Common misunderstandings of the term "dogma"
-"Dogma means any official Catholic teaching or rule, even disciplinary ones like Friday abstinence.”
Dogma refers only to truths contained in divine Revelation (Scripture + Tradition) proposed for belief as divinely revealed. It is strictly limited to faith and morals that are necessary for salvation (e.g., the Trinity, the Incarnation). Church disciplines (e.g., priestly celibacy in the Latin rite, fasting rules) are not dogmas—they can change.
-"Dogma is an invention added to the Bible"
It is the authoritative interpretation and articulation of what is already contained in divine Revelation—which is held to be both Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition (2 Thess 2:15; Dei Verbum §9).
Dogma unpacks what was implicit in Revelation, not adds to it. St. Vincent of Lérins (5th century): Doctrine unfolds “in the same sense, the same meaning” (🔗Commonitorium).
#dogma