Lists Every Catholic Should be Familiar With
The 7 Sacraments (The Holy Mysteries) Baptism Confirmation (Chrismation) Eucharist Penance (Confession, Reconciliation) Matrimony Holy Orders Extreme Unction (Annointing of the Sick) Notes: A Sacrament is defined as "an outward sign of inward grace" which was instituted by Christ Himself and receives its power from God, through the merits of Christ. Baptism and Penance are known as the "Sacraments of the Dead" because before receiving them when needed, we are dead in sin. Confirmation, Holy Eucharist, Extreme Unction, Holy Orders, and Matrimony are known as the "Sacraments of the Living" because one must be in a state of grace to receive them licitly and receive their fruits; they give additional grace to souls already spiritually alive. Matrimony and Holy Orders are known as the "Social Sacraments" because they are designed primarily for the benefit of society and confer a social status. Baptism, Confirmation, and Holy Orders are the three Sacraments which leave an indelible mark on the recipient's soul and can never be repeated. The 7 Corporal Works of Mercy To feed the hungry To give drink to the thirsty To clothe the naked To shelter the homeless To visit the sick To visit the imprisoned To bury the dead Note: Reference Matthew 25 and Tobias 12. "To visit the imprisoned" was originally listed as "to ransom the captives," referring to the ransoming of Christians taken prisoner during Moslem aggression. The 7 Spiritual Works of Mercy To counsel the doubtful To instruct the ignorant To admonish the sinner To comfort the sorrowful To forgive all injuries To bear wrongs patiently To pray for the living and the dead The 3 Eminent Good Works Prayer Fasting Almsgiving The 7 Gifts of the Holy Ghost Wisdom Understanding Counsel Fortitude Knowledge Piety Fear of the Lord Note: See Isaias 11:1-3 Class of Gifts of the Holy Ghost known as Charismata Gift of speaking with wisdom Gift of speaking with knowledge Faith Grace of healing Gift of miracles Gift of prophecy Gift of discerning spirits Gift of tongues (i.e., xenolalia, the ability to speak foreign languages unknown by natural reason) Gift of interpreting speeches Note: See I Corinthians 12:6-11; I Corinthians 12:28-31; and Romans 12:6-8. The number of items in this class of Gifts of the Holy Ghost, properly called "charismata," is disputed among theologians. Some add: Gift of government, Gift of Helps, Gift of distributio, Gift of misericordia. The charismata were/are not necessary for individual sanctification, were/are not distributed to all Christians, and are to be subjected to authority and the proper ends for which they were given (I Corinthians 12-14). The 12 Fruits of the Holy Ghost Charity Joy Peace Patience Benignity Goodness Longanimity Mildness Faith Modesty Continency Chastity Note: See Galatians 5:22-25 (three of these are not mentioned in some Greek and Latin manuscripts). The 12 Fruits of the Holy Ghost are the effects of the 7 Gifts of the Holy Ghost. The 3 Theological Virtues Faith Hope Charity Note: Reference I Corinthians 13:13. The Theological Virtues are called such because they are supernatural in origin, relate immediately to God, and can only be gained through His grace The 4 Cardinal Virtues Prudence Justice Fortitude Temperance Note: Refrerence Wisdom 8:7. The Cardinal Virtues, unlike the Theological Virtues, can be achieved by human effort. The 7 Capital Sins and their Contrary Virtues
Note: The 6 Sins against the Holy Ghost Presumption Despair Resisting the known truth Envy of another’s spiritual good Obstinacy in sin Final impenitence The 4 Sins that Cry Out to Heaven Willful murder The sin of Sodom Oppression of the poor Defrauding laborers of their wages Note: Genesis 4, Genesis 18, Exodus 2, James 5, respectively. 3 Conditions for Mortal Sin Grave matter Full knowledge Deliberate consent Note: From the Catechism of St. Pius X, "The Main Kinds of Sin," Question 9-10: Q: What injury does mortal sin do the soul? A: (1) Mortal sin deprives the soul of grace and of the friendship of God; (2) It makes it lose Heaven; (3) It deprives it of merits already acquired, and renders it incapable of acquiring new merits; (4) It makes it the slave of the devil; (5) It makes it deserve hell as well as the chastisements of this life. Q: Besides grave matter, what is required to constitute a mortal sin? A: To constitute a mortal sin, besides grave matter there is also required full consciousness of the gravity of the matter, along with the deliberate will to commit the sin. The 9 Ways We Participate in Others' Sins By counsel By command By consent By provocation By praise or flattery By concealment By partaking By silence By defense of the ill done The 10 Commandments Thou shalt not have other gods besides Me Thou shalt not take the Name of the Lord thy God in vain Remember to keep holy the Lord’s day Honor thy father and thy mother Thou shalt not murder Thou shalt not commit adultery Thou shalt not steal Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s goods Note: Reference Exodus 20 and Exodous 34 and Deuteronomy 5:6-21. Note that the Septuagint, the Latin Vulgate (the official Scripture of the Church), and the original Douay-Reims phrase the Fifth Word as "Thou shalt not murder"; later Douay-Reims versions, such as the Challoner, and the King James Bible, etc., phrase it as "Thou shalt not kill." "Thou shalt not murder," however, is the original intent and the meaning of the earliest texts. Catholics, of course, have 2,000 years of Church teaching and the Magisterium to interpret Scripture, and the meaning of the Fifth Commandment is that one is not to take innocent human life. (For information on the way Catholics number the Commandments, as opposed to how Protestants and Jews number them, see this page in the Apologetics section of this site) The 2 Greatest Commandments To love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, soul, mind and strength. To love thy neighbor as thyself. Note: Reference Mark 12:30-.31 The 3 Evangelical Counsels Voluntary poverty Perpetual chastity Entire obedience Note: The Evangelical Counsels, also called the Counsels of Perfection, are those precepts given by Christ that are not binding on all, but are binding on those who have a vocation to them. The 10 Commandments, the Precepts of the Church, the two Great Commandments, for ex., bind one and all, but the evangelical counsels do not. See Matthew 19:16-22 for the story of Christ's telling the young man what he needs to do in order to be saved, and then what he needs to do in order to be perfect -- two different things. The 6 Precepts of the Church (The Duties of a Catholic) To go to Mass and refrain from servile work on Sundays and holy days To go to Confession at least once a year (traditionally done during Lent) To receive the Eucharist at least once a year, during the Easter Season (known as the "Easter duty") To observe the days of fasting and abstinence To help to provide for the needs of the Church according to one's abilities and station in life To obey the marriage laws of the Church Holy Days of Obligation in Addition to Sundays (English-speaking Countries)
Note: The 3 Powers of the Soul Memory Intellect Will The 4 Pillars of the Catholic Faith The Apostles Creed The Seven Sacraments The Ten Commandments The Lord's Prayer The 3 Pillars of the Church's Authority Sacred Scripture Sacred Tradition Living Magisterium The 3 Munera (Duties of the Ordained) Munus docendi (duty to teach, based on Christ's role as Prophet) Munus sanctificandi (duty to sanctify, based on Chris's role as Priest) Munus regendi (duty to shepherd, based on Christ's role as King) The 3 Parts of the Church The Church Militant (Christians on Earth) The Church Suffering (Christians in Purgatory) The Church Triumphant (Christians in Heaven) The 4 Marks of the Church Unity Sanctity Catholicity Apostolicity Note: In the Nicene Creed we say that the Church is "one, holy, catholic and apostolic." The 12 Apostles
Note: Peter, Andrew, James and John, The 12 Tribes of Israel In order of their birth: Reuben Simeon Levi Judah Zabulon Issachar Dan Gad Asher Naphtali Joseph (Menasseh and Ephraim) Benjamin The 8 Beatitudes Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. Blessed are the meek: for they shall posses the land. Blessed are they who mourn: for they shall be comforted Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after justice: for they shall have their fill Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy Blessed are the clean of heart: for they shall see God Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called children of God Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice' sake, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven Note: Reference Matthew 5:3-10. The 14 Stations of the Cross Jesus is Condemned to Die Jesus is Made to Bear His Cross Jesus Falls the First Time Jesus Meets His Mother Simon Helps Jesus Carry His Cross Veronica Wipes Jesus' Face Jesus Falls the Second Time Jesus Meets the Women of Jerusalem Jesus Falls the Third Time Jesus is Stripped Jesus is Nailed to the Cross Jesus Dies on the Cross Jesus is Taken Down from the Cross Jesus is Laid in the Tomb The 7 Sorrows (Dolours) and 7 Joys of Our Lady
The 7 Sorrows and 7 Joys of St. Joseph
Note: The Baptism in the Jordan
This novelty does
not change the true Rosary and is merely presented as an option for Christians.
This option, however, is one that totally disrupts the relationship between
the Rosary and the Breviary's Psalms. Stick with the classic tried-and-true
Rosary. To read why adding Mysteries to the Rosary was a most horrible idea,
see
this page, and to read a critique of Pope John Paul II's
Encyclical on the matter, see
this page (both pages offsite, will open in new browser
window) The Order of Creation
Note:
The 9 Choirs of Angels In ascending order:
Angels
Angels (the word
means "Messengers") are spirits (there was and is debate as to whether they
are pure spirit like God or whether they are possess "subtle matter" and
are corporeal in a different way from us), created before man, who were given
one choice at the beginning of Creation: the Kingdom of God -- or the Absence
of God, which is the Kingdom of Satan, the first Angel who rebelled.
The apocryphal Book of Enoch lists the other 4 as:
The 3 Levels of Reverence
The 14 Holy Helpers St. George, Martyr, April 23 St. Blaise, Bishop and Martyr, February 3 St. Pantaleon, Martyr, July 27 St. Vitus, Martyr, June 15 St. Erasmus (Elmo), Bishop and Martyr, June 2 St. Christopher, Martyr, July 25 St. Giles, Abbot, September 1 St. Cyriacus (Cyriac), Martyr, August 8 St. Achatius, Martyr, May 8 St. Dionysius (Denis), Bishop and Martyr, October 9 St. Eustachius (Eustace), Martyr, September 20 St. Catherine of Alexandria, Virgin and Martyr, November 25 St. Margaret of Antioch, Virgin and Martyr, July 20 St. Barbara, Virgin and Martyr, December 4 Note: The "Holy Helpers" are Saints who first became grouped together and invoked together during the Black Plague, which ravaged Europe between 1346 and 1349. This horrible disease decimated entire towns and struck quickly. First one's mouth would dry and head would ache. Then came the fever, and boils, and the blackening of the tongue. Death would come in hours. The 7 Last Words of Christ The 4 Last Things (The Novissima) Death Judgement Heaven Hell |
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