Catechism For Filipino Catholics

San Beda College Mendiola, Manila College of Law

Chapter 6: God, the Father Almighty

Opening: The central focus of religious faith is God. While the Christian Creed presents a Triune God: Father, Son and the Holy Spirit, it is of great importance with how we perceive and picture God. Today more than ever an accurate personal understanding of God is urgently needed. Context: With the status quo, it is very evident among Filipinos with how they relate their everyday life to God. Almost all aspects of their lives are in consideration with the will of God. However, despite these considerations, many among Filipinos do not know the real essence of observing Gods presence in their lives. There are questions like who is this God? or how we should worship him? are being asked by some of us. The creed is presumed to be the source of clarity. It clarifies who God is and how we related to him. Filipinos are usually surprised to discover so many of their cultural values within the basic Christian catechesis. For example, childrens respect and utang na loob to their parents exemplify our common human gratitude to our heavenly Father orBahala na, understood positively, relates the Filipino to Gods providential care. These values though unnoticed, usually draws the basic teachings and essence of God to our lives. Exposition: I. PRELIMINARY POINTS to lift us out of ourselves and focus our eyes to God Creed liberates us from such selfcenteredness by directing all our

attention to the ONE GOD who is Love. It teaches us to believe and trust God. proper identity of God Throughout history, men and women have related to God as they have experienced Him in the beauty and goodness of nature and in their own history. Old Testament: Moreover God has specially revealed Himself in salvation history to the Israelites as recorded in the Old Testament. He is revealed by Jesus Christ as experienced by the disciples. The word Father in the creed means and foremost Father of our Lord Jesus Christ Father of All Men. Blessed Trinity/Grace It is revealed by Jesus Christ as a central mystery of the Christian faith and of our Christian life. Together with the Father, the Risen Christ sends their Holy Spirit, a spirit of adoption through which we cry, Abba, Father! The Spirit itself gives witness with our spirit that we are children of God . . . heirs of God, joint heirs with Christ (Rom 8:15-17; cf. CCC 232-67). The Trinatarian image of God is present from the inception of our Christian life. From the moment we were baptized and every time that we remember God through prayers, his images are always with us. II. WHY GOD CONSIDERED AS OUR FATHER?

Here are the five reasons: 1. He is our Creator, the moment when God caused the existence of everything in this world including us who were created with his own image and likeness, he stood as our Father.
I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

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Catechism For Filipino Catholics

San Beda College Mendiola, Manila College of Law

2. He is our Provider, just like being a Father of a family; God provides us what we need in our daily living. 3. He is the Redeemer; This redemption is a further sign of our Fathers love. God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in him may not die, but may have eternal life 4. Gods Indwelling Spirit, God sent us the Holy Spirit. When we love each other, it only means that God dwells in us through the spirit. 5. Self- Identity/Destiny, for we are all essentially children of God, destined for life eternal with Him. To be a Christian, then, means to acknowledge that all persons are called to be adopted sons/daughters of the Father, in Christ Jesus. Thus filial love of God our Father calls for loving service of our fellowmen. Our Motherly Father Gods fullness of life embraces both the paternal and maternal dimensions of love, and infinitely more. Isaiah describes how God promises as a mother comforts her son, so will I comfort you III - GOD REVEALED AS FATHER IN SCRIPTURE A. Yahweh in the Old Testament God revealed himself in the Old Testament by establishing a relationship with the Israelites. The covenant was a call to fuller life and salvation. Through Abraham, God promised that all nations of the earth shall find blessing because they obeyed Gods command. The call of Moses gives a sharper image of God in liberating his people. God showed Himself

Father to the Israelites by choosing them to be a people peculiarly His own. This was not because they were the largest of all nations, but solely because He set His heart on them and loved them. Even we committed infidelities towards Gods commandments, He remained faithful to us. B. Jesus Abba Relationship Relationship between Jesus and God is unique. This was manifested in several proclamations of Jesus with Gods presence in him. In each critical moment, Jesus experienced a special relation to God, his Abba. He lived as Son of his Father by his filial love, obedience, and complete dedication to his Fathers will. He revolutionized the idea and image of God. For Jesus, the Father was not an authoritarian paternalistic God, but a God incredibly committed to us, His adopted children. He rains down the Just One, Immanuel, Godwith-us. We always proclaim God by addressing words like Ama or Tatay Through these words, we owe ourselves to him as his daughter or son, we realized his true identity to us, IV ALMIGHTY God is Almighty as the sole divine attribute cited in the creed. It has three specific qualities such as: 1. Universal. Gods power is universal, the Creator and ruler of all things, infinitely beyond any human father we experience on earth. We believe: He rules and compasses all things,
I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

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Catechism For Filipino Catholics

San Beda College Mendiola, Manila College of Law

for the heights of the heavens and the depths of the abysses and the limits of the world are in His Hand (St. Theophilus of Antioch). 2. Loving. God is loving as manifested through Jesus Christ. He is the clear revelation of Gods unconditional love to the world. 3. Mystery. Our Christian Faith does not give us any easy answer to a mystery. But it does offer us some basic truths to fortify us against meaningless, despairing suffering. Mystery of Gods Powerlessness. Gods power is mystery because it so often appears as powerlessness. This is most sharply manifested in the Passion and Death of Christ. Mystery of Evil. Sin is the result not of our being tao lamang only a limited human person but of our free choice of evil. Life is full of choices, and avoidance of evil is one of those. Integration God is proclaimed as the ground for all our most precious values: how we want to think and act, be and pray. 1. Moral Life. In moral life, faith can change how we look and cope with things. How to encounter and deal with people and facts of life. Our authentic lifestyle being Filipinos is somehow affected with how we live our faith, morals and customs. 2. Prayer Life. The place of God as Father Almighty is central to all Christian prayer. The Churchs prayer insures that our private

devotions are not completely taken up with constant petitions, but include the essential dimensions of adoration, thanksgiving and praise.

Chapter 7: Creator of Heaven and Earth

Opening: Why God has created everything? The question in which the answer only lies with God himself and revealed with the presence of Jesus Christ. Context: In the present context, Filipinos are knowledgeable enough of the origin of everything. From folktales and myths, it has been established that God has created everything. However, advancement in science and technology gave rise to some difficulties in understanding the inception of the earth. Such difficulties indicate the urgent need for a better understanding of what the Creed means. Exposition: Creation is the foundation of Gods saving plan and the beginning of salvation history which culminates in Christ. Thus, the creation made by God has its own purpose and meaning in which people are being guided through their acts of faith. I CREATOR This is the most fundamental image of God to us. God is considered to be as the uncreated reality, taking into account that he is the one who creates and not the one created. He is the primary cause and source of everything. The Blessed Trinity is the Creator Christian Faith teaches that all three Divine Persons act together as ONE GOD in creating, redeeming and
I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

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Catechism For Filipino Catholics

San Beda College Mendiola, Manila College of Law

sanctifying. Here we affirm God the Father creates through His Son, Jesus Christ, in the Holy Spirit. Church teaching also confirms that the one true God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is the Creator of all things II GODS CREATIVE ACTION God created everything into two accounts, first is when he created man with a six-day pattern and second when created the Garden of Eden where man and other creatures settled. Both accounts are obviously not modern scientific descriptions of how everything came to be. Rather, they present the religious faith insight into why all things exist, and what is their ultimate meaning and significance. A. Biblical and Scientific Accounts The origin of creation is being asked with how and why, however in the context of faith we focuses on the question why rather determining the means of how it was created. The Genesis accounts of creation focus on the why, the meaning and purpose of everything. The Bible does not teach how heaven was constructed but how to get there and what is its meaning and purpose. B. Church Teaching The church teaches the following: 1. That God creates out of His divine goodness, to share His goodness with others, not because of any need or imperfection. 2. He creates by a free, intentional, purposeful act, not by any sort of

natural emanation such as the pantheists propose, or by any natural evolution that would deny Gods freedom. 3. He creates out of nothing, that is, not from any matter or any gods already existing. III CREATIVE REALITY Christian faith proclaims all creation as real, intelligible and good. This Christian vision can be summarized as follows: 1. as a product of divine wisdom, creation is intelligible and meaningful; therefore 2. evil is not an essential or necessary dimension of our existence; and thus 3. creation is open to Gods saving activity, and 4. our present lives have an inner divine purpose which we can discern in faith. A. Two Consequences First, everything depends on God; there is no power in creation that can rival God. But second, neither is there in all creation anything to be worshipped. B. Man as Crown of Creation Christian faith teaches that man is the crown and key to Gods creation. According to the almost unanimous opinion of believers and unbelievers alike, all things on earth should be related to human persons as their center and crown

I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Philippians 4:13

Catechism For Filipino Catholics

San Beda College Mendiola, Manila College of Law

C. Visible and Invisible: Angels Angels had a vital role in the history of salvation. The Old Testament gives these powerful spiritual creatures different names which reveal both their function and their different degree of perfection. They were also closely associated with the earthly existence and mission of our Lord. Gods absolutely individualized and personal love for every human being is manifested also in his assigning to each of us an angel to be our guardian and mentor. C. New Creation From a Christian perspective, all creation is seen as ordered to, and perfected in, the New Creation brought about by the PassionDeath-Resurrection of Christ our Lord, the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End. If our faith is always on God, we are considered to be as his new creation.

that firm and persevering determination to commit oneself to the common good. We are called to exercise responsible STEWARDSHIP over all creation. 3. That God has promised to be with his creatures. Against all the deep-set fears and anxieties besetting us all, our loving Creator offers us: a hope of ultimate fulfillment of all our yearnings; a basic vision or pattern of the relative importance of things, so we can order our lives accordingly, and a promise of inner strength and peace of soul unifying our lives. V. DIVINE PROVIDENCE We Filipino Christians have deep trust in Gods all-knowing and loving Providence. By His providence God protects and governs all things which He has made. He reaches from end to end mightily and governs all things well Gods special Providence relative to mans social nature is especially evident today in the common thrust toward unity despite all the tragic obstacles impeding its accomplishment. We know that Gods providence does not abolish all evil and suffering from the world. But it does offer the believing Christian the spiritual strength and hope needed to face these evils and refuse to be overcome by them. Integration Moral Dimensions

IV. MEANING OF CREATION FOR HUMAN PERSONS Filipinos consider everything personally and creation becomes more meaningful to us if we look at it personally. Three personal aspects of creation are particularly helpful in leading us to a more dynamic understanding of creation. 1. That God created us and continuously creating us. He is continuously creating us in existence for us to be sustained and preserved. 2. That God created us with invested responsibility. God puts purpose into creation, and human persons constitute its organizing force. This responsibility, then, also involves our human solidarity,

I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Philippians 4:13

Catechism For Filipino Catholics

San Beda College Mendiola, Manila College of Law

We are called to imitate God our Creator both in working and also in resting, since God Himself wished to present His own creative activity under the form of work and rest. The ecology crisis today highlights further our moral obligation, flowing from our God-given stewardship over the earth, not only to use its goods responsibly, but to treat them with real respect as gifts from our Creator. Worship Dimensions. This is expressed in the liturgy where the doctrine of God, Maker of heaven and earth, is repeated constantly. The specifically Christian insight into the worship dimension of creation is expressed in the Paschal Mystery.

Despite the fact that we sinned against God, He still revealed the good news in us through his love, through his son Jesus Christ, our Redeemer. I - SCRIPTURE ON OUR HUMAN FALL A. Genesis Genesis revealed the origin of human race and as well as their fall from Gods friendship because of disobedience. B. St. Paul With the revelation of Gods love with Genesis, St. Paul insisting that Just as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will come to life again II - CHURCH ORIGINAL SIN TEACHING ON

Chapter 8: The Fall from Glory

Opening: God is infinitely good, and all His works are good. All of his creations are for our own good. However, our daily experiences in life manifest so much in us that is not good our sinfulness. This may be due to our own will or through external structures which provoke us to do evil. Context: As of today, Filipinos tend to be more cautious in committing mistakes and sometimes we even make excuses in order not feel bad for the things we have committed which we knew for the fact that it was wrong actually. That is a human nature; we make excuses in order to escape. Just like in facing problems, we tend to excuse ourselves in order to avoid taking responsibilities. Exposition

By transgressing Gods commandment, we lost the holiness conferred upon us. The original sin committed by Adam before is something in which each of us is involved it is a state of sinfulness in which all of us are born. First of all, in describing original sin today we speak of the sin of the world Second, there is the personal interior dimension of original sin, the heart of darkness within us which is in all men, proper to each Third, there is the ratification of original sin by our personal sinful thoughts, words and deeds. Descriptive Definition of Original Sin Original sin can be described as the state in which we are born as members of the human race. We are thus situated in a sinful history that affects our capacity to love God
I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

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Catechism For Filipino Catholics

San Beda College Mendiola, Manila College of Law

above all, to become our true full selves, and achieve our destiny. The consequences of the fall as a direct result of disregarding God as our creator is the experience of disharmony among ourselves and the struggle between good and evil. III - ORIGINAL SIN AND FILIPINO CATHOLIC LIFE There are two aspects in life that brought the reality of original sin, such as: 1. Infant Baptism In the sacrament of Baptism, the child is blessed in the name of the Most Holy Trinity. This binds the infant through the Risen Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit to the people of God, the Church, represented by the parents, the sponsors, the whole family and friends, and the local Christian community. 2. Devotion to Mary For if we try to imitate Marys perfect loving fidelity to God by struggling valiantly in the power of the Spirit to avoid sin and follow Christ faithfully in our daily lives, we too may one day be freed from sin and live fully in Gods love.

a more accurate understanding of original sin would help the Filipino Catholic toward a far deeper appreciation of Baptism. Baptism calls for our persevering effort to follow Christ in everything we do.

Chapter 9: God Promises a Savior

Opening. Gods promise is the key element of his love to mankind. His love encompasses all nations in spite of their sinfulness and divisions. His plan is to gather them all in one holy people. And he begins to actualize his plan with the call of Abraham and the threefold promise: 1. of land, 2. of descendants, and 3. of a mission. Context. Most of the Filipinos have natural attraction to the word of God. However, they are being disturbed with a flood of biblical texts quoted from memory, often taken out of context and interpreted according to a pre-set anti-Catholic bias. Some react by rejecting the validity of the whole Old Testament for us today. Others want to know which parts remain binding on us. For many, the Old Testament is simply obsolete since we already have the fulfillment of Gods Promise of a Redeemer in Jesus Christ. Exposition I - VALUE OF THE OLD TESTAMENT

Integration 1. Moral perspective and vision We begin to understand the depth of the power of evil ranged against our attempts to follow Christ faithfully through thought, word and deed. 2. Worship The Old Testament is the living word of God. It is necessary for us today, and throughout our lives to understand Christ our Savior more fully.

I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Philippians 4:13

Catechism For Filipino Catholics

San Beda College Mendiola, Manila College of Law

II CANON TESTAMENT

OF

THE

OLD

Old Testament is a three-part presentation of the saving acts of God: 1. Torah, the historical books revealing God in the history of His Covenant Promises to Israel. Pentateuch, constitute the core of the Torah, or Law It was formed gradually as a narrative memory of Gods covenant with His people. Signifies a moral binding that is at once a vocation, a gift and a way of life. It is an open-ended, imaginative narrative of Israels historical public experience of their Covenant God. 2. Prophets Word of the Lord promises deliverance from slavery and exile. They were men called by God to speak His word to the people, interpreting their present situation in the sight of God and telling them what He would do with them. Most of all, the prophets called the people back to the Covenant. 3. Writings of the sages, the poets and the visionaries offer inspired means for discerning Gods saving presence in daily life. The Psalms and the Wisdom literature present how the faithful can discern the presence of God in their daily lives. In the Wisdom Literature, Job responds by looking not only back to the confident experience of Gods saving presence in the past. He also looks forward to the divine

inscrutability: The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away The Psalms present another dimension of salvation. Characteristic of the Psalms is their direct personal address to God, expressing deep faith and trust in the Lord. In the Psalms all aspects of daily life are encountered: all places like houses, fields, roads, workshops and sickbeds; all occupations like eating, drinking, sleeping, getting up, working, recreating; all ages of life, from childhood to old age, with all forms of personal relations: man and woman, parents and children, brothers and friends. Integration 1. Doctrinal Dimension. The Old Testaments inspired narrative grounds most of the basic doctrines of our Catholic Faith. 2. Moral Dimension. The moral code of the Ten Words at Sinai still grounds the New Covenants moral stance, as Jesus himself presented it. 3. Worship Dimension. The Churchs liturgical worship in the Eucharist celebration draws directly on the Jewish synagogue service of Gods Word in Sacred Scripture, and especially on Israels great feast of the Passover. This practice simply builds on Christs own example at the Last Supper. Moreover, especially in Israels songs, the Psalms, the
I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

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Catechism For Filipino Catholics

San Beda College Mendiola, Manila College of Law

Catholic Church finds the inspired expression of her deepest spiritual longings.

Chapter 10: Jesus Christ: Mission and Person

Opening. Jesus Christ is the center of our Christian faith. He is the heart and center of catechesis. This chapter takes up the mission and identity of Jesus Christ. The two following chapters develop the central truths of his Paschal Mystery as proclaimed in the Eucharistic acclamation: Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again. Context. The Philippines, being the sole catholic country in the Southeast Asia should be proud of its faith to Jesus Christ. Here we wish to focus on how to come to a deeper, truer understanding of what Jesus Christ does and who he is. This tells us something of both the real Jesus Christ living today, and of our deep-felt values and needs as Filipinos, our kalooban, as redeemed disciples of Christ Three popular Filipino images of Christ are particularly expressive: 1. Santo Nio (the Holy Child) imaging the innocence, simplicity, child-like wonder of Christ. 2. Hesus Nazareno, picturing the suffering Jesus and inspiring many folk devotional panata. 3. Sacred Heart, whose meek and mild countenance invites like attitudes in his followers. Exposition I - PRESUPPOSITIONS 1. We must recognize that to really know Jesus Christ is a life-long task. This is the experience of all who

2.

3.

4.

5.

believe in him. It is life-long, too, because only in Jesus Christ do we come to know our own true selves, and the deepest meaning and destiny of our lives; Knowing Jesus is a living, changing, growing and deepening experience. Knowing Jesus means entering into a personal relationship with him; The Jesus we come to know is both the historical earthly Jesus and the Risen Christ of faith. One cannot be separated from the other; To know Jesus means being committed to following him, being his disciple; That we come to know who Jesus is from what he did, his salvific mission.

II - MINISTRY OF THE HISTORICAL JESUS Why the Historical Jesus? We proclaim in the Creed that the Son of God came down from heaven for us and our salvation. God sent His Son as an offering for our sins; He came to reveal to us Gods love, that we might have life through him; He came to be our model for sanctity; We could share in his divine sonship. In this chapter we shall sketch the ministry of the historical Jesus under two main headings: prophet and Savior. A. Jesus as Prophet As a prophet, Jesus has three important tasks such as: 1. To proclaim the word of God with authority; 2. To accompany this word with signs and wonders (deeds);
I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

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3. To suffer a martyrs fate, death. Word Christs typical method of communicating his word about the Kingdom was by telling stories, parables. In them he focused on the common life of his listeners, and drew them into recognizing Gods presence therein. Jesus Amen expressed a unique blend of certainty, authority and power. Certainty, because Jesus claimed to be expressing only what he hears from the Father; Authority, because unlike the prophets of old, Jesus spoke in his own name. Power, because Jesus claimed a unique filial relationship with God his Abba, Father. Deeds Jesus was not the typical wonderworker creating a big show to draw crowds of followers. Rather he worked a healing ministry which constantly called to personal faith and discipleship. Fate The third dimension of the prophet, to suffer a martyrs death. B. Jesus as Savior/Redeemer The very name Jesus means God is salvation. Today many Filipinos are strongly attracted to Jesus as their personal Savior who gave himself up for me What does Christ save us from?

1. Christ saves by touching the spiritual root of all these evils experienced today, namely, SIN peoples proud, self-seeking moral attitudes and acts before God and with one another; 2. The salvation which Christ has already won for all is not yet complete. It must be accepted, embraced and acted out in the free lives of believers today. As throughout salvation history, Filipinos today seek salvation: 1. From the cosmic demonic powers of evil; 2. From enslaving, oppressive forces in the 3. Economic, socio-political areas; 4. From the absurdity and meaninglessness of personal life. In each area Christ has worked his unique salvation. Saving from Cosmic Evil In his public ministry Jesus was noted for casting out evil spirits. Saving from Socio-Political Oppression But how did Jesus actually liberate? 1. First, he exposed the enslaving, corrupting power of riches. Key to economic liberation was twofold: to free human hearts from their greed and self-seeking; and to inspire them with respect for others, sensitivity and compassion for the needy, and a generous, outgoing love for those in want.

I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Philippians 4:13

Catechism For Filipino Catholics

San Beda College Mendiola, Manila College of Law

2. Second, Jesus taught that any power not rooted in mutual service was enslaving and oppressive. 3. Third, Jesus liberated his followers from the common social prejudices that bound them. 4. Finally, Jesus freed his contemporaries from mere external, lega1istic religious obedience to the Law by interiorizing and prioritizing its obligations.

and men, the man, Christ Jesus, who gave himself as ransom for all He is one Person, for this man Jesus is the Eternal Son of God made man. IV - MARY, MOTHER OF THE SON OF GOD A. Mary in Scripture - Both Matthew and Luke present Mary with many allusions to great figures in the Old Testament. o Matthew recounts Marys virginal conception of Jesus as fulfilling Isaiahs prophecy. o Luke describes Gods call to the Virgin Mary to become, through the Holy Spirit, the power of the Most High, the mother of Jesus, Son of God. B. Mary in Catholic Doctrine The Churchs teaching on Mary is presented in four sections: - the Role of the Blessed Virgin in the Plan of Salvation; - the Blessed Virgin and the Church; - Devotion to the Blessed Virgin in the Church; and - Mary, a Sign of Sure Hope and Solace for the Pilgrim People of God. Mother of God - It begins with perhaps the oldest Biblical testimony: when the designated time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a womanthat we might receive our status as adopted sons

Saving from Lifes Meaninglessness Christ saved by being the revelation of the Father. III - THE PERSON OF JESUS A. Jesus Our Brother: True Man The Scriptures and constant teaching of the Church are one in asserting that Jesus is truly a man. He experienced hunger, thirst and temptation. B. One Lord, Jesus, the Only Son of God The Christian Faith stands or falls on the confession of Jesus as the only Son of God, our Lord. Scripture grounds this confession in two ways: 1. Jesus as Gods Eternal Word coming down to take on human nature in the Incarnation; 2. Jesus as lifted up at the Resurrection. C. Jesus Is One Person The Scriptures clearly affirm there is only one mediator between God

I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

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Blessed Virgin - Marys perpetual virginity is not simply abstention from sexual intercourse, but the positive value of perfect personal integrity in her total gift of self to God. - The Virgin Birth, then, is not a privilege affecting only Jesus and Mary, but a positive sign of the Fathers gracious saving love which adopts us all in sending His Son, and the Spirits building a new People of God, the Body of Christ, the Church. The Immaculate Conception - This signifies that Mary was, from the first moment of her conception, in view of the merits of Christ Jesus the Savior of the human race, preserved immune from all stain of original sin The Assumption - With her Assumption to join her Son, the Risen Christ, in the fullness of her personality, Mary reveals the fullness of Gods redeeming work for all of us, a sign of certain hope and comfort to the pilgrim People of God - They are rather privileges of fullness and completion. Mediatrix - Authentic Catholic doctrine teaches that Marys intercession does not in any way detract from, or add to, the unique mediation of Christ. - Catholics see in Mary a special cooperation due to her God-given role within His saving work through Christ and the Spirit.

Integration 1. The doctrine of the mission and identity of Jesus Christ is the core of every Christian Creed. 2. The moral dimensions of Christs mission and identity are innumerable. Christ as Son and Savior becomes in person the fundamental moral norm for Christian action. More importantly, he inspired a unique moral vision of loving service, and offered the interior power of his Holy Spirit to pursue that vision. 3. The basic worship dimension of Christs mission and person is felt in two areas. a. Place of Christ in all Christian worship. The center of the Churchs liturgy is the Eucharistic Sacrifice of his Body and Blood, the sacramental representation and application of Christs sacrifice on the Cross b. There is the yearning prayer to Christ himself, expressed in the ancient liturgical refrain: Marana tha! O Lord come!

Chapter 11: Christ Has Died

Opening. The whole earthly life of Christ came to its climax in his Paschal Mystery, his suffering, Death and Resurrection. For even the Cross is uplifting. In a secular sense, it was the means of the most painful and degrading death. But for us Christians, the Cross of Christ is the symbol of salvation. The Cross is the symbol not only of Christs saving power, but also of our true selves. Context. Devotion to the suffering Christ is very evident in our tradition just like the unending devotion to Nazareno of Quiapo.
I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

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Catechism For Filipino Catholics

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Even during Lenten season, where the Pasyon and Panata were being religiously practiced by most of the Filipino devotees. The suffering and dead Jesus obviously strikes a very responsive chord in the heart of us Filipinos. We see in this Jesus one who can identify with us in our poverty, sufferings, and oppression; one who can reach out to us as a forgiving and healing Savior in our weaknesses and failings. Exposition I - THE CROSS: SYMBOL OF SAVING LOVE - The suffering and death of Christ help us to grasp fully, with all the holy ones, the breadth and length and height and depth of Christs love, and experience this love which surpasses all knowledge - We are saved by Jesus perfect selfgiving love for his Father and for us; a love lived out to the death. - The Cross, then, does not exalt passive suffering or weakness, as some have exploited it in order to dominate others. II - CHRISTS VIEW OF HIS SUFFERING AND DEATH - Jesus passion and death not just some incidental historical event of Jews and Romans, but the saving acts of God in Jesus free selfsacrifice. III CHARACTERISTICS OF CHRISTS SUFFERING AND DEATH A. Redemptive - That his Passion and Death are redemptive is shown by Christ most clearly in his Last Supper. John introduces his account with Jesus washing his disciples feet. Jesus

realized that the hour had come for him to pass from this world to the Father. He loved his own in this world, and would show his love for them to the end Church tradition has stressed this redemptive and sacrificial character of Christs Passion and Death.

B. From Sin - Christs coming, then, was to expiate the sins of the people - Jesus redeems sinners in two ways: 1. He removes their subjective guilt by bringing them Gods pardon and forgiveness. Thus he restores their relationship of friendship to God which sin had destroyed. 2. Jesus repairs the objective moral harm and contamination caused by sin, through his own act of reparation and expiation which makes possible the sinners own acts of expiation. C. For Us - But how can Christs Sufferings and Death affect us sinners? The key to the answer lies in the biblical notion of corporate solidarity.

IV - PROFOUND CHRISTS DEATH

EFFECTS

OF

A. Universal, Eschatological, Empowering Salvation The three fundamental qualities of Gods Love: 1. Universal. Christs Cross on Calvary stands as a symbol of his universal redeeming love. The horizontal bar stretches Christs arms
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to embrace the whole world of human suffering, while the vertical column points him toward his heavenly Father, beyond the bounds of time and space. 2. Eschatological. Jesus did not die simply to raise our standard of living, or make life easier. He died that those who follow him will receive eternal life in the age to come 3. Empowering. Moreover, third, this dimension is already present in us in grace, empowering us so that all our actions can have saving power. The essence of the New Testament theology of salvation in Christ can be sketched in four Truths: 1. Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world; there is no salvation apart from Jesus. 2. Through his sufferings and death he has won for us sinners objective redemption, that is, reconciled all with the Father. 3. He did this in loving obedience to his Fathers will and love for us. 4. He calls us to personal interior repentance for our sins and a life of loving service of others, that is, subjective redemption.

2. Others lack all self-confidence; 3. Some Filipinos find it hard to get along with others; 4. To those who seek happiness in riches, reputation and power, Christ gave the example of rejecting these temptations. V - CHRISTS DESCENT TO THE DEAD The phrase He descended to the dead. Have four implications, such as: 1. A confirmation of died and was buried. 2. Christs salvific work on behalf of the just who had died before his coming; 3. The fundamental Christian truth that all who are saved are redeemed by Christs Passion and Death, whose effects are not limited by time or space; 4. Knowing that Jesus Christ, the Son of God-made-man, is the first-born of the dead. Integration 1. The Creedal doctrine on the Sufferings and Death of Christ proclaims central truths of our Christian Faith: God as redeeming Love, and Christ our Savior, responding to our sinful human condition; 2. Christs redemptive Death is, of course, the ground for the center of Christian worship, the Eucharist; 3. The love of the crucified Christ becomes the norm, the source, the means, and the final goal of all Christian morality.
I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

B. Radical Conversion But what is the experience of this salvation that Christ calls us to? The answer lies in a radical conversion of heart. We can illustrate what this means in four common Filipino types: 1. Filipinos dont really believe that God loves them, accepts them and cares for them;

Philippians 4:13

Catechism For Filipino Catholics

San Beda College Mendiola, Manila College of Law

Chapter 12: Christ Is Risen and Will Come Again

Opening. The Resurrection of Jesus Christ is the primordial Christian proclamation. This chapter presents the Resurrection and Ascension, the climax of our Lords Paschal Mystery, together with the creedal truth of Christs Second Coming at the Parousia. Context. Most Filipinos have focus almost uniquely on the crucified Jesus. This is understandable, given our own situation of poverty and suffering. We have developed some beautiful religious celebrations at Easter. There is the Salubong, which dramatizes the meeting of the Risen Christ with the Blessed Virgin Mary, his Mother. Another aspect of our present Philippine context is the strident teaching and preaching of Various Fundamentalist groups. They seem particularly fascinated by the Second Coming of Christ, and create imaginative scenarios concocted from various biblical texts about Armageddon and the end of the world. Exposition I - IMPORTANCE AND NATURE OF THE RESURRECTION A. Salvific Importance - Christ is risen, and his resurrection has revolutionized both the very notion and image of God, and the ultimate meaning and goal of our very own lives. Importance of Christs Resurrection in five points: His Resurrection confirmed everything Christ had done and taught;

Through his Resurrection, Christ fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies promising a Savior for all the world; The Resurrection confirmed Jesus divinity; Christs death freed us from sin, and his Resurrection brought us a share in the new life of adopted sons/daughters of the Father in the Holy Spirit; The Risen Christ is the principle and source of our future resurrection. B. Nature of the Resurrection The Resurrection was basically Jesus passage from death to new, definitive glorified life. - as passage: an event in human history; - as the glorified life of the Risen Christ; and - as effected by the Blessed Trinity. II - NEW TESTAMENT WITNESS TO THE RESURRECTION The New Testament gives witness to Christs Resurrection in three basic ways: 1. Kerygma or early preaching of the Gospel, proclaimed the central importance of Christs Resurrection; 2. Jesus Presence, both in the Risen Christs appearances, and then through the teaching, moral exhortation, and worship of the Apostolic Church, witnesses to his Resurrection; 3. Resurrection is proclaimed as the Christians future.

I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Philippians 4:13

Catechism For Filipino Catholics

San Beda College Mendiola, Manila College of Law

III - CHRISTS ASCENSION An integral part of Christs Paschal Mystery is his Ascension. The predictions of both the Passion and being lifted up have two things in common. They speak of: 1. The Son of Man, 2. The divine imperative. The primary meaning of being raised or lifted up is Christs exaltation, sovereign authority and power over creation and all history.

Integration 1. The doctrine of Christs Resurrection and Second Coming constitutes a central part in our understanding who Jesus Christ IS; 2. Christian morality rests precisely on the presence of the Risen Christ among us today, through the Spirit he has sent into our hearts; 3. Christian worship depends for its validity on the Resurrection, for if Jesus be not risen, he cannot mediate for us before the Father, nor be experienced in his Sacraments.

IV - CHRIST WILL COME AGAIN In the first Eucharistic acclamation we proclaim: Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again! Parousia, meaning coming or presence, is the traditional term for Christs Second Coming as divine Judge. Basic truths of the Parousia: 1. That the Risen Christ as the Son of Man will come to judge the living and the dead; 2. Christs Second Coming will be unmistakable since it will be accompanied by unprecedented signs in the heavens and on the earth; 3. When the Parousia will take place, the Gospel is very clear. As for the exact day or hour, no one knows it, neither the angels in heaven nor the Son, but the Father only; 4. The time of salvation has already come.

I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Philippians 4:13