How and why a religion develops and expresses its beliefs

Question 1

What is doctrine used to describe

Answer 1

Catholic Church’s teachings on faith and morals.

Question 2

Define the word revelation as it relates to Christianity

what is revelation

Answer 2

Catholic Church believes that revelation, or God’s communication of his existence to humankind, was completed by Jesus Christ and that he has spoken God’s final definitive and complete word

Question 3

Define the term ‘development of belief’

Answer 3

The Catholic Church does not change or create new religious belief.

Church believes that while God’s revelation is complete, the Christian understanding of Christ’s revelation grows over time and such Catholic doctrine.

Question 4

Explain how Cardinal Newman believed Catholic religious belief developed

Answer 4

. Rather he explained that in the course of centuries of lived Catholicism and theological reflection, the church advanced from a particular formulation of a doctrine to a more nuanced one, informed by new developments and a deeper theological understanding.

Question 5

Definition of Catholic belief of pugatory

Answer 5

Catholic belief that for some people who remain ‘imperfectly purfied’ there is an intermediate stage between death and eternal salavation where their souls are cleansed so that they can acheive the holiness to enter heaven.

Question 6

Outline the role the Magisterium in the development of Catholic beliefs

What is magisterium

What are they entrusted to do

Answer 6

The Magisterium is responsible for any development of Catholic religious belief.

Magisterium teaching authority of Catholic Church comprised of the Pope and the world’s bishops.

Task of giving an authentic interpretation of the word of God, whether in written or form of tradition has been entrusted to the living teaching office of the Church alone.

Question 7

Identify two examples of religious belief expressed in Sacred Tradition.

Answer 7

Two examples of religious belief expressed in Sacred Tradition include (The New Testament) and Sacred tradition (Creeds)

Question 8

Explain the relationship between increased theological understanding and the development of Catholic religious beliefs.

Answer 8

Catholic Church develops its understandings of its beliefs because “theological research deepens knowledge or revealed truth”

Question 9

Summarise the role of Ecumenical Councils in the development of Catholic religious beliefs.

Answer 9

An Ecumenincal Council in general is convoked to respond to a heresy or a false teaching within the Church.

Councils have often developed Catholic belief by defining what it is the Church believes in response to a heresy.

Question 10

outline why the Magisterium has authority to develop Catholic doctrine.

Answer 10

Ecumenical Councils derive their authority to teach and develop the Church’s belief from the principle of Apolistic Succession.

In order that the full and living gospel might always be preserved in the Church the apostles left bishops as their successors.

Question 11

Explain what it means that Ecumenical Councils are ‘convoked because they are provoked’

Answer 11

Councils convoked because they are provoked, prompted by various circumstances in the life of the Church that require attention.

Since councils come into existence in response to demanding religious and social issues of the day, the Church has no regular schedule for convoking them. They are simply called as needed.

Question 12

How did the Council of Nicaea develop the belief in the Trinity

Answer 12

Convened by Empreor Constantine 1.

To debate the nature of Christ
Called to address heresy of Arianism.

Which claimed that Jesus, though divine, was a created being and inferior to God the Father.

Council rejected Arianism as heretical.

Council affirmed Jesus consubstantial with the Father.

Jesus shares same divine substance as God.

Concept enshrined in Nicene creed.

Question 13

Example from Nicene creed

Answer 13

“I believe in one God, the Father almighty Son of God, born of the father before all ages”

“I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the father (and the son)

Question 14

Why does a belief need to be devloped?

The Magisterium develops a greater understanding of revelation

Catechism 94

Thomas Aquinas

Answer 14

he development of doctrine occurs when guided by the holy spirit the Magisterium develops a greater understanding of revelation. Historically, the development of new theological insights have been developed by theologians, such as Thomas Aquinas and accepted by the Magisterium as correct developments. Paragraph 94 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that, “through the contemplation and study of believers who ponder these things in their hearts”… it is in particular “theological research [which] deepens knowledge of revealed truth”.

Question 15

New theological insights are developed of Catholic belief should serve the following three purposes:

Answer 15

a. Teaching and safeguarding the Christian message
b. Providing for the holiness of believers
c. Governing the Church in Jesus’ name

Question 16

Outline what it means that any development in Catholic belief must safeguard the Christian message

Answer 16

Any development in Catholic belief must safeguard the Christian message by preserving the core truths of the Gospel, correcting errors, and promoting unity with the teachings of the Apostles.

New theological ideas must align with Scripture and Tradition , prevent distortions of the faith.

Question 17

Explain how the development of belief in the Sacrament of Marriage provided for the holiness of believer

Answer 17

Marrige evolved from being seen as a lesser state compared to celibacy to being recognised as a sacred vocation and sacrament, on par with celibacy, through the teachings of theologians like Saint Augustine.

By living out their marrige as a scarament , couples provide a powerful witness to God’s covenantal love, impacting their community and serving as a model of divine grace in everyday life.

Question 18

Identify 3 ways the Catholic Church expresses its beliefs

Answer 18

Expresses beliefs through Sacred Scripture, Sacred Tradition and the publishing by the Magisterium of Church documents.

Question 19

Define the terms Sacred Scripture and Scared Tradition and provide an example of each

Answer 19

Scared Scripture is the written word of God, found in the bible and inspired by the Holy Spirit. An example is the Gospel of John.

Sacred tradition refers to the teachings and practices passed down through the church

Originating from the apostles and guided by the Holy Spirit. An example is the Nicene Creed.

Question 20

Explain how Catholics beliefs are expressed in Sacred Scripture

Answer 20

Matthew 28:19

Jesus Commands his followers to baptize in the name of the “Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”

While passage does not explicitly use the term “Trinity”, it implicity reflects the belief in the Triune God - one God in three persons.

Question 21

The expression of religious belief in Scripture, Tradition or Church documents serves the following 3 purposes.

Answer 21

1. To evangelise people so that they may initially or further develop their belief in Jesus Christ
2. To provide clarity on what a certain belief is
3. To explain what behaviours gives witness to a religious belief

Question 22

Why did authors of the New Testament express Christian beliefs

Answer 22

in order to explain what Christian belief involved and what behaviour was required to give witness to this belief.

Question 23

The Catholic believes that the authors of the New Testament were inspired by

Answer 23

the Holy Spirit to use various literary forms to explain the teachings of Jesus Christ so that people could develop faith in Jesus and receive salvation (CCC, para. 106).

Question 24

An example of a New Testament Author

Answer 24

For example, Saint Paul wrote letters to Christian communities that he had established in Macedonia, Greece and Turkey and also a letter to the Christians in Rome, a community he did not establish. In the letters he wrote he explained such beliefs as the divinity of Christ and the incarnation (Philippians 2:6-8).

Question 25

The authors of the New Testament were

Answer 25

evangelical, meaning they expressed Christian beliefs in their writings with the desire that the people would further develop their belief in God.

Question 27

Why does the Catholic Church express its belief in the Nicene Creed to provide clarity for Christians about the nature of God

Answer 27

The Catholic Church uses creeds as statement of shared beliefs, in the form of a fixed formula, summarising the core tenets of belief required of a Catholic Christian.

They provide clarity around belief and what it means to be a Christian.

Question 28

Catholic Church express belief in the Nicene Creed to provide clarity

From the very beginning, the Church transmitted the Christian faith

Answer 28

creeds because of the unifying effect it had upon early Christians.

Question 29

Catholic Church express belief in the Nicene Creed to provide clarity

The Creed clarifies Jesus’

Answer 29

’ divinity and his relationship to the Father. Rejecting Arius’ interpretation of the biblical passage “today I have begotten you,”

Question 30

Why does the Catholic Church express its religious belief in Church documents such as encyclicals and apostolic exhortations?

Answer 30

In the Apostolic Exhortation, Amoris Laetitia, was produced in order to reaffirm the Catholic belief in the Sacrament of Marriage. It also expresses pastoral direction on how Catholics should live their own marriages and also engage with others who have relationships that do not conform to the Church’s understanding of marriage.

Question 31

Apostolic Exhortation example Pope Francis

Answer 31

Pope Francis also uses Amoris Laetitia to express that a caring and pastoral approach should be taken to those who live in relationships that do not conform to sacramental marriage. For example, he teaches that, “we [the members of the Church] would like before all else to reaffirm that every person, regardless of sexual orientation, ought to be respected…treated with consideration”.

Question 32

Outline why the Catholic Church uses Church documents to express its religious beliefs.

(Dei Verbum)

purpose

major concern

Answer 32

Its purpose is to spell out the Church’s understanding of the nature of revelation.

major concern of the document is to proclaim a Catholic understanding of the Bible as the “word of God”.