Teens: Catholicism – The Basics

Catholicism – The Basics

With regular updates, this page will help you to find answers about some of the essential elements of the Catholic Faith…

A creed can generally be described as a statement of belief – If you are part of a sports team, for example, you may come up with a set of rules that you would follow in order for the game to be played properly. This would outline what you agree on and is something that is shared. Participants would be committed to following the mission or rules of the organisation or club.

The Catholic Church has two creeds. Both are a summary of what the Church believes, as passed on to the Apostles from Jesus Christ. The Apostles Creed is a summary of the Apostles’ faith in the early church. The Nicene Creed was written later on, in response to some confusion over what the church teaches, so it is longer and more detailed. They identify God as a Trinity – Father, Son and Holy Spirit and cover the basic truths that we live for – and what many have died for.

The Creed starts with the words “I believe in God”. Here’s a good overview to helps us think about who God is…

Reconciliation is one of the most beautiful Sacraments offered to us by the Church. It is the way in which we can offload all that burdens us to God, in the sure knowledge that we have been completed freed from whatever is weighing us down!

So, why do so few of us make use of this gift of forgiveness? We might feel that we don’t need a priest to achieve closeness with God? Maybe it has been so long since we last went that we lack confidence? Maybe we are just nervous about going back over past wrongs or speaking out our sins. These are all genuine worries.

But God’s mercy is more! He promises us a new beginning – a fresh start! We hope that these videos will help you to see why you’d be missing out if you didn’t make use of this awesome Sacrament…