Appendix M:  Glossary of Terms

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

-A-

Abortion: Deliberate termination of pregnancy by killing the unborn child. Such direct abortion, willed either as an end or a means, is gravely contrary to the moral law. The Church attaches the canonical penalty of excommunication to this crime against human life.

Absolution: An essential element of the Sacrament of Penance in which the priest, by the power entrusted to the Church by Christ, pardons sin(s) of the penitent.

Administrator (Parish): A priest who is appointed in a temporary capacity to perform the duties of a pastor in a parish.

Adultery: Marital infidelity, or sexual relations between two partners, at least one of whom is married to another party. The sixth commandment and the New Testament forbid adultery absolutely.

Affinity: The relationship between a spouse and all the relatives in the direct line of the other spouse.

Annulment: A declaration that a marriage, which at first appeared to be valid, was really canonically defective from the beginning.

-B-

Baptism: The first of the seven sacraments, and the “door” which gives access to the other sacraments. Baptism is the first and chief sacrament of forgiveness of sins because it unites us with Christ, who died for our sins and rose for our justification. Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist constitute the “sacraments of initiation” by which a believer receives the remission of original and personal sin, begins a new life in Christ and the Holy Spirit, and is incorporated into the Church, the body of Christ. The rite of Baptism consists in immersing the candidate in water, or pouring water on the head, while pronouncing the invocation of the Most Holy Trinity: The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Blessing: A blessing or benediction is a prayer invoking God’s power and care upon some person, place, thing, or undertaking. The prayer of benediction acknowledges God as the source of all blessing. Some blessings confer a permanent status: consecration of persons to God, or setting things apart for liturgical usage.

Body of Christ: (1) The human body which the Son of God assumed through his conception in the womb of Mary and which is now glorified in heaven; (2) This same body and blood, together with the soul and divinity, of our Lord Jesus Christ are sacramentally present in Eucharist under the appearance of bread and wine; (3) The Church is called the mystical Body of Christ because of the intimate communion which Jesus shares with his disciples; the metaphor of a body, whose head is Christ and whose members are the faithful, provides an image which keeps in focus both unity and the diversity of Church.

-C-

Canon Law: The rules (canons or laws) which provide the norms for good order in the visible society of the Church. Those canon laws that apply universally are contained in the Codes of Canon Law. The most recent Code of Canon Law was promulgated in 1983 for the Latin (Western) Church, and in 1991 for the Eastern Church (The Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches).

Canonical form: The requirement that a Catholic be married in the presence of a properly delegated Catholic priest or deacon and two witnesses.

Catechesis: An education of children, young people, and adults in the faith of the Church through the teaching of the Christian doctrine in an organic and systematic way to make them disciples of Jesus Christ. Those who perform the ministry of catechesis in the Church are called “catechists.”

Catechism: A popular summary or compendium of Catholic doctrine about faith and morals and designed for use in catechesis.

Catechumenal model: A method of marriage preparation that resembles in its structure the sacramental preparation used in the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) in which persons (catechumenate) are prepared to become a members of the Church.

Chastity: The moral virtue which, under the cardinal virtue of temperance, provides for the successful integration of sexuality within the person leading to the inner unity of the bodily and spiritual being. Chastity is called on the fruits of the Holy Spirit.

Christian faithful: Those incorporated in Christ through baptism, constituted as the people of God, sharers in Christ’s priestly, prophetic, and royal office. The term, “lay faithful” refers to the laity, all the faithful except those in Holy Orders and those who belong to a religious state approved by the Church.

Civil law: The body of laws of a secular government.

Collateral: The blood relationships between persons outside the direct line, such as siblings, cousins, aunts, etc.

Conference of bishops: A permanent institution consisting of the grouping of the bishops of a given nation or territory whereby, according to the norm of law, they jointly exercise pastoral functions on behalf of the Christian faithful of their territory.

Consanguinity: The blood relationship between people.

Consent: The action indicating the free choice or decision of one party to enter into marriage.

Consummated: A marriage in which the partners have willingly and mutually performed the act of intercourse.

Convalidation: An act of making valid the marriage consent that has been previously exchanged invalidly.

Conversion: A radical reorientation of the whole life away from sin and evil, and toward God. This change of heart or conversion is a central element of Christ’s preaching, of the Church’s ministry of evangelization, and the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation.

Covenant: A solemn agreement between human beings or between God and a human being involving mutual commitment or guarantees. The Bible refers to God’s covenants with Noah, Abraham, and Moses as leader of the chosen people, Israel.

Creation: The act by which the eternal God gave a beginning to all that exists outside of himself. Creation also refers to the created universe or totality of what exists, as often expressed by the formula “the heavens and the earth.”

Credal affirmation: The traditional wedding ceremonies in some other religions include rites which in effect would constitute joining another religion (communicatio in sacris). For a Catholic to participate in such rites would be considered a credal affirmation. For this reason a pastoral minister should inquire carefully into the religious significance of traditional wedding customs before permitting them to be included in a Catholic ceremony. This becomes all the more important if a Catholic wishes a dispensation to marry in a non-monotheistic religion’s ceremony. In some cases, the dispensation may not be possible.

-D-

Diocese: A portion of the people of God that is entrusted for pastoral care to a bishop with cooperation of the priests.

Diriment: Causing to become wholly void; nullifying, an impediment to a valid marriage. Canon 1073 states, “A diriment impediment renders a person incapable of validly contracting a marriage.”

Disparity of cult: Marriages between a Catholic and an unbaptized person (e.g., Jew, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, Mormon) are often called “interfaith” marriages. The canonical term is disparity of cult. In all cases as such, a dispensation is needed. A dispensation from canonical form is also required if the couple will be having someone other than a Catholic priest or deacon witness their vows. To obtain the dispensation, the Catholic party will be asked to affirm in some way (verbally or in writing) that he or she will promise to do all in his/her power to see that the children of the marriage be baptized and educated in the Catholic Church. The other partner is to be informed of these promises and responsibilities; the non-Catholic partner may feel a like obligation because of his/her own religious commitment. No formal written or oral promise is required of the non-Catholic partner. In carrying out this duty of transmitting the Catholic faith to the children, the Catholic parent will do so with respect for the religious freedom and conscience of the other parent and with due regard for the unity and permanence of the marriage and for the maintenance of the communion of the family.

Dispensation: The relaxation of an ecclesiastical law in a particular case by the competent authority.

Divorce: The claim that the indissoluble marriage bond validly entered into between a man and a woman is broken. A civil dissolution of the marriage contract (divorce) does not free persons from a valid marriage before God; remarriage would not be morally licit.

Domicile: The place where a person lives for an indefinite time. In law it is acquired by residence within the territory of a certain parish or at least of a diocese, which is joined either with the intention of remaining there permanently unless called away or when the person has actually lived there for five complete years.

-E-

Ecclesiastic/Ecclesiastical: Pertaining to or of the Church (Greek/Latin: ecclesia). Hence ecclesiastical government is Church government; an ecclesiastical province is a grouping of Church jurisdictions or dioceses; an ecclesiastic is a Church official.

Ecclesiastical law: As opposed to divine law from God, those laws that are the creation of the appropriate Church authority.

Ecumenism: Promotion of the restoration of unity among all Christians, the unity which is a gift of Christ and to which the Church is called by the Holy Spirit. For the Catholic Church, the Decree on Ecumenism of the Second Vatican Council provides a charter for ecumenical efforts, and the Directory on Ecumenism (1993) gives important practical orientations.

Eucharist: The ritual, sacramental action of thanksgiving to God which constitutes the principal Christian liturgical celebration of and communion in the paschal mystery of Christ. The liturgical action called the Eucharist is also traditionally known as the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. It is one of the seven sacraments of the Church; the Holy Eucharist completes Christian initiation. The Sunday celebration of the Eucharist is at the heart of the Church’s life.

Evangelization: The proclamation of Christ and his Gospel (Greek: evangelion) by word and the testimony of life, in fulfillment of Christ’s command.

Excommunication: A severe ecclesiastical penalty, resulting from grave crimes against the Catholic religion, imposed by ecclesiastical authority or incurred as a direct result of the commission of an offense. Excommunication excludes the offender from taking part in the Eucharist or other sacraments and from the exercise of any ecclesiastical office, ministry, or function.

-F-

Faith: Both a gift of God and a human act by which the believer gives personal adherence to God who invites his response, and freely assents to the whole truth that God has revealed. It is this revelation of God which the Church proposes for our belief, and which we profess in the Creed, celebrate in the sacraments, live by right conduct that fulfills the twofold commandment of charity (as specified in the ten commandments), and respond to our prayer of faith. Faith is both a theological virtue given by God as grace, and an obligation which flows from the first commandment of God.

Fornication: Sexual intercourse between an unmarried man and an unmarried woman. Fornication is a serious violation of the sixth commandment of God.

Fruits of the Holy Spirit: The perfections that the Holy Spirit forms in us as the “first fruits” of eternal glory. The tradition of the Church identifies 12 fruits of the Holy Spirit.

-G-

Gifts of the Holy Spirit: Permanent dispositions that make us docile to follow the promptings of the Holy Spirit. The traditional list of seven gifts of the Spirit is derived from Isaiah 11:1-3: Wisdom, understanding, knowledge, counsel, piety, fortitude, and fear of the Lord.

Gospel: The “good news” of God’s mercy and love revealed in the life, death, and resurrection of Christ. It is this Gospel or good news that the Apostles, and the Church following them, are to proclaim to the entire world. The Gospel is handed on in the apostolic tradition of the Church as the source of all-saving truth and moral discipline. The four Gospels are the books written by the evangelists Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John which have for their central object Jesus Christ, God’s incarnate Son: his life, teachings, Passion and glorification, and his Church’s beginnings under the Spirit’s guidance.

Grace: The free and undeserved gift that God gives us to respond to our vocation to become his adopted children. As sanctifying grace, God shares his divine life and friendship with us in a habitual gift, a stable and supernatural disposition that enables the soul to live with God, to act by his love. As actual grace, God gives us the help to conform our lives to his will. Sacramental grace and special graces (charisms, the grace of one’s state of life) are gifts of the Holy Spirit to help us live out our Christian vocation.

-H-

Homosexuality: Sexual attraction or orientation toward persons of the same sex and/or sexual acts between persons of the same sex. Homosexual acts are morally wrong because they violate God’s purpose for human sexual activity.

Human person: The human individual, made in the image of God; not some thing but some one, a unity of spirit and matter, soul and body, capable of knowledge, self-possession, and freedom, who can enter into communion with other persons—and with God. The human person needs to live in society, which is a group of persons bound together organically by a principle of unity that goes beyond each one of them.

-I-

Impediment: An obstacle that makes a person ineligible for performing an act or receiving a sacrament, e.g., Holy Orders or Matrimony.

Indissolubility: An essential property of marriage indicating that the bond of marriage may never be dissolved or ended.

-L-

Laity: The faithful who, having been incorporated into Christ through Baptism, are made part of the people of God, the Church. The laity participate in their own way in the priestly, prophetic, and kingly functions of Christ. Laity are distinguished from clergy (who have received Holy Orders) and those in consecrated life.

Law: An ordinance of reason for the common good, made by that person who has care for the community, and promulgated to that community (Thomas Aquinas).

Life: Both God’s gift of created human life and His divine life given to us as sanctifying grace. Beyond its ordinary meaning of human life, Jesus used “life” to signify a share in his own divine Trinitarian existence, which becomes possible for those who respond to his invitation to turn away from sin and open their hearts to God’s abiding love. Eternal life signifies that this gift will last forever in the blessedness of heaven. This gift of God begins with the “life” of faith and “new life” of Baptism, is communicated in sanctifying grace, and reaches perfection in the communion of life and love with the Holy Trinity in heaven.

Ligamen: A prior bond of marriage (Canon 1085).

Liturgy: In its original meaning, a “public work” or service done in the name of or on behalf of the people. Through the liturgy, Christ our high Priest continues his work of our redemption through the Church’s celebration of the Paschal mystery by which he accomplished our salvation.

Local ordinary: All those who are mentioned under the category of “ordinary” except superiors of religious institutes and societies of apostolic life. See Ordinary.

-M-

Marriage: A covenant or partnership of life between a man and woman, which is ordered to the well-being of the spouses and to the procreation and upbringing of children. When validly contracted between two baptized people, marriage is a sacrament.

Matrimony: See Marriage.

Mercy: The loving kindness, compassion, or forbearance shown to one who offends (e.g., The mercy of God to us sinners).

Ministry: The service or work of sanctification performed by the preaching of the word and the celebration of the sacraments by those in Holy Orders, or in determined circumstances, by laity. The New Testament speaks of a variety of ministries in the Church; Christ himself is the source of ministry in the Church. Bishops, priests, and deacons are ordained ministers in the Church.

Mixed Marriage: Marriage of a Catholic to a member of another Christian church. Canon 1124-25 states, “Without the express permission of the competent authority, marriage is prohibited between two baptized persons, one of whom was baptized in the catholic Church or received into it after baptism and has not defected from it by a formal act, the other of whom belongs to a Church or ecclesial community not in full communion with the catholic Church.

“The local Ordinary can grant this permission if there is a just and reasonable cause. He is not to grant it unless the following conditions are fulfilled:

1. the catholic party is to declare that he or she is prepared to remove dangers of defecting from the faith, and is to make a sincere promise to do all in his or her power in order that all the children be baptized and brought up in the catholic Church;
2. the other party is to be informed in good time of these promises to be made by the catholic party, so that it is certain that he or she is truly aware of the promise and of the obligation of the catholic party
3. both parties are to be instructed about the purposes and essential properties of marriage, which are not to be excluded by either contractant.”

“Mixed marriage” is a loose term for a Catholic and non-Catholic wedding. Mixed religion is a term for a Catholic and a baptized non-Catholic wedding. Disparity of cult is a term for a marriage between a Catholic and a non-baptized person.

Mystagogy: A liturgical catechesis which aims to initiate people into the mystery of Christ. In a more specific sense, the catechetical period following immediately after the reception of Baptism by adults.

-N-

Nihil obstat: The verification that “nothing stands in the way” of something happening. In terms of marriage, it means that there are no impediments or any other reasons why a couple would be prohibited from entering into marriage.

Nuptial blessing: Prayers for the blessing of a couple being married, especially of the bride.

-O-

Obedience: (1) The submission to the authority of God which requires everyone to obey the divine law. Obedience to the Church is required in those things that pertain to our salvation; and obedience is due to legitimate civil authority, which has its origin in God for the sake of the common good and the order of society. The fourth commandment obliges children to obey their parents. (2) Obedience of faith: The first obedience is that of faith: to listen and freely submit to the word of God. (3) Obedience of Christ: Jesus Christ substituted his obedience to the will of his Father even unto death, for the disobedience of sin, in order to bring us the grace of justification and to satisfy for our sins. (4) Vow of obedience: In imitation of this obedience of Jesus, as an evangelical counsel, the faithful may profess a vow of obedience; a public vow of obedience, accepted by Church authority, is one element that characterizes the consecrated life.

Ordinary: A person who has been placed over a particular church or over a community that is equivalent to it, as well as those who possess ordinary general executive power in said churches and communities, namely vicars general and episcopal vicars; and likewise for their own members the major superiors of clerical religious institutes or pontifical right and of clerical societies of apostolic life of pontifical right, who possess at least ordinary executive power.

Orthodox Churches: The Eastern Christian Churches that separated from full union with the Catholic Church.

-P-

Parish: A stable community of the faithful within a particular church or diocese, whose pastoral care is confided by the bishop to a priest as pastor.

Paschal Mystery/ Sacrifice: Christ’s work of redemption accomplished principally by his Passion, death, Resurrection, and glorious Ascension, whereby “dying he destroyed our death, rising he restored our life” (1067; cf. 654). The paschal mystery is celebrated and made present in the liturgy of the Church, and its saving effects are communicated through the sacraments, especially the Eucharist, which renews the paschal sacrifice of Christ as the sacrifice offered by the Church.

Pastor/pastoral office: The ministry of shepherding the faithful in the name of Christ. The Pope and bishops receive the pastoral office which they are to exercise with Christ the Good Shepherd as their model; they share their pastoral ministry with priests, to whom they give responsibility over a portion of the flock as pastors of parishes.

People of God: A synonym for the Church, taken from the Old Testament people whom God chose, Israel. Christ instituted the new and eternal covenant by which a new priestly, prophetic, and royal People of God, the Church, participates in these offices of Christ and in the mission and service which flows from them.

Prayer: The elevation of the mind and heart to God in praise of his glory; a petition made to God for some desired good, or in thanksgiving for a good received or in intercession for others before God. Through prayer the Christian experiences a communion with God through Christ in the Church.

Prohibition (Sometimes called a prohibition, a restriction, a rider, or a vetitum on the person): Issues that came to light during the Tribunal process which would indicate that the person is at risk for entering into marriage. It could also mean that the person is not fulfilling his or her responsibilities toward the children, or that the person has demonstrated an understanding of marriage that is greatly at odds with the Church’s teaching on marriage. This prohibition is stated in the final letter to the person as well as the decree from the Tribunal. It should also appear on the person’s baptismal record.

Proxy: A marriage in which at least one of the parties is represented by another person who has been officially designated by the party for this purpose.

Putative: An invalid marriage that has been entered into by at least one of the parties in good faith.

-Q-

Quasi-domicile: Residency within the territory of a certain parish or at least of a diocese that is acquired by the intention of remaining there at least three months unless called away, or by actual residency in the territory for three months.

-R-

Racism: Unjust discrimination on the basis of a person’s race; a violation of human dignity, and a sin against justice.

Ratified: A valid marriage that has been entered into by two baptized persons.

Restriction: See Prohibition.

Rider: See Prohibition.

Rite of Marriage, The: There are three options for The Rite of Marriage:

1.  The Rite for Celebrating Marriage During Mass: A Nuptial Mass, which is a Mass that includes the celebration of the sacrament of marriage. This form is normally used when two Catholics marry. It has special readings and prayers suitable to the Sacrament of Marriage. The Sacrament of Marriage between two baptized Catholics should normally be celebrated within Mass.

If the situation warrants it and the local bishop gives permission, a Nuptial Mass may be celebrated for a marriage between a Catholic and a baptized person who is not a Catholic, except that Communion is not given to the non-Catholic since the general law of the church does not allow it. In such instances, it is better to use the appropriate ritual for marriage outside Mass. This is always the case in a marriage between a baptized Catholic and a non-baptized person.

2.  The Rite for Celebrating Marriage Outside Mass: The second form is normally used when a Catholic marries a baptized non-Catholic. This form is preferred since the wedding liturgy is a time to stress the unity of two families. The wedding liturgy outside of Mass might be more familiar to non-Catholic families and guests and current church regulations prohibit non-Catholics from receiving communion at Mass.

3.  The Rite for Celebration Marriage Between and Catholic and an Unbaptized Person: The third form is used when a Catholic marries someone who is not baptized, either a catechumen or a non-Christian.

Rites: The diverse liturgical traditions in which the one catholic and apostolic faith has come to be expressed and celebrated in various cultures and lands; for example, in the West, the Roman and Ambrosian (Latin) rites; in the East, the Byzantine, Coptic (Alexandrian), Syriac, Armenian, Maronite, and Chaldean rites (1201-1203). “Rite” and “ritual” are sometimes interchanged, as in “the sacramental rite” or “the sacramental ritual.”

-S-

Sacrament: An efficacious sign of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us through the work of the Holy Spirit. The sacraments (called “mysteries” in the Eastern Churches) are seven in number: Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Penance or Reconciliation, Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders, and Matrimony.

Sacrament of Reconciliation: The sacramental celebration in which, through God’s mercy and forgiveness, the sinner is reconciled with God and also with the Church, Christ’s Body, which is wounded by sin.

Sanatio in radice: A retroactive convalidation of the marriage which does not require a new act of consent.

Scandal: An attitude or behavior that leads another to do evil.

-T-

Tradition: the living transmission of the message of the Gospel in the Church. The oral preaching of the Apostles, and the written message of salvation under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit (Bible), are conserved and handed on as the deposit of faith through the apostolic succession in the Church. Both the living Tradition and the written Scriptures have their common source in the revelation of God in Jesus Christ. The theological, liturgical, disciplinary, and devotional traditions of the local churches both contain and can be distinguished from this apostolic Tradition.

Tribunal: Those courts established by the church to decide issues presented to it for resolution; most of the work of a tribunal involves cases for the determination of the invalidity of a marriage.

Trinity: The mystery of God in three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The revealed truth of the Holy Trinity is at the very root of the Church’s living faith as expressed in the Creed. The mystery of the Trinity in itself is inaccessible to the human mind and is the object of faith only because it was revealed by Jesus Christ, the divine Son of the eternal Father.

-U-

Uniate: Eastern Catholic Churches. One in favor of the union of the Greek and Roman Catholic churches. A Christian of a church adhering to an Eastern rite and discipline but submitting to papal authority. Note: This is a pejorative term used by Orthodox, and objectionable to Eastern Catholics.

Unity: An essential property of marriage that indicates complete monogamy and faithfulness.

-V-

Valid: A canonical description that signifies that a particular act has its intended consequences due to its fulfillment of the requirements of the law.

Vetitum: See Prohibition.

Vocation: The calling or destiny we have in this life and hereafter. God has created the human person to love and serve him; the fulfillment of this vocation is eternal happiness. Christ calls the faithful to the perfection of holiness. The vocation of the laity consists in seeking the kingdom of God by engaging in temporal affairs and directing them according to God’s will. Priestly and religious vocations are dedicated to the service of the Church as the universal sacrament of salvation.