THE NEW SCHAFF-HERZOG
15, 1814; d. at the Oratory, Edgbaston, near Birmingham, Jan. 2, 1878. He studied at Brasenose College, Oxford (B.A., 1836; M.A., 1838); was curate of Stratford-sub-Castle, near Salisbury, 1840-47; in 1S.50 he joined the Oratory of St. Philip Neri under Newman, to whose influence his conversion to Roman Catholicism was due. He wrote original poems, but is best known for his translations from the Roman breviary and other Latin sources, which are marked by faithfulness to the original and purity of rhythm. They were published in Lyra Catholica, containing all the breviary and missal hymns (London, 1S49); The Masque of Mary (1S5S); and .4 May Pageant (1S65). Hymns and Prose (1873) is the three books combined with many of the hymns rewritten or revised.
CATACOMBS. See Cemeteries, I.; II., 3; III., 1.
CATAFALQUE: A structure erected to represent a corpse lying in state, decorated with emblems of mourning (also called tumba, castrum doloris). The custom of erecting such structures arose in the Catholic Church when the corpse of the deceased was no longer brought into the church, where, according to the Roman rite, the office of the dead, the requiem-mass, and the Libera were to be sung, before the interment. The object of the catafalque was to keep the older custom in mind, and to add greater solemnity to the service The bier is covered with black hangings, and surrounded with lights. The officiating priest sprinkles it with holy water, as a symbol of the purifying blood of Christ and the water of eternal life, and then censes it as a token of honor to the body of the deceased, which has been the temple of the Holy Ghost . and as a symbol of the prayers for the departed soul which are to go up as a sweet savor before the Lord.
CA-TAL'DUS: According to legend, a native of Ireland and bishop there of a place called Rachan, otherwise unknown. He is said to have made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem and to have been directed in a vision to preach the Gospel to the heathen at Tarentum. With signs and wonders he performed bis mission, became bishop of Tarentum or even archbishop, and converted the entire region before his death. The historical fact which underlies the legend is probably that a pious Irishman named Cataldus or Cathaldus ( = Cathal orCathald, a real Irish name) preached in Lower Italy. His time can not be earlier than the sixth or seventh century. The veneration of Cataldus begins in the early Middle Ages. His relics were discovered in 1071, and many churches are dedicated to him in Lower Italy, and also in France, where he is honored as St. Carthauld or St. Catas. He is commemorated on Mar. 8, May 8, and May 10, the last being the day of his death according to the Martyrologium Romanum.
(O. ZoCKLERt.)
Bibliography: ASB, May, ii. 568-577; J. Colgan, Acta sanctorum veteris et majoris Scotiw sive Hiberniir., pp. 544-562, Louvain, 1645; Lanigan, Eccl. Hist., iii. 121- 1_'S; J. Healy. Insula Sanctorum, pp. 457-465, Dublin 1890.
CATECHESIS, CATECHETICS.
Origin and Signification of the Terms (§1).
Divergent Views of the Object of Catechesis (J 2).
True Aim of Catechesis (§ 3).
Methods of Catechesis (§ 4),
Practical Application of Catechesis (§ 5).
Relation of Catechesis to Confirmation (§ 6).
The education which the Christian Church imparts to its immature members through its chosen servants, and the theory of this education, is called catechesis. The Greek word kallchein means literally " to sound downward." Hippocrates, connecting it with the accusative of the person, signified by it the oral instruction which the physician imparts to the layman concerning the nature and treatment of disease. Lucian applied the word in a similar sense to the relation of the dramatic poet to his audience. Thus it gradually came to denote the making of an oral communication to another (Acts xxi. 21, 24), or the instruction of another. It is used in the sense of
i. Origin religious instruction in Luke i. 4; and Signifi- Acts xviii. 25; Rom. ii. 18; I Cor.
cation of xiv. 19; Gal. vi. 6. In ecclesiastical the Terms, usage it signified preparation of adults for baptism (see Catechumenate). Here instruction was the principal, but not the only factor; heart, will, and conduct were to be influenced. The word catechesis, therefore, properly covers the whole training given by the Church to its children. It is distinguished from Christian pedagogics in that it furnishes only an elementary knowledge of Christian truth, while pedagogics leads to a detailed and scientific knowledge.
In the ancient Church ecclesiastical education began as soon as a heathen announced his willingness to be received into the Church. He was then accepted among the catechumens and bore the name of Christian. Nowadays Christian education is concerned no longer primarily with the heathen, but with the children of Christians. They are baptized in infancy, on condition that their parents promise to give them a Christian education. Moreover, the baptized, when they come to years of discretion, must evince a desire for the blessings of the Church, and give promise of Christian conduct.
It is more difficult to define the aim of ecclesiastical education. This can not be intellectual only; for catechesis is to lead to Christian feeling, to a Christian formation of will and conduct. Nor is it merely to inculcate obedience to the teachings and commandments of the Church; for catechesis is intended to lead to personal conviction. Others have considered qualification for the Lord's Supper as its aim, but this definition begs the question; for who is really qualified
2. Diver- for the Lord's Supper? Others regard gent Views living faith as the aim of Christian eduof the cation; but children of Christian par- Object of ents can not be regarded as unbelievers. Catechesis. They come from Christian surroundings and possess already a certain unconscious faith in God and the Savior; ecclesiastical education is rather to confirm this implicit faith and develop it into Christian conviction and conduct.