Indulgentiarum Doctrina
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Indulgentiarum Doctrina'' is an
apostolic constitution An apostolic constitution () is the most solemn form of legislation issued by the Pope.New Commentary on the Code of Canon Law, pg. 57, footnote 36. By their nature, apostolic constitutions are addressed to the public. Generic constitutions use ...
about indulgences issued by
Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI (born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding John XXII ...
on 1 January 1967.Pope Paul VI, ''Indulgentiarum Doctrina
/ref> It responds to suggestions made at the
Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the or , was the 21st and most recent ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. The council met each autumn from 1962 to 1965 in St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City for session ...
, it substantially revised the practical application of the traditional doctrine relating to indulgences.''The encyclopedia of Christianity, Volume 2'' by Erwin Fahlbusch 2001 , page 695 The title is taken from the opening words of the original Latin text.


Content


Background

According to the
Catechism of the Catholic Church The ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' (; commonly called the ''Catechism'' or the ''CCC'') is a reference work that summarizes the Catholic Church's doctrine. It was Promulgation (Catholic canon law), promulgated by Pope John Paul II in 1992 ...
, "The forgiveness of sin and restoration of communion with God entail the remission of the eternal punishment of sin, but temporal punishment of sin remains." Paul VI explained that sin brings punishments inflicted by God's sanctity and justice, which must be expiated either here on earth or else in the life to come. "These punishments are imposed by the just and merciful judgment of God for the purification of souls, the defense of the sanctity of the moral order and the restoration of the glory of God to its full majesty." Such expiation generally takes the form of
penance Penance is any act or a set of actions done out of contrition for sins committed, as well as an alternative name for the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Oriental Orthodox sacrament of Reconciliation or Confession. The word ''penance'' derive ...
, traditionally described as prayers, fasting, and alms, but also includes works of mercy and charity.
"That punishment or the vestiges of sin may remain to be expiated or cleansed and that they in fact frequently do even after the remission of guilt is clearly demonstrated by the doctrine on purgatory. In purgatory, in fact, the souls of those 'who died in the charity of God and truly repentant, but before satisfying with worthy fruits of penance for sins committed and for omissions' are cleansed after death with purgatorial punishments".
The document stressed that the Church's aim was not merely to help the faithful make due satisfaction for their sins, but chiefly to bring them to greater fervour of charity. For this purpose, Paul VI decreed that partial indulgences, previously granted as the equivalent of a certain number of days, months, quarantines, or years of canonical penance, simply supplement, and to the same degree, the remission that those performing the indulgenced action already gain by the charity and contrition with which they do it.Cross, F. L., ed. The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. New York: Oxford University Press. 2005, article ''indulgences'' "For all men who walk this earth daily commit at least venial sins; thus all need the mercy of God to be set free from the penal consequences of sin." The abolition of the classification by years and days made it clearer than before that repentance and faith are required not only for remission of eternal punishment for mortal sin but also for any remission of temporal punishment for sin. "Indulgences cannot be gained without a sincere conversion of outlook and unity with God".


Indulgences

An indulgence is the remission before God of the temporal punishment due sins already forgiven as far as their guilt is concerned. "The aim pursued by ecclesiastical authority in granting indulgences is not only that of helping the faithful to expiate the punishment due to sin but also that of urging them to perform works of piety, penitence and charity—particularly those which lead to growth in faith and which favor the common good." An indulgence is partial or plenary accordingly, as it removes either part or all of the temporal punishment due sin. Indulgences can always be applied to the dead by way of suffrage.


''Enchiridion Indulgentiarum''

The apostolic constitution ordered a revision of the official list of indulgenced prayers and good works, which had been called the ''
Raccolta The ''Raccolta'' (literally, "collection" in Italian), is a book, published in many editions from 1807 to 1952, that collected the texts of Roman Catholic prayers and briefly described other acts of piety, such as visiting and praying in particul ...
'', "with a view to attaching indulgences only to the most important prayers and works of piety, charity and penance". This removed from the list of indulgenced prayers and good works, now called the ''Enchiridion Indulgentiarum'', many prayers for which various
religious institute In the Catholic Church, a religious institute is "a society in which members, according to proper law, pronounce public religious vows, vows, either perpetual or temporary which are to be renewed, however, when the period of time has elapsed, a ...
s,
confraternities A confraternity (; ) is generally a Christian voluntary association of laypeople created for the purpose of promoting special works of Christian charity or piety, and approved by the Church hierarchy. They are most common among Catholics, L ...
and similar groups had succeeded in the course of centuries in obtaining grants of indulgences, but which could not be classified as among "the most important". Religious institutes and the like, to which grants of plenary indulgences, for instance for visiting a particular church or shrine, had been previously made, were given a year from the date of promulgation of ''Indulgentiarum Doctrina'' to have them confirmed, and any that were not confirmed (mostly in a more limited way than before) within two years became null and void. The ''Enchiridion Indulgentiarum'' reached its fourth edition in Latin in 1999, and is available on the Holy See's website. An English translation of the second edition (when the general grants were three, not four) is available online. The ''Enchiridion Indulgentiarum'' differs from the ''Raccolta'' in that it lists "only the most important prayers and works of piety, charity and penance". On the other hand, it includes new general grants of partial indulgences that apply to a wide range of prayerful actions, and it indicates that the prayers that it does list as deserving veneration on account of divine inspiration or antiquity or as being in widespread use are only ''examples'' of those to which the first these general grants applies: "Raising the mind to God with humble trust while performing one's duties and bearing life's difficulties, and adding, at least mentally, some pious invocation". In this way, the ''Enchiridion Indulgentiarum'', in spite of its smaller size, classifies as indulgenced an immensely greater number of prayers than were treated as such in the ''Raccolta''.


Actions for which indulgences are granted

There are four general grants of indulgence, which are meant to encourage the faithful to infuse a Christian spirit into the actions of their daily lives and to strive for perfection of charity. These indulgences are partial, and their worth therefore depends on the fervour with which the person performs the recommended actions: # Raising the mind to God with humble trust while performing one's duties and bearing life's difficulties, and adding, at least mentally, some pious invocation. # Devoting oneself or one's goods compassionately in a spirit of faith to the service of one's brothers and sisters in need. # Freely abstaining in a spirit of penance from something licit and pleasant. # Freely giving open witness to one's faith before others in particular circumstances of everyday life. Among the particular grants, which, on closer inspection, will be seen to be included in one or more of the four general grants, especially the first, the ''Enchiridion Indulgentiarum'' draws special attention to four activities for which a plenary indulgence can be gained on any day, though only once a day: # Piously reading or listening to
Sacred Scripture The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) biblical languages ...
for at least half an hour. #
Adoration Adoration is respect, reverence, strong admiration, and love for a certain person, place, or thing. The term comes from the Latin ''adōrātiō'', meaning "to give Homage (arts), homage or worship to someone or something". Ancient Rome In class ...
of Jesus in the
Eucharist The Eucharist ( ; from , ), also called Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament or the Lord's Supper, is a Christianity, Christian Rite (Christianity), rite, considered a sacrament in most churches and an Ordinance (Christianity), ordinance in ...
for at least half an hour. # The pious exercise of the
Stations of the Cross The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Via Dolorosa, Way of Sorrows or the , are a series of fourteen images depicting Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ on the day of Crucifixion of Jesus, his crucifixion and acc ...
. # Recitation of the
Rosary The Rosary (; , in the sense of "crown of roses" or "garland of roses"), formally known as the Psalter of Jesus and Mary (Latin: Psalterium Jesu et Mariae), also known as the Dominican Rosary (as distinct from other forms of rosary such as the ...
or the
Akathist An Akathist, akaphist or Acathist Hymn (, "unseated hymn") is a type of hymn usually recited by Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Catholic Christians, dedicated to a saint, holy event, or one of the persons of the Holy Trinity. The name derives f ...
in a church or oratory, or in a family, a religious community, an association of the faithful and, in general, when several people come together for an honourable purpose. A plenary indulgence may also be gained on some occasions, which are not everyday occurrences. They include: * Receiving, even by radio or television, the blessing given by the Pope '' Urbi et Orbi'' (to the city of Rome and to the world) or that which a bishop is authorized to give three times a year to the faithful of his diocese. * Taking part devoutly in the celebration of a day devoted on a world level to a particular religious purpose. Under this heading come the annual celebrations such as the World Day of Prayer for Vocations, and occasional celebrations such as
World Youth Day World Youth Day (WYD) is an event for the youth organized by the Catholic Church that was initiated by Pope John Paul II in 1985. Its concept has been influenced by the Light-Life Movement that has existed in Poland since the 1960s, where dur ...
. *Taking part for at least three full days in a spiritual retreat. *Taking part in some functions during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity including its conclusion. The prayers specifically mentioned in the ''Enchiridion Indulgentiarum'' are not of the Latin liturgical tradition alone, but also from Eastern Catholic liturgies, such as the Akathistos,
Paraklesis A Paraklesis () or Supplicatory Canon in the Byzantine Rite, is a service of supplication for the welfare of the living. It is addressed to a specific Saint or to the Most Holy Theotokos whose intercessions are sought through the chanting of the ...
, ''Evening Prayer'', and ''Prayer for the Faithful Departed'' (Byzantine), ''Prayer of Thanksgiving'' (Armenian), ''Prayer of the Shrine'' and the ''Lakhu Mara'' (Chaldean), ''Prayer of Incense'' and ''Prayer to Glorify Mary the Mother of God'' (Coptic), ''Prayer for the Remission of Sins'' and ''Prayer to Follow Christ'' (Ethiopian), ''Prayer for the Church'', and ''Prayer of Leave-taking from the Altar'' (Maronite), and ''Intercessions for the Faithful Departed'' (Syrian). Apart from the recurrences listed in the ''Enchiridion'', special indulgences are granted on occasions of special spiritual significance such as a jubilee year or the centenary or similar anniversary of an event such as the apparition of
Our Lady of Lourdes Our Lady of Lourdes (; ) is one the Marian devotions, devotional names or titles under which the Catholic Church venerates the Mary, mother of Jesus, Virgin Mary. The name commemorates a series of Lourdes apparitions, 18 apparitions reported by ...
or the celebration of a World Youth Day. For those who are properly disposed, an indulgence, though none is normally authorized or indicated in these cases, can still be granted (if the Bishop or Ordinary has specifically authorized it, and has also gotten prior approval from the
Apostolic Penitentiary The Apostolic Penitentiary (), formerly called the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Penitentiary, is a dicastery led by the Major Penitentiary of the Roman Curia and is one of the three ordinary tribunals of the Holy See, Apostolic See. The Ap ...
beforehand) for a priest's first blessing to individuals after his Ordination Mass. Again, though some Bishops have not endorsed this particular practice, and with their and the Penitentiary's approval, a newly ordained Deacon can bless people following his Ordination Mass, with a partial indulgence (however, a Deacon, even if some indulgence is authorized, may still give only those blessings which are authorized to him in the Long or Short Book of Blessings or the Rituale Romanum). A specific plenary indulgence is normally authorized to those properly disposed who attend a newly ordained priest's First Mass (which will usually be a Mass of Thanksgiving). This is not the same as any indulgence granted, if any, from attending the Ordination Mass itself, since he only concelebrates that Mass, with the ordaining Bishop being the principal celebrant. Further, this only applies to his First Mass, and not to any subsequent Masses of Thanksgiving he offers afterwards, or to his first Mass at his first assignment. Of particular significance is the plenary indulgence attached to the
Apostolic Blessing The apostolic blessing or papal blessing is a blessing imparted by the pope, either directly or by delegation through others. Bishops are empowered to grant it three times a year and any priest can do so for the dying. The apostolic blessing is n ...
that a priest is to impart when giving the sacraments to a person in danger of death, and which, if no priest is available, the Church grants to any rightly disposed Christian at the moment of death, on condition that that person was accustomed to say some prayers during life. In this case the Church itself makes up for the three conditions normally required for a plenary indulgence: sacramental confession, Eucharistic communion, and prayer for the Pope's intentions.Concessiones 12
/ref>


References

{{reflist, 2 Catholic penitential practices 20th-century papal bulls Apostolic constitutions of Pope Paul VI January 1967 1967 documents 1967 in Christianity Sacramental law