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QUAM SINGULARI Decree on First Communion Sacred Congregation of the Discipline of the Sacraments August 8, 1910 The pages of the Gospel show clearly how special was that love for children which Christ showed while He was on earth. It was His delight to be in their midst; He was wont to lay His hands on them; He embraced them; and He blessed them. At the same time He was not pleased when they would be driven away by the disciples, whom He rebuked gravely with these words: "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for of such is the kingdom of God." It is clearly seen how highly He held their innocence and the open simplicity of their souls on that occasion when He called a little child to Him and said to the disciples: "Again, I say to you, unless you turn and become like little children, you will not enter into the kingdom of heaven....And whoever receives one such little child for my sake, receives me." The Catholic Church, bearing this in mind, took care even from the beginning to bring the little ones to Christ through Eucharistic Communion, which was administered even to nursing infants. This, as was prescribed in almost all ancient Ritual books, was done at Baptism until the thirteenth century, and this custom prevailed in some places even later. It is still found in the Greek and Oriental Churches. But to remove the danger that infants might eject the Consecrated Host, the custom obtained from the beginning of administering the Eucharist to them under the species of wine only. Infants, however, not only at the time of Baptism, but also frequently thereafter were admitted to the sacred repast. In some churches it was the custom to give the Eucharist to the children immediately after the clergy; in others, the small fragments which remained after the Communion of the adults were given to the children. This practice later died out in the Latin Church, and children were not permitted to approach the Holy Table until they had come to the use of reason and had some knowledge of this august Sacrament. This new practice, already accepted by certain local councils, was solemnly confirmed by the Fourth Council of the Lateran, in 1215, which promulgated its celebrated Canon XXI, whereby sacramental Confession and Holy Communion were made obligatory on the faithful after they had attained the use of reason, in these words: "All the faithful of both sexes shall, after reaching the years of discretion, make private confession of all their sins to their own priest at least once a year, and shall, according to their capacity, perform the enjoined penance; they shall also devoutly receive the Sacrament of Holy Eucharist at least at Easter time unless on the advice of their own priest, for some reasonable cause, it be deemed well to abstain for a while." The Council of Trent, in no way condemning the ancient practice of administering the Eucharist to children before they had attained the use of reason, confirmed the Decree of the Lateran Council and declared anathema those who held otherwise: "If anyone denies that each and all Christians of both sexes are bound, when they have attained the years of discretion, to receive Communion every year at least at Easter, in accordance with the precept of Holy Mother Church, let him be anathema." In accord with this Decree of the Lateran Council, still in effect, the faithful are obliged, as soon as they arrive at the years of discretion, to receive the Sacraments of Penance and Holy Eucharist at least once a year. However, in the precise determination of "the age of reason or discretion" not a few errors and deplorable abuses have crept in during the course of time. There were some who maintained that one age of discretion must be assigned to reception of the Sacrament of Penance and another to the Holy Eucharist. They held that for Confession the age of discretion is reached when one can distinguish right from wrong, hence can commit sin; for Holy Eucharist, however, a greater age is required in which a full knowledge of matters of faith and a better preparation of the soul can be had. As a consequence, owing to various local customs and opinions, the age determined for the reception of First Communion was placed at ten years or twelve, and in places fourteen years or even more were required; and until that age children and youth were prohibited from Eucharistic Communion. This practice of preventing the faithful from receiving on the plea of safeguarding the august Sacrament has been the cause of many evils. It happened that children in their innocence were forced away from the embrace of Christ and deprived of the food of their interior life; and from this it also happened that in their youth, destitute of this strong help, surrounded by so many temptations, they lost their innocence and fell into vicious habits even before tasting of the Sacred Mysteries. And even if a thorough instruction and a careful Sacramental Confession should precede Holy Communion, which does not everywhere occur, still the loss of first innocence is always to be deplored and might have been avoided by reception of the Eucharist in more tender years. No less worthy of condemnation is that practice which prevails in many places prohibiting from Sacramental Confession children who have not yet made their First Holy Communion, or of not giving them absolution. Thus it happens that they, perhaps having fallen into serious sin, remain in that very dangerous state for a long time. But worse still is the practice in certain places which prohibits children who have not yet made their First Communion from being fortified by the Holy Viaticum, even when they are in imminent danger of death; and thus, when they die they are buried with the rites due to infants and are deprived of the prayers of the Church. Such is the injury caused by those who insist on extraordinary preparations for First Communion, beyond what is reasonable; and they doubtless do not realize that such precautions proceed from the errors of the Jansenists who contended that the Most Holy Eucharist is a reward rather than a remedy for human frailty. The Council of Trent, indeed, teaches otherwise when it calls the Eucharist, "An antidote whereby we may be freed from daily faults and be preserved from mortal sins." This doctrine was not long ago strongly emphasized by a Decree of the Sacred Congregation of the Council given on December 20, 1905. It declared that daily approach to Communion is open to all, old and young, and two conditions only are required: the state of grace and a right intention. Moreover, the fact that in ancient times the remaining particles of the Sacred Species were even given to nursing infants seems to indicate that no extraordinary preparation should now be demanded of children who are in the happy state of innocence and purity of soul, and who, amidst so many dangers and seductions of the present time have a special need of this heavenly food. The abuses which we are condemning are due to the fact that they who distinguished one age of discretion for Penance and another for the Eucharist did so in error. The Lateran Council required one and the same age for reception of either Sacrament when it imposed the one obligation of Confession and Communion. Therefore, the age of discretion for Confession is the time when one can distinguish between right and wrong, that is, when one arrives at a certain use of reason, and so similarly, for Holy Communion is required the age when one can distinguish between the Bread of the Holy Eucharist and ordinary bread—again the age at which a child attains the use of reason. The principal interpreters of the Lateran Council and contemporaries of that period had the same teaching concerning this Decree. The history of the Church reveals that a number of synods and episcopal decrees beginning with the twelfth century, shortly after the Lateran Council, admitted children of seven years of age to First Communion. There is moreover the word of St. Thomas Aquinas, who is an authority of the highest order, which reads: "When children begin to have some use of reason, so that they can conceive a devotion toward this Sacrament (the Eucharist), then this Sacrament can be given to them."6 Ledesma thus explains these words: "I say, in accord with common opinion, that the Eucharist is to be given to all who have the use of reason, and just as soon as they attain the use of reason, even though at the time the child may have only a confused notion of what he is doing." Vasquez comments on the same words of St. Thomas as follows: "When a child has once arrived at the use of reason he is immediately bound by the divine law from which not even the Church can dispense him." The same is the teachings of St. Antoninus, who wrote: "But when a child is capable of doing wrong, that is of committing a mortal sin, then he is bound by the precept of Confession and consequently of Communion." The Council of Trent also forces us to the same conclusion when it declares: "Children who have not attained the use of reason are not by any necessity bound to Sacramental Communion of the Eucharist." It assigns as the only reason the fact that they cannot commit sin: "they cannot at that age lose the grace of the sons of God already acquired." From this it is the mind of the Council that children are held to Communion by necessity and by precept when they are capable of losing grace by sin. The words of the Roman Synod, held under Benedict XIII, are in agreement with this in teaching that the obligation to receive the Eucharist begins, "after boys and girls attain the age of discretion, that is, at the age in which they can distinguish this Sacramental food, which is none other than the true Body of Jesus Christ, from common and ordinary bread; and that they know how to receive it with proper religious spirit." The Roman Catechism adds this: "At what age children are to receive the Holy Mysteries no one can better judge than their father and the priest who is their confessor. For it is their duty to ascertain by questioning the children whether they have any understanding of this admirable Sacrament and if they have any desire for it." From all this it is clear that the age of discretion for receiving Holy Communion is that at which the child knows the difference between the Eucharistic Bread and ordinary, material bread, and can therefore approach the altar with proper devotion. Perfect knowledge of the things of faith, therefore, is not required, for an elementary knowledge suffices-some knowledge (aliqua cognitio); similarly full use of reason is not required, for a certain beginning of the use of reason, that is, some use of reason (aliqualis usus rationis) suffices. To postpone Communion, therefore, until later and to insist on a more mature age for its reception must be absolutely discouraged, and indeed such practice was condemned more than once by the Holy See. Thus Pope Pius IX, of happy memory, in a Letter of Cardinal Antonelli to the Bishops of France, March 12, 1866, severely condemned the growing custom existing in some dioceses of postponing the First Communion of children until more mature years, and at the same time sharply disapproved of the age limit which had been assigned. Again, the Sacred Congregation of the Council, on March 15, 1851, corrected a prescription of the Provincial Council of Rouen, which prohibited children under twelve years of age from receiving First Communion. Similarly, this Sacred Congregation of the Discipline of the Sacraments, on March 25, 1910, in a question proposed to it from Strasburg whether children of twelve or fourteen years could be admitted to Holy Communion, answered: "Boys and girls are to be admitted to the Holy Table when they arrive at the years of discretion or the use of reason." After careful deliberation on all these points, this Sacred Congregation of the Discipline of the Sacraments, in a general meeting held on July 15, 1910, in order to remove the above-mentioned abuses and to bring about that children even from their tender years may be united to Jesus Christ, may live His life, and obtain protection from all danger of corruption, has deemed it needful to prescribe the following rules which are to be observed everywhere for the First Communion of children. 1. The age of discretion, both for Confession and for Holy Communion, is the time when a child begins to reason, that is about the seventh year, more or less. From that time on begins the obligation of fulfilling the precept of both Confession and Communion. 2. A full and perfect knowledge of Christian doctrine is not necessary either for First Confession or for First Communion. Afterwards, however, the child will be obliged to learn gradually the entire Catechism according to his ability. 3. The knowledge of religion which is required in a child in order to be properly prepared to receive First Communion is such that he will understand according to his capacity those Mysteries of faith which are necessary as a means of salvation (necessitate medii) and that he can distinguish between the Bread of the Eucharist and ordinary, material bread, and thus he may receive Holy Communion with a devotion becoming his years. 4. The obligation of the precept of Confession and Communion which binds the child particularly affects those who have him in charge, namely, parents, confessor, teachers and the pastor. It belongs to the father, or the person taking his place, and to the confessor, according to the Roman Catechism, to admit a child to his First Communion. 5. The pastor should announce and hold a General Communion of the children once a year or more often, and he should on these occasions admit not only the First Communicants but also others who have already approached the Holy Table with the above-mentioned consent of their parents or confessor. Some days of instruction and preparation should be previously given to both classes of children. 6. Those who have charge of the children should zealously see to it that after their First Communion these children frequently approach the Holy Table, even daily if possible, as Jesus Christ and Mother Church desire, and let this be done with a devotion becoming their age. They must also bear in mind that very grave duty which obliged them to have the children attend the public Catechism classes; if this is not done, then they must supply religious instruction in some other way. 7. The custom of not admitting children to Confession or of not giving them absolution when they have already attained the use of reason must be entirely abandoned. The Ordinary shall see to it that this condition ceases absolutely, and he may, if necessary, use legal measures accordingly. 8. The practice of not administering the Viaticum and Extreme Unction to children who have attained the use of reason, and of burying them with the rite used for infants is a most intolerable abuse. The Ordinary should take very severe measures against those who do not give up the practice. His Holiness, Pope Pius X, in an audience granted on the seventh day of this month, approved all the above decisions of this Sacred Congregation, and ordered this Decree to be published and promulgated. He furthermore commanded that all the Ordinaries make this Decree known not only to the pastors and the clergy, but also to the people, and he wishes that it be read in the vernacular every year at the Easter time. The Ordinaries shall give an account of the observance of this Decree together with other diocesan matters every five years.

Quotes to Ponder on Children and Education

Through the grace of the sacrament of marriage, parents receive the responsibility and privilege of evangelizing their children. Parents should initiate their children at an early age into the mysteries of the faith of which they are the "first heralds" for their children. ... Education in the faith by the parents should begin in the child's earliest years. This already happens when family members help one another to grow in faith by the witness of a Christian life in keeping with the Gospel. (The Catechism of the Catholic Church 2225-2226) It should be the objective and is definitely the responsibility of every rational Catholic mother and father to see that the child is educated, so that he can be truly Catholic with the consent of all his faculties. (Francis Crotty, Implementation of Ignatian Education in the Home) Jesus…said to them, "Let the children come to me, do not hinder them; for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it." And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands upon them. (Mark 10:14-16) So often people say that we should look to the elderly, learn from their wisdom, their many years. I disagree, I say we should look to the young: untarnished, without stereotypes implanted in their minds, no poison, no hatred in their hearts. When we learn to see life through the eyes of a child, that is when we become truly wise. (Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta ) When married couples and their children show their human and supernatural affection for one another, they personally encounter Jesus Christ, who has said, "Believe me, when you did it to one of the least of my brethren here, you did it to me." (Javier Abad, Eugenio Fenoy Marriage: A Path to Sanctity) …in the Divine solicitude for children was the affirmation that there are certain elements in childhood which ought to be preserved in the highest manhood; that no man is truly great unless he can recapture something of the simplicity and humility of the child. (Archbishop Fulton Sheen) Who does not know that to teach a child to feed himself, to wash and dress himself, is a much more tedious and difficult work, calling for infinitely greater patience, than feeding, washing and dressing the child one's self? But the former is the work of an educator, the latter is the easy and inferior work of a servant. Not only is it easier for the mother, but it is very dangerous for the child, since it closes the way and puts obstacles in the path of the life which is developing. (Maria Montessori The Montessori Method) Patience is faith in action. Patience is emotional diligence. It's the willingness to suffer inside so that others can grow. It reveals love. It gives birth to understanding. Even as we become aware of our suffering in love, we learn about ourselves and our own weaknesses and motives. (Stephen Covey The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families) What use is it to pile task on task and prolong the days of labor, if at the close the chief object is left unattained? It is not the fault of the teachers--they work only too hard already. The combined folly of a civilization that has forgotten its own roots is forcing them to shore up the tottering weight of an educational structure that is built upon sand. They are doing for their pupils the work which the pupils themselves ought to do. For the sole true end of education is simply this: to teach men how to learn for themselves; and whatever instruction fails to do this is effort spent in vain. (Dorothy Sayers "the Lost Tools of Learning") If I were to have to label much educational material today, I'm afraid a large percentage would definitely be twaddle. How colorfully and scientifically our generation talks down to the little child! What insipid, stupid, dull stories are trotted out! And we don't stop there. We don't respect the children's thinking or let them come to any conclusions themselves! We ply them with endless questions, the ones we've thought up, instead of being silent and letting the child's questions bubble up with interest. (Susan Schaeffer Macaulay For the Children's Sake) The most basic element … is parental love, which finds fulfillment in the task of education as it completes and perfects its service of life. (Pope John Paul II Familiaris Consortio) To educate means to help someone understand the elements of reality in their fruitful multiplying, up to a totality which is always the true horizon of our actions. (Msgr. Luigi Giussani The Risk of Education) Our Lord wants us all to be the leaven in the dough of society. But He wants us to do this when we are properly prepared. Our job as parents is to prepare our children to be ready for the service to which God will call them. We need to furnish the children's minds and hearts with the true, the good and the beautiful, so that they may speak "in season and out of season" of the faith they have been given. (Laura Berquist "Character Formation" Sursum Corda Fall 1998) Kindness has converted more sinners than zeal, eloquence or learning. (Fr. Frederick W. Faber ) Catholic education is the comprehensive system of interior formation which is ordered throughout by the concept and confidence in the Incarnation. The mystery of the Incarnation itself rests on an orderly sense of Creation and the confidence it gives is sustained in the face of sin by faith in the mystery of the Cross of Jesus. (Mary Daly, Essay on a Curriculum for the Culture of Life) Talk to your children about their academic work. Conversation with you is the most formative part of their intellectual life. (Laura Berquist Designing Your Own Classical Curriculum) It has always therefore been one of my main endeavours as a teacher to persuade the young that first-hand knowledge is not only more worth acquiring than second-hand knowledge, but is usually much easier and more delightful to acquire. (C.S. Lewis, Introduction to On the Incarnation by St. Athanasius) It is necessary not only that religious instruction be given to the young at certain fixed times, but also that every other subject taught, be permeated with Christian piety. If this is wanting, if this sacred atmosphere does not pervade and warm the hearts of masters and scholars alike, little good can be expected from any kind of learning, and considerable harm will often be the consequence. (Pius XI, On Christian Education) Unless a man's will has a purpose and it is a good one, education will do nothing for him except to fortify his own egotism. (Archbishop Fulton Sheen) "Diligence must be cultivated as daily habit so that it is a joy." (Shinichi Suzuki, Young Children's Talent Education and Its Method) God wouldn't have given us an intellect, if he didn't want us to think straight. (Msgr. Ronald Knox) "It is a great thing to be brought into the presence of a law, of a whole system of laws, that exist without our concurrence--that two straight lines cannot enclose a space is a fact that we can perceive, state and act upon but cannot in any wise alter, should give to children the sense of limitation which is wholesome for all of us, and inspire that sursum corda which we should hear in all natural law." (Charlotte Mason, A Philosophy of Education) Let us be faithful teachers. No matter what the pace, children need to know they can accomplish the tasks set before them. Meeting grade-level requirements in the early years is not as important as steadfast effort. (K. Andreola A Charlotte Mason Companion) No amount of pious training or pious culture will protect the faithful, or preserve them from the contamination of the age, if they are left inferior to non-Catholics in secular learning and intellectual development. The faithful must be guarded and protected by being trained and disciplined to grapple with the false systems of the age…. They must be better armed than their opponents - surpass them in the strength and vigor of their minds, and in the extent and variety of their knowledge. They must, on all occasions and against all adversaries, be ready to give a reason for the hope that is in them. (Orestes Brownson Catholic Polemics) You [should] think effectiveness with people and efficiency with things… I see many parents, particularly mothers with small children, often frustrated in their desire to accomplish a lot because all they seem to do is meet the needs of little children all day. Remember, frustration is a function of our expectations, and our expectations are often a reflection of the social mirror rather than our own values and priorities. (Stephen Covey The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People) The answer is a balance between structure and non-structure. But this balance must be reached after a consideration of various factors. These factors include the age of the student, the learning ability, the best learning style for the student, the teacher-mother's ability, and the subject matter itself. (Mary Kay Clark Catholic Home Schooling) Hence every form of pedagogic naturalism …Every method of education founded, wholly or in part, on the denial or forgetfulness of original sin and of grace, and relying on the sole powers of human nature, is unsound. …If any of these terms are used, less properly, to denote the necessity of a gradually more active cooperation on the part of the pupil in his own education… this would be correct, but in no way new. It would mean only what has been taught and reduced to practice by the Church … in imitation of the method employed by God Himself towards His creatures, of whom He demands active cooperation according to the nature of each. (Pope Pius XI, On Christian Education) It has been said that some of the great geniuses of the past never read half as much as the mediocre geniuses today, but what they read they understood and incorporated into a deeper dimension of knowledge. (Archbishop Fulton Sheen) True followers of Christ were meant to be at odds with the world: The pure of heart will be laughed at by the Freudians; the meek will be scorned by the Marxists; the humble will be walked on by the go-getters; the liberal Sadducees will call them reactionaries; the reactionary Pharisees will call them liberals. (Archbishop Fulton Sheen) Parents have the first responsibility for the education of their children. They bear witness to this responsibility by creating a home where tenderness, forgiveness, respect, fidelity, and disinterested service are the rule. The home is well suited for education in the virtues. This requires an apprenticeship in self-denial, sound judgment, and self-mastery-- the preconditions of all true freedom. Parents should teach their children to subordinate the "material and instinctual dimensions to interior and spiritual ones." Parents have a grave responsibility to give good example to their children. By knowing how to acknowledge their own failings to their children, parents will be better able to guide and correct them. (The Catechism of the Catholic Church #2223) If it be true that the world has lost its respect for authority, it is only because it lost it first in the home. (Archbishop Fulton Sheen) We teach our children more effectively when we develop our interior life with God, learn the Faith better through ongoing scriptural and catechetical instruction, and grow in virtue. (Hahn & Hasson Catholic Education: Homeward Bound) The key to successful Catholic homeschooling is living the sacramental life. (Mary Kay Clark Catholic Home Schooling) Besides giving an example of personal holiness, we can encourage maturity and spiritual growth in our children by providing ample opportunity for them to grow steadily in unselfish ways. Virtue and vice are both habits, learned through repetition. Help your child to learn early in life the good habits of virtue, first through service to his family then in going out of himself to love and serve his neighbor. (Catholic Heritage Curricula, 3rd Grade Lesson Plans) You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid. Nor do men light a lamp and put it under a bushel, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. (Matthew 5:14-16) Any book which inspires us to lead a better life is a good book. (Archbishop Fulton Sheen) All knowledge is sterile which does not lead to action and end in charity. (Cardinal Desire Joseph Mercier) There is little point in keeping children out of Hell if you don't afford them the means of getting into Heaven. So give them solid catechetics, strong preaching, good example, healthy exercise, supervision in a general and determinant way but not in each particular and by all means permitting them the freedom of the good, dangerous books as well as the dangerous games such as football, or mountain climbing. Given the state of man, some will break their necks and sin; but in good Catholic families with common sense, the falls should be few and the bodies and souls recoverable. (John Senior, The Restoration of Christian Culture) ... the rights of the family and of the State, even the rights of individuals regarding a just liberty in the pursuit of science, of methods of science and all sorts of profane culture, not only are not opposed to this pre-eminence of the Church, but are in complete harmony with it. The fundamental reason for this harmony is that the supernatural order, to which the Church owes her rights, not only does not in the least destroy the natural order, to which pertain the other rights mentioned, but elevates the natural and perfects it, each affording mutual aid to the other, and completing it in a manner proportioned to its respective nature and dignity. The reason is because both come from God, who cannot contradict Himself. (Pope Pius XI, On Christian Education) The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting. It has been found difficult and left untried. (G.K. Chesterton What's Wrong with the World) Do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Let the day's own trouble be sufficient for the day. ( Matthew 6:34)

Reading Your Way Through History

A Timeline of Worthwhile History Reading in Print Check our blog to view our work on this project and make your own suggestions.

Abbreviations: BV - The Book of Virtues ed. by William Bennett (Simon & Schuster) CHS - Celtic Heritage Saints by Marian Keaney (Veritas Press) EM - Eucharistic Miracles by Joan Carroll Cruz (TAN) HB - The Holy Bible (recommended translations - The Ignatius Bible or the Douay Rheims) HL - The Harp and Laurel Wreath ed. by Laura Berquist (Ignatius Press) MC - The Moral Compass ed. by William Bennett (Simon & Schuster) PF - Pope Fiction by Patrick Madrid (Basilica Press) RC + Volume Number - Reading Comprehension, Stories of the Saints (Catholic Heritage Curricula) TC - The Treasury of Catholic Wisdom ed. by John Hardon, S.J. (Ignatius Press)

Please note that dates are placed in parentheses to distinguish them from page numbers. The Ancient World: The Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt by Elizabeth Payne (3200 BC -) Pyramid by David Macaulay (2468-2439 B.C.) Abraham - Genesis 12-18 (2165-1190 BC) Isaac and Rebecca - Genesis 24:67 (1900-1720 BC) Jacob (1800-1700 BC) Joseph - Genesis 37-50 (1750-1640 BC) Shadow Hawk by Andre Norton (1590) Mara, Daughter of the Nile by Eloise Jarvis McGraw (set at the time of Thutmose III 1479-1425 BC) The Riddle of the Rosetta Stone by James Cross Gilbin The Golden Goblet by Eloise Jarvis McGraw (1300s BC) Moses (1520-1400 BC) "Moses in the Bulrushes", BV 139-140 The Book of Exodus (1440 BC) "Go Down, Moses" BV 560-562 The Ten Commandments, BV 206-207 "The Long, Hard Way Through the Wilderness" BV 555-560 The Promised Land Numbers 13, 19, 20:22 - 21:9 Joshua 1420-1310 The Fall of Jericho Joshua 1-6 Hittite Warrior by Joanne Williamson (1200s) Samson Judges 13-16 Ruth HB Ruth Ruth and Naomi BV 753-755 The Children's Homer by Padraic Colum The Tale of Troy by Roger Lancelyn Green (12th or 13th century BC) The Iliad of Homer "Ulysses and the Cyclops" BV 467-470 "Penelope's Web" BV 701-705 The Odyssey of Homer Samuel the Prophet 1 Kings 1-7 King Saul 1 Kings 8-13 King David (1054-971 BC) David and Goliath BV 447-449 1 Samuel 17 David the Shepherd 1 Kings 16-27 Jonathan and David BV 299-303 The Death of Saul 1 Kings 28, 29, 31 King David 2 Kings 6-12 David and Bathsheba BV 81-84 King David and His Psalms by Mary Fabyan Windeatt The Wisdom of Solomon BV 147-148, 1 Kings 3:16-28 (971-931) King Solomon 3 Kings 1:15-34, 3:16-23, 6:9, 10:11-43, 2 Paralipomenon 3:9 Yahweh vs. Baal 3 Kings 18 The Prophet Elijah 3 Kings 16:29 - 17:24 The Book of Jonah (785 BC) The Aeneid of Virgil (Rome founded 752) God King: A Story in the Days of King Hezekiah by Joanne Williamson (701 BC) (Hezekiah 715-686 BC) Daniel (635-536 BC) The Book of Daniel HB (635-536 BC) "The Fiery Furnace" BV 753-755 "Daniel in the Lion's Den" BV 756-758 Nebuchadnezar II (605-562 BC) "Truth is Mighty and Will Prevail" BV 615-616 (520 BC) The Book of Job The Story of the Greeks by H.A. Guerber The Battle of Marathon (490 BC) "The Brave Three Hundred" BV 472-474 (The Battle of Thermopylae 480 BC) The Battle of Salamis (480 BC) The Book of Esther (circa 480) Archimedes and the Door of Science by Jeanne Bendick (290-212 BC) The Librarian Who Measured the Earth by Kathryn Lasky (Eratosthenes 287-192 B.C.) Histories of Herodotus (450 BC Herodotus visits Egypt) Golden Age of Athens (450 BC) Greek Culture, Philosophy and Mythology: "Tales of Hercules" BV 389-392 "The Minotaur" BV 462-466 Tales of the Greek Heroes by Roger Lancelyn Green D'Aulaire's Greek Myths Mythology by Edith Hamilton City by David Macaulay The Story of the Romans by H.A. Guerber The Book of Maccabees (163 BC) Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare (100-44 BC) Mary, God's Yes to Man by Pope John Paul II The Life of Christ (1-33 AD) The Holy Gospels The Man Born to be King by Dorothy Sayers The Life of Christ by Fulton Sheen Abigail and the Widow Mary by Noel Trimming The Face of the Nazarene by Noel Trimming Jesus of Nazareth: The Story of His Life Simply Told by Mother Mary Loyola Ben Hur by General Lew Wallace The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare The Spear by Louis de Wohl Saint Paul the Apostle by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (Journeys 45-58 AD) The Acts of the Apostles Chapters on the successors to St. Peter, PF 68-88, 119-125 The Ides of April by Mary Ray (62 AD) Beyond the Desert Gate by Mary Ray (67 AD) The Didache (written between 70 and 90 AD) TC pgs. 3-9 Letters of St. Ignatius of Antioch TC pgs. 11-26 (69-107 AD) 2nd Century A.D. Galen and the Gateway to Medicine by Jeanne Bendick (129-200 AD) Between the Forest and the Hills by Ann Lawrence 3rd Century A.D. Four Witnesses: The Early Church in Her Own Words by Rod Bennett The History of the Church by Eusebius The Martyrs of the Coliseum by Rev. Augustine O'Reilly 4th Century A.D. St. Philomena (d. 302 AD) The Daughter of Light by Regina Persian (audio drama) St. Philomena: Powerful with God by Sr. Marie Helen Mohr, S.C. St. Philomena: the Wonder Worker by Fr. Paul O'Sullivan, O.P. Fabiola: or the Church of the Catacombs by Cardinal Wiseman The Council of Nicea argument, PF 126-129 St. Antony of the Desert by St. Anthanasius (251 - 356 AD) Pope Liberius, PF 141-147 (352-366 AD) St. Athanasius by F.A. Forbes (295-374 AD) St. Monica by F.A. Forbes (333-387 AD) Confessions of St. Augustine (354-430) 5th Century A.D. "The Last Fight in the Colosseum", MC pg. 453 (404 AD) Saint Patrick of Ireland (395-461 AD) Saint Patrick, CHS 11-14 Patrick in His Own Words by Bishop Joseph Duffy Patrick, Patron Saint of Ireland by Tomie de Paola Saint Enda, CHS 19-20 Saint Brigid of Ireland, CHS 29-31 6th Century A.D. Beowulf the Warrior trans. by Ian Serralier (500s) The Holy Twins: Benedict and Scholastica by Kathleen Norris (480-547 AD) Saint Benedict: Hero of the Hills by Mary Fabyan Windeatt Citadel of God: A Novel about Saint Benedict by Louis de Wohl Brendan the Navigator by Jean Fritz (486-578 AD) Saint Brendan the Navigator, CHS 21-23 Saint Ciaran of Clonmacnoise, CHS 15-17 Saint Finian of Clonard, CHS 43-46 Pope Vigilius, PF 148-151 (537-555 AD) Saint Kevin of Glendalough, CHS 65-67 Saint Colmcille, CHS 37-41 Saint Comgall of Bangor, CHS 69-72 Saint Columbanus of Bobbio, CHS 33-35 Fingal's Quest by Madeleine Polland (St. Columbanus d. 615) St. Gregory the Great, PF 152-157 (604 AD) Augustine Came to Kent by Barbara Willard (d. 605) 7th Century A.D. Pope Honorius, PF 158-162 (625-638 AD) Saint Kilian, Apostle of Franconia, CHS 25-27 Saint Hilda of Whitby, CHS 51-54 (614-671 AD) Saint Carthage of Lismore, CHS 55-56 Saint Dympna of Gheel, CHS 61-63 8th Century A.D. "The Miracle of Lanciano, Italy" EM pgs 3-18 (700 AD) Son of Charlemagne by Barbara Willard (Charlemagne 768-814) 9th Century A.D. Beorn the Proud by Madeleine Polland (800s) Myths about the Middle Ages, PF 163-177 King Alfred and the Cakes, BV 196-198 The Ballad of the White Horse by G.K. Chesterton (878) 10th Century A.D. The Little Duke by Charlotte Yonge (943) 11th Century A.D. The Story of Rolf and the Viking Bow by Allen French (1000) Leif the Lucky by Ingri and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire (Leif Ericson 1000) Saint Malachy O Mortair, CHS 47-49 Saint Margaret of Scotland, CHS 57-59 William the Conqueror by Hilaire Belloc (1066) "King Canute on the Seashore", BV 67-68 "St. George and the Dragon", BV 192-195 The Crusades by Hilaire Belloc (1095-1291) 12th Century A.D. "The Miracle of Braine, France", EM pgs 19-21 (1153) The Red Keep by Allen French (1165) St. Thomas Becket (d. 1170) If All the Swords in England by Barbara Willard Murder in the Cathedral by T.S. Eliot The Hidden Treasure of Glaston by Eleanore Jewett (1171) "The Miracle of Ferrara, Italy", EM pgs 22-27 (1171) "The King and His Hawk", BV (Genghis Kahn) "The Miracle of Augsburg, Germany", EM 28-29 (1194) The Great Heresies by Hilaire Belloc 13th Century A.D. The Lost Baron by Allen French (1200) The Adventures of Robin Hood by Roger Lancelyn Green (King John 1167-1216) Saint Dominic and the Rosary by Catherine Beebe (1170-1221) St. Francis of Assisi 1181-1226 Francis: The Poor Man of Assisi by Tomie de Paola The Sermon to the Birds BV 761-762 Francis and Clare: Saints of Assisi by Helen Walker Homan St. Francis of Assisi by G.K. Chesterton Writings of St. Francis of Assisi TC pgs. 201-233 The Joyful Beggar: A Novel about St. Francis of Assisi by Louis de Wohl "The Miracle of Alatri, Italy", EM pgs 30-37 (1228) "The Miracle of Santarem, Portugal", EM 38-46 (early 13th century) "The Two Miracles of Florence, Italy", EM 47-49 (1230) Saint Elizabeth's Three Crowns by Blanche Thompson (1207-1231) Saint Anthony and the Christ Child by Helen Walker Homan (1195-1231) "The Miracle of Daroca, Spain", EM 50-52 (1239) "The Miracle of Olmutz, Czechoslovakia", EM 53-55 (1242) Cathedral: The Story of Its Construction by David Macaulay St. Hyacinth of Poland by Mary Fabyan Windeatt "The Miracle of Regensburg, Germany", EM 56-58 (1257) "The Miracle of Bolsena-Orvieto, Italy", EM 59-62 (1263) St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) St. Thomas Aquinas by Mary Fabyan Windeatt St. Thomas Aquinas by G.K. Chesterton excerpts from the Summa Theologiae TC pgs. 247-298 The Catechetical Instructions of St. Thomas Aquinas The Quiet Light: A Novel About St. Thomas Aquinas by Louis de Wohl "The Two Miracles of Paris, France", EM 63-65 (1274 and 1290) He Went with Marco Polo by Louise Andrews Kent (1271-1295) "The Miracle of Slavonice, Czechoslovakia", EM 66-69 (1280) "The Miracle of Offida, Italy", EM 70-83 (1280) Castle by David Macaulay (1283) Women in the Days of the Cathedrals by Régine Pernoud 14th Century A.D. "William Tell" BV pgs. 480-481 (early 14th Century) "Bruce and the Spider" by Bernard Barton, BV 553-555 "The Miracle of Hasselt, Belgium", EM 84-85 (1317) "The Two Miracles of Siena, Italy", EM 86-97 (1330) "The Miracle of Blanot, France", EM 98-105 (1331) "The Miracle of Amsterdam, the Netherlands", EM 106-108 (1345) "The Miracle of Macerata, Italy", EM 109-111 (1356) "The Miracle of Brussels, Belgium", EM 112-122 (1370) "The Miracle of Middleburg-Louvain, Belgium", EM 123-129 (1374) St. Catherine of Siena by F.A. Forbes (1347-1380) Lay Siege to Heaven: A Novel on St. Catherine of Siena by Louis de Wohl "The MIracle of Seefeld, Austria", EM 130-139 (1384) "Our Lady's Juggler" by Anatole France, BV 782-787 (under King Louis) The Door in the Wall by Marguerite de Angeli Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare Henry V by William Shakespeare (1387-1422) 15th Century A.D. Saint Joan of Arc (1412-1431) Joan of Arc by Mark Twain Joan of Arc by Hilaire Belloc Saint Joan: The Girl Soldier by Louis de Wohl Boy Knight of Reims by Eloise Lownsbery "The Miracle of Dijon, France", EM 140-141 (before 1433) "The Miracle of Avignon, France", EM 142-144 (1433) "The Miracle of Turin, Italy", EM 145-152 (1453) Richard the Third by Paul Murray Kendall (1452-1485) The Trumpeter of Krakow by Eric Kelly (1461) Isabella of Spain by William Thomas Walsh (1451-1504) Characters of the Inquisition by William Thomas Walsh (1478) Leonardo da Vinci by Diane Stanley (1452-1519) "For Want of a Horseshoe Nail", BV 198-200 (1485 AD) Columbus by Ingri and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire (1451-1506) He went with Christopher Columbus by Louise Andrews Kent (1492) "Sail on! Sail on!" by Joaquin Miller, BV 565-566 Adam of the Road by Elizabeth Janet Grey 16th Century A.D. The Evangelization of the New World by James Leek He Went with Vasco da Gama by Louise Andrews Kent (1460-1524) Michelangelo by Diane Stanley (1475-1564) Apparitions of Our Lady to St. Juan Diego in Mexico (1531) The Lady of Guadalupe by Tomie de Paola (1531) A Handbook on Guadalupe edited by Brother Francis Mary, F.I. Our Lady of Guadalupe and the Conquest of Darkness by Warren Carroll How the Reformation Happened by Hilaire Belloc (1517-1648) The Beginning of the English Reformation by Hugh Ross Williamson Characters of the Reformation by Hilaire Belloc St. Thomas More (1478-1536) St. Thomas More of London by Elizabeth Ince The King's Good Servant but God's First by James Monti Writings of St. Thomas More: Utopia, The Sadness of Christ The King's Achievement by Msgr. Robert Hugh Benson (Henry VIII 1491-1547) St. Ignatius Loyola (1491-1556): St. Ignatius and the Company of Jesus by August Derleth (1491-1556) St. Ignatius of Loyola by Francis Thompson St. Ignatius of Loyola by James Broderick, S.J. The Golden Thread: A Novel about St. Ignatius by Louis de Wohl St. Francis Xavier (1506-1552)St. Francis of the Seven Seas by Albert Nevins (1506-1552) Set All Afire: A Novel on St. Francis Xavier by Louis de Wohl "The Miracle of Morrovalle, Italy", EM 153-157 (1560) St. Edmund Campion (1540-1581): Challenge to the Privy Council by Edmund Campion (click to read text) Edmund Campion: Hero of God's Underground by Harold Gardiner, S.J. Tyborne and the Gem of Christendom by Mother Mary Magdalen Taylor The Martyrdom of Father Campion and His Companions by William Cardinal Allen Red Hugh, Prince of Donegal by Robert T. Reilly (1580s) St. Philip of the Joyous Heart by Francis X. Connolly (1515-1595) "The Miracle of Alcala de Henares, Spain", EM 158-161 (1597) William Shakespeare and the Globe by Aliki (1564-1616) The Bard of Avon by Diane Stanley 17th Century A.D. The Gunpowder Plot by Hugh Ross Williamson (1604) "The Miracle of Faverney, France", EM 162-168 (1608) Pocahontas by Ingri and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire (1595-1617) St. Francis Solano by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (d. 1610) St. Rose of Lima by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (1586-1617) Jamestown: New World Adventure by James Knight "The Landing of the Pilgrim Fathers" by Felicia Hemans, BV 790-791 Squanto: Friend of the Pilgrims by Clyde Robert Bulla (d. 1622) The Outlaws of Ravenhurst by Sister M. Imelda Wallace (17th Century) St. Martin de Porres by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (1579-1639) Come Rack! Come Rope! by Msgr. Robert Hugh Benson St. John Masias by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (1585-1645) St. Isaac and the Indians by Milton Lomask (d. 1646) Saint Among Savages: The Life of St. Isaac Jogues by Francis Talbot S.J. Vincent de Paul: Saint of Charity by Margaret Ann Hubbard (1581-1660) St. Vincent de Paul by F.A. Forbes "On Galileo", PF 178-189 Saint Margaret Mary by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (1647-1690) The Mystery of the Periodic Table by Benjamin Wiker (publication pending - Bethlehem Books) I, Juan de Parejaby Elizabeth Borton de Trevino (1610-1670) Blessed Marie of New France by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (1671) Fr. Marquette and the Great Rivers by August Derleth (1637-1675) Kateri Tekakwitha: Mohawk Maid by Evelyn Braun (1656-1680) The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare (1687) Madeleine Takes Command by Ethel Brill (1692) 18th Century A.D. Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe (inspired by true story 1704-1709) The Courage of Sarah Noble by Alice D'Algliesh (1707) St. Louis de Montfort by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (1673-1716) Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson (1751) With Pipe, Paddle and Song by Elizabeth Yates (1750s) Calico Captive by Elizabeth George Speare (1754) "The Miracle of Paterno, Italy", EM 169-170) (1772) Benjamin Franklin by Ingri and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire (1706-1790) George Washington by Ingri and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire (1732-1799) Priest on Horseback by Eva K. Betz Blessed Junipero Serra (1713-1783) "Always Go Forward, and Never Turn Back: Blessed Junipero Serra", RC3 pgs. 81-103 The Man Who Founded California: Blessed Junipero Serra by M.N. Couve de Murville Amos Fortune: Free Man by Elizabeth Yates (d. 1801) Flaming Arrrows by William O. Steele The Reb and the Redcoats by Constance Savery (1780s) Guns for General Washington by Seymour Reit And Then What Happened, Paul Revere? by Jean Fritz Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes (1774) Boston Tea Party: Rebellion in the Colonies by James E. Knight Sam the Minuteman by Nathaniel Benchley (1776) George the Drummer Boy by Nathaniel Benchley (1776) Shhh! We're Writing the Constitution by Jean Fritz (1787) The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baronness Orczy (French Revolution 1787-1799) The Song at the Scaffold by Gertrud Von Le Fort (d. July 17, 1794) To Quell the Terror: The True Story of the Carmelite Martyrs of Compiegne by William Bush A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens The Guillotine and the Cross by Warren Carroll Kat Finds a Friend: A St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Story by Joan Stromberg Mother Seton and the Sisters of Charity by Alma Power-Waters (1774-1821) 19th Century A.D. The Midshipman Quinn Collection by Showell Styles (1803-1805) The Flying Ensign by Showell Styles (1809) Downright Dency by Caroline Dale Snedeker (early 1800s) Cleared for Action by Stephen Meader (1812) "The Miracle of Bordeaux, France", EM 171-178 (1822) St. John Vianney (1786-1859): The Cure of Ars: The Priest Who Out-talked the Devil by Milton Lomask The Cure of Ars: The Story of St John Vianney by Mary Fabyan Windeatt The Man Who Fought the Devil: The Cure of Ars by Eva K. Betz The Cure D'Ars: St. Jean-Marie-Baptiste Vianney by Francis Trochu They Loved to Laugh by Kathryn Worth (1830s) The Miraculous Medal by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (1806-1876) St. Catherine Laboure and the Miraculous Medal by Alma Power-Waters Under a Changing Moon by Margot Benary-Isbert Thomas Finds a Treasure: A St. John Neumann Story by Joan Stromberg (1811-1860) The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne (p. 1851) Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe (1852) Bernadette: Princess of Lourdes (CCC Video) Bernadette and the Lady by Hertha Pauli (1844-1879 apparitions 1858) The Song of Bernadette by Franz Werfel The Song of Bernadette (Video) Abraham Lincoln by Ingri and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire (1809-1865) Wanted Dead or Alive: The True Story of Harriet Tubman by Ann McGovern (1820-1913) The Civil War (1861-1865): Willie Finds Victory: A Blessed Francis Seelos Story by Joan Stromberg (1819-1867 - publication pending) Rifles for Watie by Harold Keith Pink and Say by Patricia Polacco Little Women by Louisa May Alcott Gettysburg by Makinlay Kantor (1863) Killer Angels by Michael Shaara (Gettysburg 1863) Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink (1864) Caddie Woodlawn's Family by Carol Ryrie Brink (a.k.a. Magical Melons 1863-1865) Hans Brinker or the Silver Skates by Mary Mapes Dodge (1865) "The Miracle of Dubna, Poland", EM 179-180 (1867) Giant of the Western Trail, The Life of Fr. de Smet by Fr. Michael McHugh (1838-1875) St. John Bosco and St. Dominic Savio by Catherine Beebe (1815-1888) Winter Danger by William O. Steele Katie: The Young Life of Mother Katherine Drexel by Claire Jordan Mohan (1858-1955) Little House on the Prairie Series by Laura Ingalls Wilder (1867-1957) When Jesuits were Giants by Cornelius Buckley, S.J. (1883) Old Sam: Dakota Trotter by Don Alonzo Taylor (1880s) Brave Buffalo Fighter by John Fitzgerald (late 1800s - publication pending from Bethlehem Books) Mother Cabrini: Missionary to the World by Frances Parkinson Keyes (1850-1917) The Orphans Find a Home: A St. Frances Cabrini Story by Joan Stromberg A Blessed Damien Story by Rachel Watkins (1840-1889 - publication pending from Ecce Homo Press) Damien the Leper by John Farrow St. Thérèse of Lisieux (1873-1897):Little Thérèse The Little Flower by Mary Fabyan Windeatt St. Thérèse and the Roses by Helen Walker Homan The Story of My Life by Helen Keller (1880-1968) St. Katherine Drexel, Friend of the Oppressed by Ellen Tarry (1858-1955) Saint Pius X: The Farm Boy Who Became Pope (1835-1914 papacy 1903-1914) 20th Century A.D. The Story of the Titanic as Told by its Survivors (1912) Mama's Bank Account by Kathryn Forbes The Good Master by Kate Seredy World War I: (1914-1918) Apparitions of Our Lady in Fatima, Portugal (1917): The Children of Fatima by Mary Fabyan Windeatt Our Lady of Fatima by William Thomas Walsh The Singing Tree by Kate Seredy Rilla of Ingleside by L.M. Montgomery (from the Anne of Green Gables series) Rascal by Sterling North Jose Finds the King: A Blessed Miguel Pro Story by Ann Ball (1923) Blessed Miguel Pro by Ann Ball (1923) The Drovers Road Collection: Adventures in New Zealand by Joyce West To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee Alice Finds a New Life: A Dorothy Day Story by Leslie Galliker (1897-1980) The Young Life of Mother Teresa of Calcutta by Claire Jordan Mohan (1910-1997) The Young Life of Pope John Paul II by Claire Jordan Mohan (b. 1920) World War II (1939-1945): St. Maximillian Maria Kolbe (d. 1941) St. Maximillian Kolbe: The Story of Two Crowns by Claire Jordan Mohan Volunteer at Auschwitz by Chuck Colson BV 803-808 Kolbe: Saint of the Immaculata edited by Br. Francis Mary, F.I. Forget Not Love: St. Maximilian Kolbe by Andre Frossard When Hitler Stole Pink Rabbit by Judith Kerr The Story of the Trapp Family Singers by Maria Augusta Trapp Enemy Brothers: A Story of World War II by Constance Savery The House of Sixty Fathers by Meendert de Jong Escape from Warsaw by Ian Serralier The Shadow of His Wings by Fr. Gereon Goldmann Number the Stars by Lois Lowry The Diary of Ann Frank A Place to Hide: True Stories of Holocaust Rescues by Jayne Pettit The Borrowed House by Hilda Van Stockum Twenty and Ten by Claire Huchet Bishop (1944) The Winged Watchman by Hilda Van Stockum The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom The Small War of Sergeant Donkey by Maureen Daly The Assisi Underground (Video) The Red Horse: A Novel by Eugenio Corti "Apostle of Life: Blessed Gianna Molla", RC3 pgs. 32-5 (1961) "The Two Miracles of Stich, Germany", EM 181-184 (1970) When Character Was King: A Story of Ronald Reagan by Peggy Noonan Witness to Hope by George Weigel (Pope John Paul II b. 1920) Chapters on Pope John Paul II and the modern papacy, PF pgs. 111-118 "We Want God" by Peggy Noonan (article about the Pope's visit to Poland in 1979) Rome Sweet Home by Scott and Kimberly Hahn Prodigal Daughters by Donna Steichen Surprised by Truth by Patrick Madrid There We Stood, Here We Stand by Tim Drake The Cross at Ground Zero by Fr. Benedict Groeschel Compiled by Alicia Van Hecke of Favorite Resources for Catholic Homeschoolers, www.love2learn.net. Please check back often for a more detailed and ever-growing selection of titles, including specific Bible references, short stories, speeches, links, primary sources, out-of-print books, history related movies and more details about this list (including links to book reviews and reading-level information). Please keep in mind that not all selections are appropriate for children. Some dates, especially B.C., are approximate. In some places I have listed historical figures and dates as time markers, without yet connecting them to a particular story. Bibliography: In addition to the titles mentioned above, the following resources were helpful in compiling this list and in especially in assigning dates to events and people. Britannica Ready Reference 2002 The Catholic Bible in Pictures The Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913 www.newadvent.org Catholic World History Timeline and Guide by Marcia Neill Patron Saints Index www.catholic-forum.com/saints/indexsnt.htm Permission is granted to print this timeline to share with family and friends providing that a reference to the www.readingyourwaythroughhistory.com website is included.

Reciprocal Links

I'm adding sites as I stumble upon them. Please e-mail me, webmaster at love2learn dot net if your site links to ours and you'd like to be added to this list.

Red Flag - The Institute for Creation Research

The Institute for Creation Research, of Santee, California, is a Protestant organization dedicated to fighting all forms of ideas regarding evolution and proving a completely literal (historically and scientifically speaking) interpretation of the Book of Genesis. They operate a graduate school, an extensive museum and website and publish a short monthly newsletter. We have found the organization to be problematic in three major areas. First, their basic statement of faith is contradictory in a number of respects to Catholic Church teaching. Second, some of their articles indicate an underlying hostility toward the Catholic Church in general and Pope John Paul II in particular. Third, although they certainly work with science to try to prove their points, their basic way of approaching questions regarding evolution and the origins of human life are not compatible with true science. ICR's statement of faith is contradictory to Catholic Teaching First, it's important to understand that the foundational beliefs of the Institute for Creation Research are incompatible with Catholic teaching, whether you look to the great discussions on origins dating back to the time of St. Augustine, the statements of Saint Robert Bellarmine regarding the inquiry into Galileo's teachings, the Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913, Pope Pius XII's Humani Generis (an encyclical regarding evolution) or the more current teachings of Pope John Paul II and the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The ICR website lists seven Tenets of Biblical Creationism (described as "a unique statement of faith for its faculty and students"). I have chosen the three which I believe to be problematic for discussion here. The remaining tenets are not necessarily problematic.

The Bible, consisting of the thirty-nine canonical books of the Old Testament and the twenty-seven canonical books of the New Testament, is the divinely-inspired revelation of the Creator to man. Its unique, plenary, verbal inspiration guarantees that these writings, as originally and miraculously given, are infallible and completely authoritative on all matters with which they deal, free from error of any sort, scientific and historical as well as moral and theological. (ICR Tenet #2)

The Catholic Church recognizes 46 books of the Old Testament (not 39) and 27 books of the New Testament. Why should this be of concern? Catholics could not agree to this statement of faith, because it is contradictory to our faith (however minor it may seem). This is the first indication that ICR is not just interested in supporting a creationist viewpoint, but in trying to justify a very specific and Protestant understanding of the Bible.

All things in the universe were created and made by God in the six literal days of the creation week described in Genesis 1:1-2:3, and confirmed in Exodus 20:8-11. The creation record is factual, historical, and perspicuous; thus all theories of origins or development which involve evolution in any form are false. All things which now exist are sustained and ordered by God's providential care. However, a part of the spiritual creation, Satan and his angels, rebelled against God after the creation and are attempting to thwart His divine purposes in creation. (ICR Tenet #3)

Catholics are not forbidden from believing that the earth was created by God in a literal six-day week. But the Church certainly does not teach that "all theories of origins or development which involve evolution in any form are false". Also, on a very simple level, the Catholic Church does not teach that the Bible is to be understood in a completely literal manner. The Bible is the inspired Word of God, recorded by man and written in a way understandable to the people of that time. We do not believe that God literally dictated every word to the human writers of the Bible, nor that he revealed every particular in the realm of science and history that might relate to each individual story in order to create an air-tight absolutely literal text. The Catholic Church does teach that there are certain things that we know to be true and that science could never disprove, including: that God created the world and that he directly created man's soul. To a certain extent these simply fall outside the realm of science and so believing these presents no contradiction with an honest scientific study of human origins. However, the timing in which various creatures appeared on earth (in relation to each other) and other particulars of the creation story are touched upon by science and studied by scientists on a regular basis. If you automatically assume to be false any evidence that suggests an older earth (than what the Bible literally suggests) or a longer period of creation, you are not looking at those issues in a true scientific manner. The Catholic Church recognizes the unity of faith and reason - of religion and science - because God is the Lord of All! To simply disregard scientific ideas because they appear contradictory to the faith is to disregard Catholic teaching. St. Robert Bellarmine said that if there appears to be a contradiction, then either the scientific idea is wrong or the religious belief was wrong. If a scientific idea is wrong, there will be scientific AND theological reasons for finding it to be wrong.

The Biblical record of primeval earth history in Genesis I-II is fully historical and perspicuous, including the creation and fall of man, the curse on the creation and its subjection to the bondage of decay, the promised Redeemer, the worldwide cataclysmic deluge in the days of Noah, the post-diluvian renewal of man's commission to subdue the earth (now augmented by the institution of human govemment) and the origin of nations and languages at the tower of Babel. (ICR Tenet #5)

Again, the Catholic Church does not teach that the story of Genesis is fully historical, nor that it is mythological, but in fact teaches that good science helps us to understood Genesis properly. ICR's Article Portrays Hostility toward the Church and the Pope

According to the Vatican Information Service in a news release on October 23, Pope John Paul II was reported as saying that evolution is "more than just a theory." This seems to mean, despite the tenuous wording, that he now considers evolution a scientific fact...... (from Evolution and the Pope by Henry M. Morris, founder and president emeritus of ICR)

It seems rather presumptious for Mr. Morris to change the Pope's words from "more than just a theory" to "a scientific fact". Clearly words mean things, and the Holy Father chose his words for a reason. Naturally, Mr. Morris also makes no distinction here between evolution and Darwinism. His comments are likely to mislead many into thinking that the Pope is embracing Darwinism, which is baloney.

Now comes the Pope with his "surprise" announcement that it is acceptable for Catholics to believe and teach evolutionism. He did include the small proviso that they should still allow God to create each human soul. Atheism thus remains inappropriate for Catholics, and that's a relief to know!..... (from Evolution and the Pope by Henry M. Morris, founder and president emeritus of ICR)

First of all, there is no logical precedent for calling the Pope's "announcement" a "surprise". The Church has consistently taught for generations (if not longer) that certain portions of evolutionary theory, if proven true, would not be contradictory to our faith. What Mr. Morris calls a "small proviso" is the absolute heart of the matter! How can anyone believe the fact that God created each human soul to be less important than exactly when he created the world or whether or not man's body somehow developed from some lesser creature (in other words that man being formed out of dust was somewhat figurative. Really, which is harder to swallow - God making us from dust or from some lower creature? This shouldn't be a philosophical argument about fittingness, but a question of science regarding how God did create us.)

Pope John Paul II was Karol Wojtyla, Cardinal of Krakow when he was named pope in 1978. He had earlier been an actor and was apparently quite comfortable as a government-approved ecclesiastic in Communist Poland. When he was elected pope, his election was enthusiastically endorsed by Poland's Communist Party and by World communism in general.... (from Evolution and the Pope by Henry M. Morris, founder and president emeritus of ICR)

This is some of the most incredible nonsense I've read in a while. While some of the particulars are true (I understand that the Communists endorsed his appointment over another bishop - apparently he looked like a "friendly" candidate on paper), the idea that Communists enthusiastically endorsed his election as Pope is utterly ridiculous. Even secular news agencies have traced attempts to kill the Pope to communists who knew his message was a threat to their very existence. This statement smacks so strongly of the most bizarre sort of conspiracy theorism that I find it difficult to take seriously anything this man says.

There are more and more signs that such globalism is also the aim of Pope John Paul II and other modern liberal Catholics. If so, this publicized commitment to evolutionism would contribute substantially to such a goal. All world religions -- including most of mainline Protestantism, as well as Hinduism, Buddhism, and the rest -- except for Biblical Christianity, Orthodox Judaism, and Fundamentalist Islam, have embraced some form of evolutionism (either theistic, deistic, or pantheistic) and rejected or allegorized the true record of origins in Genesis. The pope has participated in important meetings with leaders of Communism, Zen Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Lamaism, and others, as well as the World Council of Churches, the Trilateral Commission, the B'nai B'rith of liberal Judaism, and a wide assortment of still others. He has traveled to India, Australia, the United States, and all over the world in his bullet-proof "popemobile," speaking to immense crowds everywhere. ..... (from Evolution and the Pope by Henry M. Morris, founder and president emeritus of ICR)

It is typical of conspiracy theorists to condemn people based on association. The Pope has participated in meetings with various religious leaders. What in the world would these people say about Jesus if they lived in his time? Our Lord ate with tax collectors and prostitutes! Meeting with someone or even dining with someone in no way implies consent toward their behavior or agreement with their positions! How can Our Lord or the Pope or anyone else work to convert other people unless they meet with them for goodness sake??? This whole article gives me the impression that ICR is deliberately trying to separate Catholics from the Pope and the Catholic Church by means of the complex issue of evolution. ICR's approach is incompatible with true science While their noble intention is to bring science into its proper place as the 'handmaiden' of theology, the Institute for Creation Research is unfortunately taking such a narrow view of theology (Sola Scriptura and then some!) that it clouds their scientific thinking. And it seems that when push comes to shove their means of reconciliation is to break the scientific process by ignoring certain data to get to a preconceived conclusion. In other words, they believe many things which are true, but their flawed theology leads to questionable science. Some Catholic organizations have been drawn in by ICR's persuasive arguments, and so Catholic books, websites and other resources that rely upon ICR's conclusions should be viewed with some skepticism. Reviewed by J.V.H. and A.V.H. (2-21-02)

Red Flag pages -- under construction

Our "red flag" pages are under re-construction. We are in the process of going through them and reviewing the materials to make the red flag notation more consistent. When reviewed, the items will appear on the appropriate subject review pages, with appropriate caveats. Thank you for your patience.

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The Weight of One Mass - Overview of Church Councils

The Weight of One Mass?

Reprinted with permission from the Catholic Society of Evangelists August 1999 Newsletter.

The following true story was related to Sr. M. Veronica Murphy by an elderly nun who heard it from the lips of the late Reverend Father Stanislaus SS.CC.

One day many years ago, in a little town in Luxembourg a Captain of the Forest Guards was in deep conversation with the butcher when an elderly woman entered the shop. The butcher broke off the conversation to ask the old woman what she wanted. She had come to beg for a little meat but had no money. The Captain was amused at the conversation which ensued between the poor woman and the butcher. "only a little meat, but how much are you going to give me?"

"I am sorry I have no money but I'll hear Mass for you." Both the butcher and the Captain were good men but very indifferent about religion, so they at once began to scoff at the old woman's answer.

"All right then," said the butcher, "you go and hear Mass for me and when you come back I'll give you as much meat as the Mass is worth."

The woman left the shop and returned later. She approached the counter and the butcher seeing her said, "All right then we'll see." He took a slip of paper and wrote on it "I heard Mass for you." He then placed the paper on the scales and a tiny bone on the other side but nothing happened. Next he placed a piece of meat instead of the bone, but still the paper proved heavier. Both men were beginning to feel ashamed of their mockery but continued their game. A large piece of meat was placed on the balance, but still the paper held its own. The butcher, exasperated, examined the scales, but found they were all right. "What do you want my good woman, must I give you a whole leg of mutton?" At this he placed the leg of mutton on the balance, but the paper outweighed the meat. A larger piece of meat was put on, but again the weight remained on the side of the paper. This so impressed the butcher that he was converted, and promised to give the woman her daily ration of meat.

As for the Captain, he left the shop a changed man, an ardent lover of daily Mass. Two of his sons became priests, one a Jesuit and the other a Father of the Sacred Heart.

Father Stanislaus finished by saying "I am the Religious of the Sacred Heart, and the Captain was my father."

From that incident the Captain became a daily Mass goer and his children were trained to follow his example. Later when his sons became priests, he advised them to say Mass well every day and never miss the Sacrifice of the Mass through any fault of their own.

List of the General Councils held in the Church of God from the time of the Apostles to A.D. 1884.
From Catholic Belief by the Very Rev. Joseph Faa Di Bruno, D.D., copyright 1884

[Note from the webmaster: I think it is useful for students, particularly at the high school level, to read about the various Church councils in history and particularly what dogmas were defined and what heresies were rejected at each one. This is helpful for understanding the nature of the Church and avoiding the errors treated at each council. Because this material comes from an older text, it does not include material about the Second Vatican Council.]

The First Council of Nice (now called Isnick, in Asia Minor, about 90 miles from Constantinople), was held in the year 325 under Pope Sylvester I., in the Palace of the Emperor. There were present 318 Bishops, the Emperor Constantine the Great also assisting. Arius, Presbyter of Alexandria, was condemned for denying the divinity of the Word, or Son of God, and His consubstantiality with the Father; at this Council the greater part of what is commonly called the Nicene Creed was published.
Catholic Encyclopedia: FIRST COUNCIL OF NICAEA

The First Council of Constantinople, the ancient Byzantium, was held in 381, in the Emperor's Palace, confirmed by Pope Damasus I.; 150 Bishops and the Emperor Theodosius the Elder attended. The followers of Macedonius were condemned for denying the Divinity of the Holy Ghost and His consubstantiality with the Father and the Son. A few more things were added to the Nicene Creed.
Catholic Encyclopedia: FIRST COUNCIL OF CONSTANTINOPLE

The Council of Ephesus, Asia Minor, was held in the Church of St. Mary in 431, under Pope Celestine I. About 200 Bishops and Theodosius the Younger were present. Nestorius was deposed from his See of Constantinople, and condemned for maintaining that in Jesus Christ there were two distinct persons; a human person, born of the Virgin Mary, and the Divine person, that is, the Eternal Word. In consequence of this error he denied to the Blessed Virgin the title of Theotokos (or mother of God), contrary to the Catholic doctrine, which confesses Mary to be the Mother of that DIVINE PERSON in whom are intimately and indissolubly united, by what is called the hypostatic union, the Divine and human nature.

The Council of Chalcedon (now called Scutari), facing Constantinople, in Asia Minor, under Pope Leo the Great, was held in 451, in the Church of St. Euphemia the Martyr, near the Bosphorus in Bithynia. Paschasinus and Lucentius, Bishops, and Boniface, Priest, presided at this Council as Legates of Pope Leo the Greta. Six hundred and thirty Bishops, and the Roman Emperor Marcian were present. Papal Supremacy was acknowledged. Eutyches, Abbot of Constantinople, and Dioscorus, Archbishop of Alexandria, were condemned for teaching that in JESUS CHRIST there was only one nature.

The Second Council of Constantinople, held in the Sacristy of the Cathedral in 553, and confirmed by Pope vigilius. 165 Bishops, and the Emperor Justinian, were present. Though neither the Pope nor his Legates attended, yet the Council is considered Ecumenical from its having afterwards received the sanction of the Pope. The so-called 'Three Chapters' or heretical writings of Theodorus of Mopsuesta, and of Theodoretus and of Iba, favoring the already anathematized doctrines of Nestorius, were condemned.
Catholic Encyclopedia: SECOND COUNCIL OF CONSTANTINOPLE

The Third Council of Constantinople, held in the Hall of the Imperial Palace, in the years 680 and 681, under Pope Agatho, attended by 170 Bishops. The Monothelites, with their leaders, Cyrus, Sergius, and Pyrrhus, were condemned for maintaining, as their name implies, that in JESUS CHRIST there was only one operation and one will, namely, the Divine Will. This heresy attempted to revive under a new form the error of Eutyches, which had been already condemned. Pope Agatho dying before the Council came to an end it was confirmed by Leo II., his successor, who translated the Acts of this Council from Greek into Latin.

The Second Council of Nice, held in the Church of St. Sophia in 787, under Pope Adrian I., attended by 367 Bishops. In this Council the Iconoclasts (image breakers) were condemned for rejecting the use of holy images, and the practice of paying them due respect. The last Session of this Council was held at Constantinople.
Catholic Encyclopedia: Nicaea, Second Council of

The Fourth Council of Constantinople, held in the Church of St. Sophia in 869 and 870, under Pope Adrian II., attended by 102 Bishops. The Patriarch Photius, the author of the Greek Schism, was condemned and deposed, and St. Ignatius was restored to his See of Constantinople, which had been unjustly usurped by Photius. This is the last General Council held in the Eastern part of Christendom.

The First Council of Lateran, held in the Basilica of St. John Lateran, in Rome, in 1123, under Pope Calistus II., attended by 300 Bishops and 600 mitred Abbots. The contest regarding investitures, or appointment to benefices, was settled. The rights of the Church and of the Emperors in the important matter of election of Bishops and Abbots were regulated.

The Second Council of Lateran, held at Rome in 1139, under Pope Innocent II., attended by 1000 Bishops, the Pope himself presiding. The errors of the Albigenses and the heresies of Peter De Bruys and his disciple, Arnold of Brescia, were condemned and the schism of Peter Leo was repressed. One of the decrees of this Council anathematized those heretics who rejected Infant Baptism, the Holy Eucharist, the Priesthood, and Matrimony.

The Third Council of Lateran, held at Rome in 1179, under Pope Alexander III., who presided in person. It was attended by 300 Bishops. The errors of the Waldenses were condemned and a better form of electing the Sovereign Pontiff was prescribed. Most beneficial rules were also framed for the electsion of Bishops, for regulating the rights of patrons, and for the gratuitous instruction of the people, especially of poor children.

The Fourth Council of Lateran, held at Rome in 1215, under the great Pope Innocent III., attended by 412 Bishops and upward of 800 Abbots and Friars, besides the representatives of all Sovereigns and Princes of Christendom. A short exposition of the Catholic Faith was drawn up in opposition to the errors of the time, especially those of the Albigenses and the Waldenses. Ecclesiastical laws were framed for the reformation of morals among Christians. The obligation of Confession for adults, instead of several times a year, was reduced to once a yer at least; and Holy Communion likewise to at least once a year, and that at Easter-time. A decree authorizing an expedition (known as Crusade) for the recovery of the Holy Places in Palestine was likewise published, and the election of Frederci II., of Germany, as Roman Emperor was confirmed.

The First Council of Lyons, ancient Lugdunum (Rhone), France, held in 1245 in the Monastery of St. Just, under Pope Innocent IV>, who himself generally presided, attended by 140 Bishops and many Abbots and Procurators of Chapters. There was also present Baldwin, Emperor of Constantinople, with other Princes and various Ambassadors. The Emperor, Frederic II., (a noted persecutor of the Church, who, owing to the aid of Pope Innocent III., his godfather, ascended the throne of the German Empire) was excommunicated and desposed after a powerful defence made y his Imperial representatives and advocates, had been heard.

The Second Council of Lyons, held in the Church of St. John in 1274, under Pope Gregory X., attended by 500 Bishops of the Latin and the Greek Rite, nearly 70 Abbots and about 1000 minor Prelates, the Pope presiding in person. The schismatic Greeks returned to the unity of the Church, acknowledging the Pope as the head of the whole Church, of the Greek as well as of the Latin Rite.

The Council of Vienna in France, the ancient Vienne Allobrogum (Isere, Dauphiny), was held in the Metropolitan Church in the year 1311 and 1312, under Pope Clement V. There were 300 Bishops and many other Prelates present. The Order of Knights Templars was abolished. The errors of the Begards, who pretended that man is capable of attaining such perfection in this life as to become impeccable (or incapable of sinning), even when freely gratifying the evil propensities of the body, were condemned.

The Council of Constance or Constantia, on the Lake of Constance, Baden, was assembled in 1414, when, owing to the interference of States, there were three candidates contending for the Papal Chair, namely - John XXIII., Gregory XII., and Benedict XIII. It was attended by about 200 Bishops and a number of other Prelates. At this Council the serious schism caused by this usurpation which had so long disturbed the Church of God ended, and the errors of John Wickliff and others were condemned. In November 1417, Pope Martin V. was recognized by all as the lawfully elected Pope, and he, presided over the Council until it closed. In the last Session Pope Martin V. approved and ratified all that the Council had defined conciliariter, that is, according to the strict rules of defining in General Councils and, therefore, in these definitions the Council was received as Ecumenical, although it does not rank among the Ecumenical Councils, because in some of its Sessions it was not strictly Ecumenical.

The Council of Florence, Italy, held in 1438 and 1439, under Pope Eugenius IV. Attended by 200 Bishops of the Latin and of the Greek Rite, and by the Emperor of the Greeks, John Paleologus. The Supremacy of the Pope over the whole Church was declared. Once more the Eastern and Russian Schismatic Bishops who were present submitted to the Supremacy of the Pope, and were thereby re-united to the Catholic Church.

The Fifth Council fo Lateran, held at St. John Lateran, Rome, A.D. 1512-1517, under Popes Julius II and Leo X., attended by 120 Bishops. Many representatives of Kings and Princes were also present. It abolished the Pragmatic Sanction, that is, the collection of 38 decrees, which the Council of Bale had published concerning the rights and prvileges of the Roman Pontiff, the authority of Councils, the election of Prelates, and other ecclesiastical matters. The dogma relating to the immortality of the soul was defined. The Council fo Pisa was condemned, and the ecclesiastical discipline reformed. An impulse was given to an expedition or crusade against the Turks, who were at the time threatening to overrun Christendom.

The Council of Trent (in the Austrian Tyrol), held between 1545 and 1563 under the Popes Paul III., Julius II., Marcellus II, Paul IV, and Pius IV. It was attended by about 200 Bishops, 7 Abbots, and 7 Generals of Religious Orders, and by the Representatives fo Kings and Princes. Including an adjournment of four years, and a suspension of ten years, this Council lasted eighteen years. The Catholic doctrines regarding the Holy Scripture, Tradition, Original Sin, Justification, and the Seven Sacraments, were clearly explained; the contrary errors were condemned, and abuses in morals and discipline were reformed.

The Vatican Council held in the Basilica of St. Peter, Rome, was opened on the 8th of December 1869, and continued to the 18th of July 1870. It was summoned by Pope Pius IX., of glorious memory, who presided occasionally in person, but generally by his Legates. The Patriarchs, Archbishops, and Bishops, present at this Council, at any time between December the 8th, 1869, and July the 18th, 1870, were 704. This number included 113 Archbishops and Bishops in partibus infidelium (in infidel regions), of whom all but 38 held the office of Administrator, Auxiliary, Coadjutor, Vicar-Apostolic, or Prefect-Apostolic. In this Council the dogma of the Supremacy of St. Peter and his Successors, previously recognized in the First Council of Ephesus, A.D. 431, and more fully explained in the Council of Florence, A.D. 1438, was again solemnly affirmed and defined. This dogma of faith teaches that on St. Peter was conferred a Primacy of Jurisdiction over the other Apostles, and over the whole flock of Jesus Christ, and that the Bishop of Rome is the successor of St. Peter in that jurisdiction. It was also declared that this jurisdiction extends over the whole Church on earth, and over every member of the Church, and that all the faithful are bound to submit to it, not only in things that belong to faith or morals, but also in things that belong to the discipline and government of the Church. At this Council the Pope's infallibility, when speaking ex cathedra in matters of Faith or Morals, was also solemnly defined. Besides the Supremacy and the Infallibility of the Pope, this Council also defined the existence of a personal God against the daring attacks of modern infidelity. Some people wrongly imagine that the dogma of the infallibility of the Pope is a new doctrine, because it was for the first time defined explicitly as an article of faith at the Vatican Council; but they who argue thus might with as much reason assert that the dogma which teaches the existence of a personal God is also a new doctrine because that article of the faith was for the first time defined as a dogma (in order to oppose modern heresy) in this Council, or that the dogma of the immortality of the soul was a new doctrine because it was first defined at the Fifth Council of Lateran, A.D. 1512-15127. This Vatican Council issued likewise some very important decrees relating to Discipline.

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