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A text file by David Wise which details the differences between the HP 8552A and 8552B with tips on calibration and diagnosis.
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN 8552A AND 8552B.
By David Wise
May 2005
Source material:
TM 11-6625-2781-14-1 (8552B military manual, S/N 971 to 1650A)
HP 8552A Operating and Service Manual (S/N 809 to 852)
This is only a summary. It will give you enough information to
perform a calibration on an 'A in conjunction with the above 'B manual.
If you also have the 'A schematics, you'll be in fairly good shape
for diagnosis too.
I make no attempt to reconcile changes in component callouts on
the schematics. Most boards changed, even if only slightly.
Procedures not mentioned here are the same for 'A and 'B.
Feature differences:
Late 'A vs. early 'A:
1. Single Scan button can stop a scan in progress.
2. Better compatibility with the 8443A Tracking Generator.
(With an early 'A, the RF output will be correct, but
the counter will display garbage, no marker will be
generated in MARKER mode, and the scan will free-run
in SCAN HOLD mode.)
Modification to make early 8552A compatible with 8443A:
A. Add a wire from XA6-E to J3-41.
B. Insert a 20K resistor in parallel with a 470pF cap,
in series with the wire connecting to XA6-4.
C. Add a wire from the wire in step B to J3-13.
Step A allows the 8443A to control the scan ramp.
Steps B and C allow the 8443A to control blanking.
Late 8443A's (with LED readout) have a RESTORE SIGNAL mode.
The 8552A, and early 8552B's (see Change J) do not support this.
Electrically speaking, it's a simple change (add A8R98 and
W13, see 'B SS13), but the soldering at J3 is quite difficult
and in my opinion it's not worth the effort unless you MUST
have the feature.
3. Pen Lift output.
'B vs. Late 'A:
1. Tighter resolution. The 'A goes down to 50Hz. The 'B goes to 10Hz.
(The 30Hz and 10Hz positions on the RF unit's bandwitch selector
both select 50Hz when the 'A IF unit is used.)
Where the 'B Crystal Filter board has five crystals, the
'A board has three. The 10dB and 20dB gain adjustments are
here rather than on the LC Filter board.
2. Better VCO frequency stability. This was required to make use of the
10Hz bandwidth.
The 'B has a 47MHz VCO which is slaved (as in a PLL) to the
47MHz mixing product of a 45MHz crystal oscillator and a
2MHz VCO. The 'A just has a straightforward 47MHz VCO.
3. Better Cal frequency stability.
The 'B Cal oscillator is crystal-controlled, where the
'A is a simple RC multivibrator.
4. Manual Scan.
This is essentialy External Scan driven from a front-panel pot.
5. 2dB Log vertical mode.
The 'B deflection board adds a x5 magnifier.
Checks and Adjustments:
4.23 Calibrator Output.
Frequency is 30MHz +/- 300kHz.
5-32. 300 kHz Band pass Filter Adjustment
5-33. LC Filter Adjustment
Tip: Use the crystal filter to determine the center frequency.
Switch to 3kHz bandwidth, center the signal, then switch to
the bandwidth of interest and adjust the filter.
This comment applies to both the 'A and the 'B.
5-34. Crystal Filter Fine Adjustment
Omit steps 2, 3, and 4. In Step 5, don't use CAL OUTPUT.
Tune to the LO feedthrough or use a stable external oscillator.
In steps 10 and 13, there are adjustments only for 100Hz and 50Hz.
300Hz is a factory-selected resistor. Bypass, 3kHz and 1kHz are
all controlled by another.
5-35. Crystal Filter Coarse Adjustment
The 'A has the same "null" and "skirt" trimmers as the 'B,
just three sets instead of five. To short out a stage,
place the shorting network directly across the crystal.
If my experience with the Tektronix 1L10 is any guide, the two
trimmers interact in a nonintuitive way, and the best strategy is
to simply tweak around until you find the "sweet spot", which Tek
identifies as "as broad as possible while maintaining symmetry".
This sounds odd until you read the 1943 Bliley E6 app note explaining
that broadening a crystal filter is the hard part. Tek also uses a
modulated test signal, so you can see the sidebands. You want to
make the valleys between the fundamental and the sidebands as
shallow as possible but equal height. I recommend 3kHz modulation.
5-36. 3 MHz lF Gain Adjustment
Clarification of step 12 ("Turn LOG REF LEVEL vernier to -6.
Note error from 1.000 Vdc and adjust HP 606B output for
-1.000 Vdc minus error."): They mean literally that.
"Error" is a signed number; note which way it's off, then
increase or decrease generator output so it's off the same
amount the other way. Then you repeat the adjustments.
The goal is to make it as linear as possible, eliminating
any "bend" in the middle.
This comment applies to both the 'A and the 'B.
The 10dB and 20dB adjustments are on the Crystal Filter
board A4, not the LC Filter board A1.
5-37. 47 MHz LO Automatic Phase Lock Check and Adjustment
This procedure is completely different.
Here is my improved version:
There is no "Error Level" A3A2L1 (SS3). Well, there is,
called "47MHz Tune" A3A2C4, but it does the job of
"Center Freq" A13T1 (SS4). There're also no "Offset"
A5R71 or "Shaping" A5R45 linearity adjustments.
Instead, you just set the frequency endpoints with
"47 MHz Tune" and "Tuning Range" A5R42. Linearity is
set by factory selection of ten resistors (!) in the
shaping network. (A lot of work for a generic curve;
the VCO is on another board - A3.)
- Put A5 (Power Supply) on an extender.
- Set Zero Scan.
- Turn off Tuning Stabilizer.
- Ground XA5-5.
- DC volts on XA5-2, -3, and -13 should be 0 +/- 200mV.
- Frequency at Aux A jack J3 pin A2(94 coax cable) should
be 46.7MHz +/- 5kHz; adjust "47MHz Tune" A3A2C4 if it's off.
- Inject -300uA on the base of A5Q9. Since it's at ground,
this can be done with a voltage supply, e.g. -30V through a
100K 1% resistor, or -100V (available in the instrument)
through 333K. Don't short to the nearby -100V trace!
- Frequency should shift to 47.3MHz +/- 5kHz; adjust
"Tuning Range" A5R42 if it's off.
5-38. 50 MHz lF Bandpass Check and Adjustment
The procedure is okay, just badly described.
The adjustment portion (steps 1-7) is fine except the
figure, which is idealized. Don't expect to get those
vertical skirts! If you trust your RF module, you can
dispense with the sweep generator and instead simply
set FREQUENCY to 0kHz (the LO feedthrough) and SCAN
WIDTH to 1MHz/div. In the check (steps 8-10), the figure
is nonsense. The operation sweeps the signal across the
central 400kHz of the passband, 200kHz due to the scan ramp,
200kHz due to FINE TUNE. Start with FINE TUNE full cw and
the signal at the extreme right side of the CRT. Observing
signal amplitude throughout, use FREQUENCY to move the
signal to the left, then FINE TUNE to move it to the right,
repeating until FINE TUNE is full ccw and the signal is at
the extreme left.
5-40. 30 MHz Calibration Oscillator Check and Adjustment
Step 7: Set the amplitude with A6R54; set the frequency
with A6C15.
Steps 8 and 9: Omit.
Service Sheets:
Reminder: These comments convert, if you will, the 'B Service
Sheets into 'A Service Sheets.
The 'A manual contains an Overall Wiring and Switching Diagram
(Service Sheet 2). The 'B TM does not, and I consider it a serious
omission.
SS3: The 'A 50MHz Converter Assembly A3 (08552-6003) is similar
to the 08552-60149 in the 'B, but it doesn't have the third
47MHz output for APC, and the control input might also not
be the same voltage range. The VCO module is wired
differently, but you probably won't be in there anyway.
SS4: N/A
SS5: The 'A Power Supply board summing/shaping section is
completely different from the 'B (discrete vs op-amp),
but it does almost exactly the same thing. Inputs are
pins 2, 3, and 5. Output is on 13, it's not filtered
at slow SCAN TIME settings, and I don't know if it's the
same voltage range.
There's neither a Shaping nor an Offset adjustment.
Instead, Tuning Range adjusts the gain of the summing amp.
SS6:
SS7: The 3MHz Amplifier board A2 is a different part number,
but I can't see any difference.
SS8: Only three differences: (a) Slightly different values
in the 10kHz bandwidth-setting resistors, (b) 2-transistor
output stage, and (c) 10dB and 20dB gain adjustments are
on the crystal filter board not here.
SS9: 924 and 925 wires go to the crystal board not the LC board.
SS10:
SS11: Same idea, but many detail differences. The 'B is
definitely an evolutionary refinement, what the 'A
should have been.
The 'B has five identical stages; the 'A has three
different stages. Like the 'B, each 'A stage has
LC load and neutralization trimmers. There are no
crystal fine-tune trimmers. Bypass is done by
shunting each crystal with a reed relay.
The first crystal is not preceeded by a buffer, it just
has the single transistor driving the neutralizer cap.
The second is buffered by a darlington pair not a feedback
amplifier. The third stage topology resembles the B's
four-transistor feedback amp + neutralizer core, but the
feedback is switched up and down by the 10dB and 20dB
gain controls. It's also preceeded by an emitter follower.
The output amp is three transistors not four, and there are
gain compensation adjustments for 50Hz and 100Hz only; 300Hz
is a factory-selected resistor. A second factory-selected
resistor adjusts gain at all other bandwidths: 1kHz, 3kHz,
and Bypass.
The IF attenuator topology is the same, but in keeping with
the rest, many of the resistor values are different.
SS12:
SS13: The Lin/Log Amp board A8 is... the same!
The Video Filter assembly lacks the 10Hz position.
The Lin/Log switch lacks the 2dB LOG position.
The Lin/Log sense wire (968) is not brought out to J3-40.
The 8553B does not use this. I don't know what does;
maybe the 8556A.
XA8-13 (3MHz signal) is not brought out to J3-23/24.
Supporting the late-version 8443A's RESTORE SIGNAL mode,
this was added partway through the 'B production, and
while electrically simple, it's hard to do at home.
SS14: The 'A Deflection board is similar to the old 'B board
(see Change H), differing only in the vertical input stage,
which in the 'B contains the x5 magnifier for 2dB LOG mode.
SS15:
SS16: The Scan Generator board A6 and Scan Time Switch assembly A9
have different part numbers. The total redraw of this
sheet makes it hard to tell, but I can't find a significant
difference. Ah, there it is: the 'A has three holdoff times;
the 'B, four. Starting at 10Sec, the 'A holdoff shortens
at 5mSec and .5mSec. (The 'B is .1Sec, 5mSec and .5mSec.)
SS17: The Video Filter switch lacks the 10Hz position.
SS18: The 957 wire from the LOG REF LEVEL selector doesn't go out
to XA8-7 (through a 27K resistor). The schematic doesn't
show it going anywhere, so its purpose is a mystery.
SS19: Although the Power Supply board A5 has a different part
number, this portion of it is the same. The 'A lacks
a couple of ferrite beads.
And one unrelated comment, placed here because where else would
I put it?
8553B: In Zero Scan, Scan Width doesn't do anything, but
you _still_ have to turn it down to get Tuning Stabilizer.
Wart!
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I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible. I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God,
born of the Father before all ages. God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father; through him all things were made. For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate, he suffered death and was buried, and rose again on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead and his kingdom will have no end. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets. I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church. I confess one baptism for the forgiveness of sins and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.
With firm faith, I also believe everything contained in the word of God, whether written or handed down in Tradition, which the Church, either by a solemn judgment or by the ordinary and universal Magisterium, sets forth to be believed as divinely revealed.
I also firmly accept and hold each and everything definitively proposed by the Church regarding teaching on faith and morals.
Moreover, I adhere with religious submission of will and intellect to the teachings which either the Roman Pontiff or the College of Bishops enunciate when they exercise their authentic Magisterium, even if they do not intend to proclaim these teachings by a definitive act.
. From her very beginning, the Church has professed faith in the Lord, crucified and risen, and has gathered the fundamental contents of her belief into certain formulas. The central event of the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus, expressed first in simple formulas and subsequently in formulas that were more developed,1 made it possible to give life to that uninterrupted proclamation of faith, in which the Church has handed on both what had been received from the lips of Christ and from his works, as well as what had been learned "at the prompting of the Holy Spirit".2
The same New Testament is the singular witness of the first profession proclaimed by the disciples immediately after the events of Easter: "For I handed on to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures; that he was buried; that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures; that he appeared to Cephas, then to the Twelve".3
2. In the course of the centuries, from this unchangeable nucleus testifying to Jesus as Son of God and as Lord, symbols witnessing to the unity of the faith and to the communion of the churches came to be developed. In these, the fundamental truths which every believer is required to know and to profess were gathered together. Thus, before receiving Baptism, the catechumen must make his profession of faith. The Fathers too, coming together in Councils to respond to historical challenges that required a more complete presentation of the truths of the faith or a defense of the orthodoxy of those truths, formulated new creeds which occupy "a special place in the Church's life"4 up to the present day. The diversity of these symbols expresses the richness of the one faith; none of them is superseded or nullified by subsequent professions of faith formulated in response to later historical circumstances.
3. Christ's promise to bestow the Holy Spirit, who "will guide you into all truth", constantly sustains the Church on her way.5 Thus, in the course of her history, certain truths have been defined as having been acquired though the Holy Spirit's assistance and are therefore perceptible stages in the realization of the original promise. Other truths, however, have to be understood still more deeply before full possession can be attained of what God, in his mystery of love, wished to reveal to men for their salvation.6
In recent times too, in her pastoral care for souls, the Church has thought it opportune to express in a more explicit way the faith of all time. In addition, the obligation has been established for some members of the Christian faithful, called to assume particular offices in the community in the name of the Church, to publicly make a profession of faith according to the formula approved by the Apostolic See.7
4. This new formula of the Professio fidei restates the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed and concludes with the addition of three propositions or paragraphs intended to better distinguish the order of the truths to which the believer adheres. The correct explanation of these paragraphs deserves a clear presentation, so that their authentic meaning, as given by the Church's Magisterium, will be well understood, received and integrally preserved.
In contemporary usage, the term 'Church' has come to include a variety of meanings, which, while true and consistent, require greater precision when one refers to the specific and proper functions of persons who act within the Church. In this area, it is clear that, on questions of faith and morals, the only subject qualified to fulfil the office of teaching with binding authority for the faithful is the Supreme Pontiff and the College of Bishops in communion with him.8 The Bishops are the "authentic teachers" of the faith, "endowed with the authority of Christ",9 because by divine institution they are the successors of the Apostles "in teaching and in pastoral governance": together with the Roman Pontiff they exercise supreme and full power over all the Church, although this power cannot be exercised without the consent of the Roman Pontiff.10
5. The first paragraph states: "With firm faith, I also believe everything contained in the word of God, whether written or handed down in Tradition, which the Church, either by a solemn judgement or by the ordinary and universal Magisterium, sets forth to be believed as divinely revealed". The object taught in this paragraph is constituted by all those doctrines of divine and catholic faith which the Church proposes as divinely and formally revealed and, as such, as irreformable.11
These doctrines are contained in the word of God, written or handed down, and defined with a solemn judgement as divinely revealed truths either by the Roman Pontiff when he speaks 'ex cathedra,' or by the College of Bishops gathered in council, or infallibly proposed for belief by the ordinary and universal Magisterium.
These doctrines require the assent of theological faith by all members of the faithful. Thus, whoever obstinately places them in doubt or denies them falls under the censure of heresy, as indicated by the respective canons of the Codes of Canon Law.12
6. The second proposition of the Professio fidei states: "I also firmly accept and hold each and everything definitively proposed by the Church regarding teaching on faith and morals". The object taught by this formula includes all those teachings belonging to the dogmatic or moral area,13 which are necessary for faithfully keeping and expounding the deposit of faith, even if they have not been proposed by the Magisterium of the Church as formally revealed.
Such doctrines can be defined solemnly by the Roman Pontiff when he speaks 'ex cathedra' or by the College of Bishops gathered in council, or they can be taught infallibly by the ordinary and universal Magisterium of the Church as a 'sententia definitive tenenda'.14 Every believer, therefore, is required to give firm and definitive assent to these truths, based on faith in the Holy Spirit's assistance to the Church's Magisterium, and on the Catholic doctrine of the infallibility of the Magisterium in these matters.15 Whoever denies these truths would be in a position of rejecting a truth of Catholic doctrine16 and would therefore no longer be in full communion with the Catholic Church.
7. The truths belonging to this second paragraph can be of various natures, thus giving different qualities to their relationship with revelation. There are truths which are necessarily connected with revelation by virtue of an historical relationship, while other truths evince a logical connection that expresses a stage in the maturation of understanding of revelation which the Church is called to undertake. The fact that these doctrines may not be proposed as formally revealed, insofar as they add to the data of faith elements that are not revealed or which are not yet expressly recognized as such, in no way diminishes their definitive character, which is required at least by their intrinsic connection with revealed truth. Moreover, it cannot be excluded that at a certain point in dogmatic development, the understanding of the realities and the words of the deposit of faith can progress in the life of the Church, and the Magisterium may proclaim some of these doctrines as also dogmas of divine and catholic faith.
8. With regard to the nature of the assent owed to the truths set forth by the Church as divinely revealed (those of the first paragraph) or to be held definitively (those of the second paragraph), it is important to emphasize that there is no difference with respect to the full and irrevocable character of the assent which is owed to these teachings. The difference concerns the supernatural virtue of faith: in the case of truths of the first paragraph, the assent is based directly on faith in the authority of the word of God (doctrines de fide credenda); in the case of the truths of the second paragraph, the assent is based on faith in the Holy Spirit's assistance to the Magisterium and on the Catholic doctrine of the infallibility of the Magisterium (doctrines de fide tenenda).
9. The Magisterium of the Church, however, teaches a doctrine to be believed as divinely revealed (first paragraph) or to be held definitively (second paragraph) with an act which is either defining or non-defining. In the case of a defining act, a truth is solemnly defined by an 'ex cathedra' pronouncement by the Roman Pontiff or by the action of an ecumenical council. In the case of a non-defining act, a doctrine is taught infallibly by the ordinary and universal Magisterium of the Bishops dispersed throughout the world who are in communion with the Successor of Peter. Such a doctrine can be confirmed or reaffirmed by the Roman Pontiff, even without recourse to a solemn definition, by declaring explicitly that it belongs to the teaching of the ordinary and universal Magisterium as a truth that is divinely revealed (first paragraph) or as a truth of Catholic doctrine (second paragraph). Consequently, when there has not been a judgement on a doctrine in the solemn form of a definition, but this doctrine, belonging to the inheritance of the depositum fidei, is taught by the ordinary and universal Magisterium, which necessarily includes the Pope, such a doctrine is to be understood as having been set forth infallibly.17 The declaration of confirmation or reaffirmation by the Roman Pontiff in this case is not a new dogmatic definition, but a formal attestation of a truth already possessed and infallibly transmitted by the Church.
10. The third proposition of the Professio fidei states: "Moreover, I adhere with religious submission of will and intellect to the teachings which either the Roman Pontiff or the College of Bishops enunciate when they exercise their authentic Magisterium, even if they do not intend to proclaim these teachings by a definitive act".
To this paragraph belong all those teachings – on faith and morals – presented as true or at least as sure, even if they have not been defined with a solemn judgement or proposed as definitive by the ordinary and universal Magisterium. Such teachings are, however, an authentic expression of the ordinary Magisterium of the Roman Pontiff or of the College of Bishops and therefore require religious submission of will and intellect.18 They are set forth in order to arrive at a deeper understanding of revelation, or to recall the conformity of a teaching with the truths of faith, or lastly to warn against ideas incompatible with those truths or against dangerous opinions that can lead to error.19
A proposition contrary to these doctrines can be qualified as erroneous or, in the case of teachings of the prudential order, as rash or dangerous and therefore 'tuto doceri non potest'.20
11. Examples. Without any intention of completeness or exhaustiveness, some examples of doctrines relative to the three paragraphs described above can be recalled.
To the truths of the first paragraph belong the articles of faith of the Creed, the various christological dogmas21 and marian dogmas;22the doctrine of the institution of the sacraments by Christ and their efficacy with regard to grace;23the doctrine of the real and substantial presence of Christ in the Eucharist24and the sacrificial nature of the eucharistic celebration;25the foundation of the Church by the will of Christ;26the doctrine on the primacy and infallibility of the Roman Pontiff;27 the doctrine on the existence of original sin;28the doctrine on the immortality of the spiritual soul and on the immediate recompense after death;29the absence of error in the inspired sacred texts;30the doctrine on the grave immorality of direct and voluntary killing of an innocent human being.31
With respect to the truths of the second paragraph, with reference to those connected with revelation by a logical necessity, one can consider, for example, the development in the understanding of the doctrine connected with the definition of papal infallibility, prior to the dogmatic definition of the First Vatican Council. The primacy of the Successor of Peter was always believed as a revealed fact, although until Vatican I the discussion remained open as to whether the conceptual elaboration of what is understood by the terms 'jurisdiction' and 'infallibility' was to be considered an intrinsic part of revelation or only a logical consequence. On the other hand, although its character as a divinely revealed truth was defined in the First Vatican Council, the doctrine on the infallibility and primacy of jurisdiction of the Roman Pontiff was already recognized as definitive in the period before the council. History clearly shows, therefore, that what was accepted into the consciousness of the Church was considered a true doctrine from the beginning, and was subsequently held to be definitive; however, only in the final stage – the definition of Vatican I – was it also accepted as a divinely revealed truth.
A similar process can be observed in the more recent teaching regarding the doctrine that priestly ordination is reserved only to men. The Supreme Pontiff, while not wishing to proceed to a dogmatic definition, intended to reaffirm that this doctrine is to be held definitively,32 since, founded on the written word of God, constantly preserved and applied in the Tradition of the Church, it has been set forth infallibly by the ordinary and universal Magisterium.33 As the prior example illustrates, this does not foreclose the possibility that, in the future, the consciousness of the Church might progress to the point where this teaching could be defined as a doctrine to be believed as divinely revealed.
The doctrine on the illicitness of euthanasia, taught in the Encyclical Letter Evangelium Vitae, can also be recalled. Confirming that euthanasia is "a grave violation of the law of God", the Pope declares that "this doctrine is based upon the natural law and upon the written word of God, is transmitted by the Church's Tradition and taught by the ordinary and universal Magisterium".34 It could seem that there is only a logical element in the doctrine on euthanasia, since Scripture does not seem to be aware of the concept. In this case, however, the interrelationship between the orders of faith and reason becomes apparent: Scripture, in fact, clearly excludes every form of the kind of self-determination of human existence that is presupposed in the theory and practice of euthanasia.
Other examples of moral doctrines which are taught as definitive by the universal and ordinary Magisterium of the Church are: the teaching on the illicitness of prostitution35and of fornication.36
With regard to those truths connected to revelation by historical necessity and which are to be held definitively, but are not able to be declared as divinely revealed, the following examples can be given: the legitimacy of the election of the Supreme Pontiff or of the celebration of an ecumenical council, the canonizations of saints (dogmatic facts), the declaration of Pope Leo XIII in the Apostolic Letter Apostolicae Curae on the invalidity of Anglican ordinations.37...
As examples of doctrines belonging to the third paragraph, one can point in general to teachings set forth by the authentic ordinary Magisterium in a non-definitive way, which require degrees of adherence differentiated according to the mind and the will manifested; this is shown especially by the nature of the documents, by the frequent repetition of the same doctrine, or by the tenor of the verbal expression.38
12. With the different symbols of faith, the believer recognizes and attests that he professes the faith of the entire Church. It is for this reason that, above all in the earliest symbols of faith, this consciousness is expressed in the formula 'We believe'. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches: "'I believe' (Apostles' Creed) is the faith of the Church professed personally by each believer, principally during Baptism. 'We believe' (Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed) is the faith of the Church confessed by the Bishops assembled in council or more generally by the liturgical assembly of believers. 'I believe' is also the Church, our mother, responding to God by faith as she teaches us to say both 'I believe' and 'We believe'".39
In every profession of faith, the Church verifies different stages she has reached on her path toward the definitive meeting with the Lord. No content is abrogated with the passage of time; instead, all of it becomes an irreplaceable inheritance through which the faith of all time, of all believers, and lived out in every place, contemplates the constant action of the Spirit of the risen Christ, the Spirit who accompanies and gives life to his Church and leads her into the fullness of the truth.
Rome, from the offices of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, June 29, 1998, the Solemnity of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul.
Joseph Card. Ratzinger
Prefect
Tarcisio Bertone, S.D.B.
Archbishop Emeritus of Vercelli
Secretary
