A CATECHIST’S PRAYER

Loving Father, giver of all that is,

help me to remember that every gift
I have comes from you. Expand my
vision so that I can appreciate your
goodness in the world around me.
Jesus, our Redeemer, you are
the path to the treasures of my
heart and soul. Strengthen my
commitment to be a catechist and
deepen my capacity to share your
truth with those in my care.
Holy Spirit, Love Divine, all life
and energy flows from you.
Illuminate my thoughts and
intensify my desire to grow ever
deeper in my faith.
I lift up my prayer to you, God—
Father, Son, and Spirit—in humility
and hope. Amen.
 THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
What are the Ten Commandments?

 The Ten Commandments

are the eternal laws of
God, which enable Man
to distinguish between
right and wrong.
 These were given to
Moses on Mount Sinai,
also known as Horeb,
about the year 1400 BC,
and are the only part of
the Bible written
directly by God.
 THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
Why are the Commandments called, The Decalogue?
 They are called The Decalogue, meaning “The Ten
Words,” because in Hebrew each Commandment can be
summarized
in one word.

 At the right,
the Hebrew
Decalogue,
written from
right to left.
 THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
Why are the Commandments called, The Covenant?
 They are called, The Covenant, because they are the
terms of the agreement between God and men.
 They were preserved in the so-called Ark of the
Covenant, which was a wooden chest of about one
cubic meter plated entirely with gold.
 6. THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
Where in the Bible can we find the Commandments?
 In the Bible there are two versions of the Ten
Commandments: Exodus 20:2-17 and
Deuteronomy 5:6-21. Both versions have the
same contents, but differ in formulation.
 Since the time of St. Augustine (354-430 AD), for
teaching purposes, the Church has made a
Catechetical Version, which is shorter and easier
to memorize.

Exodus
+ Deuteronomy
= Catechetical

20:2-17 5:6-21 Version

7. Comparison of the Three Versions
8. Comparison of the Three Versions

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 9. THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
Why did Moses break the Tablets of the Covenant?
 Because, as he
descended from Mount
Sinai with the two stone
tablets, he saw the
people worshipping the
Golden Calf.
 Those responsible were
killed; the others, were
forced to wander 40
years in the desert.
 Afterward, Moses went
back to the mountain and
received a second copy
of the Commandments.
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 10. JESUS AND THE COMMANDMENTS
Why did Moses give ten commandments
and Jesus only two?
 Jesus summarized the Ten Commandments in two sections:
the love of God, including the first three; and the love of
neighbor, including the other seven (cf. Matthew 22:35-40).

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 11. JESUS AND THE COMMANDMENTS
Did Jesus abolish the Ten Commandments?
 Jesus did not abolish the
Commandments, but gave a
new spirit to observe them:
no longer out of fear of
punishment, but out of love
for God.
 St. Augustine encapsulated
Jesus’ moral teaching with a
maxim: “Love, and do
what you want.” It means
that if a person loves God
and his neighbor, it becomes
impossible for him to do
anything evil.
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 12. JESUS AND THE COMMANDMENTS
Is it difficult to obey the Commandments?
 In themselves, the Ten Commandments are neither easy
nor difficult; it all depends on our disposition.
 For those who
love God and
neighbor, they
are easy and
enjoyable; as
Jesus said: “My
yoke is easy
and my
burden is
light” (Matthew
11:30).
Otherwise, they
are difficult and
burdensome.

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 13. CONSCIENCE AND SIN
What is the Conscience?
 The Conscience is the mysterious voice of God in our
heart, telling us to do good and to avoid evil.
 The Conscience
may be obscured
by ignorance and
vice, and must be
developed
through study
and the practice
of virtues.
 We must always
follow the voice of
our Conscience,
because it is the
criterion for our
final judgment.

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 14. CONSCIENCE AND SIN
What is Sin?
 Sin is an act of disobedience to the Commandments of God. It
can be done in four ways: thoughts, words, actions, and omissions.

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 15. CONSCIENCE AND SIN
What is the difference between Sin and Mistake?
 A Sin is an evil action involving our intellect and will; while
a Mistake is a wrong action performed unknowingly and
unintentionally.
 We need only to confess our Sins, not our Mistakes; though
we ought to apologize and make reparation.

THE SAME ACTION COULD BE:

A SIN: if the driver intentionally bumped the other car, did not
maintain the roadworthiness of his vehicle, disregarded the laws of
the road, was drunk, high on drugs, or on the phone.

A MISTAKE: if the driver had no intention of bumping the other car

and was following all the laws, rules and regulations.

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 16. CONSCIENCE AND SIN
What is the difference between Venial and Mortal Sins?
 Venial Sins imply a small matter and slightly wound the soul;
while Mortal Sins involve a serious matter and separate us from
the communion with God.
 This distinction was defined by St. John, who wrote: “There
is such a thing as deadly sin; all wrongdoing is sin, but there is
sin that is not deadly” (1 John 5:16-17).

VENIAL SIN: involves a small matter. MORTAL SIN: involves serious matter.

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 17. VICES AND VIRTUES
What is the difference between Virtue and Vice?
 Virtue is the habitual disposition to do good; while Vice is
the habitual disposition to do evil. The repetition of good deeds
produces a Virtue, whereas the recurrence of evil deeds
generates a Vice.

THE 4 THE 3 THE 7

CARDINAL THEOLOGICAL CAPITAL
VIRTUES: VIRTUES: VICES:
1) Prudence 1) Faith 1) Pride
2) Greed
2) Justice 2) Hope 3) Lust
3) Fortitude 4) Envy
3) Love 5) Gluttony
4) Temperance 6) Wrath
7) Sloth

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 18. VICES AND VIRTUES
What is PRUDENCE?
 Prudence is the cardinal
virtue that disposes a
person to achieve
good and to avoid
evil. Its opposite is
recklessness.
 A model of Prudence is
Joseph, a son of
Jacob, who refused the
advances of the wife of
Potiphar, and ran out of
the house to avoid the
occasion of sin (Genesis
39:12).
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 19. VICES AND VIRTUES
What is JUSTICE?
 Justice is the cardinal
virtue that induces a
person to live honestly,
by giving their due to
God and neighbor.

 Jesus recommended
his disciples to be just,
even in paying taxes,
when he said: “Give to
Caesar what belongs to
Caesar and to God what
belongs to God” (Mark
12:17).
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 20. VICES AND VIRTUES
What is FORTITUDE?
 Fortitude is the
cardinal virtue that
helps a person to be
strong in his duty.

 It is the virtue of the

martyrs, because it
enables them to
conquer fear, and to
face trials and
persecution till death.

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 21. VICES AND VIRTUES
What is TEMPERANCE?
 Temperance is the
cardinal virtue that
inspires a person to
live in moderation
and to avoid any
excess.
 St. John the Baptist
is a model of
Temperance, because
he wore simple
garments, ate
sparingly, and never
got drunk.
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 22. VICES AND VIRTUES
What is FAITH?
 Faith is the
theological virtue by
which we believe in
the existence of
God and in his
revelation.

 Abraham is the
model of faith,
because, in obedience
to God’s command,
he was willing to
sacrifice his son Isaac Abraham, out of Faith,
(cf. Genesis 22:12). was ready to sacrifice Isaac.

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 23. VICES AND VIRTUES
What is HOPE?
 Hope is the theological
Job, out of Hope, endured
virtue by which we all trials and diseases.
await with confidence
for the eternal
happiness in
Paradise.

 The model of Hope is

Job, who endured with
patience all the
tribulations of life,
hoping for God’s
recompense (cf. Job
1:21).
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 24. VICES AND VIRTUES
What is LOVE?
 Love is the theological
Mary Magdalene, out of Love, washed
virtue by which we and kissed the feet of Jesus.
adore God with all
our heart and care
for our neighbors
like ourselves.
 The model of Love
is Mary Magdalene
who, out of love for
Jesus, “bathed his feet
with her tears, wiped
them with her hair,
kissed them and
poured perfume on
them” (Luke 7:38).

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 25. VICES AND VIRTUES
What is PRIDE?

 Pride is the excessive

self-esteem and the
desire to lord over
others. It is the first
and the source of all
sins; its opposite virtue
is Humility.
 The father of pride is
Lucifer, who became
so arrogant of his
beauty and power that
he desired to take the
place of God (cf. Isaiah Lucifer and his demons, because
14:12-15). of Pride, were cast into Hell.

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 26. VICES AND VIRTUES
What is GREED?

 Greed is excessive
pursuit of material
possessions; its
opposite virtue is
Charity. The Bible says
that: “The love for
money is the root of all
evils” (1 Timothy 6:10).
 The most notorious case
of Greed is Judas
Iscariot, who betrayed
Jesus “for thirty pieces
of silver” (Matthew Judas Iscariot, because of Greed,
sold Jesus for 30 pieces of silver.
26:15).
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 27. VICES AND VIRTUES
What is LUST?
 Lust is the
excessive sexual
desire; its
opposite virtue is
Chastity.

 King Solomon
was so depraved
by sexual
pleasures that he
maintained 700
wives and 300
concubines (cf. 1 King Solomon, because of Lust,
Kings 11: 3-4). was lead astray into idolatry.

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 28. VICES AND VIRTUES
What is ENVY?
 Envy is the jealousy
for the goods
bestowed on
others; its opposite
virtue is Kindness.

 An example of Envy
are the eleven sons
of Jacob who, out of
jealousy, sold their
brother Joseph as a
slave to Egypt (cf.
Genesis 37:28). Because
Because ofof Envy,
Envy, Jacob’s
Jacob’s sons
sons
sold
sold his
his brother
brother Joseph
Joseph as
as aa slave.
slave.

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 29. VICES AND VIRTUES
What is GLUTTONY?

 Gluttony is the over- Because

Because of
of Gluttony,
Gluttony, the
the rich
rich man
man
indulgence of food; let
let Lazarus
Lazarus starve
starve to
to death.
death.
its opposite virtue is
Temperance.
 The gluttons will be
punished, because
the extra food they
eat should have been
shared with the poor,
as we see in the
Parable of Lazarus
and the Rich Man
(cf. Luke 16:19-23).

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 30. VICES AND VIRTUES Because
Because of
of Wrath,
Wrath, the
the Jews
Jews
What is WRATH? stoned
stoned St.
St. Stephen
Stephen to
to death.
death.

 Wrath is the
uncontrolled feeling of
hatred; its opposite
virtue is Patience.

 Wrath is a murderous
vice, as we can see in
the martyrdom of St.
Stephen, who was stoned
to death by the members
of the Sanhedrin, as
“they were furious and
gnashed their teeth at
him” (Acts 7:54).

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 31. VICES AND VIRTUES
What is SLOTH?
 Sloth is the laziness in doing our duty; its opposite
virtue is Diligence.
 In the Parable of The Talents, Jesus teaches us that
failure to use the God-given talents will cause eternal
damnation (cf. Matthew 25:30).

Laziness is the root of all vices.

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