5 Catechism paragraphs I’m loving right now.

In the last year or so, and more specifically in this last week, I've discovered a love for the Catechism.

What a blessing it is to have a text that contains a summary and explanation of all that Christ's Church teaches!!

I was never quite sure what the Catechism was- what the purpose of it was- why we needed it if it wasn't the Bible.

The Catechism is not here for us to read instead of the Bible- rather, it serves as a companion to the Christian life, summarizing the teachings of the faith that comes from Scripture, Tradition, and the Magisterium in a way that is easy to comprehend.

In a word, it makes the faith accessible.

The great depths of knowledge that are found in this text are simply remarkable. Reading so much for class in this last week has opened my eyes to the Catechism and how useful it is in explaining the faith. There are lines I've found myself nodding along with- "Oh. So THAT'S why we do that..."

Questions I've never even considered before have been answered.

So friend, if you don't yet own a copy of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, please buy one. It makes a fantastic resource for apologetics and evangelization, is a key tool for catechists, as well as those learning the faith even for the first time, and is a great book to take to adoration with you.

Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraph 1

"God, infinitely perfect and blessed in himself, in a plan of sheer goodness freely created man to make him share in his own blessed life. For this reason, at every time and in every place, God draws close to man. He calls man to seek him, to know him, to love him with all his strength. He calls together all men, scattered and divided by sin, into the unity of his family, the Church. To accomplish this, when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son as Redeemer and Savior. In his Son and through him, he invites men to become, in the Holy Spirit, his adopted children and thus heirs of his blessed life."

Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraph 739

"Because the Holy Spirit is the anointing of Christ, it is Christ who, as the head of the Body, pours out the Spirit among his members to nourish, heal, and organize them in their mutual functions, to give them life, send them to bear witness, and associate them to his self- offering to the Father and to his intercession for the whole world. Through the Church's sacraments, Christ communicates his Holy and sanctifying Spirit to the members of his Body."

Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraph 789

"The comparison of the Church with the body casts light on the intimate bond between Christ and his Church. Not only is she gathered around him; she is united in him, in his body. Three aspects of the Church as the Body of Christ are to be more specifically noted: the unity of all her members with each other as a result of their union with Christ; Christ as head of the Body; and the Church as bride of Christ."

Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraph 104

"In Sacred Scripture, the Church constantly finds her nourishment and her strength, for she welcomes it not as a human word, "but as what it really is, the word of God". "In the sacred books, the Father who is in heaven comes lovingly to meet his children, and talks with them."

Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraph 3

"Those who with God's help have welcomed Christ's call and freely responded to it are urged on by love of Christ to proclaim the Good News everywhere in the world. This treasure, received from the apostles, has been faithfully guarded by their successors. All Christ's faithful are called to hand it on from generation to generation, by professing the faith, by living it in fraternal sharing, and by celebrating it in liturgy and prayer."

If you've read parts of the Catechisn- what's one paragraph you're loving right now?