Catechesis and orthodoxy - Pope John Paul II

Christians today must be formed to live in a world which largely ignores God or which, in religious matters, in place of an exacting and fraternal dialogue,stimulating for all, too often flounders in a debasing indifferentism, if not maintaining a scornful attitude of suspicion in the name of the progress it has made in the field of scientific 'explanations', To 'hold on' in this world, to offer to all a 'dialogue of salvation' in which each person feels respected in his or her most basic dignity - the dignity of one who is seeking God - we need a catechesis which trains the young people and adults of our communities to remain clear and consistent in their faith, to affirm serenely their Christian and Catholic identity, to 'see him who is invisible' and to adhere so firmly to the absoluteness of God that they can be witnesses to him in a materialistic civilization that denies him. Without monopolizing or enforcing uniformity, the parish remains the preeminent place for catechesis. It must rediscover its vocation, which is to be a fraternal and welcoming family home, where those who have been baptized and confirmed become aware of forming the People of God. In that home, the bread
of good doctrine and the Eucharistic Bread are broken for them in abundance, in the setting of the one act of worship; from that home they are sent out day by day to their apostolic mission in all the centres of activity in the life of the world.

Family catechesis precedes, accompanies and enriches all other forms of catechesis. Furthermore, in places where anti-religious legislation endeavours even to prevent education in the Faith, and in places where widespread unbelief or invasive secularism makes real religious growth practically impossible, 'the Church of the home' remains the one place where children and young people can receive an authentic catechesis.
Thus there cannot be too great an effort on the part of Christian parents to prepare for this ministry of being their own children's catechists and to carry it out with tireless zeal. Encouragement must also be given to the individuals or institutions that, through person-ta-person contacts, through meetings and through all kinds of pedagogical means, help parents to perform their task the service they are doing to catechesis is beyond price.

What is the mass and consequently what is not the mass.

The other day after the mass, someone very dear to me called the mass a communal celebration.

This whole post is to specify what the mass is becasue since Vatican II there has been an infiltration of protestant ideology about how and what the mass should be.

The Council of Trent taught that the Mass is the same as Calvary, "only the manner of offering being changed" from bloody to unbloody. Similarly Vatican II (On the Liturgy #10) said that the Mass is the renewal of the new covenant. Thus the mass is first and foremost a Sacrifice.

A sacrifice as Catholics understand it (in contrast to some pagan concepts) has two elements: the outward sign and the interior dispositions.

At the Last Supper, the outward sign was the seeming separation of body and blood, with the two species. This was a dramatized way of saying to the Father: "I know the command you have given me, I am to die tomorrow. Very good, I turn myself over to death - expressed by the seeming separation - I accept, I obey." On the next day He did as He pledged, but then the outward sign was the physical separation of body and blood, while the interior remained the same. In the Mass, by the agency of a human priest who acts "in the person of Christ" (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium # 10) Christ continues and repeats His offering. The external sign is multiplied as many times as there are Masses. But the interior disposition of Christ is not multiplied, it is continued from that with which He died. For death makes permanent the attitude of will with which one leaves this world.



At the Last Supper Christ ordered, "Do this in memory of me". Since we were not there, Christ wants us to join our dispositions to His. The great Liturgy Encyclical of Pius XII, Mediator Dei, explains well that the people can be said to exercise their royal priesthood, to offer the Mass with the priest: first, "from the fact that the priest at the altar in offering a sacrifice in the name of all His members, does so in the person of Christ," whose members they are.

Secondly the people can be said to offer sacrifice since: "The people join their hearts in praise, petition, expiation and thanksgiving with the prayers or intention of the priest, in fact, of the High Priest Himself, so that in the one and same of offering of the Victim... they may be presented to God the Father "(Acta Apostolicae Sedis, 39:556). Vatican II explains (LG # 10) that this is what it means for them to "offer spiritual sacrifices".

These spiritual sacrifices consist of their obedience to the will of the Father, already carried out, and planned for the future (Cf. LG #34). This includes their works, their bearing the troubles of life, their prayers, their apostolic efforts, their living out the duties of their state in life, even their relaxation of body and mind if all these things are done as part of the Father's plan, to enable them to serve Him better. Jesus Himself spent about 30 out of 33 years in family life, to show how greatly the Father values this if done precisely because it part of His plan.

It would be good to take a moment before each Mass to see what one has to join with the obedience of Christ, soon to be offered on the altar.It is good to recall too that His Mother Mary shared in this sacrifice by her obedience (cf. our comments on the Third Article of the Creed) on Calvary, and now, as John Paul II taught (Angelus Homily of Feb. 12, 1984) she "is at every altar" because "she was present at the original sacrifice", sharing in it, and now from heaven, she still joins her will to His, as He offers the flesh and blood He received from her.

The principal priest in every Mass is Jesus Christ, who offers to His heavenly Father, through the ministry of His ordained priest, His body and blood which were sacrificed on the cross. The Mass is the same sacrifice as the sacrifice of the cross. It is now in the New Law, the sacrifice that is acceptable to God.

As we can clearly see from this the Mass is not a communal celebration it is a one to one sacrifice involving Christ who is the Priest and sacrifice, the preist who acts in the person of Christ (In persona Christi) and if present the people who also offer spiritual sacrifices.

A mass can be offered alone by the priest without any people present at all.

The priest is not the chief performer as the mass is not a performance. And the people are definitely not the most important factor for a mass to take place.


For more about what the mass is please click here

Article 2272 of the Cathecism of the Catholic Church

2272 Formal cooperation in an abortion constitutes a grave offense. The Church attaches the canonical penalty of excommunication to this crime against human life. "A person who procures a completed abortion incurs excommunication latae sententiae," "by the very commission of the offense," and subject to the conditions provided by Canon Law. The Church does not thereby intend to restrict the scope of mercy. Rather, she makes clear the gravity of the crime committed, the irreparable harm done to the innocent who is put to death, as well as to the parents and the whole of society.

The Article above is from the Catechism of the Catholic Church. It says formal co-operation. Maybe I am interpreting this incorrectly but to me this not only means doctors, nurses, politicians, it also means any Catholic who knowing that a politician is pro-abotion knowingly and willingly votes for such a politician. By voting in such a manner the Catholic is formally co-perating in the perpetuation of abortion.

I would like if some one in authority from the Catholic Church could please explain this article to me. The way I understand it is that any Catholic who willfully supports legalized abortion gets an automatic excommunication.