A Catechism of Christian Doctrine [Baltimore Catechism No. 2, 1885], The Second Commandment

A Catechism of Christian Doctrine [Baltimore Catechism No. 2, 1885], The Second Commandment

The Baltimore Catechism was the standard Catholic school text in the USA from 1885 to the late 1960. See below for order of Baltimore Catechism Versions. All subsequent version very similar to original edition with regards to the second commandment.

• No.2: Written by Fr. Januarius De Concilio prepared and enjoined by order of the Third Council of Baltimore (1884). Published April 1885. Second Commandment [Q345-352]
• No.1: Abridged and reordered No.2 by  Bishop John Lancaster Spalding in September 1885. Second Commandment [Q345-347,350-352]
• No.4 Expanded No.2 with more questions and explanatory notes by Thomas Kinkead in 1891. Second Commandment [Q345-352]
• No.3 Both an abridgment of Catechism no. 4 and an expansion of Catechism no. 2 by Thomas Kinkead in 1901 [Q1217-1241]

Source: A Catechism of Christian Doctrine, Prepared and Enjoined by Order of the Third Council of Baltimore [Baltimore Catechism No. 2, 1885]

The Second Commandment

345. Q. What is the second Commandment? A. The second Commandment is: Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.

346. Q. What are we commanded by the second Commandment? A. We are commanded by the second Commandment to speak with reverence of God and of the saints, and of all holy things, and to keep our lawful oaths and vows.

347. Q. What is an oath? A. An oath is the calling upon God to witness the truth of what we say.

348. Q. When may we take an oath? A. We may take an oath when it is ordered by lawful authority or required for God's honor or for our own or our neighbor's good.

349. Q. What is necessary to make an oath lawful? A. To make an oath lawful it is necessary that what we swear to, be true, and that there be a sufficient cause for taking an oath.

350. Q. What is a vow? A. A vow is a deliberate promise made to God to do something that is pleasing to Him.

351. Q. Is it a sin not to fulfill our vows? A. Not to fulfill our vows is a sin, mortal or venial, according to the nature of the vow and the intention we had in making it.

352. Q. What is forbidden by the second Commandment? A. The second Commandment forbids all false, rash, unjust, and unnecessary oaths, blasphemy, cursing, and profane words.