Unit 8 Theology Quiz

Holy Orders

The Sacrament by which men are ordained to the episcopacy, priesthood, or diaconate.

Extraordinary Magisterium

The bishops of the Catholic Church when gathered in an ecumenical council, or the Pope when teaching ex cathedra.

Deposit of Faith

The definitive Revelation of Christ given to the Apostles and, through them, to the entire Church as Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition; the heritage of faith handed on in the Church from the time of the Apostles, from which the Magisterium draws all that it proposes for belief as being divinely revealed.

Canon

The definitive list of the books of the Bible, by virtue of having been declared by the Church as inspired by the Holy Spirit; the term also refers to an official law of the Church (canon law).

Clergy

The faithful of the Church who have received the Sacrament of Holy Orders; that is, bishops, priests, and deacons.

Primacy

The highest rank. The Acts of the Apostles shows the "primacy" of St. Peter, that is, it shows he had the highest rank among the Apostles.

Magesterium

The name given to the ordinary and universal teaching authority of the Pope and the bishops in communion with him, who guide the members of the Church without error in matters of faith and morals through the interpretation of Sacred Scripture and Tradition.

Episcopacy

The office of bishop in the Catholic Church; from the Greek episkopos ("overseer"), from which also is derived the word "bishop.

Diaconate

The office of deacon in the Catholic Church.

Presbyterate

The office of priest in the Catholic Church; the priesthood.

Cathedral

The official church of the local bishop, his seat of authority, usually located in the city from which the diocese takes its name.

Hierarchy

The order of teaching authority in the Church, given such authority by Christ himself, with the Pope as its head, followed by bishops, priests, and deacons; from the Greek hierarchia ("sacred order").

Collegiality

The principle that all the bishops of the Church with the Pope at their head form a single "college," which succeeds in every generation the "college" of the Twelve Apostles, with Peter at their head, which Christ instituted as the administrative foundation of the Church.

Ordinary Magesterium

The teaching office of the bishops in their own dioceses, teaching the same doctrine with moral unanimity, or that of the Pope for the whole Church.

Diocese

The territory and the churches under a bishop's authority; a community of the Christian faithful in communion of faith and Sacraments with their bishop ordained in apostolic succession; also called a "particular church." In the East, it is often called an eparchy.

Apostolic Succession

The truth that the Catholic bishops today can trace their authority in a direct line back to the Apostles and ultimately from Christ himself, each consecrated a bishop by another bishop.

Efficacious

When speaking of the Sacraments, the term indicates an action or sign that confers the grace it signifies; for example, the pouring of the water and reciting with proper intent the words of Baptism confer the sanctifying grace of the Sacrament.

Ex Cathedra

with the full authority of office (especially of the pope's infallibility as defined in Roman Catholic doctrine):

Cardinal

A bishop or archbishop who has been selected by a Pope to become part of the College of Cardinals and thus an adviser. The main purpose of a cardinal is to serve as a papal elector. Some cardinals lead archdioceses; others serve in the administration at the Vatican.

Bishop

A consecrated successor to the Apostles, usually given charge of the pastoral and catechetical care of a particular jurisdiction, or diocese; he is called to teach, sanctify, and govern the faithful of his own diocese, and also to work together in caring for the worldwide Church.

Conclave

A gathering of the world's cardinals in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for the purpose of electing a new Pope.

Deacon

A man who is ordained to assist the mission of the Church; transitional deacons are men who are preparing for ordination to the priesthood; permanent deacons are mature men, married or unmarried, who are ordained deacons in a permanent capacity; from the Greek for "helper."

Ecumenical council

A meeting of Church leaders. The Council of Jerusalem described in Acts is the scriptural archetype of a council of the whole Church. The most recent Ecumenical Council was the Second Vatican Council.

Church

A name given the assembly of the People of God called together from the ends of the earth. This word has three meanings: the people that God gathers together, the local church (diocese), and the liturgical assembly.

Communion

A new relationship between man and God that has been established in Christ, is communicated through the Sacraments, and also extends a new relationship of men among themselves; it implies a spiritual solidarity among the members of the Church inasmuch as they are members of one Body, united in Christ. It is a translation of the Greek koinonia.

Infalliability

Immunity from error and any possibility of error. The gift of the Holy Spirit to the Church whereby the Magisterium can definitively proclaim a doctrine in faith or morals without error. The Church possesses this character as promised by Christ, as does the Pope as defined by the Twentieth Ecumenical Council (Vatican I, 1870).

In Persona Christi

Literally, "in the Person of Christ"; refers to the fact that by virtue of the Sacrament of Holy Orders, the ordained priest participates in the priesthood of Christ and acts in the place of Christ, particularly in the Mass and in conferring the Sacraments.

Priest

One of the tribe of Levi. In the New Testament, an abbreviation of the Greek presbyteros ("elder"). A member of the order of presbyters; this baptized and confirmed male is ordained to be a co-worker with his bishop, to preside at public liturgies in his stead, and otherwise to assist the bishop in priestly service to the People of God.

Pope

Successor of St. Peter; Bishop of Rome; supreme pontiff of the Catholic Church. The Pope exercises a primacy of authority as Vicar of Christ and shepherd of the whole Church; he receives the divine assistance promised by Christ.