaches us that Jesus Christ, forty days after His resurrection, ascended of Himself into heaven in the sight of His Apostles; and that while as God He was equal to His Father in glory, as man He has been raised above all the Angels and Saints, and constituted Lord of all things.

2 Q. Why did Jesus Christ remain forty days on earth after His resurrection before ascending into heaven?
A. After His resurrection Jesus Christ remained forty days on earth before ascending into heaven, to prove by several apparitions that He was truly risen, to instruct the Apostles still further, and to confirm them in the truths of faith.

3 Q. Why did Jesus Christ ascend into heaven?
A. Jesus Christ ascended into heaven: (1) To take possession of the Kingdom He had merited by His death; (2) To prepare the place of our glory, and to be our Mediator and Advocate with the Father, (3) To send the Holy Ghost upon His Apostles.

4 Q. Why is it said of Jesus Christ that He ascended, and of His Most Holy Mother that she was assumed, into heaven?
A. It is said of Jesus Christ that He ascended into heaven, and of His Most Holy Mother that she was assumed, because, Jesus Christ, being Man-God, ascended into heaven by His own power; but His Mother, being a creature, even though the greatest of all creatures, was taken up into heaven by the power of God.

5 Q. Explain the words: Sitteth at the right hand of Cod, the Father Almighty.
A. The word sitteth signifies the peaceful possession which Jesus Christ has of His glory; and the words: At the right hand of God, the Father Almighty, denote that He has a place of honor above all creatures.

The Seventh Article of the Creed

1 Q. What are we taught in the Seventh Article: From thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead?
A. The Seventh Article of the Creed teaches us that at the end of the world Jesus Christ, in all His glory and majesty, will come from heaven to judge all men, both good and bad, and to give to each of them the reward or the punishment he shall have merited.

2 Q. If everyone has to be judged by Jesus Christ in particular judgment immediately after death, why must all be judged in the general judgment?
A. We must all be judged in the general judgment for several reasons: (1) That God may be glorified; (2) That Jesus Christ may be glorified; (3) That the Saints may be glorified; (4) That the wicked may be confounded; (5) That along with the soul the body may receive its sentence of reward or punishment.

3 Q. How will God’s glory be manifested in the General Judgment?
A. God’s glory will be manifested in the General Judgment in this way, that all shall then know how justly God governs the world, even though here on earth the good are often afflicted and the wicked are often in prosperity.

4 Q. How will the glory of Jesus Christ be manifested in the General Judgment?
A. The glory of Jesus Christ will be manifested in the General Judgment in this way, that He who was unjustly condemned by men shall then come before the whole world as the Supreme Judge of all.

5 Q. How will the glory of the Saints be manifested in the General Judgment?
A. The glory of the Saints will be manifested in the General Judgment in this way that many of them who died despised by the wicked, shall be glorified before the whole world.

6 Q. How great will be the confusion of the wicked in the General Judgment?
A. In the General Judgment great indeed shall be the confusion of the wicked, especially of those who have oppressed the just and who have tried in this life to be esteemed as men of virtue and goodness; for they shall then see even their most hidden sins laid bare before the whole world.

The Eighth Article of the Creed

1 Q. What are we taught in the Eighth Article: I believe in the Holy Ghost?
A. The Eighth Article of the Creed teaches us that there is a Holy Ghost, the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity; and that, like the Father and the Son, He is God eternal, infinite, omnipotent, Creator and Lord of all things.

2 Q. From whom does the Holy Ghost proceed?
A. The Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and the Son, as from one Principle, by way of will and love.

3 Q. If the Son proceeds from the Father, and the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and the Son, it would seem as if the Father and the Son are prior to the Holy Ghost; how then can it be said that all the Three Persons are eternal?
A. It is said that all the Three Persons are eternal, because the Father has begotten the Son from all eternity, and the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and from the Son from all eternity.

4 Q. Why is the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity specially designated by the name of the Holy Ghost or the Holy Spirit?
A. The Third Person of the Blessed Trinity is specially designated by the name of the Holy Ghost or the Holy Spirit, because He proceeds from the Father and from the Son by way of spiration and of love.

5 Q. What work is especially attributed to the Holy Ghost?
A. To the Holy Ghost is specially attributed the sanctification of souls.

6 Q. Do the Father and the Son sanctify us equally with the Holy Ghost?
A. Yes, all the Three Divine Persons equally sanctify us.

7 Q. If this is so, why is the sanctification of souls specially attributed to the Holy Ghost?
A. The sanctification-of souls is specially attributed to the Holy Ghost, because it is a work of love, and the works of love are attributed to the Holy Ghost.

8 Q. When did the Holy Ghost descend on the Apostles?
A. The Holy Ghost descended on the Apostles on the day of Pentecost, that is, fifty days after the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, and ten days after His Ascension.

9 Q. Where were the Apostles during the ten days preceding Pentecost?
A. The Apostles were gathered together in the Supper Room with the Virgin Mary and the other disciples, and were persevering in prayer in expectation of the Holy Ghost, Whom Jesus Christ had promised to send them.

10 Q. What effects did the Holy Ghost produce in the Apostles?
A. The Holy Ghost confirmed the Apostles in the faith, filled them with light, strength, charity, and an abundance of all His gifts.

11 Q. Was the Holy Ghost sent for the Apostles alone?
A. The Holy Ghost was sent for the whole Church and for every faithful soul.

12 Q. What does the Holy Ghost do in the Church?
A. The Holy Ghost gives life to the Church by His grace and by His gifts, as the soul gives life to the body; He establishes in her the Kingdom of truth and of love; and He helps her to lead her children in safety along the way to heaven.

The Ninth Article of the Creed

The Church in General

1 Q. What does the Ninth article: The Holy Catholic Church, the Communion of Saints, teach us?
A. The Ninth Article of the Creed teaches us that Jesus Christ founded a visible society on earth called the Catholic Church, and that all those who belong to this Church are in communion with one another.

2 Q. Why immediately after the article that treats of the Holy Ghost is mention made of the Catholic Church?
A. Immediately after the article that treats of the Holy Ghost mention is made of the Catholic Church to indicate that the Church’s holiness comes from the Holy Ghost, who is the Author of all holiness.

3 Q. What does the word Church mean?
A. The word Church means a calling forth or assembly of many.

4 Q. Who has convoked or called us into the Church of Jesus Christ?
A. We have been called into the Church of Jesus Christ by a special grace of God, to the end, that by the light of faith and the observance of the divine law, we may render Him the worship due to Him, and attain eternal life.

5 Q. Where are the members of the Church to be found?
A. The members of the Church are found partly in heaven, forming the Church Triumphant; partly in purgatory, forming the Church Suffering; partly on earth, forming the Church Militant.

6 Q. Do these various parts of the Church constitute one sole Church?
A. Yes, these various parts of the Church constitute one sole Church and one sole body for they have the same Head, Jesus Christ, the same Spirit animating and uniting them, and the same end, eternal happiness, which some already enjoy and the rest hope for.

7 Q. To which part of the Church does this Ninth Article principally refer?
A. This Ninth Article of the Creed principally refers to the Church Militant, which is the Church we actually belong to.

The Church in Particular

8 Q. What is the Catholic Church?
A. The Catholic Church is the Union or Congregation of all the baptized who, still living on earth, profess the same Faith and the same Law of Jesus Christ, participate in the same Sacraments, and obey their lawful Pastors, particularly the Roman Pontiff.

9 Q. State distinctly what is necessary to be a member of the Church?
A. To be a member of the Church it is necessary to be baptized, to believe and profess the teaching of Jesus Christ, to participate in the same Sacraments, and to acknowledge the Pope and the other lawful pastors of the Church.

10 Q. Who are the lawful pastors of the Church?
A. The lawful pastors of the Church are the Roman Pontiff, that is, the Pope, who is Supreme Pastor, and the Bishops. Other priests, also, and especially Parish Priests, have a share in the pastoral office, subject to the Bishop and the Pope.

11 Q. Why do you say that the Roman Pontiff is supreme Pastor of the Church?
A. Because Jesus Christ said to St. Peter, the first Pope: “Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build My Church, and I will give to thee the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven, and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound also in Heaven, and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed also in Heaven.” And again: “Feed My lambs, feed My sheep.”

12 Q. The many societies of persons who are baptized but who do not acknowledge the Roman Pontiff as their Head do not, then, belong to the Church of Jesus Christ?
A. No, those who do not acknowledge the Roman Pontiff as their Head do not belong to the Church of Jesus Christ.

13 Q. How can the Church of Jesus Christ be distinguished from the numerous societies or sects founded by men, and calling themselves Christian?
A. From the numerous societies or sects founded by men and calling themselves Christian, the Church of Jesus Christ is easily distinguished by four marks: She is One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic.

14 Q. Why is the Church called One?
A. The true Church is called One, because her children of all ages and places are united together in the same faith, in the same worship, in the same law; and in participation of the same Sacraments, under the same visible Head, the Roman Pontiff.

15 Q. Can there not be several Churches?
A. No, there cannot be more than one Church; for as there is but one God, one Faith and one Baptism, there is and can be but one true Church.

16 Q. But are not the faithful of a whole Nation or Diocese also called a Church?
A. The faithful of a whole Nation or Diocese are also called a Church, but they ever remain mere parts of the Universal Church and form but one Church with her.

17 Q. Why is the true Church called Holy?
A. The true church is called Holy because holy is her Invisible Head, Jesus Christ; holy are many of her members; holy are her faith, her laws, her Sacraments; and outside of her there is not and cannot be true holiness.

18 Q. Why is the Church called Catholic?
A. The true Church is called Catholic, or Universal, because she embraces the faithful of all times, of all places, of all ages and conditions; and all peoples are called to belong to her.

19 Q. Why is the Church also called Apostolic?
A. The true Church is also called Apostolic because she goes back without a break to the Apostles; because she believes and teaches all that the Apostles believed and taught; and because she is guided and governed by their lawful successors.

20 Q. And why is the true Church called Roman?
A. The true Church is called Roman, because the four marks of Unity, Sanctity, Catholicity and Apostolicity are found in that Church alone which acknowledges as Head the Bishop of Rome, the Successor of St. Peter.

21 Q. What is the constitution of the Church of Jesus Christ?
A. The Church of Jesus Christ has been constituted as a true and perfect Society; and in her we can distinguish a soul and a body.

22 Q. In what does the Soul of the Church consist?
A. The Soul of the Church consists in her internal and spiritual endowments, that is, faith, hope, charity, the gifts of grace and of the Holy Ghost, together with all the heavenly treasures which are hers through the merits of our Redeemer, Jesus Christ, and of the Saints.

23 Q. In what does the Body of the Church consist?
A. The Body of the Church consists in her external and visible aspect, that is, in the association of her members, in her worship, in her teaching-power and in her external rule and government.

24 Q. To be saved, is it enough to be any sort of member of the Catholic Church?
A. No, to be saved it is not enough to be any sort of member of the Catholic Church; it is necessary to be a living member.

25 Q. Who are the living members of the Church?
A. The living members of the Church are the just, and the just alone, that is, those who are actually in the grace of God.

26 Q. And who are the dead members?
A. The dead members of the Church are the faithful in mortal sin.

27 Q. Can one be saved outside the Catholic, Apostolic and Roman Church?
A. No, no one can be saved outside the Catholic, Apostolic Roman Church, just as no one could be saved from the flood outside the Ark of Noah, which was a figure of the Church.

28 Q. How, then, were the Patriarchs of old, the Prophets, and the other just men of the Old Testament, saved?
A. The just of the Old Testament were saved in virtue of the faith they had in Christ to come, by means of which they spiritually belonged to the Church.

29 Q. But if a man through no fault of his own is outside the Church, can he be saved?
A. If he is outside the Church through no fault of his, that is, if he is in good faith, and if he has received Baptism, or at least has the implicit desire of Baptism; and if, moreover, he sincerely seeks the truth and does God’s will as best he can such a man is indeed separated from the body of the Church, but is united to the soul of the Church and consequently is on the way of salvation

30 Q. Suppose that a man is a member of the Catholic Church, but does not put her teaching into practice, will he be saved?
A. He who is a member of the Catholic Church and does not put her teaching into practice is a dead member, and hence will not be saved; for towards the salvation of an adult not only Baptism and faith are required, but, furthermore, works in keeping with faith.

31 Q. Are we obliged to believe all the truths the Church teaches us?
A. Yes, we are obliged to believe all the truths the Church teaches us, and Jesus Christ declares that he who does not believe is already condemned.

32 Q. Are we also obliged to do all that the Church commands?
A. Yes, we are obliged to do all that the Church commands, for Jesus Christ has said to the Pastors of the Church: “He who hears you, hears Me, and he who despises you, despises Me.”

33 Q. Can the Church err in what she proposes for our belief?
A. No, the Church cannot err in what she proposes for our belief, since according to the promise of Jesus Christ she is unfailingly assisted by the Holy Ghost.

34 Q. Is the Catholic Church infallible, then?
A. Yes, the Catholic Church is infallible, and hence those who reject her definitions lose the faith and become heretics.

35 Q. Can the Catholic Church be destroyed or perish?
A. No; the Catholic Church may be persecuted, but she can never be destroyed or perish. She will last till the end of the world, because Jesus Christ, as He promised, will be with her till the end of time.

36 Q. Why is the Catholic Church so persecuted?
A. The Catholic Church is so persecuted because even her Divine Founder, Jesus Christ, was thus persecuted, and because she reproves vice, combats the passions, and condemns all acts of injustice and all error.

37 Q. Has a Catholic any other duties towards the Church?
A. Every Catholic ought to have a boundless love for the Church, ought to consider himself infinitely honoured and happy in belonging to her, and ought to labour for her glory and advancement by every means in his power.

The Church Teaching and the Church Taught

38 Q. Is there any distinction between the members of the Church?
A. There is a very notable distinction between the members of the Church; for there are some who rule and some who obey; some who teach and some who are taught.

39 Q. What do you call that part of the Church which teaches?
A. That part of the Church which teaches is called the Teaching Church.

40 Q. What do you call that part of the Church which is taught?
A. That part of the Church which is taught is called the Learning Church, or the Church Taught.

41 Q. Who has set up this distinction in the Church?
A. Jesus Christ Himself has established this distinction in the Church.

42 Q. Are the Church Teaching and the Church Taught, then, two churches?
A. The Church Teaching and the Church Taught are two distinct parts of one and the same Church, just as in the human body the head is distinct from the other members, and yet forms but one body with them.

43 Q. Of whom is the Teaching Church composed?
A. The Teaching Church is composed of all the Bishops, with the Roman Pontiff at their head, be they dispersed throughout the world or assembled together in Council.

44 Q. And the Church Taught, of whom is it composed?
A. The Church Taught is composed of all the faithful.

45 Q. Who, then, are they who possess the teaching power in the Church?
A. The teaching power in the Church is possessed by the Pope and the Bishops, and, dependent on them, by the other sacred ministers.

46 Q. Are we obliged to hear the Teaching Church?
A. Yes, without doubt we are obliged under pain of eternal damnation to hear the Teaching Church; for Jesus Christ has said to the Pastors of His Church, in the persons of the Apostles: “He who hears you, hears Me, and he who despises you, despises Me.”

47 Q. Besides her teaching power has the Church any other power?
A. Yes, besides her teaching power the Church has in particular the power of administering sacred things, of making laws and of exacting the observance of them.

48 Q. Does the power possessed by the members of the Hierarchy come from the people?
A. The power possessed by the Hierarchy does not come from the people, and it would be heresy to say it did: it comes solely from God.

49 Q. To whom does the exercise of this power belong?
A. The exercise of this power belongs solely to the Hierarchy that is, to the Pope and to the Bishops subordinate to him.

The Pope and the Bishops

50 Q. Who is the Pope?
A. The Pope, who is also called the Sovereign Pontiff, or the Roman Pontiff, is the Successor of St. Peter in the See of Rome, the Vicar of Jesus Christ on earth, and the visible Head of the Church.

51 Q. Why is the Roman Pontiff the Successor of St. Peter?
A. The Roman Pontiff is the Successor of St. Peter because St. Peter united in his own person the dignity of Bishop of Rome and that of Head of the Church; by divine disposition he established his Seat at Rome, and there died; hence, whosoever is elected Bishop of Rome is also heir to all his authority.

52 Q. Why is the Roman Pontiff the Vicar of Jesus Christ?
A. The Roman Pontiff is the Vicar of Jesus Christ because He represents Him on earth and acts in His stead in the government of the Church.

53 Q. Why is the Roman Pontiff the Visible Head of the Church?
A. The Roman Pontiff is the Visible Head of the Church because he visibly governs her with the authority of Jesus Christ Himself, who is her invisible Head.

54 Q. What, then, is the dignity of the Pope?
A. The dignity of the Pope is the greatest of all dignities on earth, and gives him supreme and immediate power over all and each of the Pastors and of the faithful.

55 Q. Can the Pope err when teaching the Church?
A. The Pope cannot err, that is, he is infallible, in definitions regarding faith and morals.

56 Q. How is it that the Pope is infallible?
A. The Pope is infallible because of the promise of Jesus Christ, and of the unfailing assistance of the Holy Ghost.

57 Q. When is the Pope infallible?
A. The Pope is infallible when, as Pastor and Teacher of all Christians and in virtue of his supreme Apostolic authority, he defines a doctrine regarding faith or morals to be held by all the Church.

58 Q. What sin would a man commit who should refuse to accept the solemn definitions of the Pope?
A. He who refuses to accept the solemn definitions of the Pope, or who even doubts them, sins against faith; and should he remain obstinate in this unbelief, he would no longer be a Catholic, but a heretic.

59 Q. Why has God granted to the Pope the gift of infallibility?
A. God has granted the Pope the gift of infallibility in order that we all may be sure and certain of the truths which the Church teaches.

60 Q. When was it defined that the Pope is infallible?
A. That the Pope is infallible was defined by the Church in the [First] Vatican Council; and should anyone presume to contradict this definition he would be a heretic and excommunicated.

61 Q. In defining that the Pope is infallible, has the Church put forward a new truth of faith?
A. No, in defining that the Pope is infallible the Church has not put forward a new truth of faith; but to oppose new errors she has simply defined that the infallibility of the Pope, already contained in Sacred Scripture and in Tradition, is a truth revealed by God, and therefore to be believed as a dogma or article of faith.

62 Q. How should every Catholic act towards the Pope?
A. Every Catholic must acknowledge the Pope as Father, Pastor, and Universal Teacher, and be united with him in mind and heart.

63 Q. After the Pope, who are they who by Divine appointment are to be most venerated in the Church?
A. After the Pope, those who by Divine appointment are to be most venerated in the Church are the Bishops.

64 Q. Who are the Bishops?
A. The Bishops are the pastors of the faithful; placed by the Holy Ghost to rule the Church of God in the Sees entrusted to them, in dependence on the Roman Pontiff

65 Q. What is a Bishop in his own diocese?
A. A Bishop in his own diocese is the lawful Pastor, the Father, the Teacher, the Superior of all the faithful, ecclesiastic and lay belonging to his diocese.

66 Q. Why is the Bishop called the lawful Pastor?
A. The Bishop is called the lawful Pastor because the jurisdiction, or the power which he has to govern the faithful of his diocese, is conferred upon him according to the laws and regulations of the Church.

67 Q. To whom do the Pope and the Bishops succeed?
A. The Pope is the successor of St. Peter, the Prince of the Apostles; and the Bishops are the Successors of the Apostles, in all that regards the ordinary government of the Church.

68 Q. Must the faithful be in union with their Bishop?
A. Yes, all the faithful, ecclesiastic and lay, should be united heart and soul with their Bishop, who is in favour and communion with the Apostolic See.

69 Q. How should the faithful act towards their own Bishop?
A. Each one of the faithful, both ecclesiastic and lay, should revere, love and honour his own Bishop and render him obedience in all that regards the care of souls and the spiritual government of the diocese.

70 Q. By whom is the Bishop assisted in the care of souls?
A. The Bishop is assisted in the care of souls by priests, and especially by Parish Priests.

71 Q. Who is the Parish Priest?
A. The Parish Priest is a priest deputed to preside over and direct with due dependence on his Bishop a portion of the diocese called a parish.

72 Q. What are the duties of the faithful towards their Parish Priest?
A. The faithful should be united with their Parish Priest, listen to him with docility, and show him respect and submission in all that regards the care of the parish.

The Communion of Saints

1 Q. What are we taught by these words of the Ninth Article: The Communion of Saints?
A. In the words The Communion of Saints, the Ninth Article of the Creed teaches us that the Church’s spiritual goods, both internal and external, are common to all her members because of the intimate union that exists between them.

2 Q. Which are the internal goods that are common in the Church?
A. The internal goods that are common in the Church are: the graces received through the Sacraments; faith, hope and charity; the infinite merits of Jesus Christ; the superabundant merits of the Blessed Virgin and of the Saints; and the fruit of all the good works done in the same Church.

3 Q. Which are the external goods that are common in the Church?
A. The external goods that are common in the Church are: the Sacraments, the Sacrifice of the Mass, public prayers, religious functions, and all the other outward practices that unite the faithful.

4 Q. Do all the children of the Church share in this communion of goods?
A. All Christians who are in the grace of God share in the communion of internal goods, while those who are in mortal sin do not participate in these goods.

5 Q. Why do not those who are in mortal sin participate in these goods?
A. Because that which unites the faithful with God, and with Jesus Christ as His living members, rendering them capable of performing meritorious works for life eternal, is the grace of God which is the supernatural life of the soul; and hence as those who are in mortal sin are without the grace of God, they are excluded from perfect communion in spiritual goods, nor can they accomplish works meritorious towards life eternal.

6 Q. Do Christians then, who are in mortal sin derive no advantage from the internal and spiritual goods of the Church?
A. Christians who are in mortal sin still continue to derive some advantage from the internal and spiritual goods of the Church, inasmuch as they still preserve the Christian character which is indelible, and the virtue of faith which is the basis of justification. They are aided, too, by the prayers and good works of the faithful towards obtaining the grace of conversion to God.

7 Q. Can those in mortal sin participate in the external goods of the Church?
A. Those in mortal sin can participate in the external goods of the Church, unless indeed they are cut off from the Church by excommunication.

8 Q. Why are the members of this Communion, taken together, called saints?
A. The members of this Communion are called saints because all are called to sanctity and have been sanctified by baptism, and because many of them have really attained perfect sanctity.

9 Q. Does the Communion of Saints extend also to heaven and purgatory?
A. Yes, the Communion of Saints also extends to heaven and purgatory, because charity unites the three Churches — the Triumphant, the Suffering and the Militant; the Saints pray to God both for us and for the souls in purgatory; while we on our part give honour and glory to the Saints, and are able to relieve the suffering souls in purgatory by applying on their behalf indulgences and other good works.

Those Outside the Communion of Saints

10 Q. Who are they who do not belong to the Communion of Saints?
A. Those who are damned do not belong to the Communion of Saints in the other life; and in this life those who belong neither to the body nor to the soul of the Church, that is, those who are in mortal sin, and who are outside the true Church.

11 Q. Who are they who are outside the true Church?
A. Outside the true Church are: Infidels, Jews, heretics, apostates, schismatics, and the excommunicated.

12 Q. Who are infidels?
A. Infidels are those who have not been baptized and do not believe in Jesus Christ, because they either believe in and worship false gods as idolaters do, or though admitting one true God, they do not believe in the Messiah, neither as already come in the Person of Jesus Christ, nor as to come; for instance, Mohammedans and the like.

13 Q. Who are the Jews?
A. The Jews are those who profess the Law of Moses; have not received baptism; and do not believe in Jesus Christ.

14 Q. Who are heretics?
A. Heretics are those of the baptized who obstinately refuse to believe some truth revealed by God and taught as an article of faith by the Catholic Church; for example, the Arians, the Nestorians and the various sects of Protestants.

15 Q. Who are apostates?
A. Apostates are those who abjure, or by some external act, deny the Catholic faith which they previously professed.

16 Q. Who are schismatics?
A. Schismatics are those Christians who, while not explicitly denying any dogma, yet voluntarily separate themselves from the Church of Jesus Christ, that is, from their lawful pastors.

17 Q. Who are the excommunicated?
A. The excommunicated are those who, because of grievous transgressions, are struck with excommunication by the Pope or their Bishop, and consequently are cut off as unworthy from the body of the Church, which, however, hopes for and desires their conversion.

18 Q. Should excommunication be dreaded?
A. Excommunication should be greatly dreaded, because it is the severest and most terrible punishment the Church can inflict upon her rebellious and obstinate children.

19 Q. Of what goods are the excommunicated deprived?
A. The excommunicated are deprived of public prayers, of the Sacraments, of indulgences and of Christian burial.

20 Q. Can we in any way help the excommunicated?
A. We can in some way help the excommunicated and all others who are outside the true Church, by salutary advice, by prayers and good works, begging God in His mercy to grant them the grace of being converted to the faith and of entering into the Communion of Saints.

The Tenth Article of the Creed

1 Q. What are we taught by the Tenth Article: The Forgiveness of sins?
A. The Tenth Article of the Creed teaches us that Jesus Christ has left to His Church the power of forgiving sins.

2 Q. Can the Church forgive every sort of sin?
A. Yes, the Church can forgive all sins, no matter how many or how grave they may be, because Jesus Christ has given her full power to bind and to loose.

3 Q. Who exercises this power of forgiving sins in the Church?
A. Those who exercise the power of forgiving sins in the Church are, first of all, the Pope, who alone possesses this power in all its plenitude; then the bishops, and, dependent upon the bishops, the priests.

4 Q. How does the Church forgive sins?
A. The Church forgives sins through the merits of Jesus Christ by conferring the Sacraments instituted by Him for this purpose; especially the sacraments of baptism and penance.

The Eleventh Article of the Creed

1 Q. What are we taught by the Eleventh Article: The Resurrection of the body?
A. The Eleventh Article of the Creed teaches us that all men will rise again, every soul resuming the body it had in this life.

2 Q. How will the resurrection of the dead be accomplished?
A. The resurrection of the dead will be accomplished by the virtue of the Omnipotent God, to whom nothing is impossible.

3 Q. When will the resurrection of the dead take place?
A. The resurrection of the dead shall take place at the end of the world, and shall be followed by the General Judgment.

4 Q. Why does God will the resurrection of the body?
A. God wills the resurrection of the body, in order that the soul, having done good or evil while united with the body, may also be rewarded or punished along with it.

5 Q. Will all rise in the same way?
A. No, there will be a vast difference between the bodies of the elect and the bodies of the damned; because only the bodies of the elect shall have, like the risen Christ, the endowments of glorified bodies.

6 Q. What are the endowments that are to adorn the bodies of the elect?
A. The endowments that shall adorn the bodies of the elect are: (1) Impassibility, by which they can never again be subject to evil, nor to any kind of pain, nor to need of food, of rest or the like; (2) Brightness, by which they shall shine as the sun and as so many stars; (3) Agility, by which they shall be able to pass in a moment and without fatigue from one place to another and from earth to heaven; (4) Subtlety, by which without hindrance they shall be able to penetrate any body, as did Jesus Christ when risen from the dead.

7 Q. And the bodies of the damned, what of them?
A. The bodies of the damned shall be destitute of all the endowments of the glorified bodies of the blessed, and shall bear upon them the appalling mark of eternal reprobation.

The Twelfth Article of the Creed

1 Q. What are we taught by the Last Article: Life Everlasting?
A. The Last Article of the Creed teaches us that, after the present life there is another life, eternally happy for the elect in heaven, or eternally miserable for the damned in hell.

2 Q. Can we comprehend the bliss of heaven?
A. No, we cannot comprehend the bliss of heaven, because it is beyond the scope of our limited minds, and because the goods of heaven cannot be compared with the goods of this world.

3 Q. In what does the happiness of the elect consist?
A. The happiness of the elect consists in for ever seeing, loving and possessing God, the source of all good.

4 Q. In what does the misery of the damned consist?
A. The misery of the damned consists in being for ever deprived of the vision of God and punished with eternal torments in hell.

5 Q. Are the happiness of heaven and the miseries of hell for the soul alone?
A. The happiness of heaven and the miseries of hell at present affect the soul alone, because at present the soul alone is in heaven or in hell; but after the resurrection of the flesh, man in the fullness of his nature, that is, in body and in soul, will be forever happy or forever tormented.

6 Q. Shall the bliss of paradise and the miseries of hell be the same for all men?
A. The bliss of heaven in the case of the blessed, and the miseries of hell in the case of the damned, will be the same in substance and in eternal duration; but in measure, or degree, they will be greater or less according to the extent of each one’s merits or demerits.

7 Q. What does the word Amen signify at the end of the Creed?
A. The word Amen at the end of a prayer signifies so be it; at the end of the Creed it signifies so it is, that is to say, “I believe that all things contained in these twelve Articles are most true, and I am more certain of them than if I had seen them with my eyes.”