Dogma (Roman Catholic) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Roman Catholic Church

The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...

, a dogma is an article of faith revealed by God, which the magisterium

Magisterium

In the Catholic Church the Magisterium is the teaching authority of the Church. This authority is understood to be embodied in the episcopacy, which is the aggregation of the current bishops of the Church in union with the Pope, led by the Bishop of Rome , who has authority over the bishops,...

of the Church presents to be believed. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the basic truth from which salvation and life is derived for Christians. Dogmata regulate the language, how the truth of the resurrection is to be believed and communicated. One dogma is only a small particle of the living Christian faith, from which it derives its meaning. Roman Catholic Dogma is thus: "a truth revealed by God, which the magisterium

Magisterium

of the Church declared as binding." The Catechism of the Catholic Church states:

The Church's Magisterium exercises the authority it holds from Christ to the fullest extent when it defines dogmas, that is, when it proposes, in a form obliging the Christian people to an irrevocable adherence of faith, truths contained in divine Revelation or also when it proposes, in a definitive way, truths having a necessary connection with these.

The faithful are required to accept with the divine and Catholic faith all which the Church presents either as solemn decision or as general teaching. Yet not all teachings are dogma. The faithful are only required to accept those teachings as dogma, if the Church clearly and specifically identifies them as infallible dogmata. Not all truths are dogmata. The Bible

Bible

The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...

contains many sacred truths, which the faithful recognize and agree with, but which the Church has not defined as dogma. Most Church teachings are not dogma. Cardinal

Cardinal (Catholicism)

A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...

Avery Dulles points out that in the 800 pages of the documents of the Second Vatican Council

Second Vatican Council

The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...

, there is not one new statement for which infallibility

Infallibility

Infallibility, from Latin origin , is a term with a variety of meanings related to knowing truth with certainty.-In common speech:...

is claimed.

Elements: Scripture and Tradition

The concept of dogma has two elements: Immediate divine revelation from Scripture or Tradition

Tradition

A tradition is a ritual, belief or object passed down within a society, still maintained in the present, with origins in the past. Common examples include holidays or impractical but socially meaningful clothes , but the idea has also been applied to social norms such as greetings...

, and, a proposition of the Church, which not only announces the dogma but also declares it binding for the faith. This may occur through an ex-cathedra decision by a Pope

Pope

The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...

, or by an Ecumenical Council

Ecumenical council

An ecumenical council is a conference of ecclesiastical dignitaries and theological experts convened to discuss and settle matters of Church doctrine and practice....

.

The Holy Scripture is not identical with divine revelation, but a part of it. Jesus Christ taught only orally and instructed his disciples to teach orally. Early Christians lived from oral traditions, as scriptures did not yet exist. "Keep as your pattern the sound teaching you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.“ Scriptures were written later by apostles and evangelists, who knew Jesus. They give infallible testimony of his teachings. Scripture thus belongs to Tradition in the larger sense, where it has an absolute priority, because it is the Word of God, and because it is the unchangeable testimony of the apostles of Christ, whose fullness the Church preserves with its tradition.

Dogma as divine and Catholic faith

Dogma is considered to be both divine and Catholic faith. Divine, because of its believed origin and Catholic because of belief in the infallible

Infallibility of the Church

The Infallibility of the Church is the belief that the Holy Spirit will not allow the Church to err in its belief or teaching under certain circumstances...

teaching binding for all. At the turn of the 20th century, a group of theologians called modernists stated that dogmata did not fall from heaven but are historical manifestations at a given time. Pope Pius X

Pope Pius X

Pope Saint Pius X , born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto, was the 257th Pope of the Catholic Church, serving from 1903 to 1914. He was the first pope since Pope Pius V to be canonized. Pius X rejected modernist interpretations of Catholic doctrine, promoting traditional devotional practices and orthodox...

condemned this teaching as heresy

Heresy

Heresy is a controversial or novel change to a system of beliefs, especially a religion, that conflicts with established dogma. It is distinct from apostasy, which is the formal denunciation of one's religion, principles or cause, and blasphemy, which is irreverence toward religion...

in 1907. The Catholic position is that the content of a dogma has truly divine origin. It is considered an expression of an objective truth and does not change. The truth of God, revealed by God, does not change, as God himself does not change; Heaven and earth will disappear but my words will not disappear.

However, new dogmata can be declared through the ages. For instance, the 20th century witnessed the introduction of the dogma of Assumption of Mary

Assumption of Mary

According to the belief of Christians of the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, and parts of the Anglican Communion and Continuing Anglicanism, the Assumption of Mary was the bodily taking up of the Virgin Mary into Heaven at the end of her life...

by Pope Pius XII

Pope Pius XII

The Venerable Pope Pius XII , born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli , reigned as Pope, head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of Vatican City State, from 2 March 1939 until his death in 1958....

in 1950. However, these beliefs were already held in some form or another within the Church before their elevation to the dogmatic level. A movement to declare a fifth Marian dogma for Mediatrix

Mediatrix

Mediatrix in Roman Catholic Mariology refers to the role of the Blessed Virgin Mary as a mediator in the salvation process. It is a separate concept from Co-Redemptrix....

and
Co-Redemptrix

Co-Redemptrix

Co-Redemptrix, a title of Mary, mother of Jesus, refers to her role in the Redemption process.The concept of Co-redemptrix refers to an indirect or unequal but important participation by the Blessed Virgin Mary in redemption, notably: that she gave free consent to give life to the Redeemer, to...

is underway.

Early uses of the term

The term Dogma Catholicum was first used by Vincent of Lérins

Vincent of Lérins

Saint Vincent of Lérins was a Gallic author of early Christian writings.In earlier life he had been engaged in secular pursuits, whether civil or military is not clear, though the term he uses, "secularis militia," might possibly imply the latter...

(450), referring to “what all, everywhere and always believed” In the year 565, Emperor Justinian declared the decisions of the first ecumenical councils as law because they are true dogmata of God In the Middle Ages, the term Doctrina Catholica, (Catholic doctrine) was used for the Catholic faith. Individual beliefs were labeled as Articulus Fidei ( part of the faith)

Ecumenical Council

Ecumenical council

An ecumenical council is a conference of ecclesiastical dignitaries and theological experts convened to discuss and settle matters of Church doctrine and practice....

s issue dogmas. Many dogmata - especially from the early Church (Ephesus, Chalcedon) to the Council of Trent

Council of Trent

The Council of Trent was the 16th-century Ecumenical Council of the Roman Catholic Church. It is considered to be one of the Church's most important councils. It convened in Trent between December 13, 1545, and December 4, 1563 in twenty-five sessions for three periods...

- were formulated against specific heresies.(Holy Spirit

Holy Spirit

Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of the Hebrew Bible, but understood differently in the main Abrahamic religions.While the general concept of a "Spirit" that permeates the cosmos has been used in various religions Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of...

only emanating from father and not from Father and Son) Later dogmas (Immaculate Conception

Immaculate Conception

The Immaculate Conception of Mary is a dogma of the Roman Catholic Church, according to which the Virgin Mary was conceived without any stain of original sin. It is one of the four dogmata in Roman Catholic Mariology...

and Assumption of Mary

Assumption of Mary

) express the greatness of God in binding language. At the specific request of Pope John XXIII

Pope John XXIII

-Papal election:Following the death of Pope Pius XII in 1958, Roncalli was elected Pope, to his great surprise. He had even arrived in the Vatican with a return train ticket to Venice. Many had considered Giovanni Battista Montini, Archbishop of Milan, a possible candidate, but, although archbishop...

, the Second Vatican Council did not proclaim any dogmas. Instead it presented the basic elements of the Catholic faith in a more understandable, pastoral language, without changing the teachings of the Church. The last two dogmas were pronounced by Popes, Pope Pius IX

Pope Pius IX

Blessed Pope Pius IX , born Giovanni Maria Mastai-Ferretti, was the longest-reigning elected Pope in the history of the Catholic Church, serving from 16 June 1846 until his death, a period of nearly 32 years. During his pontificate, he convened the First Vatican Council in 1869, which decreed papal...

in 1854 and Pope Pius XII

Pope Pius XII

in 1950 on the Immaculate Conception and the assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary respectively. They are cornerstones of Mariology(Roman Catholic)

Mariology

Roman Catholic Mariology is theology concerned with the Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ as developed by the Catholic Church. Roman Catholic teachings on the subject have been based on the belief that "The Blessed Virgin, because she is the Mother of God, is believed to hold a certain...

To some, this raises the question, why “new” dogmas are formulated almost 2000 years after the resurrection of Christ. It is Catholic teaching that with Christ and the Apostles, revelation is completed. Dogmata issued after the death of his apostles are not new, but explications of existing faith. Implicit truth are specified as explicit, as it was done in the teachings on the Trinity

Trinity

The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...

by the ecumenical councils. Karl Rahner

Karl Rahner

Karl Rahner, SJ was a German Jesuit and theologian who, alongside Bernard Lonergan and Hans Urs von Balthasar, is considered one of the most influential Roman Catholic theologians of the 20th century...

tries to explain this with the allegorical sentence of a husband to his wife “ I love you” this surely implies, I am faithful to you. In 450 Vincent of Lérins

Vincent of Lérins

asked in his famous Commonitory, Will there be no progress in religion in the Church of Christ? Of course there will be progress. There will be much progress, but it will be progress in truth and faith, not change. Progress means addition, change means alteration.

But he warns: “What is entrusted to you, not what you invented. What you received, not what you imagined, not a matter of reason but of teaching, not your preferences but public tradition, what you were given, not what you produced, …you received gold, give gold back.” The Church uses this text in its interpretation of dogmatic development: The first Vatican Council stated in 1870 that within the limits of the statement of Vincent of Lérins, dogmatic development is possible, Vatican II confirms this view in Lumen Gentium.

Theological certainties

The Magisterium of the Church is directed to guard, preserve and teach divine truths which God has revealed with infallibility

Infallibility of the Church

The Infallibility of the Church is the belief that the Holy Spirit will not allow the Church to err in its belief or teaching under certain circumstances...

(De fide). A rejection of Church Magisterial teachings is a de facto rejection of divine revelation. It is considered the mortal sin

Mortal sin

Mortal sins are in the theology of some, but not all Christian denominations wrongful acts that condemn a person to Hell after death. These sins are considered "mortal" because they constitute a rupture in a person's link to God's saving grace: the person's soul becomes "dead", not merely weakened...

of heresy

Heresy

if the heretical opinion is held with full knowledge of the Church's opposing dogmata. The infallibility of the Magisterium extends also to teachings which are deduced from such truths (Fides ecclesiastica). These Church teachings or Catholic truths (veritates catholicae) are not a part of divine revelation, yet are intimately related to it. The rejection of these "secondary" teachings is not heretical, but involves the impairment of full communion with the Catholic Church.

There are three categories of these "secondary" teachings (Fides ecclesiastica):

Theological conclusions: (conclusiones theologicae) religious truths, deduced from divine revelation and reason, such as the impossibility of ordaining women, and the illicitness of euthanasia.
Dogmatic facts (facta dogmatica) historical facts, not part of revelation but clearly related to it. For example the legitimacy of the papacy of Pope Benedict XVI, and the Petrine office
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
Philosophical truths, such as existence of the soul, "freedom of will", philosophical definitions used in dogmas such as transubstantiation

	Theological certainty	Description
1.	De fide De fide De fide is a "theological note" or "theological qualification" that indicates that some religious doctrine is an essential part of Catholic faith and that denial of it is heresy....	Divine revelations with the highest degree of certainty, considered infallible revelation
2.	Fides ecclesiastica Fides ecclesiastica Fides ecclesiastica is a classification of those Roman Catholic dogmas which are Church teachings, definitively decided on by the Magisterium, but not believed to be Divine revelations...	Church teachings, which have been definitively decided on by the Magisterium, considered infallible revelation
3.	Sententia fidei proxima	Church teachings, which are generally accepted as divine revelation but not defined as such by the magisterium
4.	Theologica certa	Church teachings without final approval but clearly deduced from revelation
5.	Sententia communis Sententia communis In Roman Catholic theology, Sententia communis refers to popular beliefs which are widely held, and generally accepted by theologians, but not dogmatically asserted. These are below the Theologica certa level but above the Sententia probabilis level in the hierarchy of dogmatic beliefs for Roman...	Teachings which are popular but within the free range of theological research
6.	Sententia probabilis Sententia probabilis In Roman Catholic theology, Sententia probabilis refers to beliefs which are considered probable but not theologically proven. They are viewed as well-founded and in agreement with the principles of faith, but not theologically certain. These are above the Opinio tolerata level and below Sententia...	Teachings with low degree of certainty
7.	Opinio tolerata Opinio tolerata In Roman Catholic theology, Opinio tolerata refers to pious beliefs with a low degree of theological certainty, but which are tolerated by the Church. These are below the Sententia probabilis level and hold the least degree of certainty in the hierarchy of dogmatic beliefs for Roman Catholics....	Opinions tolerated within the Catholic Church, such as pious legend Legend A legend is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain qualities that give the tale verisimilitude... s

Papal bulls and encyclicals

Pope Pius XII

stated in Humani Generis

Humani Generis

Humani generis is a papal encyclical that Pope Pius XII promulgated on 12 August 1950 "concerning some false opinions threatening to undermine the foundations of Catholic Doctrine"...

, that Papal Encyclicals, even when they are not ex cathedra

Papal infallibility

Papal infallibility is a dogma of the Catholic Church which states that, by action of the Holy Spirit, the Pope is preserved from even the possibility of error when in his official capacity he solemnly declares or promulgates to the universal Church a dogmatic teaching on faith or morals...

, can nonetheless be sufficiently authoritative to end theological debate on a particular question:

The end of the theological debate is not identical however with dogmatization. Throughout the history of the Church, its representatives have discussed whether a given Papal teaching is the final word or not.

In 1773, Father Lorenzo Ricci

Lorenzo Ricci

Lorenzo Ricci was an Italian Jesuit, elected the 18th Superior General of the Society of Jesus. He was also the last before the suppression of the Jesuits in 1773.-Early Life and career:Ricci was born in Florence, Italy...

, hearing rumours that Pope Clement XIV

Pope Clement XIV

Pope Clement XIV , born Giovanni Vincenzo Antonio Ganganelli, was Pope from 1769 to 1774. At the time of his election, he was the only Franciscan friar in the College of Cardinals.-Early life:...

might dissolve his Jesuit order, wrote "it is most incredible that the Deputy of Christ would state the opposite, what his predecessor Clement XIII stated in the Papal Bull Apostolicum, in which he defended and protected us." When a few days later he was asked if he would accept the Papal Breve, reverting Clement XIII and dissolving the Jesuit Order, Father Ricci replied, whatever the Pope decides must be sacred to everybody.

In 1995, questions arose as to whether the Apostolic letter Ordinatio Sacerdotalis

Ordinatio Sacerdotalis

Ordinatio Sacerdotalis is an Apostolic Letter issued from the Vatican by Pope John Paul II on 22 May 1994, whereby the Pope expounds the teaching of the Catholic Church's position requiring "the reservation of priestly ordination to men alone." In its clear proclamation that "the Church has no...

, exempting women from ordination is to be understood as belonging to the deposit of faith. Wherefore, in order that all doubt may be removed regarding a matter of great importance, a matter which pertains to the Church's divine constitution itself, in virtue of Our ministry of confirming the brethren (cf. Lk 22:32) We declare that the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women and that this judgment is to be definitively held by all the Church's faithful.

Critics of Ordinatio Sacerdotalis point out, that it was not issued under the
extraordinary papal magisterium

Magisterium

as an ex cathedra

Ex Cathedra

Ex Cathedra is a British choir and early music ensemble based in Birmingham in the West Midlands, England. It performs choral music spanning the 15th to 21st centuries, and regularly commissions new works....

statement, and so is not considered infallible in itself. Its contents are, however, considered infallible under the ordinary magisterium

Magisterium

. The American Cardinal Avery Dulles, in a lecture to US bishops stated that Ordinatio Sacerdotalis is infallible, not because of the Apostolic Letter or the clarification by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger alone, but because it is based on a wide range of sources, scriptures, the constant tradition of the Church and the ordinary and universal magisterium of the Church: Pope John Paul II

Pope John Paul II

Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...

had identified a truth infallibly taught over two thousand years by the Church.

Apparitions and dogma

Apparitions have taken place within the Church since the very beginning and are a part of the apostolic tradition, since many examples of apparitions exist in the Holy Scriptures. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states:

Throughout the ages, there have been so-called "private" revelations, some of which have been recognized by the authority of the Church. They do not belong, however, to the deposit of faith. It is not their role to improve or complete Christ's definitive Revelation, but to help live more fully by it in a certain period of history. Guided by the Magisterium of the Church, the sensus fidelium knows how to discern and welcome in these revelations whatever constitutes an authentic call of Christ or his saints to the Church.

Apparitions are considered to be welcome charismatic expressions of the faith. God permits the appearance of (Christ, Mary, Saints) to individuals. When the Church confirms that divine revelations to individual persons have taken place, she permits veneration. Such approvals do not constitute dogma. Marian apparitions are an example of such revelations. Although Popes approve Marian apparitions, promote them, or participate in related veneration, respectful distance even disapproval of such papal teachings is possible.

The Church views apparitions not as dogmatic innovations but as an prophetic impulses, which reflame and renew the faith. Marian apparitions bring millions of people together and recreate faith, vigour, unity and solidarity, within the Mystical Body of Christ For those, convinced certain about certainty of the divine origin, the apparition is Fides Divina. Apparitions and other private revelations are never Veritates Catolicae, or Catholic teachings, because this would imply, that God improved his own revelation. for this reason specific apparitions and private revelations are usually not subject of dogmatic publications. The Catholic Church rejects " private revelations" of Christian sects and non-Christian groups, that claim to surpass or correct the Revelation of Jesus Christ.

Ecumenical aspects

Protestant theology since the reformation was largely negative on the term dogma. This changed in the 20th century, when Karl Barth

Karl Barth

Karl Barth was a Swiss Reformed theologian whom critics hold to be among the most important Christian thinkers of the 20th century; Pope Pius XII described him as the most important theologian since Thomas Aquinas...

with his Kirchliche Dogmatik, stated the need for systematic and binding articles of faith. The Creed is the most comprehensive – but not complete - summary of important Catholic dogmas. (It was originally used during baptism ceremonies). The Creed is a part of Sunday liturgy. Because many Protestant Churches have retained the older versions of the Creed, ecumenical working groups are meeting to discuss the Creed as the basis for better understandings of dogma.

Sources

Wolfgang Beinert Lexikon der katholischen Dogmatik, Herder, Freiburg, 1988

Avery Dulles, The Survival of Dogma, Faith, authority and dogma in a changing world, Image Book, New York, 1970

Avery Dulles, The Changing forms of faith, Alexandria, Virginia, 1970

Avery Dulles, Doctrinal authority of the Church, in Theology in Revolution, Alba House, Staten Island, 1970

J.B.Heinrich, Lehrbuch der katrholischen Dogmatik, Verlag der Aschaffendorfischen Buchhandlung, Münster 1900 (1939)

Ludwig Ott Grundriss der Dogmatik Herder, Freiburg 1965

Karl Rahner, Theology and the Magisterium, Theological digest, 1968, 4-17

Karl Rahner, Historical dimensions in Theology, Theology difest, 1968, 30-42

Karl Rahner, What is a dogmatic statement, Theological Investigations, 5 1966, 42-66

Francis Simmons, Infallibility and the Evidence, Springfield, Ill, 1968

Michael Schmaus, Katholische Dogmatik, München 1955 (1982)

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