Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church (2005)

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 the dignity of the human person and contains teaching on Man: the image of God, Our vocation to beatitude, Man's freedom, The morality of human acts, The morality of the passions, Moral conscience, The virtues and Sin. There follows teaching on the human community and specifically The person and society, Participation in social life and Social justice. The third chapter on God's salvation as law and grace addresses The moral law, Grace and justification and The Church, Mother and Teacher. Section 2 on the Decalogue structures its account in terms of Christ's two-fold summary of love of God (The first, second and third commandments) and love of neighbour (The fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth and tenth). Easily available online

The Compendium is much shorter than the Catechism, which allows a reader to quickly learn most Catholic doctrine. The Q & A format is also helpful. All denominiations (or movements) that say "we just believe the Bible" should answer the same questions that are in this book. ( )

Canadian edition; spare copy.