Are these Catechisms the same?

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The Baltimore Catechism and the Catholic Church Catechism? I have not had the privilege of reading them both. I am looking to buy a Catechism to further gain some more insight into the Catholic church and it’s Traditions. I am wondering if they are 1 in the same or if they are different books. If they are different, could someone please give me a brief description of each book and its purpose?

I thank you in advance.
 
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Dimmers:
The Baltimore Catechism and the Catholic Church Catechism? I have not had the privilege of reading them both. I am looking to buy a Catechism to further gain some more insight into the Catholic church and it’s Traditions. I am wondering if they are 1 in the same or if they are different books. If they are different, could someone please give me a brief description of each book and its purpose?

I thank you in advance.
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As far as I know the Catechism of the Catholic Church is the universal catechism from which any local catechisms may come but they cannot contradict anythin in the CCC. The Baltimore Catechism is a local one.
 
They are different books. They have the same general purpose, but they take a different approach.

The Baltimore Catechism was published in the 1800’s- that was before two world wars, the rise and fall of the Soviet Union, the cultural turmoil of the 1920’s and the 1960’s, the Second Vatican Council, and the 1983 Code of Canon Law (which changed some of the things- like rules of fasting before Mass- that are mentioned in the Baltimore Catechism). While doctrines have not changed, the approach to many things is different (relations with the Jews, for example). It’s good for Catholics to know, because it has some very sound truths in it, but it’s probably something you should read after you know more about the Faith.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church was published in the 1990’s. It isn’t as straightforward as the Baltimore Catechism- it goes into more detail in explaining why the Church teaches what it teaches. It references the Second Vatican Council, which had not happened at the time the Baltimore Catechism was published, whose documents- whether people like them or not- have done a lot to shape the Church as it stands today.

Since you are looking for more information on the Catholic Church, I should say the Catechisms alone might not be enough. Books like “The Journey Home”, “Surprised by the Truth”, and “Catholicism and Fundamentalism” helped me understand things that the Catechism just lost me on.
 
The Baltimore Catechism is written in a very simple style, question and answer format with brief descriptions of certain thing. It is written at a I guess about a 7th or 8th grade level of comprehension. It does lack the sophistication? of the Catechism of the Catholic Church current edition.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church is a very thorough and very complex book, which has tons of references. It is not easy to read due I think to the translation that was used. Still it is complete and explains just about everything fully.

Another good catechism is by Spirago-Clarke and is titled The Catechism Explained. It was published in 1921 and is available in a current editiopn by Tan Books. It is somewhat dated, but does explain in a very understandable way the basic tenets of the faith.

Another modern up to date catechism is the St. Josephs Catechism It is available at most Catholic Book Stores and is widely used in catechism classes.

You might try the new ones first, then chak out the older ones.

The simplest to understand by far is the Baltimore 2. There is also a Baltimore 1, but it is written at about the 3rd grade level or so…
 
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Dimmers:
The Baltimore Catechism and the Catholic Church Catechism? I have not had the privilege of reading them both. I am looking to buy a Catechism to further gain some more insight into the Catholic church and it’s Traditions. I am wondering if they are 1 in the same or if they are different books. If they are different, could someone please give me a brief description of each book and its purpose?

I thank you in advance.
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They are both valid catechisms. They both present the teachings of the Catholic faith. However they do this for different groups and different situations. The Catechism of The Catholic Church is like the encyclopedia of the Faith and the Baltimore Catechism is like a book of facts, they don’t contradict each other but present the same information in different ways.

The other part of your question. The CCC is one book. The Baltimore Catechism is made up of 5 or 6(?) dofferent books for different levels. 00,0,1,2,3,4. 00, 0 is for small children, 1 is for elementary age, 2 is for Jr. high, 3 is for high school, 4 is for adult.
 
If you want the detail on the Church’s doctrine, and understanding of it at the current time, CCC is probably the way to go. However, if you’re still hesitant about putting out any money, download the Baltimore Catechism for free, and you can always spring for the CCC later (it’s a little longer-winded, so possibly more useful to have the bound book than just the text on a computer as compared to the B.C.)
 
Also the Baltimore Catechism is derived from the Roman Catechism a.k.a. the Catechism of the Council of Trent.
 
Br. Rich SFO:
They are both valid catechisms.
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However, as an previous poster pointed out, some of the material in the Baltimore Catechism is now outdated and plain wrong. True it’s just a tiny minority of the total information, but it is a pitfall that folks should be aware of.

So despite its easier reading style, the additional effort of double-checking what you’re reading makes it more cumbersome in the long run.
 
The* Baltimore Catechism* is designed to be memorized by school kids. Back in the day, kids in Catholic school were drilled on the questions and answers in class, and apparently sometimes in competitions (according to Patrick Buchanan in his autobiography, Right from the Beginning).

The CCC is actually a book that was designed to be read by adults.

Both books are o.k., they just have different purposes.
 
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Timidity:
However, as an previous poster pointed out, some of the material in the Baltimore Catechism is now outdated and plain wrong. True it’s just a tiny minority of the total information, but it is a pitfall that folks should be aware of.

So despite its easier reading style, the additional effort of double-checking what you’re reading makes it more cumbersome in the long run.
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I use many different catechisms when preparing topics to speak on. I also use the Baltimore Catechism. It presents the teachings of the Church which do not change, just in a different way, with different wording, from a different view. It is also true that it presents some discipline or practices of the Church that may have changed. One must always remember to separate doctrine/teachings from the discipline and devotions.
 
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