|
Books available at our aStore
Build a Catholic articles web site and web logs with Yahoo! Web Hosting. Learn how through downloading our free Catholic eBook. Table of contents of our Catholic eBook
Additional articles and information: |
Daily Feed Book ReviewA book review on The Catechism of the Catholic Church (definitive edition)Catholics are well known for their faith that is based not only on Scripture but also on patristic, liturgical, magisterial and hagiographical tradition. This book will help both Catholics and non-Catholics to learn about Catholicism well.A brief introduction This Catechism was recently produced. It was published during the papacy of John Paul II and the present Pope Benedict XVI, who was then Joseph Cardinal Ratizinger, helped in the production of this Catechism book. This Catechism is a revised catechism from the previous one which did not as yet integrate the teachings of the Second Vatican Council. This Catechism now integrates both tradition and the new teaching of Vatican II. A book for Catholics and non-Catholics Although the book was primarily meant for those who are to teach the faith in catechetical programs, the book is also helpful for anyone who wants to learn about the Catholic creed, moral code, and liturgical meanings and practices. For Catholics, it is a must to own such a book as it will guide them in many ways in their Christian life. For certain moral issues, concerns and questions, this is a good resource for finding what is the Catholic teaching and moral stand as regards a certain moral issue or concern. The ease in using the book Subject index The book is a very good reference and resource for anything you want to learn of Catholic doctrine, morality, and liturgical tradition. It features a comprehensive subject index at the rear pages of of the book which you can use to search for a particular subject or entry word that you need to learn. If you want to learn about Angels or Saints then all you need is to look for the word in the index and the index will give you the paragraph number where these terms can be found. Paragraph numbers After you learn of the paragraph number where the the subject term is to be found, all you need is to leaf through the pages of the book which are organized in numbered paragraphs. From beginning to end, all the paragraphs are well numbered for ease of use. Also, the book gives not only one source but many sources of paragraphs where the subject term is mentioned or defined or explained to some detail. Cross-references in the margin of the text As you read the paragraphs referenced by the subject index, you will also discover numbers in the margin of the text. These are cross-references to other paragraphs numbers which are also related to the subject and the paragraphs that you are reading or studying. Footers As you read, there are certain texts which have number superscripts in them. These number superscripts contain the references and sources from which the text have been derived from. Most of these references are passages from Scripture. Others are referenced from patristic tradition [the writing of the Church Fathers such as St. Augustine], liturgical tradition, magisterial teaching [such as canon law or the teaching of the Church councils], and hagiographical writings [such as the writings of prominent saints and doctors of the Church]. For those who want to know the original text from which the catechetical passage took its teaching from, these footer references can come in very handy. The text The text are divided into four main parts: Part One: The Profession of Faith Part Two: The Celebration of the Christian Mystery Part Three: Life in Christ Part Four: Christian Prayer Much of Catholic doctrine and all that a Catholic must assent to in faith are found in Part One. Herein lies the creed by which all Catholics adhere to. Part Two speaks of the sacraments of the Church. Herein lies the worship and the liturgical practices of the Church. For non-Catholics considering to be members of the Catholic Church, Part Two contains paragraphs 1213 to 1284, which speak of the sacrament of baptism: a wonderful sacrament of initiation to know when one is considering to be a Catholic. Part Three of the book contains teachings on morality from the Catholic perspective. It contains the moral code of the faith from both the Old Testament (ten commandments) and the New Testament (the commandment of love) perspectives. Part Four of the book speaks of Christian prayer, with a special focus on the Our Father as the point of catechetical teaching on Christian prayer. An important book for Catholic articles writers For those writing Catholic articles, it is also a very important reference to use together with Catholic translations of the Bible. In writing Catholic articles, when Catholic writers uncertain of a particular Catholic teaching, they can always refer to this Catechism book to help them in directing their writing according to the teachings of the Church. Though some would prefer to use online Catechisms for their purpose, there is an advantage to having a printed copy of the book on hand. Having a printed copy of the book will help anyone access information about the Catholic faith even when one is not on the computer. It can save on dial-up or broadband expenses because one can thoroughly give more time to understand all the nuances of meaning the text of the Catechism gives. If you are interested to get a personal copy of this Catechism, there are some editions available at our Catholic aStore. |