Synthesis of Catechism of the Catholic Church ready for review

Vatican City, Feb 9, 2004 / 22:00 pm

The first draft of a summary of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which hundreds of bishops around the world requested of Pope John Paul II, is now ready for review.

In March of 2003, on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the publication of the Catechism, Pope John Paul established a special commission, headed up by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, to draft a summary of the text. 

The commission concluded its work in less than a year, responding to the Holy Father’s request that the task be finished “in the shortest time possible.” 

The new document of 150 pages summarizes the current Catechism of the Catholic Church and was drafted with the intention of providing a basis for the publication of national catechisms, although according to experts, the new synthesis will probably become just as popular as the original 700-page text, which became a best-seller worldwide in less than a year. 

The draft will be sent to Cardinals and to the presidents of the different episcopal conferences, who will have two months to submit observations. 

• The text is divided into four parts:
• The Profession of Faith
• The Sacraments
• The Commandments
• Prayer

The definitive text will likely be ready for publication at the end of this year or the beginning of 2005.