1986,
August
27
Sin Involves the Deep Deformation of Creation
Inc.:
After the catecheses on God as One and Three, the provident Creator, Father and Lord of the universe, …
1986,
September
3
Sin Involves the Misuse of God's Gifts
Inc.:
Although the formulas of faith use few words when speaking of sin, the term and the concept of "sin" …
1986,
September
10
Original Sin Causes a Fundamental Change in Mankind
Inc.:
The description of the first sin, which we find in the third chapter of Genesis, acquires a greater …
1986,
September
17
The Universality of Sin in Human History
Inc.:
We can summarize the content of the previous catechesis in the words of the Second Vatican Council: …
1986,
September
24
The Church's Teaching on Original Sin
Inc.:
Thanks to the previous catechesis of the present series, we have before our eyes, on the one hand, the …
1986,
October
1
Consequences of Original Sin for All Humanity
Inc.:
The Council of Trent solemnly expressed the Church's faith concerning original sin. In the previous …
1986,
October
8
The State of Man in Fallen Nature
Inc.:
The profession of faith proclaimed by Paul VI in 1968 at the conclusion of the "Year of Faith," reproposes …
1986,
October
29
Sin Breaks Man's Covenant with God
Inc.:
In the catecheses of the present series we have the truth about original sin continually before our …
1986,
November
5
The Sin of Man and the "Sin of the World"
Inc.:
In this series of catecheses on sin, considered in the light of faith, the direct object of examination …
1986,
November
12
Sin Alienates the Human Person
Inc.:
Our considerations regarding sin during this cycle of our catecheses keep leading us back to that first …
1986,
December
10
The Entire Human Race Struggles Against the Forces of Evil
Inc.:
In the introduction to the Constitution Gaudium et Spes of the Second Vatican Council we read: "The …
1986,
December
17
The Protoevangelium of Salvation
Inc.:
In the fourth Eucharistic Prayer (Canon IV) the Church addresses God in the following words: "Father, …
1987,
January
7
The Identity of Christ
Inc.:
"Who do you say that I am?" (Mt 16:15).…
1987,
January
14
Jesus Christ, Son of God and Savior
Inc.:
In last week's catechesis, following the earliest creeds of the Christian faith, we began a new cycle …
1987,
January
28
Jesus Christ, Conceived by the Power of the Holy Spirit and Born of the Virgin Mary
Inc.:
In the previous meeting our reflection was concentrated on the name "Jesus" which means "Savior." This …
1987,
February
4
Jesus Christ, Son of Israel, Chosen People of the Old Covenant
Inc.:
Of the two genealogies of Jesus mentioned in the previous reflection, that of Matthew's Gospel (cf. …
1987,
February
11
Jesus Christ, Messiah King
Inc.:
At the beginning of his Gospel, the evangelist Matthew concludes his genealogy of Jesus, Son of Mary, …
1987,
February
18
Jesus Christ, Messiah Priest
Inc.:
The name "Christ" is, as we know, the Greek equivalent of the word "Messiah" and means "Anointed." Besides …
1987,
February
25
Jesus Christ, Messiah and Prophet
Inc.:
During the trial before Pilate, on being questioned whether he was a king, Jesus at first denied that …
1987,
March
4
Jesus Christ, Fulfillment of the Messianic Prophecies
Inc.:
We continue our Wednesday reflections, focusing on the way that Christ fulfilled the prophecies concerning …
1987,
March
18
Jesus Christ, Inauguration and Fulfillment of the Kingdom of God
Inc.:
"The time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God is at hand" (Mk 1:15). With these words Jesus of Nazareth …
1987,
April
22
Jesus Christ, Messiah and Divine Wisdom
Inc.:
A rich tradition of wisdom literature permeates the Old Testament. On the human level, it manifests …
1987,
April
29
Jesus Christ, Son of Man
Inc.:
Jesus Christ, Son of man and of God: this is the culminating theme of our reflections on the identity …
1987,
May
13
Jesus Christ, Son of God
Inc.:
As we saw in the previous reflections, the name "Christ" in the language of the Old Testament meant …
1987,
May
20
The Heart of the Gospel Witness
Inc.:
The cycle of reflections on Jesus Christ has gradually approached its center while remaining in constant …
1987,
May
27
The Father Bears Witness to the Son
Inc.:
The Gospel—and the whole New Testament—bear witness to Jesus Christ as Son of God. This is a central …
1987,
June
3
The Prologue of John's Gospel Synthesizes the Faith of the Apostolic Church
Inc.:
In the last catechesis we have shown, on the basis of the Synoptic Gospels, how faith in the divine …
1987,
June
24
Jesus Christ, the Son Sent by the Father
Inc.:
In the previous reflection we dealt with the prologue of John's Gospel, when speaking of Christ as Logos, …
1987,
July
1
Jesus' Awareness of His Unique Relationship to the Father
Inc.:
Jesus' self-revelation as the Son of God is given a unique expression in the term Abba, Father. Abba …
1987,
July
8
Jesus Christ, the Son Intimately United with the Father
Inc.:
"Abba—my Father"—all that we said in the previous reflection enables us to penetrate more deeply the …
1987,
July
15
Jesus Christ, the Son Who Lives for the Father
Inc.:
In the previous reflection we considered Jesus Christ as the Son intimately united to the Father. This …
1987,
July
22
The Son Addresses the Father in Prayer
Inc.:
Jesus Christ is the Son intimately united to the Father; the Son who lives completely for the Father …
1987,
July
29
Whoever Loses His Life for My Sake and that of the Gospel Will Save It
Inc.:
In our search for the Gospel signs revealing Christ's consciousness of his divinity, we emphasized in …
1987,
August
5
Jesus Christ Comes in the Power of the Holy Spirit
Inc.:
"I came from the Father and have come into the world; again, I am leaving the world and going to the …
1987,
August
12
Jesus Christ Brings the Holy Spirit to the Church and Humanity
Inc.:
Jesus Christ the Son of God, who was sent into the world by the Father, became man by the power of the …
1987,
August
19
Jesus Christ Reveals the Trinity
Inc.:
The core of the catecheses concerning Jesus Christ rests on the central theme of revelation—Jesus Christ, …
1987,
August
26
Jesus Christ, True God and True Man
Inc.:
"I believe in Jesus Christ, his (God the Father's) only Son, our Lord; who was conceived of the Holy …
1987,
September
2
Jesus Christ, the Eternal Word of God the Father
Inc.:
In the preceding catechesis we paid particular attention to those statements in which Christ, speaking …
1987,
September
9
Jesus Claimed the Divine Attributes for Himself
Inc.:
The series of reflections on Jesus Christ is centered on the revealed reality of the God-Man. Jesus …
1987,
September
30
Jesus Christ Has the Power to Judge
Inc.:
God is the judge of the living and the dead—the final judge, the judge of everyone. Already in the catechesis …
1987,
October
7
Jesus Christ Has the Power to Forgive Sins
Inc.:
Linked to the divine power of judgment about which we spoke in the previous reflection, Jesus Christ …
1987,
October
14
Jesus Christ, the Divine Lawgiver
Inc.:
In the Gospels we find another fact which demonstrates Jesus' awareness of his possession of divine …
1987,
October
21
Have Faith in God and Have Faith in Me
Inc.:
The ensemble of the facts analyzed in the previous reflection provides eloquent and convincing proof …
1987,
October
28
Whoever Loses His Life for My Sake and that of the Gospel Will Save It
Inc.:
In our search for the Gospel signs revealing Christ's consciousness of his divinity, we emphasized in …
1987,
November
4
I Confer a Kingdom on You
Inc.:
Let us run through again the themes of the reflections on Jesus the Son of Man, which at the same time …
1987,
November
11
The Fact and Significance of Christ's Miracles
Inc.:
On the day of Pentecost, after receiving the light and power of the Holy Spirit, Peter bore clear and …
1987,
November
18
I Say to You, Arise!
Inc.:
If we examine attentively "the mighty works and wonders and signs" spoken of by the Apostle Peter on …
1987,
November
25
Miraculous Signs Reveal Christ's Power
Inc.:
A text from St. Augustine offers us the key for interpreting Christ's miracles as signs of his saving …
1987,
December
2
Christ's Miracles—Salvific Signs
Inc.:
There is no doubt about the fact that in the Gospels Christ's miracles are presented as signs of the …
1987,
December
9
Christ's Miracles Manifest Salvific Love
Inc.:
Christ's miracles recorded in the Gospels are signs of the divine omnipotence and of the salvific power …
1987,
December
16
Miracles Are a Call to Faith
Inc.:
To confirm his messianic mission and the coming of the kingdom of God, Jesus wrought "wonders and signs" …
1988,
January
13
Miracles Manifest the Supernatural Order
Inc.:
Speaking of the miracles which Jesus performed during his earthly ministry, St. Augustine, in an interesting …
1988,
January
27
Jesus Christ Is True Man
Inc.:
The mystery of Jesus Christ as true God and true man is central to our faith and is the key truth of …
1988,
February
3
Like Us in All Things Except Sin
Inc.:
Jesus Christ is true man. We wish to continue the previous reflection on this theme, which is a fundamental …
1988,
February
10
Jesus, a Man in Solidarity with All Humanity
Inc.:
Jesus Christ, true man, is "like us in all things but sin," as we saw in our previous reflection. Sin …
1988,
February
17
Jesus Christ Emptied Himself
Inc.:
"Behold the man!" (Jn 19:5). In last week's reflection we recalled these words of Pilate when he presented …
1988,
March
2
The Formulation of the Church's Faith in Christ
Inc.:
Faith is the human response to divine revelation. The catechesis on Jesus Christ which we are developing …
1988,
March
9
Conciliar Definitions About Christ
Inc.:
"We believe...in one Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, the only begotten of the Father, that is, of the …
1988,
March
16
The Church's Belief in Jesus Christ According to the Conciliar Definitions
Inc.:
The great Christological councils of Nicaea and Constantinople formulated the fundamental truth of our …
1988,
March
23
The Council of Chalcedon and the Monothelite Heresy
Inc.:
In these reflections we are considering the ancient conciliar definitions which contributed to the formulation …
1988,
April
13
The Christological Definitions and the Church's Faith Today
Inc.:
Summarizing the Christological teaching of the ecumenical councils and of the Fathers, we perceived …
1988,
April
20
Christ's Mission
Inc.:
Today we begin the final phase of our reflections on Jesus Christ. Until now we have sought to show …
1988,
April
27
The Kingdom of God
Inc.:
"This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the Gospel" …
1988,
May
4
"I Came into the World to Testify to the Truth"
Inc.:
"For this I was born and for this I came into the world: to testify to the truth" (Jn 18:37). When Pilate, …
1988,
June
1
Christ's Mission is to Reveal the Father
Inc.:
"In times past, God spoke in partial and various ways to our ancestors through the prophets; in these …
1988,
June
8
Jesus Christ, "the Faithful Witness"
Inc.:
Regarding Jesus Christ's earthly mission, we read in the Constitution Lumen Gentium of the Second Vatican …
1988,
June
15
Jesus, Founder of His Church
Inc.:
"The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the Gospel" (Mk 1:15). …
1988,
June
22
Jesus, Founder of the Ministerial Structure of the Church
Inc.:
In the previous reflection, we said that the whole mission of Jesus of Nazareth, his teaching, the miracles …
1988,
July
13
Jesus, Founder of the Sacramental Structure in the Life of the Church
Inc.:
"I am with you always, to the end of the world" (Mt 28:20). Those words of the risen Christ when sending …
1988,
July
23
The Church's Holiness Comes from Christ
Inc.:
"Abide in me and I in you..." (Jn 15:4). These words from the parable of the vine and the branches reveal …
1988,
July
27
Jesus Frees Us from the Slavery of Sin
Inc.:
"The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the Gospel" (Mk 1:15). …
1988,
August
3
Jesus Frees Us to Seek the Good in Truth
Inc.:
Christ the Savior came into the world to free humanity from the slavery of sin, at the price of his …
1988,
August
10
Jesus Frees Humanity for a New Life
Inc.:
It is worth repeating what we have said in recent catecheses when considering Christ's salvific mission …
1988,
August
17
Jesus Is Our Model
Inc.:
In the gradual development of the catechesis on the theme of Jesus Christ's mission, we have seen that …
1988,
August
24
Jesus Is the Model of Prayer
Inc.:
Jesus Christ is the Redeemer. The center and summit of his mission, that is,
the work …
1988,
August
31
Jesus Christ Is a Model of Perfect Love
Inc.:
The filial union of Jesus with the Father is expressed in the perfect love which he also made the principal …
1988,
September
7
Christ's Sacrifice Fulfills God's Design of Love
Inc.:
In the messianic mission of Jesus, the climax which we have been gradually approaching in the previous …
1988,
September
28
The Death of Christ as a Historical Event
Inc.:
We profess our belief in the central truth of Jesus Christ's messianic mission: he is the Redeemer of …
1988,
October
5
Christ's Awareness of His Vocation to Redemptive Sacrifice
Inc.:
"For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried." In the previous …
1988,
October
19
The Value of the Suffering and Death of Jesus Christ
Inc.:
In the previous catecheses we have summarized the biblical and historical data on the death of Christ. …
1988,
October
26
The Redemptive Value of Christ's Sacrifice
Inc.:
We consider again some concepts which patristic tradition took from biblical sources in an attempt to …
1988,
November
9
The Meaning of Suffering in the Light of Christ's Passion
Inc.:
"If a grain of wheat...dies, it bears much fruit" (Jn 12:24).…
1988,
November
16
"Father, Forgive them..."
Inc.:
All that Jesus taught and did during his earthly life reached the peak of truth and holiness on the …
1988,
November
23
"Behold Your Mother!"
Inc.:
The message of the cross includes some sublime words of love, which Jesus addressed to his mother and …
1988,
November
30
"My God, My God, Why Have You Forsaken Me?"
Inc.:
According to the Synoptics, Jesus on the cross cried out aloud twice (cf. Mt 27:46, 50; Mk 15: 34, 37); …
1988,
December
7
Christ's Last Words on the Cross
Inc.:
"It is finished" (Jn 19:30). According to John's Gospel Jesus spoke these words just before expiring. …
1988,
December
14
The Fruitfulness of Christ's Redemptive Death
Inc.:
The evangelist Mark writes that when Jesus died, the centurion who stood facing him, on seeing that …
1989,
January
11
"He Descended Into Hell"
Inc.:
In the most recent reflections we have explained with the help of biblical texts, the article of the …
1989,
January
25
The Resurrection: A Historical Event and an Affirmation of Faith
Inc.:
Today we reflect on the crowning truth of our faith in Jesus Christ. It is a truth documented by the …
1989,
February
1
From the Empty Tomb to the Meeting with the Risen Christ
Inc.:
The profession of faith which we make in the creed when we proclaim that Jesus Christ "on the third …
1989,
February
22
The Apparitions of the Risen Christ
Inc.:
St. Paul was chronologically the first to record the truth of Christ's resurrection. We are familiar …
1989,
March
1
The Resurrection Is a Historical Event That Transcends History
Inc.:
Christ's resurrection was an event consisting essentially in a passage from death to life. It was a …
1989,
March
8
The Resurrection Is the High Point of Revelation
Inc.:
In St. Paul's Letter to the Corinthians, several times quoted during the course of these reflections …
1989,
March
15
The Saving Power of the Resurrection
Inc.:
The Christian faith and the Church's preaching are rooted in Christ's resurrection because it is the …
1989,
April
5
The Ascension: a Mystery Announced Beforehand
Inc.:
In the most ancient creeds the article on Christ's resurrection is followed by that on his ascension. …
1989,
April
12
The Ascension Is the Fulfillment of the Mystery of the Incarnation
Inc.:
The "announcements" of the ascension examined in the previous catechesis shed light on the truth expressed …
1989,
April
19
Jesus Is Lord
Inc.:
There is a solemn eloquence about Peter's announcement in his first discourse on the day of Pentecost …
1989,
April
26
"I Believe in the Holy Spirit"
Inc.:
In our reflections on the Apostles' Creed, we now pass from the articles which concern Jesus Christ, …