—H—
Habit [clothing] · worn by a religious is both a uniform and a witness to their lives. Some nuns and sisters consider it as a perpetual wedding dress as they represent the Church, the bride of Christ.
Historically, habits emerged from surrounding civilian clothing. They are usually taken from the lower-class standards and are uniform in design. Over time, as secular clothing evolved, habits have taken on their own stereotypical features.
Habit [practice] · a quality to effect repeated acts and an aptitude to reproduce them. It might also be seen as a “state of potentiality” or “disposition to operation” which arises from the will but is manifest in form or deed (Summa Theologiae). Even when habits lapse, some trace of them often remains. A habit is acquired by exercise; thus, it differs from instincts and natural predispositions.
Good habits are often referred to as virtues. Both the establishment and maintenance of good and noble habits align with the Christian process of askesis (from the Greek for “athletic training”), the practice of self-discipline and self-denial.
Habits can also be negative. In particular, the habitual inclination to sin — often referred to as ‘concupiscence’; though this strays slightly from the definition of habit as it is an inherited inclination or pre-disposition to choose the self over God/good.
Halloween · has Catholic origins. All Saints’ (All Hallows’) Day being celebrated annually on 1 Nov, the vigil of this feast is popularly called hallows’-eve as “Hallowe’en” or “Halloween”. However, it is difficult to draw a sense of continuity between the origin and what is now the global secular event.
Heaven · is where God is. It is the dwelling of the saints, the domain of angels, and home to the Church victorious. Heaven is presently all spirits except for Jesus, Mary, Enoch, and Elijah (and some would also say those who rose in Matt 27:52-53). Heaven holds the fulfillment of all desires where all lost in Eden will be restored in paradise, the new and eternal Jerusalem where instead of a tree there is Christ (c.f. Rev 21:23 & 22:1-5).
Heaven is our home [to be] (Philippians 3:20).
Hell · is the place of the damned. It is often represented in art as a place of flaming torture, even if consuming flames (not in a bad way) might be a better analogy for the love of God in heaven. The Catholic Church teaches that hell exists. However, and in contrast to the canonisation of saints (who the Church teaches to be in heaven), there are no official statements regarding anyone in hell. A popular imagination for hell is found in Dante’s Inferno (14th c.) and associated artworks.
Heresy · contradicts or opposes orthodox truth. It is the expression of erroneous teachings in matters of faith or morals. Chesterton famously jested that he had tried to construct the best heresy he could and inadvertently arrived at orthodoxy.
Hermeneutics · takes as its entomological origin the name of the Greek god Hermes (Mercury in Roman mythology), reputed messenger and interpreter of the gods. It is the science of interpretation, theorising about all the stages of interpretation (e.g. idea > formulation > verbal expression > audio transmission > hearing > processing), and those things which may intervene and contribute to misinterpretation. Hermeneutics is a critical science in the discipline of biblical exegesis and indeed any work of historiography.
Hierarchy · orders the Church as an organisation. Within the Church is an ‘inverted pyramid’ of service. The ministers serve the people of God. In no way are they above or superior but ministering through service (c.f. John 13:14). Within the ranks of ministers, the only hierarchy is bishops over priests and deacons. Other titles (e.g. ‘Arch-’ or ‘Monsignor’ and even ‘Pope’ ) are organisational or honorific); they do not have any bearing on grace or faith. Many hold the hierarchical nature of the Church as a ‘necessary evil’.
Holy Communion · refers to what is achieved by receiving the Eucharist; this is most fitting as the sacred elements are confected for the purpose of unity far more intrinsically than adoration or reservation (which developed later, from the tradition of communion to the house- and prison-bound). This term is used to refer colloquially to the sacred species — the consecrated host.
Holy Day of Obligation · requires all Catholics to attend Holy Mass every Sunday of the year as well as Christmas Day (25 Dec), and the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (15 Aug). This cannot be substituted by a spiritual Communion or any such devotion — though these are commendable practices if attending Mass is impossible. Conditions include that no one is expected to travel more than an hour to attend (though they are welcome to), or to put their own or the public health at risk.
The moral dimension can be understood with a distinction between ‘actual’ and ‘substantial’ obligations. An actual obligation is compromised when not actually met; a substantial obligation may be maintained with certain conditions. For example, Australian Citizens have an actual obligation to vote — and many mechanisms are established for this to be fulfilled (e.g. in-person, and postal votes); in contrast, most working people have a substantial obligation to work —they must do so but with a set of normal exceptions (e.g. sickness, bereavement, natural disaster).
At a technical level, the notion of sabbath obligation can be divided into two layers: The divine law to keep holy the Sabbath (Ex 20:8); and, the Church precept to attend Holy Mass. The divine law cannot be dispensed or altered (except by God); the Church precept can be dispensed by the competent authority (a bishop or authorised pastor) according to Law.
Holy Orders · or ‘ordination’ is the sacrament to mark and make men deacon, priest, or bishop. Its earliest origins are from the laying on of hands to raise Stephen and the six others to the service of deacon (Acts 6:1–6).
Holy Spirit/Ghost · is the third person of the Blessed Trinity. It is not a dove, though often depicted as one. The Spirit is identified as the breath (Hebrew Ruah) of God as hovered over the deep in the beginning (Gen 1:2) or the love that binds the Father and Son (as per S. Augustine). The Holy Spirit was given to the apostles (and the whole Church) “for the forgiveness of sins” (formula for absolution) and to guide the Church.
‘Ghost’ is no longer preferred, though used at times.
Holy Water · is water (H2O) that has been blessed for some holy purpose. The first use of holy water (though any water can be used in an emergency) is for baptism. Besides this it is also often used for blessing.
Homily · as distinct from a sermon or non-Eucharistic preaching is a reflection by the minister following the readings from scripture in Mass. The word is derived from the Greek word homilia (“to have communion” or “to hold conversation” or literally “dialogue”). Use of the word or its derivatives in the New Testament varies from conversations (e.g. Luke 24:14 & Acts 24:26) to a formal sermon (e.g. Acts 20:11). Origen (184–254 AD) was the first to record a distinction between preaching more broadly and the homily specifically at Eucharist.
The homily is tied essentially to the Eucharistic moment. As such, no person who is not a minister of the Eucharist can deliver the homily proper; authorised lay persons can share a reflection or preach in non-Mass liturgies like Liturgy of the Word with Holy Communion or even the Divine Office. While the homily may reflect on a given theme or spiritual text from the Mass, the aim is usually to explain the literal and unpack the spiritual meaning of the scriptures read.
Homosexuality · is an attraction that is presently understood to occur for a natural but notable minority of people. As it regards natural desires, homosexuality cannot be considered objectively good or evil. Thus, someone who is a homosexual is not automatically damned, is welcome in the Church, and has every right to pursue chaste love like any Christian.
The Church teaches that homosexual unions are dis-ordered to marriage. Interpretations of this range from ‘other-ordered’ through the more recent use of the word as ‘wrongly-ordered’ or even ‘destructively-ordered’. Any attempt to conflate these unions with marriage is erroneous. In times past, and despite scant biblical or apostolic foundations, the Church has aligned with secular prohibitions against homosexuality in the West. Now, the same living tradition of the Church has a simple directive: turn from judgment to care. This framed by the awareness that there is at least as much risk that a Christian might sin by judging or condemning as any homosexual person sin by being, as any of us can be, deaf to the call to a chaste life.
Some casual comments by the late Pope Francis caused confusion when translated into English. We have two words: “homosexual” and “gay”; one typically deployed in reference to the condition/disposition and the other a lifestyle or agenda. In Italian, one term is used interchangeably for both. Neither of these can be conflated with ‘sodomy’ or adjacent derogatory slang.
Concern for the sexual morality of homosexuals can be directed with the Church’s catechetical priorities. Energies should be devoted to forming and supporting human dignity and sexual integrity among all people, with priority to defend and promote family life.
Homoousios · literally translates to “of-one-being”. The word is used to confirm that the Son is not subordinate to the Father; both belong to the same Godhead. It is a niche theological term from early Church’s condemnation of Arianism. It is still used in defence of Christ’s divinity.
Humanism · like communism, in its purest form and ideals, aligns with Christianity. In practice, humanism often leads to a Pelagian sense of self-made success. Secular humanism has prevailed with ever-growing strength since the end of the ‘Middle Ages’; humanist meaning and values often fill the void left by abandoning Christian faith and/or virtue.
Humility · counters, as a heavenly remedy, the cardinal vice of pride. From the Latin humilis (literally “low”). False humility is to degrade or bad-mouth the self not in truth but destruction. The true virtue of humility still has space to acknowledge and to celebrate honest success.
Hypocrite · from the Greek word hypokrites (literally “actor”) is one who says one thing and does another. Jesus often called the religious leaders of His time hypocrites because of their corruption and guise of sanctity.