Catholic theology

[14] The church teaches God revealed himself gradually, beginning in the Old Testament, and completing this revelation by sending his son, Jesus Christ, to Earth as a man.

[9][44] In order to obtain the proper disposition, people are encouraged, and in some cases required, to undergo sufficient preparation before being permitted to receive certain sacraments.

[46] Participation in the sacraments, offered to them through the church, is a way Catholics obtain grace, forgiveness of sins and formally ask for the Holy Spirit.

[52] Catholics regard the Eucharist as the source and summit of the Christian life,[43] and believe that the bread and wine brought to the altar are changed, or transubstantiated, through the power of the Holy Spirit into the true body, blood, soul and divinity of Christ.

The season of Eastertide follows the Triduum and climaxes on Pentecost, recalling the descent of the Holy Spirit upon Jesus' disciples in the upper room.

[66] The central statement of Catholic faith, the Nicene Creed, begins, I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible.

called the sacrament of "Christian maturity", confirmation is believed to bring an increase and deepening of the grace received at baptism,[75] to which it was cojoined in the early Church.

The Catechism states: The account of the fall in Genesis 3 uses figurative language, but affirms a primeval event at the beginning of the history of man.Original sin does not have the character of a personal fault in any of Adam's descendants.

In a supernatural event called the Incarnation, Catholics believe God came down from heaven for our salvation, became man through the power of the Holy Spirit and was born of a virgin Jewish girl named Mary.

The core Christian belief is that, through the death and resurrection of Jesus, sinful humans can be reconciled to God and thereby are offered salvation and the promise of eternal life in heaven.

[103] Some liberal Christians do not accept a literal bodily resurrection,[104][105] but hold to a convincing interior experience of Jesus' Spirit in members of the early church.

[89][106] Sinning according to the Greek word in scripture, amartia, falling short of the mark, succumbing to our imperfection: we always remain on the road to perfection in this life.

[109] This does not mean we can come to God on our own and then cooperate with grace, as Semipelagianism, considered by the Catholic Church as an early Christian heresy, postulates.

Reformed theology, by contrast, teaches that people are completely incapable of self-redemption to the point human nature itself is evil, but the grace of God overcomes even the unwilling heart.

[128] Catholicism teaches that God's mercy is such that a person can repent even at the point of death and be saved, like the good thief who was crucified next to Jesus.

Traditionally, most indulgences were measured in term of days, "quarantines" (i.e. 40-day periods as for Lent), or years, meaning that they were equivalent to that length of canonical penance on the part of a living Christian.

[139] When the imposition of such canonical penances of a determinate duration fell into desuetude these expressions were sometimes popularly misinterpreted as reduction of that much time of a person's stay in purgatory.

Although in ways known to himself God can lead those who, through no fault of their own, are ignorant of the Gospel, to that faith without which it is impossible to please him, the Church still has the obligation and also the sacred right to evangelize all men.

[145] Thus, for Catholics, the term "Church" refers not merely to a building or exclusively to the ecclesiastical hierarchy, but first and foremost to the people of God who abide in Jesus and form the different parts of his spiritual body,[146][147] which together composes the worldwide Christian community.

Other titles or functions held by priests include those of Archimandrite, Canon Secular or Regular, Chancellor, Chorbishop, Confessor, Dean of a Cathedral Chapter, Hieromonk, Prebendary, Precentor, etc.

[164] Apostolic succession is the belief that the pope and Catholic bishops are the spiritual successors of the original twelve apostles, through the historically unbroken chain of consecration (see: Holy orders).

[165] The New Testament contains warnings against teachings considered to be only masquerading as Christianity,[166] and shows how reference was made to the leaders of the Church to decide what was true doctrine.

[173] Conversely, some young men in the United States are increasingly entering formation for the priesthood because of the long-held, traditional teaching on priestly celibacy.

Roman Catholic theologians contribute to the daily life of the Church, interpret and help believers on understanding the truth that God reveals directly to His people (the so-called sensus fidelium), paying attention to their necessities and comments.

Corporal works of mercy include feeding the hungry, welcoming strangers, immigrants or refugees, clothing the naked, taking care of the sick and visiting those in prison.

Spiritual works require Catholics to share their knowledge with others, comfort those who suffer, have patience, forgive those who hurt them, give advice and correction to those who need it, and pray for the living and the dead.

[177] This view falls into the spectrum of viewpoints that are grouped under the concept of theistic evolution (which is itself opposed by several other significant points-of-view; see Creation–evolution controversy for further discussion).

The traditional Eastern expression of the doctrine of the Assumption of Mary, for instance, is the Dormition of the Theotokos, which emphasizes her falling asleep to be later assumed into heaven.

[179] Eastern Catholics, though they do not observe the Western Feast of the Immaculate Conception, have no difficulty affirming it or even dedicating their churches to the Virgin Mary under this title.

Eastern Orthodox belief differs mainly with regard to papal infallibility, the filioque clause, and the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception, but is otherwise quite similar.