Catholic Beliefs and Teachings (9-1)

The Trinity

• The is only one god but has 3 persons.
• God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

The Nicene Creed is...

• A declaration of faith in the Trinity
• Recited at mass and major festivals
• An individual statement of what Catholics believe
• A shared statement that unites Catholics as one body and the church.

Oneness of God:

• Father is God 'Our Father who art in Heaven'-Matthew
• The son is god 'The word became Flesh and dwelt among us' John
• The Holy Spirit is God ' He saw the spirit of God descending like a dove' Matthew

The significance of oneness:

• Reveals the mystery of God
• Teaches Catholics about love because humans are made in Gods image.

Trinity in Baptism:

• Mass Performed in the name of 'The Father, Son and Holy Spirit' as instructed in Matthew.

Trinity in the Eucharist:

• Begins in the Sign of the cross-references all parts of the Trinity
• A Eucharistic prayer is an act of thanksgiving and praise to the father, Son becomes consecrated bread and wine, through the coming down of the Holy Spirit.
• The doxology is given to the father, son and holy spirit.

Doctrine:

• An idea or a set of beliefs which is passed on to others or a belief held by the church
• Doctrines are passed to help people better understand God, themselves and life.
• Many early doctrines passed by the church are shared with Christian denominations.

Creed:

• What the Catholic church believes and teaches - a summary of its main creeds.

Tradition and belief:

• Catholics use the bible to interpret the  bible to see how God is revealed as a Trinity     
• The baptism of Jesus is important because all three parts of the Trinity were present.used to help develop the doctrine of the Trinity.
• Some early Christians didn't accept Jesus as anything more than a prophet sent by God- this argument divided the Roman empire.

The First Council of Nicaea:

• The first ecumenical council
• This was the creed that clarified that Jesus was consubstantial to the father.

The First Council of Constantinople:

• Expanded the Creed of Nicea to include the Holy Spirit as being fully God.
• Created the Nicene-Constantinopolitan ​​​​​​​Creed.

• 'In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth' - These words feature in the early creed it shows the fathers role as creator.
• The only God Creates while humans being make-to give new form to something that already exists.

Creation in Genesis:

• Shows God as a benevolent creator, placing Humans in a garden full of trees and plants. God also gave Humans free will.
• Describes original sin that leads to suffering.
• 'Let There be light' Reference to Jesus being present at the creation, present from the beginning of time.
• 'The spirit of God was moving over the face of the waters' The world is created with the help of the Holy Spirit.

Creation in John:

• 'He was at the beginning with God; all things were made through him' ( John)

Divergent Christian Understandings:

• Evangelists- interprets the creations story literally.
• Catholics- don't take them literally but believe in the symbolical meaning and truth

The significance of Creation:

• Gods nature is revealed
• God as creator
• God is benevolent
• God is omnipotent
• God is eternal- present since the beginning of time.
• The first indication of Gods loving nature

Humanity:

• Refers to the Human race
• God gives power and responsibility to Humans in the creation story.
• Creation accounts set out gods intention for the human race.
• 'Let us make man in our image, after our likeness and let them have dominion' - Genesis

Imago Dei:

• Image of God
• 'God created man in his own image' -Genesis
• Although Humans are not divine Catholics believe they have a relationship with God this is different from other animals.
• Catholics believe imago Dei gives Humans Dignity and worthiness.

How humans bear the image of God...

Human beings a Rational:

• By reflecting on things in the natural world humans can find their way back to God.
• They have been given intelligence

Free will and a conscience:

• Humans have to decide between right and wrong, in this way they imitate God.
• Conscience is the voice of God within and individual- moral obligations don't come from a human authority.

Humans can relate to God:

• God has created humans with the goal to relate to god in this world and join him in eternal life beyond death.
• Humans can never be satisfied without God in their lives.

Humans can give and receive love:

• The trinity give and receive love to one and other- humans are made in the image of God so they are made to give and receive love.
• Humans happiness can only come through love.

Humans are answerable to God:

• Image of God is a reminder of Gods authority over humans.
• Those who bear Gods image must use their lives by giving and receiving love.

Dominion and Stewardship:

• Humans are seen as the most important part of creation 
• God grants humans 'Dominion' over the garden means God gives humans authority to rule.
• Humans are meant to be stewards- dominion should be expressed in loving cultivation and care.
• Catholics believe God made humans superior to the rest of the earth

Divergent View:

• Humanists believe humans have a moral responsibility to care for the planet.

Jesus as the incarnate son:

• Incarnations refer to God becoming human in Jesus.
• Catholicism is a relationship to the mysterious person of Jesus.
• Jesus is both fully God and fully human.

Jesus' Divine nature:

• 'Jesus said to them" Truly, Truly, I say to you before Abraham was, I am"-  John 
• Jesus is referring to himself the same way God referred to himself when talking to Moses.
• 'Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away' -Matthew
• God is everlasting and eternal therefore he will outlast creation.

Importance:

• The physical revelation of God as man
• God became human in Jesus so human beings might become divine by sharing in Jesus life through the church.
• Sacraments create a sense of continuation of the incarnation as the church is inviting humans to share in the life of Christ.

Salvation:

• Humans are saved from sin by Jesus work on earth- paschal mystery: Passion, death, resurrection and ascension.
• Jesus completed salvation for humanity
• Catholics believe salvation was God plan to bring people back to a relationship with him.
• Original sin created the need for salvation.

Redemption:

• a metaphor used to explain how the paschal mystery brought about salvation.
• 'Slaves of sin' - Romans
• Jesus death redeemed humans to make the slaves of god instead.

Justification:

• Explains how humans are joined together in a relationship with God.
• only a person can be in a relationship with God.
• As a man without sin, Jesus was able to pay the price of a sacrifice to God.
• Humans are justified by grace - they live by Jesus' grace.

The Life of Jesus:

• During Jesus' life, many followers didn't understand he was God. 
• 'The word became flesh in order to save us'-CCC
• 'The word became Flesh so that we might know Gods love'- CCC
• 'The word became flesh to make us partakers of the divine nature' - Peter

The death of Jesus:

• Jesus responded in forgiveness ' Father forgive them; for they do not know what they do' - Luke
• Jesus erased the sins of the world with Gods mercy because it was God himself who died on the cross.

The resurrection of Jesus:

• Jesus rose after 3 days in accordance with the scriptures.
• Christian faith is founded on the fact of the resurrection of Jesus'.
• No one but God can conquer death- therefore Jesus is God.
• Christ had a transformed risen body so will humans after death.

The ascension of Jesus:

• Jesus' ascension prepares the way for Catholics to follow him.The ascensions do not undo the incarnation
• Necessary so the Holy Spirit could come and continue Jesus' work on earth.

The Holy Spirit:

• The apostles were empowered for their mission by the holy spirit at Pentecost - Regarded as the beginning of the Christian faith.
• Helps humans to understand and live out the salvation that the paschal mystery brought.
• Jesus told the disciples the holy spirit would come to his place
• The holy spirit brings Christians into an even a more intimate relationship with the father and with Jesus.

The Holy spirit today:

• The holy spirit makes Jesus bodily present to all who receive him in the Eucharist.
• The spirit is god inside us
• The spirit is the most intimate connection the bond of intense love between the father and the son.

Accepting Salvation

• You must live by Gods rules in order to gain salvation 'If anyone serves me he must follow me' - John.
• Salvation is available to everyone it's your choice whether you choose to accept it is your decision.

The significance of salvation and grace:

• The Eucharist is the most important expression of the paschal mystery in the church today.
• The mass and the church are the sources of experiencing salvation and receiving the grace necessary to continue Gods saving the mission.
• In baptism, humans are redeemed from the slavery of sin and are 'adopted' by God.
• In confirmation, humans receive a fresh outpouring of Gods grace to strengthen faith.
• Reconciliation frees humans from slavery to personal sin.
• Sacrament of the sick, Gods healing power unites the suffering of individuals with Christ
• Participating in the Eucharist s a sign of acceptance of Gods salvation.
• Strengthens the individual in their life of faith and love.

Eschatology:

The Christian study of the last thing for a human life and soul: death, judgement, heaven, hell and purgatory.

Life after death:

• ' Whoever lives and believes in me shall never die' - John
• Life after death is caused and found in Jesus.
• Catholics believe they share in the eternal life after death because they are part of the body of Christ through the church.
• Catholics believe after death they will be resurrected, the soul of the individual is then taken to a first judgement.

Judgement:

• Human beings are answerable to God for what they have done with the gift of life.
• 'For we all must appear before the judgement seat of Christ...according to what he has done in the body'.
• 2 forms of judgement; Particular and general
• Particular judgement: whether a person has lived a life of love and repented of their sins.

As a result of judgement the person will:

• Enter heaven immediately if they die in a state of perfection
• Enter heaven after a state of purification.
• Be sent to hell for demonstration unrepented sin.

Heaven

• The goal of the Catholic faith
• The fulfilment of the deepest longing of the heart.
• impossible to describe the joy of heaven  'nor the heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him' - Corinthians
• seeing God as he really is in heaven is called the beatific vision.

Hell:

• The absence of something
• If you arrive I hell it is because of the choices you have made - free will.
• They refused to love and reject Gods guidance.
• 'the wine of Gods wrath' - Revelation

Purgatory:

• a stage of purification 
• 'himself will be saved, but only as through fire' - Corinthians
• Protestants or evangelicals believe purgatory is an unnecessary step and believe after the death of God all imperfections were covered.

Importance:

• Life is fragile because humans will not appreciate it otherwise.
• Death, judgement and resurrection act as a reminder to Catholics that they should live consciously.
• Every choice matters and adds up on death and judgement.

The significance of oneness:

• Reveals the mystery of God
• Teaches Catholics about love because humans are made in Gods image.

Trinity in Baptism:

• Mass Performed in the name of 'The Father, Son and Holy Spirit' as instructed in Matthew.

Trinity in the Eucharist:

• Begins in the Sign of the cross-references all parts of the Trinity
• A Eucharistic prayer is an act of thanksgiving and praise to the father, Son becomes consecrated bread and wine, through the coming down of the Holy Spirit.
• The doxology is given to the father, son and holy spirit.

The First Council of Nicaea:

• The first ecumenical council
• This was the creed that clarified that Jesus was consubstantial to the father.

The First Council of Constantinople:

• Expanded the Creed of Nicea to include the Holy Spirit as being fully God.
• Created the Nicene-Constantinopolitan ​​​​​​​Creed.

Creation in John:

• 'He was at the beginning with God; all things were made through him' ( John)

Divergent Christian Understandings:

• Evangelists- interprets the creations story literally.
• Catholics- don't take them literally but believe in the symbolical meaning and truth

The significance of Creation:

• Gods nature is revealed
• God as creator
• God is benevolent
• God is omnipotent
• God is eternal- present since the beginning of time.
• The first indication of Gods loving nature

Free will and a conscience:

• Humans have to decide between right and wrong, in this way they imitate God.
• Conscience is the voice of God within and individual- moral obligations don't come from a human authority.

Humans can relate to God:

• God has created humans with the goal to relate to god in this world and join him in eternal life beyond death.
• Humans can never be satisfied without God in their lives.

Humans can give and receive love:

• The trinity give and receive love to one and other- humans are made in the image of God so they are made to give and receive love.
• Humans happiness can only come through love.

Humans are answerable to God:

• Image of God is a reminder of Gods authority over humans.
• Those who bear Gods image must use their lives by giving and receiving love.

Dominion and Stewardship:

• Humans are seen as the most important part of creation 
• God grants humans 'Dominion' over the garden means God gives humans authority to rule.
• Humans are meant to be stewards- dominion should be expressed in loving cultivation and care.
• Catholics believe God made humans superior to the rest of the earth

Divergent View:

• Humanists believe humans have a moral responsibility to care for the planet

Humans are answerable to God:

• Image of God is a reminder of Gods authority over humans.
• Those who bear Gods image must use their lives by giving and receiving love.

Dominion and Stewardship:

• Humans are seen as the most important part of creation 
• God grants humans 'Dominion' over the garden means God gives humans authority to rule.
• Humans are meant to be stewards- dominion should be expressed in loving cultivation and care.
• Catholics believe God made humans superior to the rest of the earth

Divergent View:

• Humanists believe humans have a moral responsibility to care for the planet

The Life of Jesus:

• During Jesus' life, many followers didn't understand he was God. 
• 'The word became flesh in order to save us'-CCC
• 'The word became Flesh so that we might know Gods love'- CCC
• 'The word became flesh to make us partakers of the divine nature' - Peter

The death of Jesus:

• Jesus responded in forgiveness ' Father forgive them; for they do not know what they do' - Luke
• Jesus erased the sins of the world with Gods mercy because it was God himself who died on the cross.

The resurrection of Jesus:

• Jesus rose after 3 days in accordance with the scriptures.
• Christian faith is founded on the fact of the resurrection of Jesus'.
• No one but God can conquer death- therefore Jesus is God.
• Christ had a transformed risen body so will humans after death.

The ascension of Jesus:

• Jesus' ascension prepares the way for Catholics to follow him.The ascensions do not undo the incarnation
• Necessary so the Holy Spirit could come and continue Jesus' work on earth.

As a result of judgement the person will:

• Enter heaven immediately if they die in a state of perfection
• Enter heaven after a state of purification.
• Be sent to hell for demonstration unrepented sin.

Heaven

• The goal of the Catholic faith
• The fulfilment of the deepest longing of the heart.
• impossible to describe the joy of heaven  'nor the heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him' - Corinthians
• seeing God as he really is in heaven is called the beatific vision.

Hell:

• The absence of something
• If you arrive I hell it is because of the choices you have made - free will.
• They refused to love and reject Gods guidance.
• 'the wine of Gods wrath' - Revelation

Purgatory:

• a stage of purification 
• 'himself will be saved, but only as through fire' - Corinthians
• Protestants or evangelicals believe purgatory is an unnecessary step and believe after the death of God all imperfections were covered.

Importance:

• Life is fragile because humans will not appreciate it otherwise.
• Death, judgement and resurrection act as a reminder to Catholics that they should live consciously.
• Every choice matters and adds up on death and judgement.