Profession
of Catholic Faith
Promulgated solemnly by Pope Pius IV
and the Council of Trent
● I, N., with firm
faith believe and profess each and every article
contained in the symbol of faith which the holy Roman Church uses; 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, born of the Father before all ages; God
from God, light from light, true God from true God; begotten not made, of one
substance (consubstantial) with the Father, through whom all things were made;
● who
for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven, and was made incarnate
by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary, and was made man.
● He was crucified
also for us under Pontius Pilate, died, and was buried; and
● He rose again the
third day according to the Scriptures, and ascended into heaven;
● He sits at the right
hand of the Father, and He shall come again in glory to judge the living and
the dead, and of His kingdom there will be no end.
● And I believe in the
Holy Ghost, the Lord, and giver of Life, who proceeds from the Father and the
Son; who equally with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified; who spoke
through the prophets.
● And I believe that
there is one, holy, Catholic, and apostolic Church.
● I confess one
baptism for the remission of sins; and I hope for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
● I resolutely accept
and embrace the apostolic and ecclesiastical traditions and the other practices
and regulations of that same Church.
● In like manner I
accept Sacred Scripture according to the meaning which has been held by holy
● I also acknowledge
that there are truly and properly seven sacraments of the New Law, instituted
by Jesus Christ our Lord, and that they are necessary for the salvation of the
human race, although it is not necessary for each individual to receive them
all.
● I acknowledge that
the seven sacraments are: Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Penance, Extreme
Unction, Holy Orders, and Matrimony; and that they confer grace; and that of
the seven, Baptism, Confirmation, and Holy Orders cannot be repeated without
committing a sacrilege.
● I also accept and
acknowledge the customary and approved rites of the Catholic Church in the
solemn administration of these sacraments.
● I embrace and accept
each and every article on Original Sin and Justification declared and defined
in the most holy Council of Trent.
● I likewise profess
that in Mass a true, proper, and propitiatory sacrifice is offered to God on
behalf of the living and the dead, and that the Body and Blood together with
the Soul and Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ is truly, really, and
substantially present in the most holy Sacrament of the Eucharist, and that
there is a change of the whole substance of the bread into the Body, and of the
whole substance of the wine into the Blood; and this change the Catholic Church
calls transubstantiation.
● I also profess that
the whole and entire Christ and a true Sacrament is received under each
separate species.
● I firmly hold that
there is a purgatory, and that the souls detained there are helped by the
prayers of the faithful.
● I likewise hold that
the saints reigning together with Christ should be honored and invoked, that
they offer prayers to God on our behalf, and that their relics should be
venerated.
● I firmly assert that
images of Christ, of the Mother of God ever Virgin, and of the other saints
should be owned and kept, and that due honor and veneration should be given to
them.
● I affirm that the
power of indulgences was left in the keeping of the Church by Christ, and that
the use of indulgences is very beneficial to Christians.
● I acknowledge the
holy, Catholic, and apostolic Roman Church as the mother and teacher of all
churches; and…
● I unhesitatingly
accept and profess all the doctrines (especially those concerning the primacy
of the Roman Pontiff and his infallible teaching authority) handed down,
defined, and explained by the sacred canons and ecumenical councils and
especially those of this most holy Council of Trent (and by the ecumenical
Vatican Council I). And at the same
time:
● I condemn, reject, and anathematize everything
that is contrary to those propositions, and all heresies without exception that
have been condemned, rejected, and anathematized by the Church.
● I, N., promise, vow,
and swear that, with God’s help, I shall most constantly hold and profess this true
Catholic faith, outside which no one can be saved and which I now freely
profess and truly hold. With the help of
God, I shall profess it whole and unblemished to my dying breath; and, to the
best of my ability, I shall see to it that my subjects or those entrusted to me
by virtue of my office hold it, teach it, and preach it. So help me God and His holy Gospel.
Most Holy Family
Monastery, 4425 Schneider Rd.,