1. Did God abandon man after Adam fell into sin?
No, God did not abandon man after Adam fell into sin, but promised to send into the world a Saviour to save man from his sins and to open again the gates of heaven.
“I will put enmities between thee (the serpent) and the woman, and thy seed and her seed; she shall crush thy head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her” (Genesis 3:15).
“Behold the Lord hath made it to be heard in the ends of the earth, tell the daughter of Sion: Behold thy Saviour cometh” (Isaias 62:11).
2. Who is the Saviour of all men?
Jesus Christ is the Saviour of all men. The name “Jesus” means “Saviour”.
“‘Thou shalt call His name Jesus; for He shall save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). “This day is born to you a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11)
3. Who is Jesus Christ?
Jesus Christ is the Son of God, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, true God and true Man.
” And I saw, and I gave testimony that this is the Son of God” (John 1:34).
4. Where can I read the life of Jesus?
The life of Jesus is contained in the first four books of the New Testament, called the Gospels, written by Saints Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
However, only the main events of Jesus’ life are to be found in the Four Gospels. for “Many other signs also did Jesus in the sight of His Apostles, which are not written in this book” (John 20:30). Everything else that is known about Jesus is found in Tradition.
5. Who is the Mother of Jesus? The Blessed Virgin Mary is the Mother of Jesus.
And the angel said to her: Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found grace with God. Behold thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a Son, and thou shalt call His name Jesus”. (Luke 1:30, 31)
6. Did Jesus have a human father?
No, Jesus did not have a human father. He was “conceived by the Holy Ghost.”
“Therefore, the Lord Himself shall give you a sign: Behold a Virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and his Name shall be called Emmanuel (which means ‘God with us’)” (Isaias 7:14).
7. Who, then, was St. Joseph?
St. Joseph was only the foster father of Jesus.
“Behold an angel of the Lord appeared to him in his sleep, saying: Joseph, son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost’ (Matthew 1:20).
8. Did Mary have any other children besides Jesus?
No, Mary did not have any other children, but always stayed a virgin. That is why she is called Blessed Mary ever Virgin.
“And the angel said to her: Thou shalt conceive and bring forth a son. … And Mary said to the angel: How shall this be done, because I know not man?” (Luke 1:31, 34).
9. Were not the brothers of Jesus mentioned in the Bible children of Mary and Joseph?
No, the brothers and sisters of Jesus mentioned in the Bible were not children of Mary, but were cousins of Jesus.
The word “brothers had a very wide meaning among the Jews, meaning relatives, or cousins, because there was no word in Hebrew for cousin. (See: Lev. 10:4 and 1 Par. 23:22).
10. Were Mary and Joseph husband and wife?
Yes, Mary and Joseph were husband and wife, legally married, but they lived as brother and sister.
“The angel Gabriel was sent from God…to a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph … and the virgin’s name was Mary (Luke 1:26, 27).
11. When and where was Jesus born?
Jesus was born nearly 2,000 years ago on Christmas Day, in Bethlehem, a small town near Jerusalem in Israel.
“Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Juda, in the days of king Herod” (Matthew 2:1).
12. Where did Jesus live during most of His life.
Jesus lived with Mary His Mother, in the city of Nazareth, in northern Israel, until He was about thirty years old.
“And He went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was subject to them” (Luke 2:51).
13. How did Jesus spend the last three years of his life?
Jesus spent the last three years of His life preaching His Gospel, working miracles and establishing His Church.
“And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the Gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and every infirmity among the people (Matthew 4:23).
14. How was Jesus condemned to death?
One of His Apostles, Judas Iscariot, betrayed Jesus to His enemies who got the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate, to condemn Him to death, as He had foretold in prophecy.
“Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the ancients and scribes and chief priests, and be put to death, and the third day rise again” (Matthew 16:21).
15. What were the chief sufferings of Jesus before His death?
The chief sufferings of Jesus were His Agony in the Garden, His bloody sweat, His cruel scourging, His crowning with thorns, and His death on the Cross and His spiritual and mental sufferings.
“And being in an agony, He prayed the longer, and His sweat became as drops of blood, trickling down upon the ground” (Luke 22:43, 44).
“Pilate took Jesus and scourged Him. And the soldiers platting a crown of thorns, put it upon His head. … Then he delivered Him to them to be crucified” (John 19:1, 2, 16).
16. How did Jesus die?
Jesus was nailed to a cross of wood (crucified), on a hill called Calvary, just outside the city of Jerusalem. He hung for three hours on the cross and then died.
“And it was the third hour, and they crucified Him … and Jesus having cried out with a loud voice, gave up the ghost” (Mark 15:25, 37).
17. On what day did Jesus die? Jesus died on Good Friday, two days before Easter Sunday.
“Joseph of Arimathea … went to Pilate and begged the body of Jesus. . . . And taking Him down, he wrapped Him in fine linen and laid Him in a sepulchre that was bewed in stone. … And it was the day of the Parasceve, and the Sabbath drew on” (Luke 23:50-54).
18. What do I learn from the sufferings and death of Jesus?
From the sufferings and death of Jesus, I learn God’s great love for man, the evil of sin and the perfect example of patience ins suffering.
“For God so loved the world, as to give His only begotten Son” (John 3:16).
“Who loved me, and delivered Himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).
“If doing well you suffer patiently, this is thankworthy before God. For unto this are you called, because Christ also suffered, for us, leaving you an example that you should follow His steps” (1st Peter 2:20, 21).
19. When Jesus died, where did His soul go?
When Jesus died, His body was buried, and His soul went down to Limbo.
“I will penetrate to all the lower parts of the earth, and will behold all that sleep, and will enlighten all that hope in the Lord” (Ecclesiasticus 24:45).
20. What did Jesus tell the souls in Limbo?
When Jesus went down to Limbo, He told the adults there that the gates of heaven were going to be opened and that soon they would be going to heaven.
“In the spirit, coming He preached to those spirits that were in prison” (1st Peter 3:19).
21. On what day did Jesus rise from the dead?
Jesus rose from the dead on Easter Sunday, the third day after His death, as He had foretold.
Jesus said to them: the Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of men, and they shall kill Him, and the third day He shall rise again” (Matthew 17:21, 22).
22. How long did Jesus stay on earth after he rose from the dead?
After His resurrection, Jesus stayed on earth for forty days, showing Himself many times to His Apostles and disciples to prove that He really had risen from the dead.
“To the Apostles He showed Himself alive after his Passion, by many proofs, for forty days appearing to them and speaking of the kingdom of God, and eating with them” (Acts 1:3-4).
23. When did Jesus ascend into heaven?
Jesus ascended into heaven, body and soul, on Ascension Thursday, forty days after His resurrection.
“And the Lord Jesus, after He had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God” (Mark 16:19).
24. Who ascended into heaven with Jesus?
The souls of the adults who had been in Limbo ascended into heaven with Jesus.
“Ascending on high, He led captivity captive: He gave gifts to men. Now that He ascended, what is it, but because He also descended first into the lower parts of the earth?” (Ephesians 4:8,9).
25. Will Jesus come back again?
Yes, Jesus will come back again on the Last Day to judge the living and the dead. The Son of man shall come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then will He render to every man according to his works” (Matthew 16:27).
26. When will Jesus come back to judge us?
No one except God knows the day and the hour when Jesus will come back for the judgement.
“But of that day and hour no one knows, not the angels of heaven, but the Father only” (Matthew 24:36).
27. How should I prepare for the Last Day?
I should prepare for the Last Day by praying regularly, avoiding all sin, and keeping grace in my soul.
“And take heed to yourselves, lest perhaps your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting and drunkenness, and the cares of this life, and that day come upon you suddenly. For as a snare it shall come upon all that sit on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye, therefore, praying at all times, that you may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that are to come and to stand before the Son of man” (Luke 21:34-36).