E
Eucharisted
Guest
I know CAF exists to answer questions on Catholicism, and I wanted to help out by posting links to books and sites for non-Catholic Christians and non-Christians to better understand the Catholic Church. I know everyone has preconceived notions of what they think is true of something else, and this is to help you see if those notions are true or not about the Catholic Church. Please read with an open heart, because a closed heart cannot accept what is true in regards to another religion.
Catechism of the Catholic Church
The Catechism is a book that presents all the teachings of the Catholic Church. It is a bit dry reading, but it includes citations to Bible verses, works of the early Church Fathers, and various Church documents, all of which are good to read if you want to have a deeper understanding of the Catholic Church.
Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church
The Compendium of the Catechism is a summary of the teachings of the Catholic Church, and it builds on the teachings of the Church to give an even deeper understanding of the Church. In the appendixes you’ll find common prayers which Catholic Christians pray and formulas of Catholic doctrine.
Sacred Scripture (the Bible)
You’ll notice when you click on the link that it dosen’t take you to a Bible translation but to four translations which you can choose from. The reason I did it this way is because each of the translations is unique: the Latin (Vulgate) is the oldest surviving translation of the Bible, the English (New American Bible) is the newest translation of the Bible used by Catholic Christians in America and other English-speaking countries, the Italian (La Sacra Bibbia) is a translation which I believe the Vatican added because it’s in Italy, and the Spanish (El libro de Pueblo de Dios) is a translation which the Vatican included in the list for South America and Mexico and Spanish-speaking countries.
Writings of the Fathers of the Church
The Church Fathers were men in the early days of the Catholic Church who taught the faith and other spiritual things (in the New Testament, father is synonymous with teacher). Now, the thing about the writings of the Church Fathers is that, between the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church, there is a bit of a debate over what the writers said in their sermons, letters, books, etc.: it’s really a theological debate, so if you ask a Cathoic what a Church Father meant in such-and-such a writing, you’ll get one answer, and if you ask an Eastern Orthodox what a Church Father meant in such-and-such a writing, you’ll get another answer. But the key to finding the truth is pretty simple: read and compare, that is, read the Bible and compare the teachings of the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church, and see which Church stands firm against the Bible, because the Bible cannot contradict what the Church of Christ teaches, nor can the Church contradict what is in the Bible. And by this you’ll find out how to truly understand the writings of the early Fathers.
Official Website of the Holy See
This website is where you’ll find almost anything Catholic related: Church documents, liturgical feasts, writings by the saints, encyclicals and dogmas, etc. All it takes to find what you need is patience and perseverence. And the website has different langauges, too, so if you don’t speak English, it is more than likely the website will be able to have something in your language, which I think is rather handy.
Catechism of the Catholic Church
The Catechism is a book that presents all the teachings of the Catholic Church. It is a bit dry reading, but it includes citations to Bible verses, works of the early Church Fathers, and various Church documents, all of which are good to read if you want to have a deeper understanding of the Catholic Church.
Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church
The Compendium of the Catechism is a summary of the teachings of the Catholic Church, and it builds on the teachings of the Church to give an even deeper understanding of the Church. In the appendixes you’ll find common prayers which Catholic Christians pray and formulas of Catholic doctrine.
Sacred Scripture (the Bible)
You’ll notice when you click on the link that it dosen’t take you to a Bible translation but to four translations which you can choose from. The reason I did it this way is because each of the translations is unique: the Latin (Vulgate) is the oldest surviving translation of the Bible, the English (New American Bible) is the newest translation of the Bible used by Catholic Christians in America and other English-speaking countries, the Italian (La Sacra Bibbia) is a translation which I believe the Vatican added because it’s in Italy, and the Spanish (El libro de Pueblo de Dios) is a translation which the Vatican included in the list for South America and Mexico and Spanish-speaking countries.
Writings of the Fathers of the Church
The Church Fathers were men in the early days of the Catholic Church who taught the faith and other spiritual things (in the New Testament, father is synonymous with teacher). Now, the thing about the writings of the Church Fathers is that, between the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church, there is a bit of a debate over what the writers said in their sermons, letters, books, etc.: it’s really a theological debate, so if you ask a Cathoic what a Church Father meant in such-and-such a writing, you’ll get one answer, and if you ask an Eastern Orthodox what a Church Father meant in such-and-such a writing, you’ll get another answer. But the key to finding the truth is pretty simple: read and compare, that is, read the Bible and compare the teachings of the Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church, and see which Church stands firm against the Bible, because the Bible cannot contradict what the Church of Christ teaches, nor can the Church contradict what is in the Bible. And by this you’ll find out how to truly understand the writings of the early Fathers.
Official Website of the Holy See
This website is where you’ll find almost anything Catholic related: Church documents, liturgical feasts, writings by the saints, encyclicals and dogmas, etc. All it takes to find what you need is patience and perseverence. And the website has different langauges, too, so if you don’t speak English, it is more than likely the website will be able to have something in your language, which I think is rather handy.