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  Identifying Infallible TeachingsSometimes people ask, “Is this document infallible?”The question is problematic because the Magisterium doesn’t issue documents whose teaching is infallible from beginning to end. Instead, it issues documents that contain individual propositions that are infallible.In Ineffabilis Deus (1854) and Munificentissimus Deus (1950)—the documents that defined the Immaculate Conception and Assumption of Mary—only a single sentence …

St. Peter urges us to be ready to give reasons for our faith (1 Pet. 3:15), and helping Catholics explain their belief in Church teachings has always been at the core of our mission. But even Catholics who are trained in apologetics can sometimes stumble when confronted with the question, "Why are you Catholic?" It’s a simple question but not an easy one to answer quickly. It requires an approach that goes beyond arguments from Scripture or history about this or that Catholic teaching. Yet …