Pope OKs New Catechism, 1st in 4 Centuries
The Roman Catholic Church’s first new catechism in 400 years was approved Thursday by Pope John Paul II, who hopes to use the religious instruction guide to spread the church’s beliefs worldwide.
The catechism will be made public after official versions in English, French, Spanish and German are ready, probably around December, a spokesman said.
A legacy of John Paul’s papacy, the catechism is intended to guide clerics worldwide as they adapt religious instruction handbooks to local languages and cultures.
A catechism lays out essential beliefs and moral teachings in question-and-answer form. Hundreds of millions of Catholics of all generations have relied on the guide for religious direction.
John Paul is eager to have a tool to help spread the church’s religious teachings, especially in Eastern Europe, where the church hopes to fill the void left by the collapse of communism.
An early version of the catechism, sent to bishops worldwide for review, drew criticism, especially from U.S. bishops who charged that it ignored decades of historical research into how the Bible should be interpreted.
Work on the catechism began in 1986. The last major overhaul was in 1566, to answer the challenge of Protestantism.
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