Commentary on Cathechism of the Catholic Church Prologue

As the Prologue declares, God created us for good. Every man is created for the sake of union with God. He invites every man to be saved and to be reunited under the family of the Church. The fullness of this plan begins with the sending of Christ Jesus, the Son of God and God the Son to redeem and save men from sin. In union with God, man becomes adopted children of God through their union to Christ and thus they shall inherit the life of God Himself. Therefore, the apostles of Christ are sent throughout the world to preach the call of God, now known as the Gospel.

Those who believe in Christ and God are urged by the love of Christ to preach what they have received, the Gospel or literally Good News, to all people so that more people enter into salvation. This treasure is handed down from Christ to the apostles to the successors and all believers are called to hand down this Gospel to the generations, by profession, practice, and celebration.

Catechesis is the name for the totality of the Church's efforts to make disciples of Christ, to instill life by faith, educate and instruct them in this life, and so building up the Body of Christ. According to Catechesi tradendae, catechesis is an education in the faith of all people where Christian doctrine is imparted in an organic and systematic way to initiate hearers into the fullness of Christian life. While not being formally identical, cathechesis is built on certain elements of the Church's pastoral mission that is, evangelization, examination of the reasons of belief, experience of Christian life, celebration of the sacraments, integration into ecclesial community, and apostolic and missionary witness.

According to Catechesis tradendae again, catechesis is essential to the life of the Church, not only for her geographic extension or numerical increase, but also her inner growth and correspondence with God's plan. Periods of renewal are also intense moments of catechesis. Many saintly bishops worked catechesis, such as St. Cyril of Jerusalem, St. John Chrysostom, St. Ambrose, and St. Augustine. The next great renewal is the Council of Trent from which the Roman Catechism is born. The Council of Trent initiated a remarkable organization of the Church's catechesis. Thanks to the work of holy men such as St. Peter Canisius, St. Charles Borromeo, St. Turibius of Mongrovejo, and St. Robert Bellarmine, among many others. In the wake of the Second Vatican Council, catechesis attracted attention again with numerous documents and synods which culminated in the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

This catechism presents an organic synthesis of the essential and fundamental contents of Catholic doctrine, as regards both faith and morals. The sources of the catechism are Sacred Scripture, the Fathers of the Church, the liturgy, and the Church's Magisterium. The work is directed primarily to bishops, priests, and catechists as teachers of the faith. However, it is also useful reading for all Christian faithful, primarily Catholics.

The cathechism is structured upon 4 pillars, the faith, the sacraments, the life of faith, and the prayer of the faithful. On the faith, revelation is first expounded, then it addresses who God is as the Source of all goodness, as Redeemer, and as Sanctifier. This faith is expressed as the faith in the Triune God. On the sacraments, it is explained how salvation is made present in the sacred actions of the Church's liturgy, particularly in the seven sacraments. On the life of faith, the end of man and the way to reach it is addressed, that is by right conduct especially that which fulfills the commandment of charity specified in the Ten Commandments. Finally, prayer is addressed with a brief commentary on the seven petitions of the Lord's Prayer.

This catechism is an organic presentation of the Catholic Faith, as such it is a unified whole. Numerous cross-references exist as italicized numbers marking similar paragraphs in the margin of the text. Some references are marked by the words "cf" in the citation list at the bottom of the page. Others are quoted directly. Small print indicates historical or apologetic explanations, or perhaps supplementary doctrinal explanations. At the end of each unit, there is a brief text to sum up the essentials of that unit.

The Catechism seeks to help deepen understanding of faith, in this way it is oriented toward mature faith, rooting of faith in personal life and the fruits in personal conduct. The Catechism does not provide adaptation of presentation and methods required by the differences of people. That is the task of particular catechisms and those who teach the faith. It is stated from the Roman Catechism, that the whole concern of doctrine and its teaching is directed to eternal love. Whatever is proposed, the love of our Lord must always be made accessible, so anyone can see that all works of perfect Christian virtue spring from love and have no other objective than to arrive at love.

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