Catechism of the Catholic Church · Part Two › Section One › Chapter Two · Article 2 (§§1200–1209)
Paragraphs · 10
The Catechism's text is under copyright, so each paragraph is quoted briefly here with a link to the full text at vatican.va.
Liturgical traditions and the catholicity of the Church
- §1200 — From the first community of Jerusalem until the parousia, it is the same Paschal mystery that the Churches of God, faithful to the apostolic faith, celebrate in every place.vatican.va
- §1201 — The mystery of Christ is so unfathomably rich that it cannot be exhausted by its expression in any single liturgical tradition. the history of the blossoming and development of these rites witnesses to a remarkable complementarity.vatican.va
- §1202 — The diverse liturgical traditions have arisen by very reason of the Church's mission. Churches of the same geographical and cultural area came to celebrate the mystery of Christ through particular expressions characterized by the culture: in the tradition of the "deposit of faith," in liturgical…vatican.va
- §1203 — The liturgical traditions or rites presently in use in the Church are the Latin (principally the Roman rite, but also the rites of certain local churches, such as the Ambrosian rite, or those of certain religious orders) and the Byzantine, Alexandrian or Coptic, Syriac, Armenian, Maronite and Chaldean rites.vatican.va
- §1204 — The celebration of the liturgy, therefore, should correspond to the genius and culture of the different peoples. In order that the mystery of Christ be "made known to all the nations .vatican.va
- §1205 — "In the liturgy, above all that of the sacraments, there is an immutable part, a part that is divinely instituted and of which the Church is the guardian, and parts that can be changed, which the Church has the power and on occasion also the duty to adapt to the cultures of recently evangelized peoples."vatican.va
- §1206 — "Liturgical diversity can be a source of enrichment, but it can also provoke tensions, mutual misunderstandings, and even schisms. In this matter it is clear that diversity must not damage unity.vatican.va
In Brief
- §1207 — It is fitting that liturgical celebration tends to express itself in the culture of the people where the Church finds herself, though without being submissive to it.vatican.va
- §1208 — The diverse liturgical traditions or rites, legitimately recognized, manifest the catholicity of the Church, because they signify and communicate the same mystery of Christ.vatican.va
- §1209 — , the communion in the faith and the sacraments received from the apostles, a communion that is both signified and guaranteed by apostolic succession.vatican.va