receive Christ’s saving message. The Catechism, through which the “inexhaustible riches of the faith” can be rediscovered, is offered to serve this work of evangelization. As you read this brief Letter, note the energy and passion that John Paul expresses here for the true welfare, the “spiritual good,” of all people.
Day 5
CCC2 1-3
Prologue
The opening paragraphs of the Catechism contain guiding principles for reading the whole work.
First, we should note the importance of the three scriptural quotations that introduce the Catechism. The first highlights the fundamental focus of the entire Catechism — that we might all be helped into an ever-deeper personal relationship with God; the second emphasizes the importance of knowing the truths of the faith — we can enjoy this personal relationship only if we allow God to teach us who he is; the third reminds us that the Catechism is given for the sake of handing on the faith to others for their salvation.
The first paragraph is remarkable: it provides us with a summary of the faith. The whole of God’s loving plan for our creation, our redemption, and our lifting to the new life of grace is proclaimed here in six elegant sentences. From creation to the final life of blessedness, the importance of God’s unceasing call is emphasized.
The second paragraph reminds us of the apostolic foundation of the faith and surprises us with its statement about the gift of mission — the apostles were “strengthened” by the mission they received. To be given a worthwhile mission is one of the greatest of all gifts. The gift of mission provides us with purpose, with resolve; it calls us to discover new energies within ourselves, and so strengthens us.
Notice the warmth, sensitivity, and utter respect God demonstrates towards his creatures. He “calls,” he “invites,” while we are called to “welcome” and “freely respond.” There is no compulsion — only a loving God calling to his children, seeking their good and their happiness.
Finally, note the fourfold means of formation, of handing on the faith, reiterated in the last lines of CCC 3, and footnoting Acts 2:42.
Day 6
CCC 4-10
Handing on the Faith: Catechesis
Today’s reading explains the essential nature of catechesis and its importance in the Church.
CCC 7 reminds us that catechesis is essential for the healthy growth of the Church, both numerically and in her authentic development. Each new soul, freshly drawn into Christ’s Body, is to be fed with the pure nourishment of God’s truth through the work of catechesis. As Saint Paul puts it, once attached to the Body, the child is to move from milk to solid food, so that a healthy growth is maintained (see 1 Cor 3:2; Heb 5:12-13). Thus the great periods of renewal in the Church, in which God inspires the bishops anew in their zeal for souls and for sanctity, are also necessarily “intense moments of catechesis” (8). In CCC 8-10 the Catechism draws our attention to the prevalence of bishops who are also saints in these times of renewal. It is not coincidental, then, that the initiating bishop of this Catechism, John Paul II, and the bishop who called for the Church council from which this Catechism derives its trajectory and proximate inspiration, John XXIII, have both, since the publication of the Catechism, been declared saints of the Church.
Because catechesis is so essential to the healthy development of the Church, these paragraphs take great pains to define it very carefully. CCC 6 carefully distinguishes catechesis from related areas of the Church’s work, while CCC 4-5 provide central points of definition. The goal of catechesis is to initiate each new member into “the fullness of Christian life” (5) — that is always the target. As we have seen, this fullness has a fourfold nature, reflected in the four Parts of the Catechism. The teaching given for our initiation into this fullness is to be systematic and organic — it is to be planned and sensibly sequential, emphasizing the links between the different elements being taught, so that those receiving the teaching can understand that this is one faith, one truth, in its many aspects.
Day 7
CCC 11-12
Aim and Intended Readership and Index of Citations
CCC 11 tells us that the Catechism provides an account of the essentials of the faith. What is given here is only that which it is absolutely necessary for us to know, the essential truths that have been handed on to us through “the whole of the Church’s Tradition.” The presentation of these essentials is synthetic — care is taken to impress upon us how the truths of the faith belong together through the organization of the contents of the faith. The presentation is also organic, a vital point we shall discuss when looking at CCC 18.
The sentence on the “principal sources” might strike us as oddly placed in a paragraph concerned with the aims of the Catechism. We might remember though that in Fidei Depositum, Saint John Paul celebrated the Catechism’s publication precisely because he saw it renewing our contact with the “living sources of the faith.” These living sources are found in the footnotes on every page, and they are gathered in the Index of Citations at the end of the Catechism. Take a moment to find in that Index the categories of sources mentioned in CCC 11 — Scripture, the Fathers, the liturgy, the Church’s Magisterium. The authors of the Catechism want us to be directly acquainted with these.
CCC 11 also reminds us that the Catechism is intended to be fruitful — to inspire the writing of other catechisms and act as a solid anchor and reference point for their composition.
We have seen that all of the bishops of the world were involved in writing this Catechism, and from CCC 12 we see clearly why this was the case: the Catechism is intended primarily for them, to assist them in their responsibilities as the chief catechists. Through the bishops, it is offered to all the faithful, as a sure norm for understanding the faith. The Catechism has been published as an aid for helping the bishops reach all of their flock with the good news of Christ.
Day 8
CCC 13-17
Structure and Subject Index3
We had occasion to view the structure of the Catechism when we examined the contents pages. These paragraphs provide us with a short summary of the content of each of the four Parts.
CCC 13 refers to the four pillars. These are not equivalent to the Parts but rather make up Section Two of each Part. Using the analogy of pillars, then, these provide the main structural “bones” to the building. The presentation of Section Two in each Part provides the detailed content of that Part, in the form of Creed, sacraments, commandments, and the Lord’s Prayer.
If Section Two provides us with the pillars, Section One in each Part lays the necessary foundations upon which the pillars are erected. Thus, before we reach the details of the Creed, we learn of God’s revelation of himself; before we unpack the sacraments in Part Two, we ponder the work of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in the liturgy and our grace-led participation in this work; prefacing the concrete expositions of the commandments in Part Three is a reminder of the principles of Christian living common to the keeping of all the commandments; and the first section in the prayer Part of the Catechism leads
