Religion Midterm Exam 2025

Discernment

The process by which a person discovers God’s will for his or her life, particularly in determining the vocation or state of life to which God is calling that individual. The process, which involves prayer and contemplation, assists a person in making choices that are consistent with God’s plans.  

Freedom

 A gift from God that allows human beings to choose voluntarily to love him with their whole minds, hearts, and souls. Sinning is the abuse of this.

Religious Being

A being created by God in order to live in communion with God. Every human person, by nature and vocation, is one of these, and refusing to freely live in this bond with God keeps one from living a truly human life. Because every human person has been created to live in communion with God, ultimate personal happiness can only be found in God.

Saint

A member of the Church- the Mystical Body of Christ- on earth, in purgatory, or in Heaven. The Church may officially declare a member of the Church in Heaven to be a saint by canonization, adding him or her to the calendar and promoting his or her public veneration.

Sanctification

The process of being made holy, which begins with Baptism, continues throughout the life of a Christian, and is completed when a person enters Heaven and becomes united with God in the Beatific Vision.

Universal Call to Holiness

Refers to the fact that God calls every baptized person to seek holiness- Christian perfection- regardless of his or her state in life. This call was reaffirmed by the Second Vatican Council.

Vocation

 The particular plan or calling that God has for each individual in this life and hereafter. All people have one of these to love and serve God and are called to the perfection of holiness.

Justification

Being made right (righteous) with God. It is a free and undeserved gift from God through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

New Covenant

The new “dispensation” or order, established by God in Jesus Christ, to succeed and perfect the Old Covenant.

Old Covenant

The covenant of the Old Testament, or Mosaic Law, given to Moses by God. It included the Ten Commandments and elaborate ritual and dietary laws.

Original Holiness

The state of friendship with God in which our first parents, Adam and Eve, were created. They enjoyed this state until they sinned and lost the friendship of God.

Original Justice

“The inner harmony of the human person, the harmony between man and woman, and finally the harmony between the first couple and all creation” (CCC 376) that was lost due to Original Sin.

Sanctifying Grace

The free and unmerited favor of God given through the Sacraments. This heals human nature wounded by sin by giving man a share in the divine life, infused into the soul by the Holy Spirit.

Theological Virtues

 Faith, hope, and charity. Infused into the soul at Baptism these enable a Christian to partake of the divine nature; they are called “theological” because they originate from God and have him as their object. 

Charism

From the Greek word charis, meaning “gift.” A specific gift or grace of the Holy Spirit which directly or indirectly benefits the Church, given in order to help a person live out the Christian life, or serve the common good in building up the Church.

Common Priesthood

The priesthood of all the faithful; by virtue of Baptism and Confirmation, all the faithful share in the one priesthood of Christ and share in his mission of salvation. Not to be confused with the ministerial priesthood.

Marriage

Matrimony. The Sacrament of Matrimony by which a man and a woman, in accordance with God’s design from the beginning, are joined in an intimate union of life and love, “so they are no longer two but one” (Mt. 19:6). This union is ordered to the mutual benefit of the spouses and the procreation and education of children (“Be fruitful and multiply” Gn 1:28).

Consecrated Life

 A permanent state of life recognized by the Church, entered freely in response to the call of Christ to perfection, and characterized by the profession of the evangelical counsels of poverty, chastity, and obedience.

Ministerial Priesthood

The priesthood of those called to serve the Church as priests and bishops. Its purpose is to serve the priesthood of all the faithful by building up and guiding the Church in the name of Christ, who is the Head of the Body.

Greatest Commandment

The Commandment identified by Christ as the “Great Commandment” because all the Law and prophets depend upon it: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind…. You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” (cf. Mt 22:35-40)

Hermit

From the Greek eremia, meaning “desert.” A person, usually one in the consecrated life, who for religious motives has retired into solitary life, especially one of the early Christian recluses.

Complementarity

The compatible and mutually beneficial relationship between man and woman according to the original plan of God. Sexual difference inclines male and female toward one another, and also represents a sign of God’s difference, his “otherness.”

Domestic Church

An ancient expression for the Christian family. The family manifests and lives out the communal and familial nature of the Church as the family of God. The family is a community of grace and prayer, a school of human and Christian virtue, and the place where the faith is first proclaimed to children.

Exclusivity

The total gift and commitment between husband and wife that calls for fidelity and mutual self-giving. It is one of the essential properties of Christian marriage.

Indissolubility

The inability of an entity to be divided into constituent parts. It is one of the properties of Christian marriage. The quality of the Sacrament of Matrimony means the union of marriage cannot be broken except by the death of a spouse.

Natural Family Planning (NFP)

The practice of abstaining from marital relations during that time in a women’s natural fertility cycle when a conception could occur. May be practiced for well-grounded reasons. It can also be used to conceive a child.

Theology of the Body

 A systemic approach to Catholic doctrine on the dignity of a human person and the complementarity of men and women. Popularized by Pope St. John Paul II, it has as its core the notion that the human body expresses the person, who is made in the image of God.

Cathedra

Latin for “chair.” The chair reserved for use by the bishop, which is situated in the sanctuary of the cathedral church of the diocese.

Cathedral

The official church of the bishop of a diocese; The greek word cathedra means chair or throne; the bishop’s “chair” symbolizes his teaching and governing authority, and is located in the principal church or “cathedral” of the local diocese of which he is the chief pastor.

Crosier

The pastoral staff used by bishops when they perform certain solemn functions.

Dalmatic

The outer liturgical vestment of a deacon.

In Persona Christi Christus

Latin for “in the person of Christ the Head.” A description of how priests and bishops are configured to Christ by virtue of Holy Orders, especially in the celebration of the Sacraments.

Rite of Ordination

The rite of the Sacrament of Holy Orders by which the bishop, through the imposition of hands and the prayer of Consecrations, confers the order of bishop, priest, or deacon by the power of the Holy Spirit on behalf of the Church.

Seminary

An educational institution of the Church whose purpose is to train men for the reception of Holy Orders.

Cloister

An enclosed religious community with little or no contact with the outside world.

Consecrated Virgin

A woman, who with the Church’s approval, has decided to cling only to the Lord and to live in a state of virginity for the sake of the kingdom of heaven and is consecrated in that state by a solemn rite.

Friar

A member of a mendicant religious order who observes the evangelical counsels, lives in community, and works among the laity, who support the friars with charity.

Monasticism

From the Greek for “solitary life.” This way of life is characterized by asceticism, lived in seclusion from the world, and under a fixed rule.These communities withdraw from the world in order to seek God through asceticism and prayer.

Monk

A member of a religious order who lives a communal life in a monastery, abbey, or priory under a monastic rule of life (such as the Rule of St. Benedict or the Rule of St. Basil), observing the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience.

Sister

A woman in consecrated life or, in some circumstances, in a society of apostolic life.

Eucharistic Adoration

The devotion of praying in the presence of the reserved Blessed Sacrament, the consecrated bread of the Eucharist, which is the Real Presence of Christ.

Examination of Conscience

Prayerful self-reflection on one’s words and deeds in the light of the Gospel. This is necessary to prepare for the Sacrament of Penance.

Holy Day of Obligation

A Sunday or other feast day of importance that Catholics are obliged to keep holy. Minimally, attending Mass and refraining from activities that impede the worship of God are expected.

Intercession

The act of interceding for someone. In terms of the spiritual life, it is the act of praying for the intention of others. When we pray to the saints, for example, we seek their intercession for our needs– we ask them to pray to God on our behalf.

Lectio Divina

Latin for “divine reading.” Traditionally, a four-step devotional method of reading, meditating upon, praying with, and contemplating Scripture, with a newer fifth step calling for action based on what has been discerned from the previous steps. This method has roots dating to the third century and in the Benedictine monastic tradition and was formalized by a Carthusian monk in the twelfth century.

Liturgy of the Hours

Also called the Divine Office, it is the official prayer of the Church that assists the faithful to pray throughout the day; it is based primarily on the Psalms and other biblical readings.

St. ____ wrote in his Confessions, “You have formed us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.”

Augustine

 Our God given purpose in life is that God wants us to be____

happy

The mathematician, Blaise Pascal said that all men seek ____and the infinite abyss can only be filled by ___Himself. 

Happiness; God

 St. ___, a philosopher and theologian, urged his readers to seek ___ with God and the true happiness that can be found only in ___ with God.  He also encouraged prayer and contemplation.

Anselm; peace; union

The Catechism explain the Universal Call to Holiness simply:

All are called to holiness

 Your ____ is the particular plan or call that God has for you.

vocation

True or false: Christ established an everlasting covenant through his Passion, Death, Resurrection, and Ascension

True

True or false: The irony of original Sin is that Adam and Eve sought to obtain what they already enjoyed.

True

 True or false: Grace is free but not forced

True

God created us “for himself”.  That means he has a ____ purpose in mind for us.  When that purpose is fulfilled, then ____ are ____. 

Divine; we; fulfilled

Unlike animals who live by instinct, we are ____ beings, capable of contemplating our own existence. 

Religious

Jesus established a New Covenant that fulfilled the promises of the Old Covenant and that ____ the Old Law.

Perfected

“Saint” simply means ____ one.  We are made holy by____.  We who strive to remain faithful Christians are also ____.

Holy; Baptism; saints

List the two Sacraments at the Service of Communion

Holy Orders and Matrimony

With each calling, God gives the grace necessary for fulfilling the demands of that calling.  This grace is called the grace of___.

State

 The ____ God calls us to will be as individual as each of us is unique.

Vocation

True or False: The committed single life is confirmed by a sacramental commitment.

False

True or False:  A committed single enjoys remarkable freedom to allot time, resources, and attention to the Church and to good causes.

True

Those who commit to the vocation of consecrated life take vows of poverty, chastity and ____.

Obedience

What is the definition of marriage?

Marriage is a covenant or partnership between a man and woman and is ordered to the well-being of the spouses and the procreation and upbringing of children.

Why is marriage a covenant?

Marriage is a covenant because it is a solemn agreement between man and woman that involves mutual vows and promises.   

What did Christ do for marriage by his redemption?

Christ restored marriage to the original intent God as it was at the time of Creation.

 Explain the two purposes of the marital act.

The two purposes of the marital act are: Unitive purpose- the marital act joins together not just the physical bodies of a husband and wife but their whole beings in a profound experience of intimacy to celebrate and to deepen their sacred bond of marriage and Procreative purpose- the marital act is characterized by the conception of new life, which is how God enlarges and extends his own family. 

 Why is marriage preparation important?

Marriage preparation is important because it Christian marriage is a sacred covenant, a profound mystery, a union that reflects the image of Christ and his Church as well as the Blessed Trinity.

What are the three basic requirements for Christian marriage?

The 3 basic requirements are: no impediments to entering marriage, both parties must give their knowing and free consent, the couple must be married according to the laws of the Church, witnessing by her authorized representatives, in a public liturgical act (the Rite of Marriage), ordinarily within the context of a Mass.

What is an impediment to marriage and what are some of the more common impediments?

An impediment to marriage is anything that prevents both parties from being free to marry, which would prevent the valid administration of the Sacrament of Matrimony. Examples include: an existing marriage, insufficient legal age, related to closely, and lack of free consent. 

 Why is matrimonial consent so important?

Matrimonial consent is essential for the validity of marriage that each of the spouses freely give full consent without pressure or coercion.

True or False: Ex opere operato refers to the grace of the Sacrament being conferred independent of the personal holiness of the minister of the sacrament.

True

True or False: A transitional deacon is on track to being ordained a priest, and a permanent deacon to remaining forever in that clerical rank.

True

 The ____ of the Sacrament of Holy Orders is the Prayer of ____ specific to the office to which the candidate is ordained.

Form; Consecration

Holy Orders is by nature a____ of service.

Sacrament

Deacons do not share in the ____ priesthood.

Ministerial

List the Evangelical Counsels

Poverty, Chastity, Obedience

Every Christian is called to live the____ counsels according to his or her state of life.  To profess such a commitment in a formal way, however, requires becoming a member of a ____ approved by the Church.

Evangelical; community

Every religious community is governed by applicable Church law, but also abides by its own ____.  Nearly all adopt one of the four major rules - that of St. Basil, St. ____, St. ____ or St. Francis.

Norms; Benedict; Augustine

Each community has a specific ____ that defines its way of life and gives it a particular character.

Charism

Your personal vocation to a state of life involves ___ God is calling you to know, love and serve him during your ____ on ____.

How; lifetime; earth

Your vocation is how you become the ___ person God calls you to become.  It is how you fulfill your ____ purpose, your eternal ____.

Unique; divine; destiny

Bl. Charles de Foucauld explains your “personal vocation” this way:  “But he (God) does not ask all souls to show their love by the same ____, to climb to heaven by the same ____, to achieve ____ in the same way.”

Works; ladder; goodness

It is important to keep in mind that discernment is not about you “choosing” your vocation as much as it is about ____ the vocation that God has chosen for you.

Discovering