Baltimore Catechism

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Was it replaced by the current Catechism of the Catholic Church? I’ve just recently came in contact with one and I find it to explain things more clearly than the CCC. What’s your opinion on this book?
 
BC is fine. CCC is “official” but if you don’t like the length, BC works.
 
LINVS said:
Was it replaced by the current Catechism of the Catholic Church? I’ve just recently came in contact with one and I find it to explain things more clearly than the CCC. What’s your opinion on this book?
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The CCC is the official universal Catechism of the Church. Local catechisms are fine as long as they do not contain anything that contradicts the teachings in the CCC.
 
The Baltimore Catechism was produced in the 19th century by the US Catholic bishops for use in schools. The current Catechism of the Catholic Church was produced by the Vatican during the pontificate of John Paul II. It is much longer and more detailed than the Baltimore Catechism.
 
PaulfromIowa said:
The Baltimore Catechism was produced in the 19th century by the US Catholic bishops for use in schools. The current Catechism of the Catholic Church was produced by the Vatican during the pontificate of John Paul II. It is much longer and more detailed than the Baltimore Catechism.
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The “Baltimore Catechism” is also out of date. For example, the fasting and abstinence regulations have a different content and emphasis today than they did when the Baltimore Catechism was written. It also does not take into account the changes made by the Second Vatican Council.

The Baltimore Catechism is fine as a historical document, but if you are trying to learn about the Catholic Church as it exists today, you should read the more up-to-date publication.

Reading the Baltimore Catechism as a means of finding out about the Catholic Church today is like reading a book on the U.S. Constitution that was written before the Civil War.
 
I think the BC would be fine for very young people, but I am not a big fan of it’s overly simplistic, question-answer format for an adult learner.

I highly recommend the United States Catholic Cathechism for Adults as a starting point. It is easy to read, and puts the rules of the Church in context & perspective for the typical “person in the pew”.
LINVS said:
Was it replaced by the current Catechism of the Catholic Church? I’ve just recently came in contact with one and I find it to explain things more clearly than the CCC. What’s your opinion on this book?
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My mother and her sister had the Baltimore Catechism growing up, and I have my mother’s religion book from her 5th grade year as she & her sister attended Catholic school for a few years before moving to a more rural setting that did not have a nearby Catholic school. The questions and answers were taken from the Baltimore Catechism inside that book as I made comparisons with the copies of the BC I was able to get recently.
 
There are updated versions available, which reflect current disciplines

What changes? We are told repeatedly that there have been no changes in doctrine… That being sad everything in the Catechism should be fine

Am i missing something?
 
If one prefers a question-and-answer format like the BC, but wants something more up-to-date, there’s the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

It’s available online on the Vatican website: Compendium of the CCC
 
=LINVS;10261521]Was it replaced by the current Catechism of the Catholic Church? I’ve just recently came in contact with one and I find it to explain things more clearly than the CCC. What’s your opinion on this book?
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First an FYI:🙂

Because od this fact the USCCB [UNITED SATES CONFERENCE OF CATHOLICS BISHOPS] have issued a new and more “user freindly” version called:

UNITED STATES CATHOLIC CATECHISM FOR ADULTS; which is available at
www. usccb.org

The 1992 & and slightly modified 1994 Catechism were not written for the laity so much as for Bishops; Priest and Catechist. It is formatted as a REFERENCE book not as a “novel” type read.

Also there is a COMPENDIUM CATECHISM that sort of mimics the Baltimore Catechism and its Q & A format. it too is a far easire read.🙂
 
LINVS said:
Was it replaced by the current Catechism of the Catholic Church? I’ve just recently came in contact with one and I find it to explain things more clearly than the CCC. What’s your opinion on this book?
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LINVS,

The Baltimore Catechism was formulated under the Direction of Bishop Carrol…and more recently the Adult Catechism of the USA was published, actually about 10 years ago. I suggest you try the audio version. The Universal Catechism is meant to be a Catechism from which particular Catechisms can be created. The Phillipines actually has a Catechism for the Phillipines. So, the answer is that the USA Catechism for adults replaced the Baltimore Catechism…

US Catholic Catechism for Adults Audiobook
 
I am surprised at some of the answers you folks are giving. I also grew up with the Baltimore Catechism that was specific to Catholic School education. A child must learn to walk before they can run. The CCC is for those who have learned to run. The Venerable ArchBishop Fulton Sheen touted its use even after the beginning of VII, and in 1965 I first received it . Yes there are contemporary differences, but perfect for new Catholics and children. Our Catholic schools in this country don’t even come close.

So the answer is simplistic: Yes!
 
plefe said:
I am surprised at some of the answers you folks are giving. I also grew up with the Baltimore Catechism that was specific to Catholic School education. A child must learn to walk before they can run. The CCC is for those who have learned to run. The Venerable ArchBishop Fulton Sheen touted its use even after the beginning of VII, and in 1965 I first received it . Yes there are contemporary differences, but perfect for new Catholics and children. Our Catholic schools in this country don’t even come close.

So the answer is simplistic: Yes!
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Plefe,

I am surprised that you declare such indicating that you have not followed the advice of the Bishops and understand that the USA Audlt Catechism of the USA is for walking, running, triatheletes and in the contents of the Catechism itself explains the Baltimore Catechism and the Adult Catechism of the USA…

Your logic is that if the Catechism is Trent was good enough then why bother with the present Universal Catechism…

I suggest you get hold of the Audio USA Catechism for Adults and then rethink this.
 
plefe said:
I am surprised at some of the answers you folks are giving. I also grew up with the Baltimore Catechism that was specific to Catholic School education. A child must learn to walk before they can run. The CCC is for those who have learned to run. The Venerable ArchBishop Fulton Sheen touted its use even after the beginning of VII, and in 1965 I first received it . Yes there are contemporary differences, but perfect for new Catholics and children. Our Catholic schools in this country don’t even come close.

So the answer is simplistic: Yes!
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I grew up with the BC, and one thing I can tell you is that there has never been a question in my mind what the Church teaches. IMO we have less well catechized laity when they dropped the BC for the young ones.
 
mary_bobo said:
I grew up with the BC, and one thing I can tell you is that there has never been a question in my mind what the Church teaches. IMO we have less well catechized laity when they dropped the BC for the young ones.
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Mary,

Have you read the YouCat or the Adult Catechism USA?
 
There’s nothing wrong with using older catechisms, since the faith is always the same. The only differences might be certain disciplines which may have changed, or in manner of presentation. For example, when speaking of the Compendium to the CCC, then Cardinal Ratzinger said this about the Catechism of St. Pius X (a catechism similar to the Baltimore that was popular in some places in Europe):
Cardinal Ratzinger:
Q: Speaking of St. Pius X’s catechism, which continues to have sympathizers, will the publication of the compendium mean that it is definitively exceeded?

Cardinal Ratzinger: The faith, as such, is always the same. Therefore, St. Pius X’s catechism always retains its value. However, the way of transmitting the contents of the faith can change.

Consequently, one can ask if St. Pius X’s catechism can in this respect be regarded as still valid today. I think that the compendium we are preparing can respond better to today’s needs. But this does not exclude the fact that there can be persons or groups that feel more comfortable with St. Pius X’s catechism.

It should not be forgotten that that Catechism stemmed from a text that was prepared by the Pope himself [Pius X] when he was bishop of Mantua. The text was the fruit of the personal catechetical experience of Giuseppe Sarto, whose characteristics were simplicity of exposition and depth of content. Also because of this, St. Pius X’s catechism might have friends in the future. But this does not make our work superfluous.
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zenit.org/article-7161?l=english
 
The Baltimore Catechism is great for the youth. I even used the Baltimore Catechism No. 4 for High School Seniors, and they still learned a lot. You can’t make any assumptions about a young person’s understanding of the Faith - sometimes you have to keep it simple.
 
10thCrusader said:
The Baltimore Catechism is great for the youth. I even used the Baltimore Catechism No. 4 for High School Seniors, and they still learned a lot. You can’t make any assumptions about a young person’s understanding of the Faith - sometimes you have to keep it simple.
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Crusader,

My daughter is 13 and one thing you can do is simplify everything by explaining that the Catechism is organized into 4 parts. This is not hard to remmember.

Profession of Faith
Sacramental Life
Life in Christ
Prayer

If my daughter can repeat and understand this then I can explain everything else.
 
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