CATECHISM

Q. What is prayer?
A. Prayer is the raising up of the mind and heart to God.
 
Q. How do we raise up our mind and heart to God?
A. We raise up our mind and heart to God by thinking of God; by adoring, praising, and thanking
him; and by begging of him all blessings for soul and body.

Q. Do those pray well who, at their prayers, think neither of God nor of what they say?
A. Those who, at their prayers, think neither of God nor of what they say, do not pray well; but
they offend God, if their distractions are wilful.
Distraction. A wandering of the mind, idle thoughts.
Wilful. That which is consented to.
The Our Father

Q. Which is the best of all prayers?
A. The best of all prayers is the ‘Our Father’, or the Lord’s Prayer.
The Lord’s Prayer. This prayer was made by our Lord in answer to the petition of the
Apostles, ‘Lord, teach us how to pray’. It was on the occasion of His preaching the
‘Sermon on the Mount’. The prayer is divided into seven parts, the first three of which
relate particularly to God, the others to ourselves and to our neighbours.

Q. Who made the Lord’s Prayer?
A. Jesus Christ himself made the Lord’s Prayer.

Q. Say the Lord’s Prayer. ★
A. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come; thy will be done on
earth as it is in heaven; give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses, as we
forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation; but deliver us from evil.
Amen.
’Our Father who art in heaven.’ These words form, as it were, the introduction to the
petitions which follow.

Q. In the Lord’s Prayer who is called ‘our Father’?
A. In the Lord’s Prayer God is called ‘our Father’.

Q. Why is God called ‘our Father’?
A. God is called ‘our Father’ because he is the Father of all Christians, whom he has made his
children by Holy Baptism.

Q. Is God also the Father of all mankind?
A. God is also the Father of all mankind because he made them all, and loves and preserves them
all.
Preserves. Keeps from harm, takes care of us.

Q. Why do we say, ‘our’ Father, and not ‘my’ Father?
A. We say ‘our’ Father, and not ‘my’ Father, because, being all brethren, we are to pray not for
ourselves only, but also for all others.
Hallowed. Made or kept holy; praised, honoured, reverenced.
 
Q. When we say, ‘hallowed be thy name’, what do we pray for?
A. When we say ‘hallowed be thy name’ we pray that God may be known, loved, and served by all
his creatures.

Q. When we say, ‘thy kingdom come’, what do we pray for?
A. When we say, ‘thy kingdom come’, we pray that God may come and reign in the hearts of all by
His grace in this world, and bring us all hereafter to his heavenly kingdom.
Reign. To have complete power over us, to rule.

Q. When we say, ‘thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven’, what do we pray for?
A. When we say, ‘thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven’, we pray that God may enable us, by
his grace, to do his will in all things, as the Blessed do in heaven.

Q. When we say, ‘give us this day our daily bread’, what do we pray for?
A. When we say, ‘give us this day our daily bread’, we pray that God may give us daily all that is
necessary for soul and body.
All that is necessary. Whatever we stand in need of—the grace of God and the Holy
Communion for our souls; and food and clothing, etc., for our bodies.

Q. When we say, ‘forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us’,
what do we pray for?
A. When we say, ‘forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us’, we pray
that God may forgive us our sins, as we forgive others the injuries they do to us.
Trespasses. Injuries, offences, doing what is wrong.

Q. When we say, ‘lead us not into temptation’, what do we pray for?
A. When we say ‘lead us not into temptation’, we pray that God may give us grace not to yield to
temptation.
Yield. To give way, to be overcome.
Temptation. Anything that may entice or provoke us to sin.

Q. When we say, ‘deliver us from evil’, what do we pray for?
A. When we say, ‘deliver us from evil’, we pray that God may free us from all evil, both of soul
and body.
Deliver. To liberate or set free.
The Hail Mary

Q. Should we ask the Angels and Saints to pray for us?
A. We should ask the Angels and Saints to pray for us, because they are our friends and brethren,
and because their prayers have great power with God.
Saints. The souls of those who died in a state of grace, and are now with God in heaven.
The word ‘saint’ means a holy person.
Angels. Those pure spirits first created by God, and who have remained faithful. They
have free-will, reason, and understanding; but no bodies. The holy Angels are divided
into nine orders or choirs — Seraphim, Cherubim, and Thrones; Dominations,
Principalities, and Powers; Virtues, Archangels, and Angels. The word ‘angel’ means a
messenger.
Brethren. Those belonging to the same family or society.

Q. How can we show that the Angels and Saints know what passes on earth?
A. We can show that the Angels and Saints know what passes on earth from the words of Christ:
‘There shall be joy before the Angels of God upon one sinner doing penance. Luke 15:10
Doing penance. Being sorry and trying to make satisfaction for sin.
160. What is the chief prayer to the Blessed Virgin which the Church uses?
The chief prayer to the Blessed Virgin which the church uses is the Hail Mary.

Q. Say the Hail Mary. ★
A. Hail Mary, full of grace; the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women, and blessed is
the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now, and at the
hour of our death. Amen.
Hail. Equivalent to ‘Ave’ or ‘Salve’, meaning ‘Be well’, ‘Health to thee’, or ‘I salute thee’.

Q. Who made the first part of the Hail Mary?
A. The Angel Gabriel and St. Elizabeth, inspired by the Holy Spirit, made the first part of the Hail
Mary. Luke 1:28, 1:42

Q. Who made the second part of the Hail Mary?
A. The Church of God, guided by the Holy Spirit, made the second part of the Hail Mary.
Guided. Directed, led, being shown the way.
By the Holy Spirit. Pronounced at the Ecumenical Council of Ephesus in year 431.

Q. Why should we frequently say the Hail Mary?
A. We should frequently say the Hail Mary to put us in mind of the Incarnation of the Son of God;
and to honour our Blessed Lady, the Mother of God.

Q. Have we another reason for often saying the Hail Mary?
A. We have another reason for often saying the Hail Mary - to ask our Blessed Lady to pray for us
sinners at all times, but especially at the hour of our death.

Q. Why does the Catholic Church show great devotion to the Blessed Virgin?
A. The Catholic Church shows great devotion to the Blessed Virgin because she is the Immaculate
Mother of God.
Devotion. Honour, love, reverence, great affection.
Immaculate. Free from the stain of original sin. By the ‘Immaculate Conception’ we mean
that the Blessed Virgin from the first moment of her existence was, by a special privilege
of God, preserved from original sin. The doctrine of the Immaculate Conception of our
Lady was defined as an article of faith by Pope Plus IX in 1854. We keep the festival on
the 8th December, the day of our Lady’s Conception. The dogma was defined on this
day.
 
Q. How is the Blessed Virgin Mother of God?
A. The Blessed Virgin is Mother of God because Jesus Christ, her son, who was born of her as man,
is not only man, but is also truly God.

Q. Is the Blessed Virgin our Mother also?
A. The Blessed Virgin is our Mother also because, being the brethren of Jesus, we are the children
of Mary.

Qa. What do we mean by the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin?
A. By the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin we mean that by the power of God, Mary, at the
completion of her life, was taken body and soul into everlasting glory to reign as Queen of
heaven and earth.

Qb. Is the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin an article of faith?
A. The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin is an article of Faith because it has been solemnly defined
by the infallible authority of the Church.