Index of Catholic Terminology

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H

Habit:The distinctive form of dress worn by members of religious communities.

Hagiography: The writing of the lives or biographies of the saints.

Hagiology: Study and research leading to knowledge of the lives of the saints.

Hail Mary:The most popular prayer Catholics address to Our Lady. It derives from the angels greeting (Luke 1:28) and the greeting of Mary's cousin, Elizabeth (Luke 1:42) adding to these a request to Mary to pray for us. The full prayer is; Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen

Harmony: A term used in exegesis to denote the study of the Gospels from the standpoint of explaining the similarities and differences found in the four accounts, developing the continuous narrative, and arranging them in chronological sequence or historical order.

Hell: The state of eternal rejection of God. It is we who will reject God. God will not reject us. See Gehenna.

Heresy: A teaching which deviates from the accepted beliefs of the Catholic Church.

Heretic: One who consistently and obstinately professes a false doctrine and continues to do so once one is properly informed of the heretical nature of that doctrine.

Hermeneutics: The science forming the principles upon which the correct interpretation of the Bible is based. Sometimes the study of general Introduction to Sacred Scripture.

Hermit: One who lives alone and apart from the world and practices works of prayer and fasting in living in close union with God.

Hierarchy: In general, the term refers to the ordered body of clergy, divided into bishops, priests, and deacons. In Catholic practice, the term refers to the bishops of the world or of a particular region.

Holiness: 1) State of being holy; having grace. (2) A mark of the Church. The Church is essentially holy because of its Founder, its doctrine, and its end in the direction and salvation of humanity (3) A title given to the Holy Father; the title of the Pope denoting his holiness as Vicar of Christ.

Holocaust: Burnt offering, a sacrifice wherein the victim is entirely consumed by fire, in use among the Jews and some pagan nations of the early ages.

Holy Days of Obligation: Days on which Catholic are required to participate in the celebration of Mass; in addition to all Sundays there are six in the United States: Christmas, The Solemnity of Mary (January 1), Ascension (in many U.S. Dioceses this is now celebrated on Sunday) otherwise it is 40 days after Easter, Assumption of Mary (August 15)., All Saints (November 1), and Immaculate Conception (December 8).

Holy Hour: A service in which Jesus is venerated in the blessed sacrament. See Gethsemane.

Holy Orders: The sacrament by which a bishop, priest, or deacon is ordained.

Holy Oils: The oil of catechumens, the oil of the sick, and chrism consecrated by the bishop at services during Holy Week and given to the priests of the parishes.

Holy See: 1) The diocese of the Pope, Rome. 2) The Pope himself or the various officials and bodies of the ChurchÍs central administration? the Roman Curia ? which act in the name and by authority of the Pope.

Holy Saturday:The day between Good Friday and Easter Sunday.

Holy Spirit: The third person of the Holy Trinity proceeding from the Father and the Son, truly God given to us during the feast of Pentecost.

Holy Thursday: The Thursday of Holy week, the week preceding Easter Sunday. The day before Good Friday. On this day Catholics commemorate the supper Jesus held with his disciples on the night before he died.

Holy Water:Water which has been blessed by a Priest. Catholics sprinkle themselves with Holy Water as they make they make the sign of the cross upon entering a Church as a reminder of their baptism. Holy Water is also used for blessings.

Holy Week:The final week of Lent, leading up to Easter Sunday. The last three days of Holy Week, (Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday), are days of special solemnity.

Homily: A talk during the Mass after the Gospel reading in which the Word of God is explained and made applicable to the lives of those in attendance. Only people commissioned by the Bishop are allowed to give Homilies, usually Priests or Deacons.

Hope :A gift bestowed by God through which one trusts that God will grant eternal life and the means of obtaining it providing one cooperates.

Hospitallers: Knights who dedicated their lives to the care of the sick, taking the three major vows of religion; they arose in the eleventh century and had as members laymen who were of noble birth, chaplains or clergy, and brothers who need not be of noble birth.

Host: The bread under whose appearance Christ is and remains present in a unique manner after the consecration of the Mass. It is usually disc-shaped and thin for convenience and there are two sizes; the larger is used by the Priest at the altar. Technically, in the Roman Rite, the host or altar bread should be made of only flour and water with no yeast. The Eastern rite Churches use a different type of altar bread or host.

Humeral Veil: An oblong scarf worn over the shoulders of the priest when he elevates the Host at Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, or when he carries the monstrance and Blessed Sacrament in procession. See Benediction.

Humility: A moral virtue --the reasonable evaluation of ourselves and recognition of our dependence upon God.

Hussites: The name given to the followers of John Huss, a heretic of the fifteenth century.

Hymn: A song of praise or honor, sung to give glory to God; psalms and canticles are the most notable. Often applied to any poem of a religious nature adapted for singing.

Hyssop: A branch or leafy twig used for sprinkling water.

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