Semester Slides Review

Renaissance

• A cultural rebirth that began in the late Middle Ages that encouraged a rediscovery of the ancient civilizations of Rome, Greece, and Egypt.

• stressed the natural and the human

How did the mission of the Church connect with both the ideas of the Renaissance humanists and the endeavors of the New World exploration

• Middle ages (476-1300) Looked towards God as out savior

• Renaissance (1300-1600) celebrated humanity and our creation and redemption by God

• Age of Exploration (1500-1700) Spread the Gospel

Missionaries

• accompanied explored to spread the Gospel message to the New World, Africa, and the Far East

St. Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin saw Our Lady of Guadalupe and the miracle led to the conversion of many natives

Martin Luther’s Ninety-Five Theses

• on October 31, 1517, they were posted on the door of the Church in Wittenberg to protest Tetzel’s preaching and challenge other theologians to debate his ideas

• Concerns:

  • selling of indulgences

  • corrupt practices of some members of the clergy

  • ignorance of the laity in matters of faith

• Martin Luther was excommunicated by Pope Leo X

Council of Trent

1. renewal of clergy and religious life

2. correcting the reformers errors made on Church Doctrine

   • Sola Scriptura vs. Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition

   • Sola Gratia and Sola Fide vs the gift of Baptism, faith, hope, and charity

   • reaffirmation of the Seven Sacraments

Teachings:

• Priestly training given top priority.

• Clarified church doctrine.

• Reaffirmed all Seven Sacraments.

• Taught that the Lord is present whole and entire for as long as both Eucharistic species subsist.

• Taught that the Mass is a true sacrifice

• the Sacrament of Holy Orders passes power to priests.

• Affirmed that the Sacrament of Penance is the only ordinary means to obtain forgiveness of mortal sins committed after Baptism.

• Scripture and tradition cannot be separated

• Baptism, not personal faith, is a first step to salvation •Rejected practice of indulgences

Magisterium

• The bishops, in communion with the pope (the successor of St. Peter), who are the living and teaching office of the Church.

• authentically interprets the Word of God, in the forms of both Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition.

Transubstantiation

• The Real Presence of Jesus’ Precious Body (under the mere appearance of the bread) and Jesus’ Precious Blood (under the mere appearance of grape wine), accompanied by the fullness of his soul and divinity, after the bread and wine have been consecrated by the priest at Mass.

Rationalism A philosophy of the Enlightenment that taught that only human reason, separated from religious belief, can bring people into the light of knowledge.

Blaise Pascal’s Wager

• a philosophical argument that individuals essentially engage in a life defining gamble regarding the belief in the existence of God

Religious Revival in France Following the French Revolution “Either God exists or he doesn't. Which alternative will you wager on? You can't avoid choosing one or the other; you have embarked on the wager already. A refusal to choose carries the same result as choosing that God does not exist. What if you choose to bet that God exists? If you win, you win everything; if you lose, you lose nothing. Make a bet that God exists."

The formal canonization process in the Catholic Church:

1. Servant of God: The local bishop investigates the person’s life and holiness.

2. Venerable: Vatican Congregation for the Causes of Saints approves the case.

3. Blessed: A miracle attributed to the person is verified, leading to beatification.

4. Saint: A second verified miracle leads to canonization by the Pope

Pope Pius IX

• Longest reigning pope in history (1846-1878)

• known as the first modern pope

• against dismantling the Papal States

• against Liberalism in the wake of violence

Pope Pius XII contributions during WWII

• took a behind the scenes approach to minimize backlash from Nazis.

• Spoke out on Christmas Day 1942 condemning the extermination of people on the basis of race.

• Saved as many as 860,000 Jews by providing them shelter and giving them homes

Papal Infallibility

• The doctrine of papal infallibility maintains that the pope does not err when his is teaching ex cathedra “from the chair;” that is, when he teaches as pope, teacher, and shepherd of all Christians, and as vicar of Christ and successor of St. Peter. Ex cathedra teaching is of a dogmatic scope when the pope “proclaims by a definitive act a doctrine pertaining to faith and morals” (CCC, 891)

Immaculate Conception

• the dogma that states that Mary, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, was preserved free from the stain of Original Sin from the moment of her conception

• Pope Pius IX defined the dogma of the Immaculate Conception in 1854

First Vatican Council

Dei Filius asserted that human reason leads a person to the knowledge that God exists; meanwhile, Divine Revelation indicates that God, in the Divine Person of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, came to earth in the flesh to share in our humanity.

Universal Destination of Goods

• The principle that resources and material goods within society should be able to be accessed by humanity as a whole, rather than restricted to the private realm

Second Vatican Council

Pope John XXIII reasoning for calling the Second Vatican Council: “I want to throw open the windows of the Church so that we can see out and the people can see in.”

Goals of the Second Vatican Council:

• The Church should engage with the modern world with the goal of Church renewal.

• The Church should lead and encourage efforts for Christian unit

Synod of Bishops

• A periodic meeting of various bishops from around the world with the pope, for the purpose of holding theological discourse and advising the pope on matters related to the faith.

Four Documents of the Second Vatican Council

• Sacrosanctum Concilium (Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, Lumen Gentium (Dogmatic Constitution on the Church),Dei Verbum (Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation), Gaudiumet Spes (Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World)

Final Question - What are three strategies you would employ in order to encourage more people your age to participate in the Catholic Church