The CREEDS go back to Jesus, who commanded his disciples to baptize. In doing so, they were to require of the people seeking Baptism the profession of a definite faith, namely, faith in the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The original cell from which all later CREEDS grewContinue Reading
CREEDS are brief formulas of faith that make it possible for all believers to make a common profession. Brief formulas of this kind can be found already in the letters of St. Paul. The early Christian Apostles’ Creed has a special dignity, because it is thought to be a summaryContinue Reading
Faith is not about empty words but about reality. In the CHURCH, condensed formulas of faith developed over the course of time; with their help we can contemplate, express, learn, hand on, celebrate, and live out this reality. Without fixed forms, the content of the faith would dissipate. That isContinue Reading
No one can believe alone and by himself, just as no one can live alone and by himself. We receive the faith from the Church and live it out in fellowship with the people with whom we share our faith. Faith is the most personal thing a person has, yetContinue Reading
There is no insoluble contradiction between faith and science, because there cannot be two kinds of truth. There is not one truth of faith that is in competition with another truth of science. There is only one truth, to which both faith and scientific reason refer. God intended reason, withContinue Reading
Someone who believes is seeking a personal union with God and is ready to believe God in everything that he shows (reveals) about himself. At the beginning of faith, there is often an emotional disturbance or uneasiness. The person senses that the visible world and the normal course of thingsContinue Reading
Faith is knowledge and trust. It has seven characteristics: Faith is a sheer gift of God, which we receive when we fervently ask for it. Faith is the supernatural power that is absolutely necessary if we are to attain salvation. Faith requires the free will and clear understanding of aContinue Reading
To respond to God means to believe him. Anyone who wants to believe needs a heart that is ready to listen (see 1 Kings 3:9). In many ways God seeks contact with us. In every human encounter, in every moving experience of nature, in every apparent coincidence, in every challenge,Continue Reading
The Church draws her life and strength from Sacred Scripture. Besides the presence of Christ in the Holy EUCHARIST, there is nothing that the Church honors more reverently than Christ’s presence in Sacred Scripture. At Holy Mass we receive the Gospel standing, because in the human words we hear, GodContinue Reading
In the NEW TESTAMENT God’s REVELATION is completed. The four Gospels according to Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are the centerpiece of Sacred Scripture and the most precious treasure of the Church. In them the Son of God shows himself as he is and encounters us. In the Acts ofContinue Reading
