CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH
SECOND EDITION
Paragraphs 1401–1500
- 1401 When, in the Ordinary's judgment, a grave necessity arises, Catholic ministers may give the sacraments of Eucharist, Penance, and Anointing…
- 1402 In an ancient prayer the Church acclaims the mystery of the Eucharist: "O sacred banquet in which Christ is received as food, the memory of…
- 1403 At the Last Supper the Lord himself directed his disciples' attention toward the fulfillment of the Passover in the kingdom of God: "I tell…
- 1404 The Church knows that the Lord comes even now in his Eucharist and that he is there in our midst. However, his presence is veiled.…
- 1405 There is no surer pledge or dearer sign of this great hope in the new heavens and new earth "in which righteousness dwells," than the…
- 1406 Jesus said: "I am the living bread that came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever; . . . he who eats my…
- 1407 The Eucharist is the heart and the summit of the Church's life, for in it Christ associates his Church and all her members with his…
- 1408 The Eucharistic celebration always includes: the proclamation of the Word of God; thanksgiving to God the Father for all his benefits,…
- 1409 The Eucharist is the memorial of Christ's Passover, that is, of the work of salvation accomplished by the life, death, and resurrection of…
- 1410 It is Christ himself, the eternal high priest of the New Covenant who, acting through the ministry of the priests, offers the Eucharistic…
- 1411 Only validly ordained priests can preside at the Eucharist and consecrate the bread and the wine so that they become the Body and Blood of…
- 1412 The essential signs of the Eucharistic sacrament are wheat bread and grape wine, on which the blessing of the Holy Spirit is invoked and…
- 1413 By the consecration the transubstantiation of the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ is brought about. Under the consecrated…
- 1414 As sacrifice, the Eucharist is also offered in reparation for the sins of the living and the dead and to obtain spiritual or temporal…
- 1415 Anyone who desires to receive Christ in Eucharistic communion must be in the state of grace. Anyone aware of having sinned mortally must…
- 1416 Communion with the Body and Blood of Christ increases the communicant's union with the Lord, forgives his venial sins, and preserves him…
- 1417 The Church warmly recommends that the faithful receive Holy Communion when they participate in the celebration of the Eucharist; she…
- 1418 Because Christ himself is present in the sacrament of the altar, he is to be honored with the worship of adoration. "To visit the Blessed…
- 1419 Having passed from this world to the Father, Christ gives us in the Eucharist the pledge of glory with him. Participation in the Holy…
- 1420 Through the sacraments of Christian initiation, man receives the new life of Christ. Now we carry this life "in earthen vessels," and it…
- 1421 The Lord Jesus Christ, physician of our souls and bodies, who forgave the sins of the paralytic and restored him to bodily health, has…
- 1422 "Those who approach the sacrament of Penance obtain pardon from God's mercy for the offense committed against him, and are, at the same…
- 1423 It is called the sacrament of conversion because it makes sacramentally present Jesus' call to conversion, the first step in returning to…
- 1424 It is called the sacrament of confession , since the disclosure or confession of sins to a priest is an essential element of this…
- 1425 "You were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God." One must…
- 1426 Conversion to Christ, the new birth of Baptism, the gift of the Holy Spirit and the Body and Blood of Christ received as food have made us…
- 1427 Jesus calls to conversion. This call is an essential part of the proclamation of the kingdom: "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of…
- 1428 Christ's call to conversion continues to resound in the lives of Christians. This second conversion is an uninterrupted task for the whole…
- 1429 St. Peter's conversion after he had denied his master three times bears witness to this. Jesus' look of infinite mercy drew tears of…
- 1430 Jesus' call to conversion and penance, like that of the prophets before him, does not aim first at outward works, "sackcloth and ashes,"…
- 1431 Interior repentance is a radical reorientation of our whole life, a return, a conversion to God with all our heart, an end of sin, a…
- 1432 The human heart is heavy and hardened. God must give man a new heart. Conversion is first of all a work of the grace of God who makes our…
- 1433 Since Easter, the Holy Spirit has proved "the world wrong about sin," i.e., proved that the world has not believed in him whom the Father…
- 1434 The interior penance of the Christian can be expressed in many and various ways. Scripture and the Fathers insist above all on three forms,…
- 1435 Conversion is accomplished in daily life by gestures of reconciliation, concern for the poor, the exercise and defense of justice and…
- 1436 Eucharist and Penance . Daily conversion and penance find their source and nourishment in the Eucharist, for in it is made present the…
- 1437 Reading Sacred Scripture, praying the Liturgy of the Hours and the Our Father - every sincere act of worship or devotion revives the spirit…
- 1438 The seasons and days of penance in the course of the liturgical year (Lent, and each Friday in memory of the death of the Lord) are intense…
- 1439 The process of conversion and repentance was described by Jesus in the parable of the prodigal son, the center of which is the merciful…
- 1440 Sin is before all else an offense against God, a rupture of communion with him. At the same time it damages communion with the Church. For…
- 1441 Only God forgives sins. Since he is the Son of God, Jesus says of himself, "The Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins" and…
- 1442 Christ has willed that in her prayer and life and action his whole Church should be the sign and instrument of the forgiveness and…
- 1443 During his public life Jesus not only forgave sins, but also made plain the effect of this forgiveness: he reintegrated forgiven sinners…
- 1444 In imparting to his apostles his own power to forgive sins the Lord also gives them the authority to reconcile sinners with the Church.…
- 1445 The words bind and loose mean: whomever you exclude from your communion, will be excluded from communion with God; whomever you receive…
- 1446 Christ instituted the sacrament of Penance for all sinful members of his Church: above all for those who, since Baptism, have fallen into…
- 1447 Over the centuries the concrete form in which the Church has exercised this power received from the Lord has varied considerably. During…
- 1448 Beneath the changes in discipline and celebration that this sacrament has undergone over the centuries, the same fundamental structure is…
- 1449 The formula of absolution used in the Latin Church expresses the essential elements of this sacrament: the Father of mercies is the source…
- 1450 "Penance requires . . . the sinner to endure all things willingly, be contrite of heart, confess with the lips, and practice complete…
- 1451 Among the penitent's acts contrition occupies first place. Contrition is "sorrow of the soul and detestation for the sin committed,…
- 1452 When it arises from a love by which God is loved above all else, contrition is called "perfect" (contrition of charity). Such contrition…
- 1453 The contrition called "imperfect" (or "attrition") is also a gift of God, a prompting of the Holy Spirit. It is born of the consideration…
- 1454 The reception of this sacrament ought to be prepared for by an examination of conscience made in the light of the Word of God. The passages…
- 1455 The confession (or disclosure) of sins, even from a simply human point of view, frees us and facilitates our reconciliation with others.…
- 1456 Confession to a priest is an essential part of the sacrament of Penance: "All mortal sins of which penitents after a diligent…
- 1457 According to the Church's command, "after having attained the age of discretion, each of the faithful is bound by an obligation faithfully…
- 1458 Without being strictly necessary, confession of everyday faults (venial sins) is nevertheless strongly recommended by the Church. Indeed…
- 1459 Many sins wrong our neighbor. One must do what is possible in order to repair the harm (e.g., return stolen goods, restore the reputation…
- 1460 The penance the confessor imposes must take into account the penitent's personal situation and must seek his spiritual good. It must…
- 1461 Since Christ entrusted to his apostles the ministry of reconciliation, bishops who are their successors, and priests, the bishops'…
- 1462 Forgiveness of sins brings reconciliation with God, but also with the Church. Since ancient times the bishop, visible head of a particular…
- 1463 Certain particularly grave sins incur excommunication, the most severe ecclesiastical penalty, which impedes the reception of the…
- 1464 Priests must encourage the faithful to come to the sacrament of Penance and must make themselves available to celebrate this sacrament each…
- 1465 When he celebrates the sacrament of Penance, the priest is fulfilling the ministry of the Good Shepherd who seeks the lost sheep, of the…
- 1466 The confessor is not the master of God's forgiveness, but its servant. The minister of this sacrament should unite himself to the intention…
- 1467 Given the delicacy and greatness of this ministry and the respect due to persons, the Church declares that every priest who hears…
- 1468 "The whole power of the sacrament of Penance consists in restoring us to God's grace and joining us with him in an intimate friendship."…
- 1469 This sacrament reconciles us with the Church . Sin damages or even breaks fraternal communion. The sacrament of Penance repairs or restores…
- 1470 In this sacrament, the sinner, placing himself before the merciful judgment of God, anticipates in a certain way the judgment to which he…
- 1471 The doctrine and practice of indulgences in the Church are closely linked to the effects of the sacrament of Penance. What is an…
- 1472 To understand this doctrine and practice of the Church, it is necessary to understand that sin has a double consequence . Grave sin…
- 1473 The forgiveness of sin and restoration of communion with God entail the remission of the eternal punishment of sin, but temporal punishment…
- 1474 The Christian who seeks to purify himself of his sin and to become holy with the help of God's grace is not alone. "The life of each of…
- 1475 In the communion of saints, "a perennial link of charity exists between the faithful who have already reached their heavenly home, those…
- 1476 We also call these spiritual goods of the communion of saints the Church's treasury , which is "not the sum total of the material goods…
- 1477 "This treasury includes as well the prayers and good works of the Blessed Virgin Mary. They are truly immense, unfathomable, and even…
- 1478 An indulgence is obtained through the Church who, by virtue of the power of binding and loosing granted her by Christ Jesus, intervenes in…
- 1479 Since the faithful departed now being purified are also members of the same communion of saints, one way we can help them is to obtain…
- 1480 Like all the sacraments, Penance is a liturgical action. The elements of the celebration are ordinarily these: a greeting and blessing from…
- 1481 The Byzantine Liturgy recognizes several formulas of absolution, in the form of invocation, which admirably express the mystery of…
- 1482 The sacrament of Penance can also take place in the framework of a communal celebration in which we prepare ourselves together for…
- 1483 In case of grave necessity recourse may be had to a communal celebration of reconciliation with general confession and general absolution .…
- 1484 "Individual, integral confession and absolution remain the only ordinary way for the faithful to reconcile themselves with God and the…
- 1485 "On the evening of that day, the first day of the week," Jesus showed himself to his apostles. "He breathed on them, and said to them:…
- 1486 The forgiveness of sins committed after Baptism is conferred by a particular sacrament called the sacrament of conversion, confession,…
- 1487 The sinner wounds God's honor and love, his own human dignity as a man called to be a son of God, and the spiritual well-being of the…
- 1488 To the eyes of faith no evil is graver than sin and nothing has worse consequences for sinners themselves, for the Church, and for the…
- 1489 To return to communion with God after having lost it through sin is a process born of the grace of God who is rich in mercy and solicitous…
- 1490 The movement of return to God, called conversion and repentance, entails sorrow for and abhorrence of sins committed, and the firm purpose…
- 1491 The sacrament of Penance is a whole consisting in three actions of the penitent and the priest's absolution. The penitent's acts are…
- 1492 Repentance (also called contrition) must be inspired by motives that arise from faith. If repentance arises from love of charity for God,…
- 1493 One who desires to obtain reconciliation with God and with the Church, must confess to a priest all the unconfessed grave sins he remembers…
- 1494 The confessor proposes the performance of certain acts of "satisfaction" or "penance" to be performed by the penitent in order to repair…
- 1495 Only priests who have received the faculty of absolving from the authority of the Church can forgive sins in the name of Christ.
- 1496 The spiritual effects of the sacrament of Penance are: - reconciliation with God by which the penitent recovers grace; - reconciliation…
- 1497 Individual and integral confession of grave sins followed by absolution remains the only ordinary means of reconciliation with God and with…
- 1498 Through indulgences the faithful can obtain the remission of temporal punishment resulting from sin for themselves and also for the souls…
- 1499 "By the sacred anointing of the sick and the prayer of the priests the whole Church commends those who are ill to the suffering and…
- 1500 Illness and suffering have always been among the gravest problems confronted in human life. In illness, man experiences his powerlessness,…