Editing Confraternity of Christian Doctrine

{{short description|Religious education programs of the Catholic Church normally designed for children}}
The '''Confraternity of Christian Doctrine''' ('''CCD''') is an association established in [[Rome]] in 1562 for the purpose of providing [[religious education]]. In modern usage, it refers to the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., which owns the copyright on the [[New American Bible Revised Edition]], and is a term colloquially used for the [[catechesis]] or religious education program of the [[Catholic Church]], normally designed for children. In some Catholic parishes, CCD is called PSR, meaning Parish School of Religion, or SRE, meaning Special Religious Education.<ref>{{Cite web|title=What is SRE – Confraternity of Christian Doctrine (Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney)|url=https://ccd.sydneycatholic.org/about-ccd/what-is-sre/|access-date=2020-07-06|language=en-AU}}</ref>

==Background==
In the thirteenth century, the [[Apostles' Creed]] and the [[Lord's Prayer]] formed the general basis of religious instruction. All the faithful within the [[Catholic Church]] were required to know them by heart, and [[parish]] [[priest (Catholic Church)|priest]]s were commanded to explain them on Sundays and [[festivals]]. Eventually, the range of instruction was widened to include the [[Ten Commandments|Commandments]], the [[sacraments]], and the virtues and vices.<ref name="CathEncy" />

In 1281 the [[Synod]] of [[Lambeth]], [[England]], ordered priests to explain these truths of faith four times a year. The [[Plenary council (Catholicism)#Provincial councils|Provincial Council]] of [[Lavours]], [[France]], in 1368, expanded this and commanded priests to give instruction on all Sundays and [[feast days]]. This council also published a [[catechism]] to serve as a textbook for the [[Clergy|clergy]] in giving instructions in Christian doctrine, which was followed in all the dioceses of [[Languedoc]] and [[Gascony]]. Similar manuals were published elsewhere.<ref name="CathEncy" />

Partly in response to the challenge to uniformity posed by the [[the Reformation|Reformation]], the [[Council of Trent]] stated that church reform must begin with the religious instruction of the young. The Council issued the "Catechismus ad Parochos" and decreed that, throughout the Church, instructions in Christian doctrine should be given on Sundays and festivals.<ref name="CathEncy" />

==History==
In 1536, the [[Abbot]] Castellino da Castello had inaugurated a system of [[Sunday schools]] in [[Milan]]. Around 1560, a wealthy Milanese nobleman, Marco de Sadis-Cusani, having established himself in Rome, was joined by a number of zealous associates, both priests and [[laymen]], and pledged to instruct both children and adults in Christian doctrine. In 1562, [[Pope Pius IV]] made the [[Sant'Apollinare alle Terme Neroniane-Alessandrine|Church of Sant' Apollinare]] their central institution; but they also gave instructions in schools, in the streets and lanes, and even in private houses. As the association grew, it divided into two sections: the priests formed themselves into a [[religious congregation]], the ''Fathers of Christian Doctrine'', while the laymen remained in the world as "The Confraternity of Christian Doctrine".<ref name="CathEncy" />

Encouragement from the [[Holy See]] was quickly forthcoming. In 1571, [[Pope Pius V]], in the Brief ''Ex debito pastoralis officii'', recommended that bishops establish it in every parish. In 1607, [[Pope Paul V]], by the [[Papal Brief]] ''Ex credito nobis'', erected it into an [[archconfraternity]], with [[St. Peter's Basilica]] in Rome as its headquarters.<ref>[https://libraries.catholic.edu/special-collections/archives/collections/finding-aids/finding-aids.html?file=ccd "Records of the National Office of the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine (CCD)", CUA]</ref> In 1686, a rescript of the [[Congregation for Indulgences and Sacred Relics|Sacred Congregation of Indulgences]] urged its establishment wherever possible.<ref name="CathEncy" />
 
From Rome it spread rapidly over Italy, France and Germany. It found advocates in [[Robert Bellarmine]] and [[Francis de Sales]], and [[Charles Borromeo]] established it in every parish of [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milan|his diocese]].<ref name=Cvoice>[https://www.catholicvoice.org.au/what-exactly-is-the-confraternity-of-christian-doctrine/ "What exactly is the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine?", ''Catholic Voice'', 15 January 2019]</ref>

[[Pope Pius X]] was a strong proponent of CCD. In 1905, in his letter ''Acerbo nimis'', he mandated the establishment of the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine (catechism class) in every parish.<ref>{{citation |last1=Avella |first1=Steven M. |last2=Zalar |first2=Jeffrey |title=Sanctity in the Era of Catholic Action: The Case of St. Pius X |newspaper=Catholic Historian |location=US |volume=15 |number=4 |edition=Spirituality and Devotionalism |pages=57–80 |date=Fall 1997}}</ref> 
 
The First Provincial Council of [[Westminster]] urged that its members should be used in both Sunday and day-schools.

If the central confraternity in a diocese is affiliated to the Archconfraternity of Santa Maria del Pianto in Rome, all others participate in all the confraternity indulgences.<ref name="CathEncy" />

==Similar groups==
Similar in scope and character to the CCD are the ''Pieuses Unions de la Doctrine Chrétienne'', founded by the [[Convent Van Maerlant|Sisters of Perpetual Adoration]] at Brussels in 1851, for giving religious instruction to boys and girls. In Brussels, they were (as of 1913) found in about thirty parishes. In 1894, [[Pope Leo XIII]] erected it into an archconfraternity for Belgium.<ref name="CathEncy" />

The ''Archconfraternity of Voluntary Catechists'' (loosely corresponding to the French ''Oeuvre des Catéchismes'') was founded to help parish priests in giving religious instructions to children attending the primary schools in Paris and other parts of France, after these had been laicized. In 1893, [[Pope Leo XIII]] gave it the rank of an archconfraternity with power to affiliate all similar confraternities in France. The [[indulgence]]s granted to all these confraternities are numerous.<ref name="CathEncy" />

In 1902, the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine was established in the [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York|Archdiocese of New York]] by Archbishop [[Michael A. Corrigan]], as proposed by Marion Gurney, who was its first secretary.<ref>{{cite web|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150113014249/http://www.marydellsisters.com/history.html|archive-date=13 January 2015|author=Sisters of Our Lady of Christian Doctrine|title=Our History|url=http://www.marydellsisters.com/history.html|access-date=4 January 2015|url-status=bot: unknown}}</ref>

==Contemporary usage==
The Confraternity of Christian Doctrine is now commonly referred to by its abbreviation, CCD, or simply as "[[Catechism]]", and provides religious education to Catholic children attending secular schools. Inconsistently, CCD has also been offered under a spectrum of banners and acronyms, but all serve the same parochial function of providing a course of study that has been pre-approved by the diocese as meeting the requirements for children not enrolled in a Catholic school (i.e., public school students) to engage with the sacraments at the same time as their diocese-sponsored peers.

While CCD remains the official shorthand of the institution, occasionally parishes have opted to style their individual program as PSR (Parish School of Religion), SRE (Special Religious Education), and PRP (Parish Religious Program), especially when it occurs as a condensed extended-day summer program.<ref>{{Cite web|title=What is SRE – Confraternity of Christian Doctrine (Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney)|url=https://ccd.sydneycatholic.org/about-ccd/what-is-sre/|access-date=2020-07-06|language=en-AU}}</ref> These are merely some examples, and not an exhaustive list.

Similar to children's [[Sunday school]]s in [[Protestant]] churches, CCD education is provided by both members of the clergy and lay staff. Unlike Protestant Sunday programs, CCD does not afford participating children an excuse from the weekend Mass they attend with their family unit, and only in rare occasions is it even offered in conjunction with (i.e., immediately before or after) a weekly Mass. Catholic culture in America often necessitates or at least prefers that instructors hold credentials in education, ministry, or both, in addition to professing that one lives in strict adherence to church teaching and customs. CCD attendance is considered by the [[Holy See]] to be vital to children's development as Catholics and an important complement to the limited liturgic participation they regularly experience while accompanying their family to church throughout the year. These classes not only educate children about Jesus and the Catholic faith but more practically prepare children to fully participate in adult spiritual life by providing a secure foundation to receive the sacraments of [[Penance]] ([[Confession (religion)|confession]]), the [[Eucharist]] (Holy Communion), and [[Confirmation]].

Organisations called Confraternity of Christian Doctrine have been established in many countries and organise modern CCD programs.

{{anchor|CCDInc}}The '''Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc.''' is an affiliate of the [[United States Conference of Catholic Bishops]] established in 1946 and based in Washington DC,<ref>Cause IQ, [https://www.causeiq.com/organizations/confraternity-of-christian-doctrine,526039714/ Confraternity of Christian Doctrine], accessed 3 February 2023</ref> which owns the copyright on the [[New American Bible Revised Edition]], the translation most commonly used in US Catholic churches and incorporated in the [[lectionary]] for Mass used in the USA.<ref>US Conference of Catholic Bishops, [https://www.usccb.org/offices/new-american-bible/permissions Permissions], accessed 3 February 2023</ref> The organisation operates an international [[Grant (money)|grant-funding]] programme in conjunction with the [[Catholic Biblical Association]], using [[royalty payment|royalties]] to support "Catholic biblical literacy and Catholic biblical interpretation".<ref>US Conference of Catholic Bishops, [https://www.usccb.org/news/2019/confraternity-christian-doctrine-funds-catholic-biblical-literacy-and-interpretation Confraternity of Christian Doctrine Funds Catholic Biblical Literacy and Interpretation Projects], published 12 December 2017, accessed 3 February 2023</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Catholicism}}
*[[Catholic spirituality]]
*[[Confraternity Bible]]
*[[New American Bible]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist|refs=
<ref name="CathEncy">{{Catholic Encyclopedia|wstitle=Confraternity of Christian Doctrine|last=Glancey|first=Michael C|volume=3}}</ref>}}

{{Catholic Youth Ministry}}
{{Lay Cath Spirituality}}

[[Category:Catholic education]]
[[Category:1562 establishments in the Papal States]]