United States Catholic Catechism for Adults

500 • Conclusion and Appendices

life-giving power of the Holy Spirit. In the first part of this United States Catholic Catechism for Adults , we have studied the summary of faith in the Apostles’ Creed and have learned how the Gospel of Jesus Christ is transmitted faithfully from generation to generation, continuing to be heard by countless believers in a way that leads them to an ever greater understanding of God’s love and their destiny. God continues to be present in his Church as her members are brought together by the Holy Spirit to celebrate the Seven Sacraments, most especially the Eucharist. In Part Two of this Catechism , we have learned how Jesus Christ continues to endow his people with his gifts of salvation. Through Baptism, he makes them children of the Father, his disciples, and members of the Church. Through Confirmation, he deep ens within them the presence of the Holy Spirit. Through the sacrifice of the Eucharist, he nourishes them with his Body and Blood. Through Penance and Reconciliation, he brings them from sin to grace. Through the Anointing of the Sick, he helps them bear—and sometimes lifts from them—the burdens of serious illness. Through Marriage, he reveals the absoluteness of love and its life-giving creativity. Through Holy Orders, he establishes bishops, priests, and deacons to ensure his continuous shepherding of the Church. God continues to be present in the Church as her members strive to live according to the example and teaching of Jesus Christ. In Part Three of this Catechism , we have learned how the Beatitudes and the Ten Commandments guide the consciences and lives of the members of the Church so that they make alive, in the midst of humanity, the power of God’s love to transform society by the wisdom, compassion, justice, and fidelity that flow from God himself. The Holy Spirit is the dynamic presence of God, enabling the members of the Church to live a truly Christian life. God continues to be present in the Church as her members contem plate the great things God has done through his Son by the power of the Holy Spirit for the salvation of all people. In Part Four of this Catechism , we have learned about the significance of prayer and popular piety as ways in which the members of the Church continue to encounter the living God within their own hearts and within their own communities.