As you know, I am fascinated (enraptured, enthralled, intrigued, allured) by all things Catholic! And so, I really want to know what the Church teaches. One way to get a “bird’s eye view” (Don’t you just wonder where these phrases come from? I sure do and some nights I just sit up puzzling over it! Which I did for a spell [short period of time as in an instant, jiffy, little while, minute, second, stretch] on this one. You can find out what I discovered below. So many words, so many phrases, so much linguistic intrigue – and so little time! It near makes me batty – as in crazy or eccentric nuts or wacky– none of which really applies to me, thank goodness!).

One very neat and succinct definition – I am so tempted to define “succinct” and give synonyms, even antonyms if I “let myself go” (another amazing phrase which I would so like to explore – but I am restraining myself or this blog will become a treatise and it will never get written (“treatise,” a fascinating word! Sweet Jesus, help me!) – is found in the Full of Grace: Women and the Abundant Life Foundational Study, Study Guide:

Dogma: a binding teaching of the Church, which the faithful are compelled to believe. A dogma is revealed by divine revelation either explicitly or implicitly.   Explicit revelation is found only in the Scriptures; implicit revelation refers to the ongoing Tradition of the Church, starting from the earliest times and continuing in the teaching office of the Magisterium to the present day.

(adj. – nascent - 1615–25; beginning to exist or develop), the Church communicated the “non-negotiables” of the Christian faith. And, as early as 325 these beliefs were codified (verb, past tense – made a digest of ; arranged in a systematic order) at the Council of Nicea. It is called The Nicene Creed. Following is the literal translation of the Nicene Creed. Note how close it is to the language of our current translation. Just imagine – the Nicene Creed you profess at Mass every Sunday has been professed by Catholics going all the way back to 325! Doesn’t our Faith utterly thrill you!  

We believe in one God the Father Almighty, Maker of all things visible and invisible; and in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten of the Father, that is, of the substance [ek tes ousias] of the Father, God of God, light of light, true God of true God, begotten not made, of the same substance with the Father [homoousion to patri], through whom all things were made both in heaven and on earth; who for us men and our salvation descended, was incarnate, and was made man, suffered and rose again the third day, ascended into heaven and cometh to judge the living and the dead. And in the Holy Ghost. Those who say: There was a time when He was not, and He was not before He was begotten; and that He was made out of nothing (ex ouk onton); or who maintain that He is of another hypostasis or another substance [than the Father], or that the Son of God is created, or mutable, or subject to change, [them] the Catholic Church anathematizes.

Since then, the Church has enunciated (verb - to state clearly and definitely; to proclaim or announce) the tenets of the Faith in “dogmas.” Taken as a whole, these doctrines bring clarity and understanding to what Catholics believe. And thus, ( Here it comes, here it comes! Hold on to your linguistic hat…!!!) it gives a “bird’s eye view” of Catholic belief. The most recent dogma was given to the Church by Pope Pius XII in 1950. It is the Dogma of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. And what a wonderful dogma it is! It foreshadows the resurrection of the body for all those who are faithful to the end (see #966 in the Catechism of the Catholic Church).

Okay. You have waited long enough and I know you are uber-excited about “bird’s eye view.” And who can blame you? Not me, that’s for sure! Oh and BTW: - uber – 1. adverb – having the specified property to an extreme or excessive degree; very: as in “uber excited” 2. Adjective – designating a person or thing that is extraordinary in some way or for its class: as in “uber theologians” 3. Prefix – adverb and adjective meaning “over or beyond” added to adjectives and nouns to form compound words as in ubersmart or uberlinguist), so here goes:

Bird’s eye view – adjective – summarizing the main points of a topic, a general perspective as in the panoramic view of a flying bird.

(Now here’s a question I can’t help but ask: Who really knows what a bird sees? I’d love to interview a bird and ask him/her, but I couldn’t do that unless it was a parrot – a talking parrot! Oh my gosh! LOL, LOL, LOL! It’s a joke! Do you get it? A talking parrot! Oh my, oh my, oh my! I’m doubled over; tears cascading down my cheeks; I can barely breathe. My goodness, I do have quite a sense of humor, don’t I? It really is my most endearing trait. Truly.) Ahem…. now, then, back to the point.

As for the history of “bird’s eye view”, little information is available about its exact origin although it is found in the poetry of the bards from medieval times. So – we really don’t know much about it, just like we don’t really and truly know what a bird sees. But, I love the phrase anyway.

All of that being said, I am happy to offer you a bird’s eye view of the Catholic dogmas. Here’s a link that provides you with a download: www.holyjoe.org/dogmas.doc

I know you are going to like it! It’s so useful, so helpful, and just so – well, inspiring!

Happy reading!

Happy edification! (noun – from the verb “edify” which means to instruct or benefit, especially morally or spiritually; uplift. From the Latin “aedificare” to build.).

Linguistically yours, Lexi Conner

References: www.dictionary.com www.thesaurus.com www.newadvent.com www.yahoo.com www.holyjoe.org