Chicago A: 18th edition

Footnotes are not required for biblical references, and can be cited in-text as per the examples below.

In-text

In the running text of your paper or assignment, books of the Bible are spelt out in full without abbreviations.

• For example:  According to Genesis 1:27, God created man in his own image. 

However, abbreviations are appropriate in parenthetical citations, or where many such references appear in the running text.

Make sure you identify the version of the Bible you are using in your first biblical citation in your paper.

• Examples:
  • Jesus says, “Even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him" (John 14:17, NRSV).
  • Like a devoted vinekeeper who tenderly cares for his vines, God nurtures Israel, yet his people often grow wild and bear bitter fruit instead of the intended sweet harvest (Isa 1:8; 5:1– 7, 10; Jer 2:21).
  • The concept of divine justice is explored in various texts, such as Isa 58:6-7, Mic 6:8, and Amos 5:24.

Bibliography

• Standard Bibles that do not include additional commentary are not listed in the bibliography.
• However, if you are using an Annotated Bible or a Study Bible that includes commentary, be sure to include the specific Bible version in your bibliography. These sources are typically cited as chapters in edited books or edited books.

Examples:

Frechette, Christopher. “The Pentateuch." In The Catholic Study Bible. 3rd ed. Edited by Donald Senior, John J. Collins and Mary Ann Getty. Oxford University Press, 2010.

Coogan, Michael D., ed. The New Oxford Annotated Bible : New Revised Standard Version with the Apocrypha. An Ecumenical Study Bible. Fully rev. 5th ed. Oxford University Press, 2018. 

Notes

• Identify which version of the Bible you are using in your first in-text citation.  Use either the complete name or an accepted abbreviation (e.g. NRSV). A list of abbreviations appear in CMOS 10.54.
• References to scripture usually appear in-text citations or notes rather than in bibliographies (CMOS 14.139). A colon appears between chapter and verse. Never include a page number.
• Treat other sacred and revered works (e.g. Koran, Torah) in a similar manner to biblical references (for example, Koran 19:17-21). See CMOS 14.141.
• For additional advice on citing biblical material see The SBL Handbook of Style.

When citing canon law, do not list an author. Use canon numbers (not page numbers) as your pinpoints.

First footnote

¹ The Code of Canon Law: In English Translation (Collins, 1983), 872.

Subsequent footnote

⁶ The Code of Canon Law, 1097.

Bibliography

The Code of Canon Law: In English Translation. Collins, 1983.

First footnote

¹ Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2nd ed. (Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1997), sec. 1076 (hereafter cited as CCC).

² Catechism of the Catholic Church, popular rev. ed. (Bloomsbury, 2000), sec. 2184 (hereafter cited as CCC).

Subsequent footnotes

⁷ CCC, secs. 2186-7.

Bibliography

Catechism of the Catholic Church. 2nd ed. Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1997.

Catechism of the Catholic Church. Popular rev. ed. Bloomsbury, 2000.

Notes

• Author: Treat the Catechism as a book without an author.
• Publication details (edition, publisher, year) will differ depending on the version consulted. Do not translate the name of a publisher if it's in a language other than English (see CMOS 14.35).
• Pinpoint: Use the paragraph or section number to pinpoint, rather than the page.
• Ebooks: Online books in fixed-page format, where the online version of the Catechism matches the printed counterpart (such as from Theology and Religion Online or the USCCB website) can be cited without a URL. However, reflowable formats where page numbers do not match (for example, Kindle, Apple Books) should have the platform noted (see CMOS 14.58).

First footnote

Consulted online

^No Author, "Title of Document," Website name, Month Day, Year, URL, pinpoint.

¹ Second Vatican Council, "Dei Verbum: Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation," Vatican website, November 18, 1965, sec. 7, http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19651118_dei-verbum_en.html (hereafter cited as DV).

Published as a print book or book chapter

^No Author, Title of Book: Subtitle, edition (Publisher, Year), Pinpoint.

^No  Author, "Chapter Title: Subtitle," in Title of Book: Subtitle, ed. Editor Full Name (Publisher, Year), pinpoint.

² Second Vatican Council, "Dei Verbum: Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation," in Vatican Council II: The Conciliar and Post Conciliar Documents, ed. A. Flannery, vol.2 (Wilmington, Del.: Scholarly Resources, 1975), 754 (hereafter cited as DV).

Subsequent footnotes

⁴ DV, 755.

Bibliography

Consulted online

Author. "Title of Document: Subtitle." Website name, Month Day, Year. URL.

Second Vatican Council. "Dei Verbum: Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation." Vatican website. November 18, 1965. http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19651118_dei-verbum_en.html.

Published as a print book or book chapter

Author. Title of Book: Subtitle. Publisher, Year of publication.

Author. "Title of Chapter: Subtitle." In Title of Book: Subtitle. Edited by Editor First Name, Surname. Publisher, Year of Publication.

Second Vatican Council. "Dei Verbum: Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation." In Vatican Council II: The Conciliar and Post Conciliar Documents. Edited by A. Flannery, vol.2. Scholarly Resources, 1975.

Notes

• Author: Vatican II is an alternative and acceptable format for conciliar documents of the Second Vatican Council. 
• Title: Use title case, except prepositions consisting of four or fewer letters (as, of, the, in). Latin words within titles can be formatted in italics. For subsequent footnotes referencing the same council document, use an abbreviation. Include a '(hereafter)' note in the first footnote to indicate the abbreviation.
• URL: Do not create shortened version of URLs via third party services such as TinyURL, Bitly or shortDOI.

Abbreviations for Vatican II documents

First footnote

Consulted online

^No Author, Title of Document, document type, Website name. Month Day, Year. URL, pinpoint.

¹ John Paul II, Evangelium Vitae, encyclical letter, Vatican website, March 25, 1995, https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_25031995_evangelium-vitae.html, sec. 99.

Published as a book

^No Author, Title of Book: Subtitle, edition (Publisher, Year), Pinpoint.

² Francis, Laudato Si’: On Care for our Common Home, Encyclical Letter (Word Among Us Press, 2015), sec. 12.

Subsequent footnotes

⁴ John Paul II, Evangelium Vitae, sec. 100.

⁵ Francis, Laudato Si', sec. 34.

Bibliography

Consulted online

Author. Title of Document. Document type. Website Name. Month Day, Year. URL.

John Paul II. Evangelium Vitae. Encyclical letter. Vatican website. March 25, 1995. https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_25031995_evangelium-vitae.html.

Published as a book

Author. Title of Book. Publisher, Year.

Francis. Laudato Si’: On Care for our Common Home, Encyclical Letter. Word Among Us Press, 2015.

Notes

• Author: When citing papal documents or those issued by councils or synods, list the author as follows:
  • If the author is a Pope, use their papal name (for example, John Paul II, Francis, Leo XIV).
  • If the author is a historical council or synod, use the full official name.
• Title: Use title case, except prepositions consisting of four or fewer letters (as, of, the, in). Latin words within titles can be formatted in italics.
• URL: Do not create shortened version of URLs via third party services such as TinyURL, Bitly or shortDOI.

In the first footnote, cite the specific section of The Roman Missal you consulted as if it were a chapter in an edited book, without including an author. Provide a pinpoint citation using page numbers. In the bibliography, cite the entire work.

First footnote

⁴ "Fifth Sunday of Lent," in The Roman Missal, 3rd ed. (Catholic Truth Society, 2010), 280.

Subsequent footnote

⁶ "Fifth Sunday of Lent," 280.

Bibliography

The Roman Missal. 3rd ed. Catholic Truth Society, 2010.

Cite as per the instructions for The Roman Missal above, but use section numbers for pinpointing rather than page numbers. Include a hearafter statement after the first footnote, if you wish subsequent footnotes to be abbreviated to “GIRM”. In the bibliography, cite the work, The Roman Missal, as a whole. 

First footnote

⁴ "General Instruction of the Roman Missal," in The Roman Missal, 3rd ed. (Catholic Truth Society, 2010), sec 60 (hereafter cited as "GIRM").

Subsequent footnote

⁸ "GIRM," sec. 68.

Bibliography

The Roman Missal. 3rd ed. Catholic Truth Society, 2010.

The Summa Theologica should be cited according to its internal structure - Part, Question (q.) and Article (a.) rather than page numbers.

Structure of the Summa:

Each part is divided into questions (q.) and each question into articles (a.).

• Part I has 119 Questions
• Part II has 303 Questions
  • Prima Secundae (114 Questions)
  • Secunda Secundae (189 Questions)
• Part III has 99 Questions.

Each article typically includes:

1. Prologue (pr.) – brief introduction to the question (not always present).

2. Objections (obj., or arg.) – opposing views or anticipated arguments.

3. "On the Contrary" (s.c. (sed contra)) – an authoritative quote opposing the objections.

4. "I Respond That" (resp. (responsio) or co. (corpus)) – Aquinas' main answer.

5. Replies to the Objections (ad. (adversus) or ad obj. (adversus objectiones)) – direct answers to each objection.

When citing, omit page numbers and instead pinpoint by citing the relevant part, question, and article. Use 'ad' to specify a reply to an objection.

Examples:

• General pinpoint: IIae, q. 1, a. 1 = First Part of the Second Part, Question 1, Article 1.
• Pinpointing a reply to an objection: Ia IIae, q. 1, a. 1, ad 1 = First Part of the Second Part, Question 1, Article 1, Reply to Objection 1.

First footnote

⁴ Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica, trans. Fathers of the English Dominican Province (Burns Oates & Washbourne, 1911-1925), Ia IIae, q. 72. a. 4.

Subsequent footnote

⁶ Aquinas, Summa Theologica, Ia IIae, q. 55, arts 3-4.

Bibliography

Aquinas, Thomas. Summa Theologica. Translated by Fathers of the English Dominican Province. Burns Oates & Washbourne, 1911-1925.

Notes

• Publication details (such as edition, translator, publisher, year) will differ depending on the version consulted.
• Title: Cite the title as it appears on the title page of the version you are referring to. For example, Summa Theologiæ or Summa Theologica.
• Pinpoint: Do not cite page numbers. To cite more than one article at a time, use the abbreviation 'arts' (for articles). For example: Ia, q. 13, arts 5-6.
• Ebooks: Online books in fixed-page format, where the online version of the Summa matches the printed counterpart can be cited without a URL. However, reflowable formats where page numbers do not match (for example, Kindle, Apple Books) should have the platform noted (see CMOS 14.58).