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CATHOLIC CULTURE
Ć 1861: national unity
Ć 1866: Florence
Ć 1870: Rome conquered militarily. Pope refused to recognize the new Italian State (non expedit). Begins the Roman question.
Ć 1929: Lateran accords
The Church has always done everything to defend its hegemony within the Italian Society, often participating to the political life of the country.
2 main channels between the human and the divine
Ć SACRAMENTS:
Baptism: is the means by which we become members of the community of believers, defined in the New Testament as the Body of Christ. Just as Jesus was baptized with water by John the Baptist, we include people in the community of faith by baptizing them with water. Following a series of questions, responses and prayers, the priest pours water on the candidate. The sign of the cross may be made on their forehead with blessed oil. In the Episcopal Church, a person is baptized only once.
Holy Communion: is a reenactment of the Last Supper Jesus shared with his disciples before his death on the cross. Any baptized person is welcome to share in this meal of bread and wine.
Reconciliation of a Penitent: while private confession of sins is not a requirement, anyone may request the reconciliation of a penitent from a priest and receive assurance of God's forgiveness. The confession is always made in private and kept in strict confidence.
Confirmation: is when a baptized person, who has been instructed in the Christian faith, makes a mature commitment to God within a worship setting and receives a special blessing and prayer from a bishop.
Holy Matrimony: is Christian marriage, in which a woman and a man enter into a life-long union and make their promises before God in a worship service.
Unction: is a special blessing for those who are sick or desire special prayers. A sign of the cross is made on their forehead with blessed oil.
Ordination: is the sacrament where God empowers trained persons for special ministry as deacons, priests or bishops. The service always includes the laying on of hands by bishops.
Ć CULT OF THE SAINTS
Priests
ƒÜ Mediation of the gift of God¡¦s Grace through the Sacraments:
Ć Baptism
Ć Penance
Ć Communion
Ć Holy orders
Ć Confirmation
Ć Wedding
Ć Extreme unction
POPE
Head of the Church, establishes dogma and doctrine within the Church together with the Council
Catholic Dogma:
Ć Sanctity of life
Ć Indissolubility of marriage
Ć Importance of the family
Ć Moral existence
Enemies of the Church in history:
Ć Protestants
Ć Natural sciences (Galileo)
Ć Liberalism (State separated by the church)
Ć Socialism (materialism)
Political Involvement of the Church in Italy:
Ć 1861-1922: Against the Liberal State
Ć 1929: Lateran Accords: the official religion of the Fascist State
Ć 1945-1992: political support for DCI
After WWII:
the Church helped to rebuild morally and politically the country, providing Italians a different collective identity from the fascist one and spiritual assistance for the majority of the population.
Cold War
against the communist and socialist creed (1949: excommunication of the Church of silence)
Vote for the Cross (De Gasperi)
Pio XII
Controversial, rejected all the forms of totalitarianism, politics had to be subordinated to ethics, preeminence of the human being in social life: in this way with his messages of 1942 and 1944 he gave democracy a moral value as a form of government.
Bartali: the catholic athlete
Censorship on cinema and books (index)
Pio XII had a solitary exercise of power,
in his view Catholics were the only who could bring positive changes in society
La Dolce Vita
the society was changing rapidly
Pio XII died in 1958, his successor was Pope Roncalli who took the name of John XXIII
JOHN XXIII
Wanted to be a spiritual guide and not a ¡§statesman of the Church¡¨
Faith and simplicity
separation of State and Church entirely accepted
condemned all forms of war
obtained admiration of non-Catholics
1960 Second Vatican Council: a renewal of the Church
Ć Support DCI
Ć Dialogue with the left and other religions
Ć Vernacular and latin abolished
Ć Inner commitment > external adherence
Ć Still: sexual act-procreation, opposition to contraception and homosexuality
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