Terms and Definitions

Introductory Unit

Heart – The center (locus) or the human person

X and Arrows – diagram describing how Christianity is the only religion in human history that claims that the divine comes down to reality to save man (as opposed to man attempting to ascend to the divine)

Desire – an external want or longing that a person has that originates from an uncontrollable cause

Reality – the state of the world as it really is rather than as you might want it to be; the quality possessed by something that is real

Ontology – the metaphysical study of the nature of being and existence

Being – the state or fact of existing

4 truths – I did not create myself; I have impossible desires; I have limited powers; I expect to be happy.

Anointing of the Sick

Original sin – sin inherited by all descendants of Adam

Viaticum – the Eucharist as given to a person near or in danger of death

Presbyters - An elder or minister of the Christian Church

Extreme unction - A former name for the sacrament of anointing of the sick, esp. when administered to the dying

Stations of the cross - a devotion consisting of fourteen prayers said before a series of fourteen pictures or carvings of Jesus’s passion

Who may administer? - Every priest, and only a priest, validly administers the anointing of the sick.

Who may receive? - The anointing of the sick can be administered to a member of the faithful who, after having reached the use of reason, begins to be in danger due to sickness or old age.

Reconciliation

Penance – The punishment undertaken in token of penitence for sin

Confession- A penitent privately admitting his or her sins to a priest

Forgiveness – the pardoning of one’s sins and starting anew in Christ

Conversion – 1. The act or an instance of converting or the process of being converted. 2. The fact of changing one's religion or beliefs or the action of persuading someone else to change theirs.

Ten Commandments –

1.Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

2.Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

3.Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

4.Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.

5.Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.

6.Thou shalt not kill.

7.Thou shalt not commit adultery.

8.Thou shalt not steal.

9.Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.

10. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's.

Empathy - The ability to understand and share the feelings of another

Venial Sin - A relatively slight sin that does not entail damnation of the soul

Matrimony

Declaration of nullity - In the Roman Catholic Church, annulment is a canonical procedure according to the Church's Canon Law whereby an ecclesial tribunal judges whether the bond of matrimony in a particular case was entered into validly.

Polygamy - The practice or custom of having more than one wife or husband at the same time.

Divorce - The legal dissolution of a marriage by a court or other competent body

Fidelity - Faithfulness to a person, cause, or belief, demonstrated by continuing loyalty and support.

Nuptial blessing - Prayers for the blessing of a couple being married, especially of the bride

Natural family planning - any of several methods of family planning that do not involve sterilization or contraceptive devices or drugs

Abortion - The deliberate termination of a human pregnancy

Holy Orders

Diocese - A district under the pastoral care of a Christian bishop.

Vicar - A representative or deputy of a bishop

Synod of Bishops - A synod (also known as a council) is a council of a church, usually a Christian church, convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application.

Ecumenical council - a synod of the whole church.

Infallibility - The doctrine that the pope is incapable of error in pronouncing dogma.

Imprimatur - An official license by the Roman Catholic Church to print an ecclesiastical or religious book.

Dalmatic - The dalmatic is a long wide-sleeved tunic, which serves as a liturgical vestment

Stole - A strip of fabric used as an ecclesiastical vestment, worn over the shoulders and hanging down to the knee or below.

Baptism

Defn – Initiation into the church and birth into a life with Christ

Matter – Water

Form - I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Catechumen - A Christian convert under instruction before baptism

Concupiscence - Strong sexual desire; lust.

Conditional baptism – a baptism in which the validity of the original baptism is in doubt

RCIA process- avenue to converting to Catholicism, culminating in the baptism\

Confirmation

Defn - The rite at which a baptized person affirms Christian belief and is admitted as a full member of the church.

Matter - Hand on the person and anointing him with chrism (blessed oil)

Form - Be sealed with the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Minister – Bishop

Fruits of the Spirit – Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.

Gifts of the spirit – understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, fear of the lord, wisdom

Pentecost - The Christian festival celebrating the descent of the Holy Spirit on the disciples of Jesus after his Ascension, held on the seventh Sunday after Easter

Chrismation - A rite in the Orthodox and Eastern Catholic churches that is comparable and similar to confirmation in the Roman Catholic Church

Eucharist

Defn - The Christian ceremony commemorating the Last Supper, in which bread and wine (Jesus) are consecrated and consumed

Transcendence - Existence or experience beyond the normal or physical level

Transubstantiation - The conversion of the substance of the Eucharistic elements into the body and blood of Christ at consecration, only the appearances of bread and wine still remaining

Tabernacle - An ornamented receptacle or cabinet in which a pyx or ciborium containing the reserved sacrament may be placed in Catholic churches, usually on or above an altar

Consecrate - At the Mass, the act of transforming bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ. 

Matter – wheaten bread and wine

Form - This is my body; for it is written: Whilst they were at supper, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and broke, and gave to his disciples, and said: Take and eat, This is My Body

Designated minister - priest

Call to Holiness

What does it mean to say, "if I need something, I chase after it if it goes away"?  How does this relate to the "Universal Call to Holiness"?  What do you think this quote implies for the everyday Catholic?  What do you think it means to "say who Christ is" without shame?

To say this is to profess a commitment to fulfilling the need for this "something". This "something" is, in this case, holiness. The human race has a need for holiness because Jesus tells us that holiness is the avenue to an everlasting relationship with God in heaven. Of course, we have a need for this everlasting relationship because it is the only thing that can fulfill our infinite desire. Humanity was separated from holiness, or holiness "went away", when Eve gave in to Satan in the garden of Eden. Original sin bifurcated man from his creator. Because we are separated from Him yet we have an infinite need for him, if we are seriously committed to fulfilling this need, we must answer our call to holiness. We must "chase after" God, aided by the undeserved gift of his grace and mercy. 

For the everyday Catholic, this quote has should embody the larger picture of his or her life. This quote should remind us that we are called to be holy, not just when it suits our worldly desires, but all the time, because we are separated from God all the time. This constant attempt at holiness should manifest itself not only through the act of saying "yes" to God and professing faith, but also through the actions of the believer. The call to holiness must be carried out into the world, effectively making Jesus present on this Earth. 

To say who Christ can refer to a verbal description of him and his life, but I think, in this context, it refers to a life lived in Christ. As Christians, we are called to say who he is through our actions every day ranging from small, lonely, ineffectual actions all the way to important, life-altering decisions. This emulation of Christ is associated with shame because Christ is radically opposed to the nature of society and the systems of power created by humanity. The man who lives in Him will likely be ridiculed or rejected by the world. This is only natural, for the the man in Christ will not be of this world; he will be of Christ. To shamelessly say who Christ is means living in Him, against the world, with pride and zeal. 

She Went By Gently

1. God's infinite mercy and forgiveness are shown in the woman's love for the girl. If we sin and repent to God, he will always grant us forgiveness and we will start anew. This correlates to the woman's interaction with the girl. The girl has sinned in the eyes of society (and God) but she is repentant to the woman. She genuinely feels remorse for her actions and promises to be a good girl. The woman unquestioningly acknowledges this and trusts that the girl will learn with time.

2. The woman means that she saved him from sin and Satan. She did this through baptism. By baptizing him in his very few seconds of life, she gave him new life in God. The child received the holy spirit because of her. This action saved him from our world and the original sin associated with being born into it. If he had not been baptized, he would not have had the time or ability to commit any sins, true, but he would be tainted with original sin as all humans are. He would not have been truly one of the Lord's.

3. The purpose of the description is to show the woman's grace. The author has her praying the rosary, referring to the sun as holy fire, thinking of her family before herself, and modestly deflecting a "thank you" for her child saving abilities. She is proved a devout, god-fearing, unselfish, and graceful woman by this description. The purpose of this section is to develop her character and provide an example of a true Christian to the reader: a dutiful, intelligent woman that supports her beliefs by her actions, both small and large.

P.S. - I think this story also says something about marriage - she clearly feels little to no love for her husband, only referring to the man as "himself", but yet she is still married to him, likely because she respects the sacrament andS institution of marriage.

Gifts of the Holy Spirit

1

I see the gifts of the Holy Spirit acting in my life as I gradually develop faithful habits and shed the routine of the secular world. I am beginning to recognize the presence of God through these habits. For example, I have begun trying to see Him in the people I don't like. A few years ago, I couldn't have imagined thinking this way. I would only focus on the bad qualities I saw in that person, and I wouldn't even stop to think that I was insulting God by doing so. While I do not always think to do this, when I do, it is evidence of the gifts of piety and understanding acting in my life. 

I also notice Fear of God in my life now as I never did before. I feel genuine remorse when I recognize that I have sinned because I now understand the implications of such a thing. The remorse is greatest when I only recognize a sin once it is brought to my attention by somebody else, and I would never have noticed it on my own. Because of this new fear of sin, I am more aware of my habitual sins, like telling small, insignificant lies or flaunting my mom. I think this is the work of the Holy Spirit, slowly bringing my closer to God by making me aware of my sins and helping me to stop committing them. 

2

I need wisdom the most. In my young age, I often make rash decisions for a number of reasons. Some include hormones, peer pressure, simple secular desires, stress, the list goes on. I need to learn to take a second, often. I need to take this second and think about the moral and spiritual implications of the impending action, and whether they are in line with my beliefs. I also need help looking deeper into my long term actions. I have no idea whether this thing I feel for that girl is a healthy love or mere affection or even sinful desire. 

Speaking of sinful desire, wisdom would help me repress the desires of the flesh that are so hard to resist at the hormonal age. Wisdom would let me separate what vices are truly sinful and what vices are just frowned upon by this world's society. Not that any vices are good, really... but, moving on. Essentially, wisdom would give me the ability to shape my life in the right direction. The key there is "in the right direction". There are other gifts that give the ability to shape one's life (counsel), but wisdom confers instead the sureness of the right direction. I need that. 

Chuck Norstadt became more certain of Mr. McCloud's identity by spending time with the man and sharing experiences with him. Two scenes in particular prove this point. The first one is the scene in which Chuck and McCloud are acting out the play and, upon being told to go home, Chuck says he wants to stay and finish the play. The second one is the scene in which Chuck finds out the truth about his father and runs to McCloud's house to cry in his arms. 

The first scene, mentioned above, shows how shared experiences strengthen Chuck's sureness of McCloud's identity because it is the first time that Chuck not only shows a fondness for learning, but also a fondness of McCloud. Prior to that moment, Chuck had only really been coming to see McCloud so that he could learn enough to pass the entrance exam, it seemed. Also, most of their interaction had been in the form of teacher-to-pupil discourse. The first time that barrier falls and they share an experience in which they are nearer to equals, Chuck begins to seem more comfortable with his teacher, and wants to return from that point on. I do not mean to suggest that this one moment was the only factor that caused Chuck to start liking Mr. McCloud, but rather that it was experiences like these that did so.

Another such moment was the second scene mentioned; this one is an experience of greater magnitude and importance than the acting of the play because it is a personal and life-changing discovery for Chuck. First, Chuck's decision to turn to McCloud in this time of need speaks to how much Chuck had already overcome his fears and doubts and preconceived notions about his tutor. The aftermath of this experience is more important, however. The next morning, Chuck attempts to resist the orders of the police officer that wants to take the boy home. Later that day, Chuck tells his mother that McCloud is his best friend. Clearly, that night has caused Chuck to grow closer and more sure of McCloud's identity.

However, the end of the movie throws a cog in the gears. Chuck learns from his mother that McCloud is supposed to have molested the boy that was killed in the car accident. This questions all of the things Chuck thought he learned about McCloud. Chuck is so disturbed that he steals the family car and drives to McCloud's house to ask him if he molested the boy. But, McCloud does not give Chuck the answer outright. He asks Chuck to think and to call upon all that Chack had learned about McCloud through their shared experiences, and to draw his own conclusion. Because of the plethora of those experiences they went through together, Chuck is sure that McCloud did not molest the boy. This is the ultimate evidence of the effect that their time together had on Chuck's confidence in McCloud's character, and one of the major themes of the movie.

The Bible is a Sacramental

The Bible is sacramental: it represents the truths of God (symbolizes them). For example, the brazen serpent is a symbol of Jesus. If you look at the poisonless serpent, you are cured of the venom. If you look at the sinless man, you are cured of sin. This comes to us as a great mystery: we cannot understand how God was contained in a man. Like Christ, the sacraments are signs of God and our salvation. They work for us because as men, we need material signs of Him.

A Divine Sense of Humor

A sense of humor means one can see through things. Since sacraments are symbols, one must be able to see through them in order to grasp their divine meaning. Our age has lost this sense of humor. We no longer see reality as a sacrament of Him. We must always realize that we are seeing the Divine Image in one another. We must be careful not to go too far with this however. God and his creations must be kept separate. At the same time, we cannot separate ourselves from Him. We must realize that the universe is a sign or indication of God. 

Seven Conditions of Life

Regular Life/Divine Life

-One must be born/Baptism

-He must nourish himself/Eucharist

-He must mature/Confirmation

-He must have his wounds healed/Penance

-He must have his diseases cured/Anointing of the Sick

-He must live under government and justice/Holy Orders

-He is called to propagate the human species/Matrimony

The Power and Efficacy of the Sacraments

The sacraments get their power and efficacy from the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of our Lord. These three things all center around his blood being shed. The sacraments get their power from this bloodshed because blood symbolizes the purification of sin, the sacrifice Christ performed for us, and infinite value of his sinless life. We will be saved by the Blood of Christ. 

The Application of the Sacraments

The sacraments are the pipelines that connect us to the reservoir of grace that is Christ. The application of this grace can have all kinds of different results depending on when it acts on one's life. The effect of the grace will also vary based on the spiritual state and maturity of the one receiving it. 

What the Sacraments Bring to Man

The Sacraments make a higher life, or grace, accessible to man. This higher life is a free gift of God, and grants an inner peace and provides infinite love that cannot be found in the pleasures of the flesh or intellectually. We must open ourselves to God in order to receive this gift. Also, the Sacraments help us to do this by making Jesus present for us. Interacting with the sacraments is the same as interacting with Jesus as if he were alive. 

1987 - "lay it in that River of Pain, and watch it move away toward the kingdom of Christ."
1988 - "'If I Baptize you,' the preacher said, 'you'll be able to go to the Kingdom of Christ. You'll be washed in the river of suffering, son, and you'll go by the deep river of life.'"
1989 - When the preacher tells Harry that he won't be the same, that he'll count, he's referring to this concept of dual santification and renewal.
1990 - "you can lay your pain in that river and get rid of it because that's the river that was made to carry Sin."
1991 -  When the preacher speaks of the River of Fath, Life, and Love, the rich red river of Jesus' Blood, he is encouraging us to dive in to this river, or accept God's righteousness. Through this, we will inherit the river's qulaities. The catechism names them as faith, hope, and charity. The preacher says faith, life, and love. Same concept.
1992 - "The same blood that makes this River red" mirrors the "blood [that] has become the instrument of atonement for the sins of all men."
1993 - The preacher asks the crowd to testify to either God or the devil, one or the other. This shows how man has freedom to reject God's grace. Harry's parents exemplify this choice.
1994 - The preacher calls the crowd to participate in this "most excellent work of God's love" when he says "you people with trouble, lay in that river of blood."
1995 - "I know frm it that this preacher can heal. My eyes have been opened! I testify to Jesus!" By opening her inner person to God and accepting him, this woman has started on the path to full justification and eventual sanctification.
1996 - The river itself is God's grace. It's the opportunity that he offers us so that we may obtain justification.
1997 - "This old red suffering stream goes on, you people, slow to the Kingdom of Christ." If we participate in God, or follow the river, we will be led to a closeness with him or an intimacy of Trinitarian life.
1998 - When Bevel preaches that loving Jesus an testifying to him is the only way to be healed, he is implying that it is only God that can reveal and give himself.
1999 - When Bevel says, "You'll count now," he's talking about this deifying grace received in Baptism.
2000 - Bevel implies the habituality of this grace when he says the river does not end here, but goes on to the Kingdom of God slowly. He means that we must habitually stay true to His will.
2001 - When the woman talks about how she knows this man can heal through her own self experience, she is exemplifying this work of grace that arouses and sustains our collaboration in justification through faith.
2002 - The man sitting on his car with the cancer above his ear displays the ability to dissent with the preacher, or not choose God. It is not coincedence, then, that he has not been healed: he has not offered God his free response.
2003 - The preacher possesses the charism of knowledge of Christ and his goodness at such a young age, coupled with the eloquence and enthusiasm needed to convince others of His truth.
2004 - Bevel is clearly embracing his grace of state by enthusiastically preaching the mercy of God.
2005 - When Harry went swimming in the river to seek admission into the Kingdom of Christ, he didn't receive any sign or make any noticeable progress. Instead, the river pushed back at him. This represents our struggle with faith and God. We cannot know and we will receive no sign that we are on the right track. Instead, the world will resist us. But, we musn't grow cynical and give up like Harry did. He died.