Believing is Integral to Human Living

What does it mean to believe?
Related Questions:
What do you believe?

define belief in relation to faith, knowledge, and truth

Why do we express our religious beliefs?

beliefs:

  • mystery
  • life/death
  • Who am I?
  • Why am I here?
  • Why is there evil in the world?

practices:

  • creeds
  • rituals
  • teachings
  • social experiences

Where do we go to find meaning?

  • sacred literature
  • religious traditions
  • culture

The Role of Truth, Goodness, The Spiritual, and Religious Community in the Search to Believe
What contributes to our beliefs?
Related Questions:
What are the major belief statements of diverse religious communities?
How does community influence religious belief about:

  • truth?
  • goodness?
  • the spiritual?
  • religious community?

The Great Religions of the East: Hinduism and Buddhism
How can we better understand the Great Religions of the East?
Related Questions:
What are the major belief statements of Hinduism?
What are the major belief statements of Buddhism?
What are the major belief statements of Zen Buddhism?
What do these religions believe about:

  • truth?
  • goodness?
  • the spiritual?
  • religious community?

The Bible as a Primary Source of Christian Belief
What is the relationship between the Bible and Christian beliefs?
Related Questions:
How does the Catholic community understand the Bible?

  • Composition
  • Interpretation

What is the significance of story?

Significance of the core narratives as Christian story

  • Exodus
  • Death
  • Resurrection

The role of biblical personalities

How does knowledge of the culture of Jesus’ time help our understanding of the Gospels?

  • Daily life in Jesus’ time.

Jesus is Central to Christian Catholic Beliefs
Who is Jesus?
Related Questions:
Why is Jesus important?

To understand how God is revealed to us in our lives.

  • Old Testament
  • The Mission Begins
  • The Kingdom of God
  • Jesus Speaks

What did Jesus teach?

To explore Jesus’ teachings about the Reign of God.

  • Jesus Heals

What is the message in Jesus’ death?

To investigate the meaning of Resurrection.

  • The Cross
  • Resurrection

How did the early Church develop?

  • Paul
  • The Letters of Paul
  • Good News from Age to Age

The Reign of God in Contemporary Society
What does it mean to be a Christian in the world today?
Related Questions:
What does the Catholic Church teach about Social Justice?

To explore the notion of social global responsibility.

  • Catholic Social Justice: An Overview

What does the Catholic Church teach about Justice and Peace?

To explore ways of resolving conflicts.

  • Justice and Peace

What does the Catholic church teach about the dignity of persons?

To recognize the dignity of every human person.

  • Justice and Society
  • Justice and the Right to Life
  • Justice and Prejudice
  • Justice and Racism
  • Justice and Poverty

Primary Sources

  • Pastva, Sr. Loretta. Great Religions of the World. St. Mary’s Press. 1986.
  • Pennock, Michael. Living the Message of the New Testament. Ave Maria Press. 1992.
  • Wilkins, Ronald and Gustafson, Janie. Justice, Catholic Faith At Work In The World. BROWN-ROA. 1994.
  • Zanzig, T. Jesus of History, Christ of Faith. St. Mary’s Press. 1998.
  • World Religions: A Voyage of Discovery. Jeffrey Brodd. St. Mary’s Press, Christian Brothers Publishers, Winona, Minn. 1998.
  • online resources for Zen Buddhism

Recommended Resources

  • The Bible (NRSV). Also at http://bible.oremus.org/ Various translations of the Bible can be found at http://www.biblegateway.com/
  • Catechism of the Catholic Church (Second Edition). Doubleday. 1997.
  • Complete online text for Catechism of the Catholic Church http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc.htm
  • The Documents of Vatican II. Full text search engine can be found at: http://www.stjosef.at/council/search/
  • http://thesocialedge.com A monthly online social justice and faith magazine containing articles, columns, commentary, editorials, book reviews, and interviews usually not found in mainstream news media.
  • http://thesocialedge.com A monthly online social justice and faith magazine containing articles, columns, commentary, editorials, book reviews, and interviews usually not found in mainstream news media.
  • National Catholic Reporter http://ncronline.org. An independent American Catholic weekly, this newspaper offers selected articles from back issues online.