Catechism of the Catholic Church · Part One › Section Two › Chapter Three › Article 9 · Paragraph 5 (§§946–962)
Paragraphs · 17
The Catechism's text is under copyright, so each paragraph is quoted briefly here with a link to the full text at vatican.va.
Paragraph 5. THE COMMUNION OF SAINTS
- §946 — After confessing "the holy catholic Church," the Apostles' Creed adds "the communion of saints." In a certain sense this article is a further explanation of the preceding: "What is the Church if not the assembly of all the saints?"vatican.va
- §947 — "Since all the faithful form one body, the good of each is communicated to the others.... We must therefore believe that there exists a communion of goods in the Church.vatican.va
- §948 — The term "communion of saints" therefore has two closely linked meanings: communion in holy things (sancta)" and "among holy persons (sancti).vatican.va
I. Communion in Spiritual Goods
- §949 — In the primitive community of Jerusalem, the disciples "devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of the bread and the prayers."vatican.va
- §950 — Communion of the sacraments. "The fruit of all the sacraments belongs to all the faithful. All the sacraments are sacred links uniting the faithful with one another and binding them to Jesus Christ, and above all Baptism, the gate by which we enter into the Church.vatican.va
- §951 — Communion of charisms. Within the communion of the Church, the Holy Spirit "distributes special graces among the faithful of every rank" for the building up of the Church.vatican.va
- §952 — "They had everything in common." "Everything the true Christian has is to be regarded as a good possessed in common with everyone else. All Christians should be ready and eager to come to the help of the needy .vatican.va
- §953 — Communion in charity. In the sanctorum communio, "None of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself." "If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.vatican.va
Ii. the Communion of the Church of Heaven and Earth
- §954 — The three states of the Church. "When the Lord comes in glory, and all his angels with him, death will be no more and all things will be subject to him.vatican.va
- §955 — "So it is that the union of the wayfarers with the brethren who sleep in the peace of Christ is in no way interrupted, but on the contrary, according to the constant faith of the Church, this union is reinforced by an exchange of spiritual goods."vatican.va
- §956 — The intercession of the saints. "Being more closely united to Christ, those who dwell in heaven fix the whole Church more firmly in holiness.... They do not cease to intercede with the Father for us, as they proffer the merits which they acquired on earth through the one mediator between God and men, Christ Jesus....vatican.va
- §957 — Communion with the saints. "It is not merely by the title of example that we cherish the memory of those in heaven; we seek, rather, that by this devotion to the exercise of fraternal charity the union of the whole Church in the Spirit may be strengthened.vatican.va
- §958 — Communion with the dead. "In full consciousness of this communion of the whole Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, the Church in its pilgrim members, from the very earliest days of the Christian religion, has honored with great respect the memory of the dead; and 'because…vatican.va
- §959 — In the one family of God. "For if we continue to love one another and to join in praising the Most Holy Trinity - all of us who are sons of God and form one family in Christ - we will be faithful to the deepest vocation of the Church."vatican.va
In Brief
- §960 — The Church is a "communion of saints": this expression refers first to the "holy things" (sancta), above all the Eucharist, by which "the unity of believers, who form one body in Christ, is both represented and brought about" (LG 3).vatican.va
- §961 — The term "communion of saints" refers also to the communion of "holy persons" (sancti) in Christ who "died for all," so that what each one does or suffers in and for Christ bears fruit for all.vatican.va
- §962 — "We believe in the communion of all the faithful of Christ, those who are pilgrims on earth, the dead who are being purified, and the blessed in heaven, all together forming one Church; and we believe that in this communion, the merciful love of God…vatican.va
Scripture cited · 23 verses
2 Maccabees 12:45 · Matthew 25:31 · Luke 16:1 · Luke 16:3 · Acts 2:42 · Acts 4:32 · Romans 14:7 · 1 Corinthians 10:24 · 1 Corinthians 12:7 · 1 Corinthians 12:26 · 1 Corinthians 12:27 · 1 Corinthians 13:5 · 1 Corinthians 15:26 · 1 Corinthians 15:27 · Ephesians 4:1 · Ephesians 4:2 · Ephesians 4:3 · Ephesians 4:4 · Ephesians 4:5 · Ephesians 4:6 · Ephesians 4:16 · 1 Timothy 2:5 · Hebrews 3:6