April 21st assignment

Holy Orders

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

Episcopal College

The assembly of the world's bishops

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).

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.

Evangelization

The mission given to the Apostles by Christ to preach the Gospel to the whole world and make converts of every nation; also, witnessing to our faith in the Gospel in our daily lives.

Second Vatican Council

The most recent of the Ecumenical Councils of the Catholic Church, held in Rome in 1962-65. It produced documents and teachings on a wide range of concerns, including the nature of the Church, the role of the laity, the liturgy, and the Church's relationship with other faith traditions.

Magisterium

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.

Obedience of Faith

The obligation of the faithful to accept and believe int he authoritative and infallible teachings of the Magisterium

Religious Assent

The obligation of the faithful to accept teachings of the Magisterium even when the teaching is not solemnly and infallibly defined.

Papacy

The office of Pope in the Catholic Church.

Episcopacy

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

Presbyterate

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

Nicene Creed

The symbol or formula of the Catholic Faith that was developed at the Ecumenical Councils of Nicæa I (325) and Constantinople I (381). It is sung or said by the congregation during the Mass/Divine Liturgy.

Extraordinary Magisterium

The teaching office of all the bishops gathered with the Pope, as happens in an Ecumenical Council, or the Pope alone speaking ex cathedra in an exercise of infallibility.

Ordinary Magisterium

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.

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.

Separated Brethren

Those who are properly baptized and known by the name Christian, but who do not profess the entirety of the Catholic Faith or have not preserved unity with the Pope. They possess a certain albeit imperfect communion with the Chruch

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.

Council of Jerusalem

a council of the Church held AD 49 or 50 to decide whether Gentile converts to the Church would have to abide by the Jewish requirement of circumcision. It is the archetype for the later Ecumenical Councils.

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."

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. When we speak of "the Church," it normally refers to the Catholic. The word is a translation of the Latin ecclesia, the Greek ekklesia, and the Hebrew quhal ("assembly" or "convocation"); it is derived from the Greek Kyriake ("what belongs to the Lord").

Communion

a new relationship between man and God that has been established in Christ, is communicated through the Sacrament, and also extends a new relationship of men among themselves; it implies a spiritual solidarity among the members of the Church insomuch as they are members of one body, united in Christ; it is a translation of the Greek koincia.

Consecrated Life

a permanent state of life recognized by the Church, characterized by the profession of the evangelical counsels.

Eastern Catholic Churches

often called the Eastern Rites of the Catholic Church, any of the various Churches in union with the Pope whose rites, devotions, customs, and culture developed in connection to the lands associated with the eastern half the Roman Empire (especially centered in Antioch, Alexandria, and Constantinople).

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 form the time of the Apostles, from which the Magisterium draws all that it proposes for belief as being divinely related.

Clergy

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

Diaconate

the office of the deacon in the Catholic Church

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 at its head followed by priests bishops and deacons from the Greek hierachia (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.

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.

Communion of Saints

the unity in Christ of all the redeemed, those on earth and those who have died, especially the unity of faith and charity through the Eucharist.

Archbishop

A bishop of the highest rank, generally the bishop of an archdiocese.

Cardinal

A bishop or archbishop who has been selected by a Pope to become part of the College of Cardinals and thus an advisor. 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.

Plenary Council

A council involving all the bishops of a particular nation

Parish

A defined territorial district within a diocese, with its own church and congregation, which is placed in the care of a priest.

Ex Cathedra

A definitive teaching by the Pope when he speaks as pastor of the Universal Church on matters of faith and morals, with the intention of officially teaching a certain truth for all Catholics to believe, which is therefore an infallible teaching; Latin for "from the chair."

Archdiocese

A larger diocese, under the care of an archbishop, which has an elevated status over the dioceses in its region.

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.

Purgatory

A state of final purification after death but before entrance into Heaven for those who died in God's friendship but owe reparations for confessed sins. A final cleansing of imperfection before one is able to enter heaven

Infallibility

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.

Diocesan Council

Often called a synod; a meeting of the bishop and representatives of the clergy; religious, and laity in which matters of diocesan Church discipline and procedure are discussed

Priest

One of the tribes of Levi. In the N.T. an abbreviation of the Greek presbyteros (elder). A member of that order: this baptized and confirmed male is ordained to be a coworker with his bishop to preside at public liturgies in his stead and to otherwise assist the bishop in priestly service to the people of God.

Sacrament of Salvation

Refers to the Catholic Church because she is the sign and the instrument of the communion of God and men, established by Christ as a means to achieve the salvation of souls.

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

Sacred Scripture

The Bible; the canonical writings validated by the Church as inerrant and inspired by the Holy Spirit; together with Sacred Tradition, it makes up a single deposit of the Word of God—the Deposit of Faith—a single gift of God to the Church.

Sacred Tradition

The Church's teachings that have been passed down through the ages through the successors of the Apostles together with Sacred Scripture it makes up the single deposit of the Word of God--the deposit of faith-- a single gift of God to the Church from Latin traditio (to hand down)