“By the catechism of St. Thomas is generally understood his explanation of the Apostles’ Creed, the. Lord’s Prayer, the Hail Mary, and the Decalogue”.
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1 THE CATECHETICAL INSTRUCTIONS of ST. THOMAS AQUINAS Translated with a Commentary by Rev. Joseph B. Collins, S.S., D.D., Ph.D. Introduction by Rev. Rudolph G. Bandas, Ph.D., S.T.D. et M. Nihil Obstat: E. A. Connolly, S.S., J.C.D, Censor Deputatus Imprimatur: Most Reverend Michael J. Cu rley, D.D., Archbishop of Baltimore Baltimore, February 9, 1939
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2 The Catholic Primer Copyright Notice The contents of this document is in the public domain. However, this electronic version is copyrighted. © The Catholic Primer , 2004. All Rights Reserved. This electronic version may be distributed free of charge provided that the contents are not altered and this copyright notice is included with the distributed copy, provided that the following conditions are adhered to. This electronic document may not be offered in connection with any other document, product, promotion or other item that is sold, exchange for compensation of any type or man ner, or used as a gift for contributions, including charitable contributions without the express consent of The Catholic Primer. Notwi thstanding the preceding, if this product is transferred on CD-ROM, DVD, or other similar storage media, the transferor may charge for the cost of the media, reasonable shipping expenses, and may request, but not demand, an additional donation not to exceed US$10. Question s concerning this limited license should be directed to webmaster@catholicprimer.org . This document may not be distributed in print form without the express prior consent of The Catholic Primer. Adobe®, Acrobat®, and Acrobat® Reader® are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries. The Catholic Primer: www.catholicprimer.org
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3Table of Contents INTRODUCTION. ..6 TRANSLATOR’S PREFACE.. 7 ST. THOMAS AQUINAS. .7 CHIEF WORKS OF ST. THOMAS..9 THE OPUSCULA. .9 ST. THOMAS IN THE HISTORY OF CATECHETICS..10 TRANSLATOR’S NOTE10 INDEX OF KEY TERMS. ..12 THE APOSTLES’ CREED .16 WHAT IS FAITH?.. 16 THE FIRST ARTICLE: “I Believe in One God.”..18 SOME MOTIVES FOR BELIEF IN MANY GODS..19 ERRORS RELATING TO THE FIRST ARTICLE.20 GOOD EFFECTS OF OUR FAITH.21 THE SECOND ARTICLE: “And in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord.”22 ERRORS RELATING TO THE SECOND ARTICLE..23 THE DIVINE GENERATION..23 THE THIRD ARTICLE.. 25 ERRORS RELATING TO THE THIRD ARTICLE25 GOOD EFFECTS OF THESE CONSIDERATIONS..26 THE FOURTH ARTICLE: “Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried.”.. 28 EVIL EFFECTS OF SIN 29 CHRIST, EXEMPLAR OF VIRTUES..30 THE FIFTH ARTICLE: “He Descended into Hell.”31 REASONS FOR CHRIST’S DESCENT..31 WHAT WE MAY LEARN FROM THIS..32 SPECIAL CHARACTER OF CHRI ST’S RESURRECTION.34 WHAT WE MAY LEARN FROM THE RESURRECTION35 THE SIXTH ARTICLE: “He ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty.”. .36 THE SUBLIMITY OF THE ASCENSION.36 THE REASONABLENESS OF THE ASCENSION36 THE BENEFITS OF THE ASCENSION37 THE SEVENTH ARTICLE: “From thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.”. .38 THE FORM OF THE JUDGEMENT..38 WHO ARE TO BE JUDGED?38 THE FEAR OF THE JUDGMENT..39 OUR PREPARATION FOR THE JUDGMENT.40 THE EIGHTH ARTICLE: “I Believe in the Holy Ghost.”..40 TEACHING OF THE NICENE CREED41 BENEFITS FROM THE HOLY GHOST41 THE NINTH ARTICLE: “I Believe in the Holy Catholic Church.”..43 THE UNITY OF THE CHURCH..43 THE HOLINESS OF THE CHURCH.43 THE CATHOLICITY OR UNIVERSALITY OF THE CHURCH44 THE APOSTOLICITY OF THE CHURCH..44 THE TENTH ARTICLE: “The Communion of Saints, the Forgiveness of Sins.”46 THE SEVEN SACRAMENTS: A REVIEW46 THE FORGIVENESS OF SINS..47
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4THE COMMUNION OF SAINTS.47 THE ELEVENTH ARTICLE: “The Resurrection of the Body.”.48 THE BENEFITS OF THE RESURRECTION.49 QUALITIES OF THE RISEN BODIES..49 CONDITION OF THE BLESSED.50 CONDITION OF THE DAMNED.50 THE TWELFTH ARTICLE: “Life everlasting. Amen.”..51 WHAT IS EVERLASTING LIFE?.51 THE FULLNESS OF DESIRES.52 WHAT IS EVERLASTING DEATH?52 EXPLANATION OF THE TEN COMMANDMENTS.54 THE TEN COMMANDMENTS.54 THE FIRST COMMANDMENT: “T hou Shalt Not Have Strange Gods Before Me.”..54 WHY WE SHOULD ADOR E ONE GOD..55 SECOND COMMANDMENT: “Thou Shalt Not Take the Name of the Lord Thy God in Vain.”. .58 THE MEANING OF IN VAIN.58 CONDITIONS OF A LAWFUL OATH..59 TAKING GOD’S NAME JUSTLY..59 THE THIRD COMMANDMENT: “Remember that You Keep Holy the Sabbath Day.”62 REASONS FOR THIS COMMANDMENT62 FROM WHAT WE SHOULD ABSTA IN ON THE SABBATH.63 WITH WHAT THE SABBATH AND FE ASTS SHOULD BE OCCUPIED..64 THE SPIRITUAL SABBATH65 THE HEAVENLY SABBATH[62].65 THE FOURTH COMMANDMENT: “Honour thy fath er and thy mother, that thou mayest be long-lived upon the la nd which the Lord thy God will give thee.”.68 WHAT CHILDREN OWE PARENTS..69 REWARDS FOR KEEPING THIS COMMANDMENT..70 THE DIFFERENT APPLICATIONS OF FATHER..70 THE FIFTH COMMANDMENT: “Thou Shalt Not Kill.”..73 THE SIN OF KILLING. .73 THE SIN OF ANGER ..74 THE SIXTH COMMANDMENT: “Thou Sh alt Not Commit Adultery.”..78 WHY ADULTERY AND FORNICATION MUST BE AVOIDED..79 THE SEVENTH COMMANDMENT: “Thou Shalt Not Steal.”..81 WHY STEALING MUST BE AVOIDED82 THE EIGHTH COMMANDMENT: “Thou Shalt Not Bear False Witness Against Thy Neighbour.”.. ..84 WAYS OF VIOLATING THIS COMMANDMENT84 SPECIAL EFFECTS OF TELLING LIES.85 THE NINTH (TENTH) COMMANDMENT: “Tho u shalt Not Covet Thy Neighbour™s Goods.” ..87 THE TENTH (NINTH) COMMANDMENT: “Thou Shalt Not Covet Thy Neighbour™s Wife.”. .89 WAYS TO OVERCOME CONCUPISCENCE.90 SUMMARY OF THE TEN COMMANDMENTS..91 EXPLANATION OF THE LORD’S PRAYER..92 FIVE QUALITIES OF PRAYER..92 THE OPENING WORDS OF THE LORD’S PRAYER.94 PREPARATION FOR THE PETITIONS94 THE PREEMINENCE OF GOD95 THE FIRST PETITION: “Hallowed Be Thy Name.”..99 GOD’S NAME IS LOVABLE99
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5GOD’S NAME IS VENERABLE.99 GOD’S NAME IS INEFFABLE..99 MEANING OF HALLOWED100 THE SECOND PETITION: “Thy Kingdom Come.”101 WHY WE PRAY THUS.10 1 WHY WE DESIRE THIS KINGDOM101 THE THIRD PETITION: “Thy Will Be Done on Earth as It Is in Heaven.”103 THE WILL OF GOD. 104 WHAT DOES GOD WILL?104 THE COMMANDMENTS: GOD’S WILL..104 LET THY WILL BE DONE.105 THE FOURTH PETITION THE FOURTH PETITION “Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread.” .107 THE FIFTH PETITION: “And Forgive Us Our Trespasses As We Forgive Those Who Trespass Against Us.”. 110 WHY DO WE MAKE THIS PETITION?.110 THE FULFILLMENT OF THIS PETITION.111 WHAT MUST WE DO?111 THE SIXTH PETITION: “And Lead Us Not Into Temptation.”..113 WHAT IS TEMPTATION?.113 HOW IS ONE TEMPTED?114 SEVENTH PETITION: “But Deliver Us from Evil. Amen.”116 THE VALUE OF PATIENCE117 A SHORT EXPLANATION OF THE WHOLE PRAYER117 THE HAIL MARY .119 THE ANGELIC SALUTATION.119 “HAIL MARY”.. 119 THE ANGEL’S DIGNITY119 “FULL OF GRACE”. 119 VIRTUES OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN..120 MARY, HELP OF CHRISTIANS.120 “THE LORD IS WITH THEE”.120 “BLESSED ART THOU AMONG WOMEN”121 “BLESSED IS THE FRUIT OF THY WOMB”.121 QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION..124
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6 INTRODUCTION Some are of the opinion that the teaching of religion requires no preparation and that anything is good enough for the child. Asking cate chism questions and listening to the child’s recitation of the memorised answers–exercises which are considered as constituting the whole process of catechisation–are in th eir estimation, after all, very simple tasks. And if the child stumbles and hesitates, a little prompting will elicit the desi red answer. Unfortunately these exercises of verbal memory, instead of inflaming the child with a love of God, leave him as cold as do the drills of the multiplication table. The una ssimilated abstract forms, instead of promoting spiritual growth, become non-functional memory loads. Religion, presented by methods such as these, strikes the child as a mere formality and as a hard law, and he applies himself to it more out of necessity than out of love and a joyous enthusiasm. The teacher must carefully prepare the religion lesson if he wishes to give an accurate and adequate explanation of the catech ismal truths. The child’s intellectual powers are not sufficiently developed to grasp correctly a religious truth w ithout appropriate explan ations. The adult has by experience acquired many ideas and can interpret the new in terms of the old. But this is not true of the child. For him the bread of divine truth and li fe must be broken slowly. At the same time his mind is an “unmarked virgin slate” which registers new impressions with the pliability of wax and retains them with the durability of marble. If a ch ild, through a faulty presentation on the part of the teacher, assimilates an erroneous id ea in his early years, he may retain it for the rest of his life. The child will be confirmed in his error by the teac her’s authority, which he accepts unquestioningly, and by his own imitative tendency which makes him r eadily repeat whatever the teacher says. If the instructor is to be a messenger of truth and not of error, he must have access to doctrinal commentaries in which the truths of faith are e xplained in a simple, accurate and authoritative manner. The catechist must supply those concrete expl anations which the Catechism and religion books are obliged in their brevity to leave out . Theological manuals in use by priests and seminarians usually state a thesis and then prove it from the infallible decrees of the Church, from the Scriptures and Fathers, and fi nally from reason. The thesis shoul d logically be placed at the end of such a discussion, since it is an abstr act conclusion based upon many concrete facts. The doctrinal statements in our Catechisms and re ligion books are also conc lusions–conclusions based upon facts derived from vari ous sources. To expect the child to grasp these abstract formulas without first becoming acquainted with the concrete facts on which they are based, is to expect greater intellectual acumen in th e child than in the theologian. Catechists must with the help of appropriate handbooks build up the rich doctrin al background which the Catechism and religion books presuppose. In his translation entitled “The Catechetical Instru ctions of St. Thomas Aquinas,” the Rev. Joseph B. Collins, S.S., S.T.D., Professor of Theology and Catechetics at the Catholic University of America, has made available to teachers of re ligion a theologically accurate explanation of the Catechism. It is Dr. Collins’ latest contributi on to the catechetical movement in America. The appearance of this translation of St. Thomas’ ca techetical works will be greeted with genuine satisfaction by all. In these days of renewed interest in Thomism, especially on the part of laymen, it will be comforting to know that the vast knowledge of the Church’s greatest theologian is now made accessible–in a condensed and simple form–not only to teachers of religion but to the laity at large.
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8later years he confided to his secretary and compan ion, Reginald of Piperno, that immediately after this event he as granted his urgent prayer for the gift of perpetual ch astity, and thereafter had complete freedom from the motions of concupiscence. : seems probable that this gave first basis for his title of Angelic Doctor. In 1245 St. Thomas began to attend the lectures in th eology of St. Albert the Great at the University of Paris. He made extraordinary progress in his studies, and thre e years later he accompanied St. Albert to Cologne there to cont inue his study. He was engaged n teaching in 1250. This same year marks his ordination to the priesthood. Thomas acco mpanied his teacher, Albert the Great, back to Paris in 1252, where he continued his lecturing and at the same tim e prepared for the examinations for the degree of Master n Theology. He was aw arded the degree in 1257 from the University of Paris. He continued to lecture at this world-famous institution duri ng these early years in his career, which was marked by developing intellectual power and originality and growing familiarity with the vast field of theological and philosophical learning. St. Thomas was called to Rome in 1259, and for nine busy years was t eaching, lecturing, and writing as the theologian of the Papal Court. He continued his study of Aristotle, and was deeply engrossed in the literature of the Fathers of the C hurch. “He worked with the spirit of a missionary,” says Martian, “in the cause of Tr uth against error.”[3] His chief writings of this period were a number of philosophical works, commentaries on va rious Books of the Old and New Testaments, theological disputations; above all, in 1267 or 1268 he completed the First Part of his masterpiece, the “Summa Theologica.” St. Thomas was already widely known as a great theologian and scholar in this century which abounded in great theologians and scholars. Recalle d to Paris to replace a stricken Master of Theology at the University, he began the last period of his life. He was to live less than six more years. They were crowded years of writing, teac hing, and preaching. His Sermons, which fill a good-sized volume, were begun in the early years of his priestly life, and he continued to preach until his death. He was an authority on the spiritua l life, and personally experienced the trials and consolations of the traine d ascetic and the true contemplative. His writings on ascetic and mystical theology are original and permanen t contributions to the science of the Saints. It is related of him that, after having written the sublime treatise on th e Holy Eucharist, he was seen to fall into an ecstasy, and a voice from the crucifix above the alta r was heard to say: “Thou hast written well of Me, Thomas. What reward wilt thou have?” To th is the Saint replied: “None, Lord, other than Thyself.” Thomas remained in Paris for three years, from 1269 to 1272,4 in the full maturity of his powers and the manifold outpourings of hi s genius. All of the Second Part of the “Summa Theologica” was written at this time, and the Thir d Part was begun. In 1272 he was reca lled to Naples by order of the king to teach at the University of Naples which he ha d attended as a boy. He put the finishing touches on his numerous projects, completed the Third Part of the “Summa” up to Question XC, and then laid down his pen already worn out at th e early age of 48. “I can do no more,” he said on the morning of December 6, 1273. He had experi enced an ecstasy during Mass and said to Reginald, his secretary: “Such secr ets have been revealed to me that all I have written now appears of little value.” During the follow ing Lenten season, Thomas gave to the students and townsfolk of Naples the series of catechetical instructions on the Creed, Commandments, and Prayer which make up part of this volume. They are his last word s. He died on March 7, 1274, at Fossanuova in Northern Italy while on his way to attend the Counc il of Lyons. St. Thomas Aquinas lived in an age of great scholars and great Saints. He is the “prince and Master of all.”[5] St. Thomas was canonised in 1323. St. Pius proclaim ed him a Doctor of the Universal Church in 1567. When Pope Leo XIII wrote his famous Encyc lical, “Aeterni Patris,” on the restoration of Christian philosophy, he urged his readers with all the force of his apostoli c office “to restore the
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9golden wisdom of St. Thom as and to spread it far and wide for the defence and beauty of the Catholic Faith, for the good of soci ety, and for the advantage of all sc iences.” The same Pontiff, in a Brief dated August 4, 1880, designa ted St. Thomas Patron of all Ca tholic universities, and his successors, including Pope Pius XI, have ordered Catholic teachers to ma ke the explanations of Christian Doctrine by St. Thomas the basis for all their teaching. CHIEF WORKS OF ST. THOMAS More than sixty separate works, some of great length and some brief, came from the fertile mind of the Angelic Doctor.[6] Most important and, one woul d wish, most familiar of all his writings is the “Summa Theologica.” This is a comp lete scientific exposition of th eology and at the same time a summary of Christian philosophy. St. Thomas consid ered this work simply as a manual of Christian Doctrine for the use of students. He thus announced its division: “Sin ce the chief aim of this sacred science is to give a knowledge of God, not only as He is in Himself, but also as He is the Beginning of all things and the End of all, especially of all rational creatures–we shall treat first of God; secondly, of rational creatures’ a dvance towards God; thirdly, of Christ who as Man is the Way by which we tend to God.” These are the leading id eas of his “Summa,” and upon them he based the three Parts of this great work. The “Summa contra Gentiles,” whose full title is “T reatise on the truth of the Catholic Faith against Unbelievers” (1258-1261), is the most profound and doubtless the most powerful apologetically work ever written. It is St. Thomas’ “Summa ph ilosophica,” taking philosophy in the modern sense. The long list of Commentaries on the Sacred Script ures are exhaustive, of great depth, and of permanent value. The “Perfection of the Spiritual Life ” is one of the classics in the field of ascetical and mystical theology, and toge ther with pertinent parts of the “Summa” forms a complete explanation of the Christian high er life.[7] St. Thomas also wrote the admirable “Office for the Feast of Corpus Christi” with its familiar prayers and hymns.[8] THE OPUSCULA The “Opuscula” or “Little Treatises ” are very numerous. In the course of time works were listed among the “Opuscula” which were not written by St. Thomas. In the “official” catalogue of Reginald of Piperno the “Opuscula” number seventy. They may be roughly classified as philosophical and theological, on moral and canoni cal questions, on Liturgy and the religious life, and catechetical instructions. There are some “Opus cula” not listed in the “official” catalogue which are now considered authentic. The five “Opuscula ” which are translated in the present volume are undoubtedly authentic.” The Explanations of th e “Creed,” the “Our Father,” and the “Ten Commandments” are numbers 66, 65, 68 respectively in the catalogue which was prepared for the process of canonisation of St. Thom as. The Explanation of the “Hail Mary” is listed in the catalogue of Bernard Guidonis and in later li sts. This is noteworthy, since Be rnard had before him the official list. Both Mandonnet and Grabmann consider the wo rk authentic.[10] St. Thomas gave these Explanations to the students and people of Naples during his last Lenten season on earth. The talks on the Ten Commandments were written down by Peter d’Andrea, and the Explanation of the other prayers were faithfully reported by his secret ary and companion, Reginald of Piperno. The “Explanation of the Seven Sacraments” is the s econd part of the treatise, “De fidei articulis et septem sacramentis,” which St. Thomas wrote at the request of the Archbishop of Palermo in 1261- 62. It is noteworthy that the famed “Decretum pro Armenis” (Instruction for the Armenians), issued by the authority of the Council of Florence, is take n almost verbatim from the second part of this “Opusculum” (i.e., the “Explanation of the Seven Sacr aments”). It is not a de finition of the Council, but a practical instruction, as Denzinger points out.[11]
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10The latest editions of the “Opus cula” are the Vives edition (Paris) of 1871-80 and the Parma edition of 1852-73. This latter edition is reedited by Mandonnet with a new order and an introduction (Lethielleux, Paris, 1927). The “catechetical” “Opuscu la” are here given in one volume in English for the first time. An English translation of tw o of these under the ti tle, “On the Commandments” and “On the Lord’s Prayer,” was made by the Reve rend H. A. Rawes in England in 1891. It is now out of print and practically inaccessible. Recen tly an English translation was made by Rev. Lawrence Shapcote, O. P., in two small volumes wi th the titles, “The Three Greatest Prayers” and “The Commandments of God” (Burns and Oa tes, 1937). The “Explanation of the Seven Sacraments,” however, is here give n for the first time in English. ST. THOMAS IN THE HISTORY OF CATECHETICS The original and traditional meaning of “cateches is” (from the Greek: teaching by word of mouth) was oral teaching or instruction by wo rd. It is used in this sense in the New Testament (e.g., in Luke i. 4; Acts, xviii. 25). “Catechetical” referred solely to this form of oral explanation of Christian Doctrine. This is the meaning that “catechetical instruction” had in the time of St. Thomas and throughout the Middle Ages.[12] “In th is connection,” says one authority, “it must be remembered that the term ‘catechetical’ was very often applied to sermons and instructions for grown people, not for children.”[13] The conception of “catechetical” and “catechism” as referring to the question and answer method of teaching became general on ly during the Counter-Reformation. Thus, St. Augustine’s classic work on teac hing religion, “De rudibus catec hizandis” (On Instructing the Ignorant), is straight expositi on without question and answers. The famed “Roman Catechism” (Catechism of the Council of Trent) is not in question and answer form. Hence, the catechetical instructions of St. Thomas, which are oral explanations of Christia n Doctrine, entitle him to a place in the history of catechetics wi th St. Augustine, Gerson, St. Char les Borromeo, St. Peter Canisius and others.[14] The method of explaining Christian Doctrine by giving detailed attention to the Creed, the Commandments, the Our Father and Hail Mary, goes ba ck to the early centuries of the Church. One of the first great works which embody this fourfold division is the “Catechetic al Instructions” of St. Cyril of Jerusalem (d. 386). This division became general throughout the medieval period, and the “Creed, Code, Sacraments and Prayer” came to be a formula of the faith. Numerous Synods and Councils of the Church at this time decreed that se rmons and instructions must be given the faithful according to this fourfold division.[15] The “R oman Catechism” follows this arrangement, as do most of the Catechisms of modern times. The catechetical instructi ons of St. Thomas were used gene rally throughout the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries as manuals and text-books for priests and teachers of religion.[16] “The Explanations of St. Thomas,” wr ote Spirago, “are remarkable for their conciseness and their simplicity of language; they are es pecially noteworthy be cause the main parts of the catechetical course of instruction are brought into connection with one another so that they appear as one harmonious whole.”[17] The influence of these wo rks is especially prominent in the “Roman Catechism” which the Council of Tr ent ordered written for parish priests and for all teachers of religion. Many of the explanatory passag es in both works are almost identical. TRANSLATOR’S NOTE The edition used in this translation is the Parm a, edited by P. Mandonnet, O. P., “Opuscula Omnia” (Lethielleux, Paris, 1927). Where the Vives edition is used, the change is noted in the footnotes. The edition of the “Roman Catechis m” (Catechism of the Council of Trent) used in the commentary is “Catechismus Concilii Tr identini ad Parochos,” Romae, Ex Typog. Polyglotta, S. Cong. de Prop. Fide, 1891. To Reverend E. A. Connolly, S. S., fo r reading the manuscript and for many helpful suggestions the Translat or is very grateful.
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11 JOSEPH B. COLLINS, S.S., D.D., PH.D. ENDNOTES 1. P. mandonnet, “Date de la naissance de S. Thomas d’Aquin,” in “Revue Thomiste” (1914), 652-662. 2. G. K. Chesterton, “St. Thomas Aquinas” (1933), 43. 3. J. Maritain, “The Angelic Doctor,” 35. 4. For the vexed question of exact dates in the life of St. Thomas, I have relied chiefly on Cayre, “Precis de Patrologie” (Paris, 1930), II, pp. 526- 536, who in turn is largely indebted to the researches of Mandonnet. 5. Pope Leo XIII in Encyclical, “Aeterni Patris,” August 4, 1879. 6. For a complete list of St. Thomas’ writings: Cayre, “loc. cit.”; Maritain, “The Angelic Doctor,” pp. 179- 183′ Catholic Encyclopedia,” XIV, 666 sqq. 7. Cf. Hugh Pope, O. P., “On Prayer and the Contemplative Life by St Thomas” (Benziger Bros., 1914). 8. It contains the “Pangua lingu” with “Tantum ergo” among its verses, “Sacris Solemnis” with the lines of “Panis angelicus,” “Verbum supernum” with its concluding verse, “O salutaris hostia.” The antiphon of the Office is the beautiful “O Sacrum Convivium.” The Prayer said by the celebrant at Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, “Deus qui nobis sub Sacramento mirabili, etc.,” is also a part of this Office. The Eucharistic poem, “Adoro te devote,” is also probably by St. Thomas, who is rightly called the Doctor of the Eucharist. 9. The authoritative studies on the authenticity of the “Opuscula” are: M. Mandonnet, O. P., “Des Ecrits Authentiques de S. Thomas d’Aquin” (Fribourg, 1910), and “Les Opuscules de S. thomas d’Aquin,” in “Revue Thomiste” (1927), 121-157; M. Grabmann, “Die echten Schriften des hl. Thomas v. Aquin” (Munster, 1920). 10. Mandonnet, “Des Ecrits,” etc., 66; Grabmann, “op. cit.,” 232-337. 11. “Enchiridion Symbolorum,” n. 695. 12. “By the catechism of St. Thomas is generally understood his explanation of the Apostles’ Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, the Hail Mary, and the Decalogue” (Gatterer-Kruz, “The Theory and Practice of the Catechism,” 1914, p. 47). 13. Spirago-Messmer, “Spirago’s Method of Christian Doctrine” (1901), 508. 14. John Gerson, the saintly chancellor of the University of Paris, wrote “On Leading the Little Ones to Christ” in the early fifteenth century. St. Charles Borromeo, Archbishop of Milan, was one of the founders of the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine and one of the authors of the Roman Catechism. St. Peter Canisius, the great Jesuit teacher of religion in the Counter-Reformation, wrote the well-known Canisian Catechisms. 15. Cf. Callan-McHugh, “Catechism of the Council of Trent,” Introduction, xiv and xvi. See also Spirago Messmer, “op. cit.,” 507. 16. Spirago-Messmer, “op. cit.,” 513-514. 17. “Ibid.”
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