Compendium: Catechism of the Catholic Church

LibraryThing Review

A clear and readable guide to official Roman Catholic moral theology. The main ethical section is Part Three - Life in Christ. Section 1 on life in the Spirit as man's vocation opens with a study of ... Read full review

I received my copy of the Compendium and was delighted to see that it retains the main concepts of the full Roman Catholic Catechism.
The hard cover Compendium begins with a Table of Contents, The Motu Proprio and an introduction by Pope Benedict former Cardinal Ratzinger. In 204 pages you will find the basic outline of the main Catechism with condensed topics much like the old Baltimore Catechism. The use of numbered paragraphs will assist those students who find this confusing in the Roman Catholic Catechism. Being brief condensations they will make the main Catechism and its arrangement much more understandable to those not familiar with this way of arranging topics.
Through out you will find inspirational illustrations. These are in color and have brief notes on their significance. There are also quotes of the Saints. Each paragraph is numbered like the Catechism of the Roman Catholic Church. A great thing about the Compendium is that it references in the margins the specific topics in the Catechism. There are two Appendix labeled A Common Prayers and B Formulas of Catholic Doctrine. The prayers in A have both a Latin and English text running side by side. The B section has items such as The Two Commandments of Love, The Golden Rule and other important Doctrinal items. Finally there is an index.
This book is worth every penny. It will prove an ideal tool for RCIA programs.