A

Aaron –  Moses’s elder brother. He was the first high priest of Israel (cfr Exodus 6,20).

Abba  –  The word for “Father” in Aramaic (the language of the Jews of Palestine) and used by Christ in addressing his Father (Mark 14,6). It was used by the early Christians (cfr Romans 8,15, Galatians 4,6). A familiar form of address used by children, it shows the level of intimacy between Christ and his Father.

Abel  –  Second son of Adam and Eve, murdered by his brother Cain in a field (cfr Genesis 4,8).

Abortion  –  The direct killing of a human life at any time between fertilisation and birth. Abortion is a grave sin.

Abraham  –  The great-grandfather of the tribe of Israel, living about 2000 B.C. He was previously called Abram. God made a covenant with Abraham, to make of his descendants a great nation.

Abrahamic Faiths  –  Those faiths that take Abraham to be an influence, i.e., Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

Acts of the Apostles  –  A book in the New Testament recording the works of the apostles in the early Church after Christ’s Ascension to heaven.

Actual Grace  –  Grace (help from God) that comes at given moments to inspire us to do good. Actual grace is distinct from sanctifying grace.

Adam and Eve  –  Our first parents, who forfeited paradise through wilful disobedience to God.

Adultery  –  Any act of sexual infidelity carried out by someone who is married.

Alb  –  From the Latin albus, meaning white, the colour of the alb, a body-length garment worn by a priest to celebrate the Sacraments. It symbolises purity and innocence.

Allah  –  The standard Arabic term for God, deriving from al- “the” and ?il?h “deity, god”.

Altar  –  A stone platform used as a place of sacrifice. In the Catholic tradition, the Eucharistic sacrifice is celebrated at the altar, which represents Christ himself.

Amen  –  An expression meaning “so be it” in Hebrew, used at the end of prayers to affirm what has been prayed for.

Amice  –  A cotton garment worn around the shoulders and under the alb by a priest at Mass.

Anamnesis  –  The Greek term for memorial, a part of the Eucharistic Prayer when the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus are called to mind and re-enacted.

Analogy of Faith  –  The coherence of all Christian truths, such that any part of Catholic teaching is related to any other part.

Angel  –  A pure spirit, occupying neither time nor space, and is  a messenger between God and his ceatures.

Anger  –  One of the passions of the soul, which, although not in itself wrong, needs to be controlled by reason. It becomes a capital sin if it is not controlled or at least curbed.

Anglican  –  A member of the Anglican Ecclesial Communion, formed in the 16th century after King Henry VIII's break with Rome after he wanted a declaration of nullity for his marriage with Catherine of Aragon.

Anointing of the Sick  –  A sacrament using oil whereby a seriously ill person is anointed by a priest and receives sanctifying grace for strength.

Antichrist  –  1) The name for Christ's main enemy, who will come before Christ’s Second Coming to cause confusion and apostasy among those who are not prepared; 2) Anyone who denies that Jesus is the Anointed One.

Apostle  –  Meaning “one who is sent”, one of the original 12 closest followers of Our Lord.

Apostolic Succession  –  The authority given by Our Lord to the apostles and their successors, all Bishops in communion with the Pope, passed down without a break to their successors.

Archbishop  –  A bishop entrusted to the care of an archdiocese.

Ascension  –  The moment when Our Lord rises to heaven, 40 days after the Resurrection.

Assumption  –  The moment when Our Lady (the Virgin Mary) is taken body and soul to heaven, without undergoing bodily death.

B

Baptism  –  A Sacrament involving water and oil which cleanses a person of Original Sin, making him or her a member of the Church, and therefore giving him or her the possibility of eternal life.

Beatitude  –  The state of utter satisfaction in heaven, offered to those who would follow Our Lord and the teachings of the Church, or to those who, through ignorance, have not come to know him or those teachings, yet have striven to live a virtuous life.

Beatitudes  –  The eight attitudes taught by Jesus that lead to true happiness.

Benediction  –  A liturgy in which a priest or deacon blesses the assembled congregation with the Eucharistic host.

Body of Christ  –  1) Christ’s Body under the form of bread, confected at Mass by a priest and distributed at Holy Communion; 2) A name for the Church, present mystically in the world.

Bell  –  Used in various Catholic rites to call attention to moments of particular significance, and to ward off the devil.

Bible  –  From the Greek word biblia, meaning “books”, also called the Sacred Scriptures, or the Word of God, the 73 books that contain the content of Divine Revelation.

Bishop  –  A man in the service of a diocese, a group of parishes. He has the fullness of the priesthood which he shares with the priests of the diocese. He governs, teaches and sanctifies the people of God. He has the authority and power to ordain, as well as to exercise certain judicial functions.

Blasphemy  –  Any speech, thought, or action that entails contempt for God, the saints or the Church. It is a grave sin.

C

Cain  –  The first son of Adam and Eve, who murdered his brother Abel in a field, out of jealousy.

Calvary  –  See “Golgotha”.

Cana  –  A village near the Sea of Galilee where Jesus performed his first public miracle by turning water into wine.

Canon Law  –  The law of the Church, codified in the Code of Canon Law (1983).

Cardinal  –  A bishop with an honorary position who, if under the age of 80, has the duty of taking part in the election of a new pope at a conclave.

Cardinal Virtue  –  A virtue (good habit) that anyone can cultivate to achieve human maturity. There are four cardinal virtues: prudence, justice, temperance and fortitude.

Cassock  –  A body-length garment, buttoned down the front, worn by popes, cardinals, bishops, priests, deacons, seminarians and altar-servers.

Cathedral  –  The mother church of a diocese, containing the cathedra, the seat of the Bishop that denotes his authority.

Catholic  –  1) Universal; 2) the name of the Church founded by Our Lord.

Celibacy  –  The state freely chosen by a priest, deacon or consecrated person to remain unmarried for the sake of the Kingdom of God. It is a gift.

Chapel  –  A place reserved for prayer with an altar that is either part of a church or a free-standing building.

Charism  –  1) Grace given in the form of special gifts such as tongues, interpretation of tongues, teaching, or prophecy; 2) The underlying gift of a religious order or consecrated community, such as service to the poor or prayer.

Charity  –  One of the three theological virtues. It is the supernaturally-infused gift that gives us the strength to love God and our neighbour for his own good, i.e., without any thought of reward. God Himself is Charity.

Chastity  –  The correct ordering of our sexuality, whereby self-mastery allows for healthy relationships.

Chasuble  –  From the Latin for casula, little house, the outer garment worn by a priest to celebrate Mass. It can be white, green, purple, red or black, depending on the season and the reason.

Chrism  – Oil blessed by the Bishop that is used in certain sacraments to strengthen the soul.

Christ  –  From the Greek meaning “Anointed One”, the title of Jesus, Our Saviour, sent by the Heavenly Father to redeem the world.

Christian  –  A baptised follower of Christ.

Christian freedom  –  The pinnacle of freedom, since the will is given God’s grace to do the good for which the soul is created.

Church  –  1) The community of believers, with the Pope as leader and guarantee of unity, and the ordinary means of salvation; 2) A building where Christians come together to worship God.

Cincture  –  A rope, worn by a deacon or a priest around the waist, to signify purity.

Clergy  –  Those who are ordained as deacon, priest or bishop. As distinct from the laity.

Communion of Saints  –  Those who are in heaven (the Church triumphant), in purgatory (the Church suffering) and on earth (the Church militant), united in bonds of charity through prayer.

Concupiscence  –  The disordered desires left from Original Sin.

Confession  –  A sacrament whereby the sinner confesses his or her sins to Christ and receives absolution (total forgiveness of all venial sins and sins confessed) from a priest.

Confessional  –  A private space, usually in a church, where the Sacrament of Confession is administered.

Confirmation  –  A sacrament whereby a baptised Christian is confirmed in the faith through the reception of the Holy Spirit.

Conscience  –  A practical moral judgment, based on what we hear from God, encouraging us to do what is good and avoid what is evil. It needs to be formed through prayer and sound teaching.

Consent  –  The mutual gift of a husband and wife to each other during the sacrament of marriage, made freely and without coercion, in the presence of the Church’s minister.

Contraception  –  Artificial means used to stop conception. Contraception is gravely wrong because it puts a barrier between spouses and reduces the complete self-giving natural to the conjugal act.

Cooperation in Evil  –  When somebody directly (formal cooperation) or indirectly (material cooperation) cooperates in something that is intrinsically wrong.

Cope  –  A cloak-like garment used by bishops, priests and deacons in certain liturgies.

Cotta  –  A white garment worn to below the waist over a cassock.

Covenant  –  1) A solemn agreement based on love, with an exchange of promises, such as the marriage covenant; 2) A solemn agreement based on love between God and human beings, established at various times in the Old Testament and reaching its fulfilment in the New Covenant sealed by the blood of Christ.

Creator  –  God, who makes all things ex nihilo (out of nothing).

D

Deacon  –  Meaning “Servant”, an ordained man who helps the priest and congregation by proclaiming the Gospel at Mass, preaching occasionally, conducting funeral rites, and giving certain blessings and conducting other functions.

Dean  –  A priest with responsibility for a deanery. He has the duty to support the local clergy in pastoral matters, and reports the death of local clergy to the bishop.

Deanery  –  A group of parishes in a particular area of a diocese, whose priests meet regularly to discuss local pastoral business.

Death  – The separation of body and soul at the end of one's earthly life. At death, each person is judged by God for his actions on earth.

Decalogue  –  From the Greek meaning “ten words”, another term for the Ten Commandments.

Demons  –  Angels who chose to reject God.

Deposit of Faith  –   The saving truth entrusted by Christ to the apostles and handed on by them to the Church, to be preserved and proclaimed to all nations.

Devil  –  Also called Satan, or Lucifer, the devil is a fallen angel who rejected God and is in eternal separation from him, in hell. The devil tempts us to sin and ultimately, to the eternal loss of our soul. Christ's death and resurrection have saved the world from the throes of the devil, but prayer, fasting and good works are needed if we are to be saved and avoid the pains of hell.

Devotions  –  Different ways of piety expressed by the faithful outside the context of the liturgy.

Diocese  –  A group of parishes in a particular region. Also called the local Church.

Discernment  –  That process whereby we strive to find out, through prayer, fasting, study and experience, what God is asking of us, both for short-term decisions and for a direction in life.

Dogma  –  Teaching.

E

Ecclesial  –  Meaning “of the Church”.

Ecumenism  –  The ongoing effort to promote and restore unity among Christians.

Editio typica  –  Latin for “typical edition”, meaning the text (for example, of the Roman Missal) to which all other translations must conform.

Equality  –  The fact that every person has an equal dignity, being created in the image and likeness of God.

Eucharist  –  From the Greek term for “thanksgiving”, 1) the main sacrament, whereby bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Christ; 2) the part of the Mass at which the transubstantiation of the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ.

Evangelical Counsels  –  Voluntary poverty, unmarried chastity and obedience, undertaken for the purposes of perfecting Christian charity.

Evangelise  –  To proclaim the Good News of salvation in Jesus and his Church through the witness of life and personal apostolate.

Evil  –  The absence of goodness. Moral evil is the absence of goodness produced by sin, while natural evil is the absence of goodness caused by natural disasters such as earthquakes.

Ex opere operato  –  From the Latin meaning “working because of being performed”, it is an expression to denote the fact that the effect of a sacrament depends on the valid administration of the sacrament itself, rather than on the dispositions of the one who administers it.

Extreme Unction  –  Also known as the sacrament of the sick, this is the sacrament of anointing given to people in serious illness.

F

Faith  –  The theological virtue, infused by God into the soul, by which we believe in God and everything that he has revealed to us, as well as everything that the Church teaches.

Family  –  1) The basic unit of society, composed of a man and woman married to each other and their children; 2) the universal community of all men and women.

Fathers of the Church  –  Theologians recognised by the Church to have contributed significantly to the theological tradition of the Church, living mostly before the 8th century, and who based much of their work on the exegesis (interpretation) of the Sacred Scriptures.

Font  –  A bowl, usually fixed to the ground, in which people are baptised.

Form  –  The essential words and actions in a sacrament (see “Matter”).

Fortitude  –  1) One of the four cardinal virtues, whereby we are able to overcome difficulties brought on by ourselves or by others and do what is good in a given situation; 2) A gift of the Holy Spirit that enables the will to do great things for God with joy, without fear, and in spite of all obstacles.

Four Last Things  –  Death, judgment, heaven and hell. It is a good thing to meditate on the four last things before going to sleep.

Freedom  –  A fruit of the will, whereby we can choose what is good, or what is better, over something that is merely good, without any constraint.

Fruits of the Holy Spirit  –  These are perceptible signs that a person is making efforts to be open to God's gentle yet persuasive influence. Traditionally there are twelve: charity, joy, peace, patience, benignity, goodness, long-suffering, mildness, faith, modesty, chastity, self-control.

G

General Judgment  –  The revelation by God of the eternal destination of all people at the end of time.

Gifts of the Holy Spirit  –  Gifts given by the Holy Spirit to someone who devoutly prays for them. The sacraments bestow such gifts. They are prayed for particularly at Confirmation. Traditionally, there are seven: Wisdom, Understanding, Counsel, Knowledge, Fortitude, Piety, Fear of the Lord.

Glorified Body  –  The physical body when it has risen from the dead, surpassing all mortal beauty and being itself immortal. We hope to inherit this state when we die.

God  –  A pure spirit, who has existed for all eternity, without beginning or end, who is omnipotent (all-powerful), omniscient (all-knowing) and is love itself. There are three persons in this one God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, together making the Holy Trinity.

God the Father  –  The first Person of the Holy Trinity, the Father of all and begetter of all life.

God the Son  –  The second Person of the Holy Trinity, in an eternal relationship of love with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Also called the Word, he became flesh at the Incarnation as Jesus Christ, in order to save us from our sins and give us the possibility of inheriting eternal life.

God the Holy Spirit  –  The third Person of the Holy Trinity, an expression of the Father's love for the Son and that of the Son for the Father. The Holy Spirit is just as much God as the Father or the Son is. He is given to us at Baptism and in a way that strengthens us further at Confirmation.

Golgotha  –  The hill outside Jerusalem where Jesus was crucified. Also called Calvary.

Gospel  –  1) The Good News of Jesus Christ, come to save us from our sins and lead us to everlasting life through his passion, death and resurrection; 2) A book in the Bible that recounts the main events of Jesus’s life. There are four Gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

Grace  –  God’s gift to us of his very life, that enables us to listen to him and answer his call to perfection. (See also “Actual Grace” and “Sanctifying Grace”.)

Guardian Angel  –  A pure spirit, customarily believed to be given by God to each member of the human race for protection and help.