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II. Dying in Christ Jesus
§1005
To rise with Christ, we must die with Christ: we must «be away from the
body and at home with the Lord.» 562 In that «departure"
which is death the soul is separated from the body.563 It will be
reunited with the body on the day of resurrection of the dead.564
Death
§1006
«It is in regard to death that man's condition is most shrouded in
doubt.» 565 In a sense bodily death is natural, but for faith it is
in fact «the wages of sin.» 566 For those who die in Christ's
grace it is a participation in the death of the Lord, so that they can also
share his Resurrection.567
§1007
Death is the end of earthly life. Our lives are measured by time, in the course
of which we change, grow old and, as with all living beings on earth, death seems
like the normal end of life. That aspect of death lends urgency to our lives:
remembering our mortality helps us realize that we have only a limited time in
which to bring our lives to fulfillment:
Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, . . . before the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.568
§1008
Death is a consequence of sin. the Church's Magisterium, as authentic
interpreter of the affirmations of Scripture and Tradition, teaches that death
entered the world on account of man's sin.569 Even though man's nature
is mortal God had destined him not to die. Death was therefore contrary to the
plans of God the Creator and entered the world as a consequence of sin.570
«Bodily death, from which man would have been immune had he not
sinned» is thus «the last enemy» of man left to be
conquered.571
§1009
Death is transformed by Christ. Jesus, the Son of God, also himself suffered
the death that is part of the human condition. Yet, despite his anguish as he
faced death, he accepted it in an act of complete and free submission to his
Father's will.572 The obedience of Jesus has transformed the curse of
death into a blessing.573
The meaning of Christian death
§1010
Because of Christ, Christian death has a positive meaning: «For to me to
live is Christ, and to die is gain.» 574 «The saying is sure:
if we have died with him, we will also live with him.575 What is
essentially new about Christian death is this: through Baptism, the Christian
has already «died with Christ» sacramentally, in order to live a new
life; and if we die in Christ's grace, physical death completes this
«dying with Christ» and so completes our incorporation into him in
his redeeming act:
It is better for me to die in (eis) Christ Jesus than to reign over the ends of the earth. Him it is I seek - who died for us. Him it is I desire - who rose for us. I am on the point of giving birth .... Let me receive pure light; when I shall have arrived there, then shall I be a man.576
§1011
In death, God calls man to himself. Therefore the Christian can experience a
desire for death like St. Paul's: «My desire is to depart and be with
Christ. « 577 He can transform his own death into an act of
obedience and love towards the Father, after the example of Christ:578
My earthly desire has been
crucified; . . . there is living water in me, water that murmurs and says
within me: Come to the Father.579
I want to see God and, in order to see him, I must die.580
I am not dying; I am entering life.581
§1012
The Christian vision of death receives privileged expression in the liturgy of
the Church:582
Lord, for your faithful people life is changed, not ended. When the body of our earthly dwelling lies in death we gain an everlasting dwelling place in heaven.583
§1013
Death is the end of man's earthly pilgrimage, of the time of grace and mercy
which God offers him so as to work out his earthly life in keeping with the
divine plan, and to decide his ultimate destiny. When «the single course
of our earthly life» is completed,584 we shall not return to other
earthly lives: «It is appointed for men to die once.» 585
There is no «reincarnation» after death.
§1014
The Church encourages us to prepare ourselves for the hour of our death. In the
litany of the saints, for instance, she has us pray: «From a sudden and
unforeseen death, deliver us, O Lord»;586 to ask the Mother of God
to intercede for us «at the hour of our death» in the Hail Mary; and
to entrust ourselves to St. Joseph, the patron of a happy death.
Every action of yours, every
thought, should be those of one who expects to die before the day is out. Death
would have no great terrors for you if you had a quiet conscience .... Then why
not keep clear of sin instead of running away from death? If you aren't fit to
face death today, it's very unlikely you will be tomorrow ....587
Praised are you, my Lord, for our sister bodily Death,
from whom no living man can escape.
Woe on those who will die in mortal sin!
Blessed are they who will be found in your most holy will,
for the second death will not harm them.588
IN BRIEF
§1015
«The flesh is the
hinge of salvation» (Tertullian, De res. 8, 2: PL 2, 852). We believe in
God who is creator of the flesh; we believe in the Word made flesh in order to
redeem the flesh; we believe in the resurrection of the flesh, the fulfillment
of both the creation and the redemption of the flesh.
§1016
By death the soul is
separated from the body, but in the resurrection God will give incorruptible
life to our body, transformed by reunion with our soul. Just as Christ is risen
and lives for ever, so all of us will rise at the last day.
§1017
«We believe in the
true resurrection of this flesh that we now possess» (Council of Lyons II:
DS 854). We sow a corruptible body in the tomb, but he raises up an
incorruptible body, a «spiritual body» (cf
⇒ 1 Cor 15:42-44).
§1018
As a consequence of original
sin, man must suffer «bodily death, from which man would have been immune
had he not sinned» (GS # 18).
§1019
Jesus, the Son of God,
freely suffered death for us in complete and free submission to the will of
God, his Father. By his death he has conquered death, and so opened the
possibility of salvation to all men.
«I BELIEVE IN LIFE EVERLASTING»
§1020
The Christian who unites his own death to that of Jesus views it as a step
towards him and an entrance into everlasting life. When the Church for the last
time speaks Christ's words of pardon and absolution over the dying Christian,
seals him for the last time with a strengthening anointing, and gives him
Christ in viaticum as nourishment for the journey, she speaks with gentle
assurance:
Go forth, Christian soul, from this world
in the name of God the almighty Father,
who created you,
in the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God,
who suffered for you,
in the name of the Holy Spirit,
who was poured out upon you.
Go forth, faithful Christian!
May you live in peace this day,
may your home be with God in Zion,
with Mary, the virgin Mother of God,
with Joseph, and all the
angels and saints....
May you return to [your Creator]
who formed you from the dust of the earth.
May holy Mary, the angels, and all the saints
come to meet you as you go
forth from this life....
May you see your Redeemer face to face. 589
I. The Particular Judgment
§1021
Death puts an end to human life as the time open to either accepting or
rejecting the divine grace manifested in Christ.590 The New Testament
speaks of judgment primarily in its aspect of the final encounter with Christ
in his second coming, but also repeatedly affirms that each will be rewarded
immediately after death in accordance with his works and faith. the parable of
the poor man Lazarus and the words of Christ on the cross to the good thief, as
well as other New Testament texts speak of a final destiny of the soul -a
destiny which can be different for some and for others.591
§1022
Each man receives his eternal retribution in his immortal soul at the very
moment of his death, in a particular judgment that refers his life to Christ:
either entrance into the blessedness of heaven-through a
purification592 or immediately,593-or immediate and everlasting
damnation.594
At the evening of life, we shall be judged on our love.595
II. Heaven
§1023
Those who die in God's grace and friendship and are perfectly purified live for
ever with Christ. They are like God for ever, for they «see him as he
is,» face to face:596
By virtue of our apostolic authority, we define the following: According to the general disposition of God, the souls of all the saints . . . and other faithful who died after receiving Christ's holy Baptism (provided they were not in need of purification when they died, . . . or, if they then did need or will need some purification, when they have been purified after death, . . .) already before they take up their bodies again and before the general judgment - and this since the Ascension of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ into heaven - have been, are and will be in heaven, in the heavenly Kingdom and celestial paradise with Christ, joined to the company of the holy angels. Since the Passion and death of our Lord Jesus Christ, these souls have seen and do see the divine essence with an intuitive vision, and even face to face, without the mediation of any creature.597
§1024
This perfect life with the Most Holy Trinity - this communion of life and love
with the Trinity, with the Virgin Mary, the angels and all the blessed - is
called «heaven.» Heaven is the ultimate end and fulfillment of the
deepest human longings, the state of supreme, definitive happiness.
§1025
To live in heaven is «to be with Christ.» the elect live «in
Christ,» 598 but they retain, or rather find, their true identity,
their own name.599
For life is to be with Christ; where Christ is, there is life, there is the kingdom.600
§1026
By his death and Resurrection, Jesus Christ has «opened» heaven to
us. the life of the blessed consists in the full and perfect possession of the
fruits of the redemption accomplished by Christ. He makes partners in his
heavenly glorification those who have believed in him and remained faithful to
his will. Heaven is the blessed community of all who are perfectly incorporated
into Christ.
§1027
This mystery of blessed communion with God and all who are in Christ is beyond
all understanding and description. Scripture speaks of it in images: life,
light, peace, wedding feast, wine of the kingdom, the Father's house, the
heavenly Jerusalem, paradise: «no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the
heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him.» 601
§1028
Because of his transcendence, God cannot be seen as he is, unless he himself
opens up his mystery to man's immediate contemplation and gives him the
capacity for it. the Church calls this contemplation of God in his heavenly
glory «the beatific vision":
How great will your glory and happiness be, to be allowed to see God, to be honored with sharing the joy of salvation and eternal light with Christ your Lord and God, . . . to delight in the joy of immortality in the Kingdom of heaven with the righteous and God's friends.602
§1029
In the glory of heaven the blessed continue joyfully to fulfill God's will in
relation to other men and to all creation. Already they reign with Christ; with
him «they shall reign for ever and ever.» 603
III. The Final Purification, or Purgatory
§1030
All who die in God's grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed
assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification,
so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven.
§1031
The Church gives the name Purgatory to this final purification of the elect, which
is entirely different from the punishment of the damned.604 The Church
formulated her doctrine of faith on Purgatory especially at the Councils of
Florence and Trent. the tradition of the Church, by reference to certain texts
of Scripture, speaks of a cleansing fire:605
As for certain lesser faults, we must believe that, before the Final Judgment, there is a purifying fire. He who is truth says that whoever utters blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will be pardoned neither in this age nor in the age to come. From this sentence we understand that certain offenses can be forgiven in this age, but certain others in the age to come.606
§1032
This teaching is also based on the practice of prayer for the dead, already mentioned
in Sacred Scripture: «Therefore Judas Maccabeus] made atonement for the
dead, that they might be delivered from their sin.» 607 From the
beginning the Church has honored the memory of the dead and offered prayers in
suffrage for them, above all the Eucharistic sacrifice, so that, thus purified,
they may attain the beatific vision of God.608 The Church also commends
almsgiving, indulgences, and works of penance undertaken on behalf of the dead:
Let us help and commemorate them. If Job's sons were purified by their father's sacrifice, why would we doubt that our offerings for the dead bring them some consolation? Let us not hesitate to help those who have died and to offer our prayers for them.609
IV. Hell
§1033
We cannot be united with God unless we freely choose to love him. But we cannot
love God if we sin gravely against him, against our neighbor or against
ourselves: «He who does not love remains in death. Anyone who hates his brother
is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in
him.» 610 Our Lord warns us that we shall be separated from him if
we fail to meet the serious needs of the poor and the little ones who are his
brethren.611 To die in mortal sin without repenting and accepting God's
merciful love means remaining separated from him for ever by our own free
choice. This state of definitive self-exclusion from communion with God and the
blessed is called «hell.»
§1034
Jesus often speaks of «Gehenna» of «the unquenchable fire"
reserved for those who to the end of their lives refuse to believe and be
converted, where both soul and body can be lost.612 Jesus solemnly
proclaims that he «will send his angels, and they will gather . . . all
evil doers, and throw them into the furnace of fire,» 613 and that
he will pronounce the condemnation: «Depart from me, you cursed, into the
eternal fire!» 614
§1035
The teaching of the Church affirms the existence of hell and its eternity.
Immediately after death the souls of those who die in a state of mortal sin
descend into hell, where they suffer the punishments of hell, «eternal
fire.» 615 The chief punishment of hell is eternal separation from
God, in whom alone man can possess the life and happiness for which he was
created and for which he longs.
§1036
The affirmations of Sacred Scripture and the teachings of the Church on the
subject of hell are a call to the responsibility incumbent upon man to make use
of his freedom in view of his eternal destiny. They are at the same time an
urgent call to conversion: «Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide
and the way is easy, that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are
many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard, that leads to life, and those
who find it are few.» 616
Since we know neither the day nor the hour, we should follow the advice of the Lord and watch constantly so that, when the single course of our earthly life is completed, we may merit to enter with him into the marriage feast and be numbered among the blessed, and not, like the wicked and slothful servants, be ordered to depart into the eternal fire, into the outer darkness where «men will weep and gnash their teeth.» 617
§1037
God predestines no one to go to hell;618 for this, a willful turning
away from God (a mortal sin) is necessary, and persistence in it until the end.
In the Eucharistic liturgy and in the daily prayers of her faithful, the Church
implores the mercy of God, who does not want «any to perish, but all to
come to repentance":619
Father, accept this offering
from your whole family.
Grant us your peace in this life,
save us from final damnation,
and count us among those you have chosen.620
V. The Last Judgment
§1038
The resurrection of all the dead, «of both the just and the
unjust,» 621 will precede the Last Judgment. This will be «the
hour when all who are in the tombs will hear [the Son of man's] voice and come
forth, those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who
have done evil, to the resurrection of judgment.» 622 Then Christ
will come «in his glory, and all the angels with him .... Before him will
be gathered all the nations, and he will separate them one from another as a
shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will place the sheep at his
right hand, but the goats at the left.... and they will go away into eternal
punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.» 623
§1039
In the presence of Christ, who is Truth itself, the truth of each man's
relationship with God will be laid bare.624 The Last Judgment will
reveal even to its furthest consequences the good each person has done or
failed to do during his earthly life:
All that the wicked do is recorded, and they do not know. When «our God comes, he does not keep silence.» . . . he will turn towards those at his left hand: . . . «I placed my poor little ones on earth for you. I as their head was seated in heaven at the right hand of my Father - but on earth my members were suffering, my members on earth were in need. If you gave anything to my members, what you gave would reach their Head. Would that you had known that my little ones were in need when I placed them on earth for you and appointed them your stewards to bring your good works into my treasury. But you have placed nothing in their hands; therefore you have found nothing in my presence.» 625
§1040
The Last Judgment will come when Christ returns in glory. Only the Father knows
the day and the hour; only he determines the moment of its coming. Then through
his Son Jesus Christ he will pronounce the final word on all history. We shall
know the ultimate meaning of the whole work of creation and of the entire
economy of salvation and understand the marvellous ways by which his Providence
led everything towards its final end. the Last Judgment will reveal that God's
justice triumphs over all the injustices committed by his creatures and that
God's love is stronger than death.626
§1041
The message of the Last Judgment calls men to conversion while God is still
giving them «the acceptable time, . . . the day of
salvation.» 627 It inspires a holy fear of God and commits them to
the justice of the Kingdom of God. It proclaims the «blessed hope» of
the Lord's return, when he will come «to be glorified in his saints, and
to be marvelled at in all who have believed.» 628
VI. Hope of the New Heaven and the New Earth
§1042
At the end of time, the Kingdom of God will come in its fullness. After the universal
judgment, the righteous will reign for ever with Christ, glorified in body and
soul. the universe itself will be renewed:
The Church . . . will receive her perfection only in the glory of heaven, when will come the time of the renewal of all things. At that time, together with the human race, the universe itself, which is so closely related to man and which attains its destiny through him, will be perfectly re-established in Christ.629
§1043
Sacred Scripture calls this mysterious renewal, which will transform humanity
and the world, «new heavens and a new earth.» 630 It will be
the definitive realization of God's plan to bring under a single head «all
things in [Christ], things in heaven and things on earth.» 631
§1044
In this new universe, the heavenly Jerusalem, God will have his dwelling among
men.632 «He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death
shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain any more,
for the former things have passed away.» 633
§1045
For man, this consummation will be the final realization of the unity of the
human race, which God willed from creation and of which the pilgrim Church has
been «in the nature of sacrament.» 634 Those who are united
with Christ will form the community of the redeemed, «the holy city"
of God, «the Bride, the wife of the Lamb.» 635 She will not be
wounded any longer by sin, stains, self-love, that destroy or wound the earthly
community.636 The beatific vision, in which God opens himself in an
inexhaustible way to the elect, will be the ever-flowing well-spring of
happiness, peace, and mutual communion.
§1046
For the cosmos, Revelation affirms the profound common destiny of the material
world and man:
For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God . . . in hope because the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay.... We know that the whole creation has been groaning in travail together until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.637
§1047
The visible universe, then, is itself destined to be transformed, «so that
the world itself, restored to its original state, facing no further obstacles,
should be at the service of the just,» sharing their glorification in the
risen Jesus Christ.638
§1048
«We know neither the moment of the consummation of the earth and of man,
nor the way in which the universe will be transformed. the form of this world,
distorted by sin, is passing away, and we are taught that God is preparing a new
dwelling and a new earth in which righteousness dwells, in which happiness will
fill and surpass all the desires of peace arising in the hearts of
men.» 639
§1049
«Far from diminishing our concern to develop this earth, the expectancy of
a new earth should spur us on, for it is here that the body of a new human
family grows, foreshadowing in some way the age which is to come. That is why,
although we must be careful to distinguish earthly progress clearly from the
increase of the kingdom of Christ, such progress is of vital concern to the
kingdom of God, insofar as it can contribute to the better ordering of human
society.» 640
§1050
«When we have spread on earth the fruits of our nature and our enterprise
. . . according to the command of the Lord and in his Spirit, we will find them
once again, cleansed this time from the stain of sin, illuminated and
transfigured, when Christ presents to his Father an eternal and universal
kingdom.» 641 God will then be «all in all» in eternal
life:642
True and subsistent life consists in this: the Father, through the Son and in the Holy Spirit, pouring out his heavenly gifts on all things without exception. Thanks to his mercy, we too, men that we are, have received the inalienable promise of eternal life.643
IN BRIEF
§1051
Every man receives his
eternal recompense in his immortal soul from the moment of his death in a
particular judgment by Christ, the judge of the living and the dead.
§1052
«We believe that
the souls of all who die in Christ's grace . . . are the People of God beyond
death. On the day of resurrection, death will be definitively conquered, when
these souls will be reunited with their bodies» (Paul VI, CPG # 28).
§1053
«We believe that
the multitude of those gathered around Jesus and Mary in Paradise forms the
Church of heaven, where in eternal blessedness they see God as he is and where
they are also, to various degrees, associated with the holy angels in the
divine governance exercised by Christ in glory, by interceding for us and
helping our weakness by their fraternal concern» (Paul VI, CPG # 29).
§1054
Those who die in God's
grace and friendship imperfectly purified, although they are assured of their
eternal salvation, undergo a purification after death, so as to achieve the
holiness necessary to enter the joy of God.
§1055
By virtue of the
«communion of saints,» the Church commends the dead to God's mercy
and offers her prayers, especially the holy sacrifice of the Eucharist, on
their behalf.
§1056
Following the example of
Christ, the Church warns the faithful of the «sad and lamentable reality
of eternal death» (GCD 69), also called «hell.»
§1057
Hell's principal
punishment consists of eternal separation from God in whom alone man can have
the life and happiness for which he was created and for which he longs.
§1058
The Church prays that no
one should be lost: «Lord, let me never be parted from you.» If it is
true that no one can save himself, it is also true that God «desires all
men to be saved» (⇒ 1 Tim 2:4), and that
for him «all things are possible» (⇒ Mt
19:26).
§1059
«The holy Roman
Church firmly believes and confesses that on the Day of Judgment all men will
appear in their own bodies before Christ's tribunal to render an account of
their own deeds» (Council of Lyons II [1274]: DS 859; cf. DS 1549).
§1060
At the end of time, the
Kingdom of God will come in its fullness. Then the just will reign with Christ
for ever, glorified in body and soul, and the material universe itself will be
transformed. God will then be «all in all"
(⇒ 1 Cor 15:28), in eternal life.
«Amen»
§1061
The Creed, like the last book of the Bible,644 ends with the Hebrew word
amen. This word frequently concludes prayers in the New Testament. the Church
likewise ends her prayers with «Amen.»
§1062
In Hebrew, amen comes from the same root as the word «believe.» This
root expresses solidity, trustworthiness, faithfulness. and so we can
understand why «Amen» may express both God's faithfulness towards us
and our trust in him.
§1063
In the book of the prophet Isaiah, we find the expression «God of
truth» (literally «God of the Amen»), that is, the God who is
faithful to his promises: «He who blesses himself in the land shall bless
himself by the God of truth [amen].» 645 Our Lord often used the
word «Amen,» sometimes repeated,646 to emphasize the trustworthiness
of his teaching, his authority founded on God's truth.
§1064
Thus the Creed's final «Amen» repeats and confirms its first words:
«I believe.» To believe is to say «Amen» to God's words,
promises and commandments; to entrust oneself completely to him who is the
«Amen» of infinite love and perfect faithfulness. the Christian's
everyday life will then be the «Amen» to the «I believe» of
our baptismal profession of faith:
May your Creed be for you as a mirror. Look at yourself in it, to see if you believe everything you say you believe. and rejoice in your faith each day.647
§1065
Jesus Christ himself is the «Amen.» 648 He is the definitive
«Amen» of the Father's love for us. He takes up and completes our
«Amen» to the Father: «For all the promises of God find their
Yes in him. That is why we utter the Amen through him, to the glory of
God":649
Through him, with him, in him,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
all glory and honor is yours,
almighty Father,
God, for ever and ever.
AMEN.
THE CELEBRATION OF THE CHRISTIAN MYSTERY
Why the liturgy?
§1066
In the Symbol of the faith the Church confesses the mystery of the Holy Trinity
and of the plan of God's «good pleasure» for all creation: the Father
accomplishes the «mystery of his will» by giving his beloved Son and
his Holy Spirit for the salvation of the world and for the glory of his
name.1
Such is the mystery of Christ, revealed and fulfilled in history according to the wisely ordered plan that St. Paul calls the «plan of the mystery» 2 and the patristic tradition will call the «economy of the Word incarnate» or the «economy of salvation.»
§1067
«The wonderful works of God among the people of the Old Testament were but
a prelude to the work of Christ the Lord in redeeming mankind and giving
perfect glory to God. He accomplished this work principally by the Paschal
mystery of his blessed Passion, Resurrection from the dead, and glorious
Ascension, whereby 'dying he destroyed our death, rising he restored our life.'
For it was from the side of Christ as he slept the sleep of death upon the
cross that there came forth 'the wondrous sacrament of the whole
Church."'3
For this reason, the Church celebrates in the liturgy above all the Paschal mystery by which Christ accomplished the work of our salvation.
§1068
It is this mystery of Christ that the Church proclaims and celebrates in her
liturgy so that the faithful may live from it and bear witness to it in the
world:
For it is in the liturgy, especially in the divine sacrifice of the Eucharist, that «the work of our redemption is accomplished,» and it is through the liturgy especially that the faithful are enabled to express in their lives and manifest to others the mystery of Christ and the real nature of the true Church.4
What does the word liturgy mean?
§1069
The word «liturgy» originally meant a «public work» or a
«service in the name of/on behalf of the people.»
In Christian tradition it means the participation of the People of God in
«the work of God.» 5
Through the liturgy Christ, our redeemer and high priest, continues the work of
our redemption in, with, and through his Church.
§1070
In the New Testament the word «liturgy» refers not only to the
celebration of divine worship but also to the proclamation of the Gospel and to
active charity.6 In all of these situations it is a question of the service
of God and neighbor.
In a liturgical celebration the Church is servant in the image of her Lord, the
one «leitourgos»;7 she shares in Christ's priesthood
(worship), which is both prophetic (proclamation) and kingly (service of
charity):
The liturgy then is rightly
seen as an exercise of the priestly office of Jesus Christ.
It involves the presentation of man's sanctification under the guise of signs
perceptible by the senses and its accomplishment in ways appropriate to each of
these signs.
In it full public worship is performed by the Mystical Body of Jesus Christ,
that is, by the Head and his members.
From this it follows that every liturgical celebration, because it is an action
of Christ the priest and of his Body which is the Church, is a sacred action
surpassing all others.
No other action of the Church can equal its efficacy by the same title and to
the same degree.8
Liturgy as source of life
§1071
As the work of Christ liturgy is also an action of his Church. It makes the
Church present and manifests her as the visible sign of the communion in Christ
between God and men. It engages the faithful in the new life of the community
and involves the «conscious, active, and fruitful participation» of
everyone.9
§1072
«The sacred liturgy does not exhaust the entire activity of the
Church":10 it must be preceded by evangelization, faith, and
conversion. It can then produce its fruits in the lives of the faithful: new
life in the Spirit, involvement in the mission of the Church, and service to
her unity.
Prayer and liturgy
§1073
The liturgy is also a participation in Christ's own prayer addressed to the
Father in the Holy Spirit. In the liturgy, all Christian prayer finds its
source and goal. Through the liturgy the inner man is rooted and grounded in
«the great love with which [the Father] loved us» in his beloved
Son.11 It is the same «marvelous work of God» that is lived
and internalized by all prayer, «at all times in the Spirit.» 12
Catechesis and liturgy
§1074
«The liturgy is the summit toward which the activity of the Church is
directed; it is also the font from which all her power flows.» 13
It is therefore the privileged place for catechizing the People of God.
«Catechesis is intrinsically linked with the whole of liturgical and
sacramental activity, for it is in the sacraments, especially in the Eucharist,
that Christ Jesus works in fullness for the transformation of
men.» 14
§1075
Liturgical catechesis aims to initiate people into the mystery of Christ (It is
«mystagogy.» ) by proceeding from the visible to the invisible, from
the sign to the thing signified, from the «sacraments» to the
«mysteries.»
Such catechesis is to be presented by local and regional catechisms.
This Catechism, which aims to serve the whole Church in all the diversity of
her rites and cultures,15 will present what is fundamental and common
to the whole Church in the liturgy as mystery and as celebration, and then the
seven sacraments and the sacramentals.
THE SACRAMENTAL ECONOMY
§1076
The Church was made manifest to the world on the day of Pentecost by the
outpouring of the Holy Spirit.1 The gift of the Spirit ushers in a new
era in the «dispensation of the mystery» the age of the Church,
during which Christ manifests, makes present, and communicates his work of
salvation
through the liturgy of his Church, «until he comes.» 2 In this age of the Church Christ now lives and acts in and with his Church, in a new way appropriate to this new age. He acts through the sacraments in what the common Tradition of the East and the West calls «the sacramental economy»; this is the communication (or «dispensation») of the fruits of Christ's Paschal mystery in the celebration of the Church's «sacramental» liturgy.
It is therefore important first to explain this «sacramental dispensation" (chapter one). the nature and essential features of liturgical celebration will then appear more clearly (chapter two).
THE LITURGY - WORK OF THE HOLY TRINITY
I. The Father-Source and Goal of the Liturgy
§1077
«Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed
us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he
chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and
blameless before him. He destined us before him in love to be his sons through
Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his
glorious grace which he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.» 3
§1078
Blessing is a divine and life-giving action, the source of which is the Father;
his blessing is both word and gift.4 When applied to man, the word
«blessing» means adoration and surrender to his Creator in
thanksgiving.
§1079
From the beginning until the end of time the whole of God's work is a blessing.
From the liturgical poem of the first creation to the canticles of the heavenly
Jerusalem, the inspired authors proclaim the plan of salvation as one vast
divine blessing.
§1080
From the very beginning God blessed all living beings, especially man and
woman. the covenant with Noah and with all living things renewed this blessing
of fruitfulness despite man's sin which had brought a curse on the ground. But
with Abraham, the divine blessing entered into human history which was moving
toward death, to redirect it toward life, toward its source. By the faith of
«the father of all believers,» who embraced the blessing, the history
of salvation is inaugurated.
§1081
The divine blessings were made manifest in astonishing and saving events: the
birth of Isaac, the escape from Egypt (Passover and Exodus), the gift of the
promised land, the election of David, the presence of God in the Temple, the
purifying exile, and return of a «small remnant.» the Law, the
Prophets, and the Psalms, interwoven in the liturgy of the Chosen People,
recall these divine blessings and at the same time respond to them with
blessings of praise and thanksgiving.
§1082
In the Church's liturgy the divine blessing is fully revealed and communicated.
the Father is acknowledged and adored as the source and the end of all the blessings
of creation and salvation. In his Word who became incarnate, died, and rose for
us, he fills us with his blessings. Through his Word, he pours into our hearts
the Gift that contains all gifts, the Holy Spirit.
§1083
The dual dimension of the Christian liturgy as a response of faith and love to
the spiritual blessings the Father bestows on us is thus evident. On the one
hand, the Church, united with her Lord and «in the Holy
Spirit,» 5 blesses the Father «for his inexpressible
gift6 in her adoration, praise, and thanksgiving. On the other hand,
until the consummation of God's plan, the Church never ceases to present to the
Father the offering of his own gifts and to beg him to send the Holy Spirit
upon that offering, upon herself, upon the faithful, and upon the whole world,
so that through communion in the death and resurrection of Christ the Priest,
and by the power of the Spirit, these divine blessings will bring forth the
fruits of life «to the praise of his glorious grace.» 7
II. Christ's Work in the Liturgy
Christ glorified . . .
§1084
«Seated at the right hand of the Father» and pouring out the Holy
Spirit on his Body which is the Church, Christ now acts through the sacraments
he instituted to communicate his grace. the sacraments are perceptible signs
(words and actions) accessible to our human nature. By the action of Christ and
the power of the Holy Spirit they make present efficaciously the grace that
they signify.
§1085
In the liturgy of the Church, it is principally his own Paschal mystery that
Christ signifies and makes present. During his earthly life Jesus announced his
Paschal mystery by his teaching and anticipated it by his actions. When his
Hour comes, he lives out the unique event of history which does not pass away:
Jesus dies, is buried, rises from the dead, and is seated at the right hand of
the Father «once for all.» 8 His Paschal mystery is a real
event that occurred in our history, but it is unique: all other historical
events happen once, and then they pass away, swallowed up in the past. the
Paschal mystery of Christ, by contrast, cannot remain only in the past, because
by his death he destroyed death, and all that Christ is - all that he did and
suffered for all men - participates in the divine eternity, and so transcends
all times while being made present in them all. the event of the Cross and
Resurrection abides and draws everything toward life.
. . . from the time of the Church of the Apostles . . .
§1086
«Accordingly, just as Christ was sent by the Father so also he sent the
apostles, filled with the Holy Spirit. This he did so that they might preach
the Gospel to every creature and proclaim that the Son of God by his death and
resurrection had freed us from the power of Satan and from death and brought us
into the Kingdom of his Father. But he also willed that the work of salvation
which they preached should be set in train through the sacrifice and sacraments,
around which the entire liturgical life revolves.» 9
§1087
Thus the risen Christ, by giving the Holy Spirit to the apostles, entrusted to
them his power of sanctifying:10 they became sacramental signs of Christ.
By the power of the same Holy Spirit they entrusted this power to their
successors. This
«apostolic succession» structures the whole liturgical life of the Church and is itself sacramental, handed on by the sacrament of Holy Orders.
. . . is present in the earthly liturgy . . .
§1088
«To accomplish so great a work» - the dispensation or communication
of his work of salvation - «Christ is always present in his Church,
especially in her liturgical celebrations. He is present in the Sacrifice of
the Mass not only in the person of his minister, 'the same now offering,
through the ministry of priests, who formerly offered himself on the cross,'
but especially in the Eucharistic species. By his power he is present in the
sacraments so that when anybody baptizes, it is really Christ himself who
baptizes. He is present in his word since it is he himself who speaks when the
holy Scriptures are read in the Church. Lastly, he is present when the Church
prays and sings, for he has promised 'where two or three are gathered together
in my name there am I in the midst of them."'11
§1089
«Christ, indeed, always associates the Church with himself in this great
work in which God is perfectly glorified and men are sanctified. the Church is
his beloved Bride who calls to her Lord and through him offers worship to the
eternal Father.» 12
. . . which participates in the liturgy of heaven
§1090
«In the earthly liturgy we share in a foretaste of that heavenly liturgy
which is celebrated in the Holy City of Jerusalem toward which we journey as
pilgrims, where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God, Minister of the
sanctuary and of the true tabernacle. With all the warriors of the heavenly
army we sing a hymn of glory to the Lord; venerating the memory of the saints,
we hope for some part and fellowship with them; we eagerly await the Savior,
our Lord Jesus Christ, until he, our life, shall appear and we too will appear
with him in glory.» 13
III. The Holy Spirit and the Church in the Liturgy
§1091
In the liturgy the Holy Spirit is teacher of the faith of the People of God and
artisan of «God's masterpieces,» the sacraments of the New Covenant.
the desire and work of the Spirit in the heart of the Church is that we may
live from the life of the risen Christ. When the Spirit encounters in us the
response of faith which he has aroused in us, he brings about genuine
cooperation. Through it, the liturgy becomes the common work of the Holy Spirit
and the Church.
§1092
In this sacramental dispensation of Christ's mystery the Holy Spirit acts in
the same way as at other times in the economy of salvation: he prepares the
Church to encounter her Lord; he recalls and makes Christ manifest to the faith
of the assembly. By his transforming power, he makes the mystery of Christ
present here and now. Finally the Spirit of communion unites the Church to the
life and mission of Christ.
The Holy Spirit prepares for the reception of Christ
§1093
In the sacramental economy the Holy Spirit fulfills what was prefigured in the
Old Covenant. Since Christ's Church was «prepared in marvellous fashion in
the history of the people of Israel and in the Old Covenant,» 14
The Church's liturgy has retained certain elements of the worship of the Old
Covenant as integral and irreplaceable, adopting them as her own:
-notably, reading the Old Testament;
-praying the Psalms;
-above all, recalling the saving events and significant realities which have
found their fulfillment in the mystery of Christ (promise and covenant, Exodus
and Passover, kingdom and temple, exile and return).
§1094
It is on this harmony of the two Testaments that the Paschal catechesis of the
Lord is built,15 and then, that of the Apostles and the Fathers of the
Church. This catechesis unveils what lay hidden under the letter of the Old
Testament: the mystery of Christ. It is called «typological» because
it reveals the newness of Christ on the basis of the «figures"
(types) which announce him in the deeds, words, and symbols of the first
covenant. By this re-reading in the Spirit of Truth, starting from Christ, the
figures are unveiled.16 Thus the flood and Noah's ark prefigured
salvation by Baptism,17 as did the cloud and the crossing of the Red
Sea. Water from the rock was the figure of the spiritual gifts of Christ, and
manna in the desert prefigured the Eucharist, «the true bread from heaven.» 18
§1095
For this reason the Church, especially during Advent and Lent and above all at
the Easter Vigil, re-reads and re-lives the great events of salvation history
in the «today» of her liturgy. But this also demands that catechesis
help the faithful to open themselves to this spiritual understanding of the
economy of salvation as the Church's liturgy reveals it and enables us to live
it.
§1096
Jewish
liturgy and Christian liturgy. A better knowledge of the Jewish people's faith
and religious life as professed and lived even now can help our better
understanding of certain aspects of Christian liturgy. For both Jews and
Christians Sacred Scripture is an essential part of their respective liturgies:
in the proclamation of the Word of God, the response to this word, prayer of
praise and intercession for the living and the dead, invocation of God's mercy.
In its characteristic structure the Liturgy of the Word originates in Jewish
prayer. the Liturgy of the Hours and other liturgical texts and formularies, as
well as those of our most venerable prayers, including the Lord's Prayer, have
parallels in Jewish prayer. the Eucharistic Prayers also draw their inspiration
from the Jewish tradition. the relationship between Jewish liturgy and
Christian liturgy, but also their differences in content, are particularly
evident in the great feasts of the liturgical year, such as Passover.
Christians and Jews both celebrate the Passover. For Jews, it is the Passover
of history, tending toward the future; for Christians, it is the Passover
fulfilled in the death and Resurrection of Christ, though always in expectation
of its definitive consummation.
§1097
In the liturgy of the New Covenant every liturgical action, especially the
celebration of the Eucharist and the sacraments, is an encounter between Christ
and the Church. the liturgical assembly derives its unity from the
«communion of the Holy Spirit» who gathers the children of God into
the one Body of Christ. This assembly transcends racial, cultural, social -
indeed, all human affinities.
§1098
The assembly should prepare itself to encounter its Lord and to become «a
people well disposed.» the preparation of hearts is the joint work of the
Holy Spirit and the assembly, especially of its ministers. the grace of the
Holy Spirit seeks to awaken faith, conversion of heart, and adherence to the
Father's will. These dispositions are the precondition both for the reception
of other graces conferred in the celebration itself and the fruits of new life
which the celebration is intended to produce afterward.
The Holy Spirit recalls the mystery of Christ
§1099
The Spirit and the Church cooperate to manifest Christ and his work of
salvation in the liturgy. Primarily in the Eucharist, and by analogy in the
other sacraments, the liturgy is the memorial of the mystery of salvation. the
Holy Spirit is the Church's living memory.19
Catéchisme de l'Église catholique © Libreria Editrice Vaticana 1992.
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