Our Profession of the Catholic
Faith
A Summary of the Catholic Faith,
Sworn by Old Roman Catholic Priests before Ordination.
I,
(Name), believe and profess with firm faith each and every truth
which is contained in the symbol of the Faith of which the Holy
Roman Church makes use, namely:
I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and
earth, and of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord
Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God. Begotten, not made,
being of one substance with the Father: by whom all things were
made. Who for us men and our salvation came down from heaven.
And was incarnate by the Holy Ghost of the Virgin Mary: and was
made man. He was crucified also for us: suffered under Pontius
Pilate, died, and was buried. And the third day He rose again
according to the scriptures. And He ascended into heaven; He
sitteth at the right hand of the Father. He shall come again in
glory to judge both the living and the dead: of whose kingdom
there shall be no end. And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord
and giver of life: who proceedeth from the Father and the Son.
Who together with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified:
who spoke by the prophets. And in One, Holy, Catholic, and
Apostolic Church. I confess one baptism for the remission of
sins. And I look for the resurrection of the dead. And the life
of the world to come. Amen.
I resolutely accept and embrace the traditions of the Apostles
and all other traditions of the Church and all its observances
and regulations. Likewise I accept the Sacred Scriptures in
that very sense in which Holy Mother Church, whose right it is to
declare their true sense and meaning, has held them and holds
them now; nor will I ever accept or interpret them in a way
contrary to the unanimous agreement of the Fathers of the Church.
Further I profess that there are seven true and proper
Sacraments of the New Law, each instituted by Jesus Christ our
Lord for the salvation of the human race (although not all of
them are necessary for everyone), namely, Baptism, Confirmation,
the Eucharist, Penance, Extreme Unction, Holy Orders, and
Matrimony; that these confer grace, and that of these, Baptism,
Confirmation and Holy Orders cannot be received a second time
without sacrilege. Also, I accept and adhere to the rites of the
solemn administration of the aforementioned Sacraments according
as they have been accepted and approved by the Catholic Church.
I embrace and accept each and every tenet concerning Original Sin
and Justification which was defined and declared by the Council
of Trent. I likewise affirm that in the Mass there is offered to
God a true, worthy, and expiatory sacrifice for the living and
the dead; and that the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ,
together with His Soul and Divinity, are really and substantially
present in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist, and that
there occurs a change in the total substance of the bread into
His Body and of the total substance of the wine into His Blood,
which change the Catholic Church calls Transubstantiation. I
confess also that Christ, whole and entire, and the true
Sacrament are received under either species.
I firmly hold that there is a Purgatory, and that the souls
detained there are helped through the prayers of the faithful;
similarly, that the saints who reign with Christ are to be
venerated and invoked, and that they offer prayers to God for us,
and that their relics should be venerated. I firmly assert that
images of Christ, and of the Mother of God ever Virgin, as well
as the images of the other saints, should be possessed and
retained, and that they should be shown due honor and veneration.
Also I affirm that Christ left the power to grant indulgences to
the Church, and that these are most useful for the salvation of
the Christian people. I acknowledge the Holy Catholic and
Apostolic Roman Church to be the Mother and Teacher of all
Churches, and I vow and swear true obedience to the Roman
Pontiff, the Vicar of Jesus Christ, and the Successor of Blessed
Peter, the Prince of the Apostles.
Moreover, I maintain and profess, without doubting, all the
other teachings handed down, defined, and declared in the sacred
canons by the Ecumenical Councils, especially by the Most Holy
Council of Trent, and by the First Vatican Council, particularly
that of the Primacy and the Infallible Magisterium of the Roman
Pontiff; and at the same time I condemn, reject and anathematize
all opinions to the contrary, and all heresies whatever which the
Church condemns, rejects and anathematizes.
I,
(Name), promise, vow, and swear that, with God's help, I shall
most constantly hold and profess this true Catholic Faith,
outside of which no one can be saved, and which I now freely
profess and truly hold. With the help of God I shall possess it
whole and unblemished until my dying breath; and to the best of
my ability, I shall see to it that my subjects and those
entrusted to me by virtue of my office hold it, teach it, and
preach it. So help me God, and His holy Gospels.
