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Catholicity

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This article considers Catholicism in the broadest ecclesiastical sense. See Catholicism (disambiguation) for alternate meanings

Catholicism has two main ecclesiastical meanings, described in Webster's Dictionary as: a) "the whole orthodox Christian church, or adherence thereto;" and b) "the doctrines or faith of the Roman Catholic church, or adherence thereto." 1 The term comes from the Greek katholikein (καθολικην), meaning "general" or "universal".

Brief organizational history of the Christian Church

The early Christian church came to be organized under five patriarchs, the bishops of Jerusalem, Antioch, Alexandria, Constantinople and Rome. The Bishop of Rome was recognized by all the Patriarchs as "the first among equals," with doctrinal or procedural disputes often referred to Rome for an opinion, but with no statement of monarchical ecclesiastic status for Rome. When the Imperial capital moved to Constantinople, papal influence was often challenged. While Rome claimed special authority descending from St. Peter2 and St. Paul, who died in Rome and were buried there, Constantinople had become the residence of the Emperor and the Senate. Likewise, the churches of Jerusalem, Antioch, and Alexandria were all older than Rome, and Antioch had also been founded by St. Peter--earlier than the Church at Rome was founded.

The first great rupture in the Church followed the Council of Ephesus (AD 431), which affirmed the status of the Virgin Mary as Theotokos. The majority of those who refused to accept this Council were Persian Christians, a Church now known as the Assyrian Church of the East. The next major break was after the Council of Chalcedon (AD 451). This Council repudiated Eutychian Monophysitism. The terms adopted by this Council were unacceptable to many Christians who preferred to use a Christology formulated primarily in Alexandria. These Christians are now often referred to in English as the Oriental Orthodox Communion ("Eastern" and "Oriental" are not necessarily synonymous in English). The next major rift within Catholicism was in the 11th century. Doctrinal disputes, including those represented in the filioque clause, conflicts between methods of Church government, and perhaps the evolution of separate rites and practices, precipitated a split in AD 1054 that divided the Catholic Church once again, this time between a "West" and an "East". England, France, the Holy Roman Empire, Scandinavia, and much of the rest of Western Europe were in the Western camp, and Greece, Russia and many of other Slavic lands, Anatolia, and the Christians in Syria and Egypt who accepted the Council of Chalcedon made up the eastern camp. This division is called the East-West Schism. The most recent major split within a Catholic Church occurred in the 16th century with the Protestant Reformation, after which many Protestant denominations emerged and the Anglican Church was established.

All of the preceding groups, excepting non-Anglican Protestants, consider themselves to be fully and completely Catholic. Each of them, excepting the Anglicans, considers itself not only to be completely Catholic but to be exclusively Catholic, even if a different group happens to use the term "Catholic" in its name. In short, no less than five major Christian traditions currently have a claim to being "the Catholic Church", and each defends the validity of the claim on the basis of uniquely-held doctrines that do not completely agree with the doctrines of the other four. An exception is the Roman Catholic Church’s view of the Churches estranged in the East-West Schism, a rupture it sees as involving only a break of ecclesiastical communion (schism in the strict sense), while in the others heretical doctrines played a part.

Evolution of the term "Catholicism"

There are thus several claimants to the title, Catholic Church, especially in the English language. The claimants have in common an assertion that they represent the ancient undivided Christian faith, while they differ on the practical meaning of "unity" within that faith. Over the centuries, there arose within the Christian faith disputes about the truths of the faith, and vocabulary evolved to reflect divergent viewpoints. "Catholic" and "Orthodox" are examples of such terms, each with a basic meaning, universal and correct-doctrine respectively, and each with a connotation in speech: "Catholic" generally refers to the branch of the Christian faith that accepts the leadership of the Pope, while "Orthodox" is used to refer to the Churches came to a parting of the ways with the Roman Church shortly after the first millennium, in communion with each other, but not accepting Roman Primacy. After the Protestant Reformation, the newly-formed ecclesial communities in some cases applied the term "Catholic" in an ideal sense, referencing the original Christian faith. 3 For comparisons and contrasts, see Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, Greek Orthodox Church, Christian Denominations, and Protestantism.

"One, holy, catholic, and apostolic"

The term "Catholic" has been used since the first Christian centuries to describe the one, original church of Christ founded by Christ and the Apostles, and appears in the main Christian creeds (formal definitions of belief), notably the Apostles' Creed and the Nicene Creed. As such, many Christians claim entitlement to the designation "catholic". These fall into two groups: 1.) those like the Roman Catholic, Eastern and Oriental Orthodox, and the Ancient, Old, Liberal, and Anglican Catholic churches that claim Apostolic Succession from the early church; and 2.) those who believe that they are spiritual descendants of the Apostles neither retaining nor desiring organisational descent from the historic church.

Christians of most denominations, including most Protestants, affirm their faith in "One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church." For Protestants, most of whom consider themselves to be spiritual descendents (category 2, above), this affirmation refers to their belief in the ultimate unity of all churches under one God and one Saviour, rather than in one visibly unified church, i.e. the ideal meaning given above. In this usage catholic is usually written with a lower-case "c". The Nicene Creed, or the Apostles Creed, stating "I believe in...the holy catholic church..." is thus recited in Protestant worship services. 4.

The Roman Catholic Church

The largest by far of all groups that call themselves Catholic is the Roman Catholic Church. Indeed, as indicated above, the term “Catholic” is often employed as synonymous with “Roman Catholic”. The use of the word "Roman" is a reference to the centrality for this Church of the Bishop of Rome, with whom Roman Catholics are by definition in full communion, as part either of the majority Latin (Western) Church or of her 20 smaller Eastern Churches, accepting his "full, supreme, and universal power over the whole Church" (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 882[[1].)

For further information, see Roman Catholic Church.

Other Catholic groups

In Western Christianity the principal groups that regard themselves as "Catholic" without full communion with the Pope are the Ancient Catholic Church, the Old Catholic Church, the Liberal Catholic Church, the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association, similar groups among Filipinos and Poles, and some elements of Anglicanism ("High Church Anglicans" or "Anglo-Catholics"). These groups hold spiritual beliefs and practice religious rituals similar to those of Roman Catholics of the Latin Rite from which they emerged, but reject the Pope's claimed status and authority. The Liberal Catholic Church, which originated as a breakaway group from the Old Catholic Church, additionally incorporated significant elements of theosophy into its doctrinal faith.

The Anglican Communion, though one church, is in practice divided into two wings, "High Church Anglicans" also called the Anglo-Catholics and "Low Church Anglicans" also known as the Evangelical wing. Though all elements within the Anglican Communion recite the same creeds, Low Church Anglicans regard the word Catholic in the ideal sense given above, while High Church Anglicans treat it as a name of Christ's church which they consider to embrace themselves together with the Roman Catholic and several Orthodox Churches.

Anglo-Catholicism maintains similarities to the Latin Rite of Roman Catholicism and related spirituality, including a belief in seven sacraments, Transubstantiation as opposed to Consubstantiation, devotion to the Virgin Mary and saints, the description of their ordained clergy as "priests" — addressed as "Father" — the wearing of vestments in church liturgy, sometimes even the description of their Eucharistic celebrations as "Mass". The development of the Anglo-Catholic wing of Anglicanism occurred largely in the nineteenth century and is strongly associated with the Oxford Movement. Two of its leading lights, John Henry Newman and Henry Edward Manning, both ordained Anglican clergymen, ended up joining the Roman Catholic Church, becoming cardinals.

The several churches of Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy each consider themselves to be the universal and true Catholic Church, and typically regard the other of these families and the Western Catholics as heretical and as having left the One Holy Catholic, and Apostolic Church. The patriarchs of these Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox Churches are autocephalous hierarchs, which roughly means that each of them is independent of the direct oversight of another bishop (although still subject, according to their distinct traditions, either to the synod of bishops of each one’s jurisdiction, or only to a common decision of the patriarchs of their own communion). They are willing to concede a primacy of honor to the Bishop of Rome, but not to accept monarchical claims.

Distinctive beliefs and practices (i.e., Catholicism)

Beliefs

Most of the Catholic Churches share certain essential distinctive beliefs and practices. The Anglicans differ among themselves on these matters:

  • Direct and continuous organisational descent from the original church founded by Jesus (see e.g. Mt 16:18).
  • Possession of the "threefold ordained ministry" of Bishops, Priests and Deacons.
  • All ministers are ordained by, and subject to, Bishops, who pass down sacramental authority by the "laying-on of hands", having themselves been ordained in a direct line of succession from the Apostles (see Apostolic Succession).
  • Their belief that the Church, not any one book, is the vessel and deposit of the fullness of the teachings of Jesus and the Apostles. This teaching is preserved in both written scripture and in written and oral church tradition. Neither is independent of the other.
  • A belief in the necessity of sacraments (although not necessarily seven in number).
  • The use of images, candles, vestments and music in worship (there is disagreement over whether statuary is acceptable).
  • The making of the Sign of the Cross in a variety of contexts.
  • Belief that the bread and wine of the eucharist really are Jesus's body and blood, and not "just symbols."
  • Veneration of Mary, the mother of Jesus as the Blessed Virgin Mary or Theotokos, and veneration of the saints.
  • A distinction among worship (latria) for God, and veneration (dulia) for saints, with the term hyperdulia used for a special veneration accorded to the Virgin Mary among Roman Catholics. This "hyperdulia" is not universal to all Catholics.
  • The usefulness of prayer on behalf of the departed.
  • Salvation through faith lived out through good works, rather than by faith alone.

Sacraments

Traditional Western Catholic practice consists of seven sacraments (see also Catholic sacraments). Among Catholics of Eastern traditions (especially the Orthodox), there is no fixed number, although all of the following are considered sacraments:

In Catholic teaching, sacraments are gifts of Christ, performed through the office of the Church, that impart sanctifying grace to the receiver. Briefly: Baptism is given to infants and to adult converts who have not previously been validly baptised; the baptism of most Christian denominations is accepted as valid by most Catholic Churches since the effect is produced through the sacrament and is not dependent on the faith (or lack of faith) of the minister intending to administer the sacrament (Western doctrine) or the Church is empowered to fill the empty ritual with Grace without having to repeat that ritual (Eastern doctrine). In the sacrament of Confirmation, the gift of the Holy Spirit conferred in baptism is "strengthened and deepened" (see Catechism of the Catholic Church §1303) by the laying on of hands and anointing with oil. In the Latin rite of the majority Roman Catholic Church, this sacrament is most often administered by a bishop, but in certain circumstances is administered instead by a priest using oil blessed by the bishop. In the West, administration used to be postponed until the recipient’s early adulthood, but in view of the earlier age at which children are now admitted to reception of the Eucharist, it is more and more restored to the traditional order and administered before Holy Communion is given. In the East the sacrament is called Chrismation, and is ordinarily administered immediately after baptism by a priest using oil blessed by the bishop. Eucharist (Communion), is a partaking in the sacrifice of Christ, marked by sharing the Body and Blood of Christ, which are believed to replace the bread and wine used in the ceremony. The Roman Catholic belief that the bread and wine are transformed in all but appearance into the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ is known as transubstantiation. Confession or reconciliation involves admitting sins to a priest (in Latin-Church and appendant doctrine) or admitting them to Christ in the presence of a priest (in Orthodox doctrine). In Roman Catholic practice, the priest imposes a “penance”, an action or spiritual exercise for the penitent to perform, not to obtain absolution from sin, but to make some reparation and recover spiritual health (see Catechism of the Catholic Church §1459); under Orthodox doctrine too, one might be given a task to perform, not to "show repentance" or "achieve absolution", but as an ascetic "prescription" or an "exercise" to help strengthen oneself against further temptation. Anointing of the Sick involves the anointing of a sick person with oil blessed specifically for that purpose. In the Roman Catholic Church it is administered to those who are “seriously sick”; when “seriously sick” was taken to mean “in danger of death”, among the Roman Catholics the sacrament was known as "extreme unction", part of "the last rites", but it was never so limited among the Orthodox. Holy Orders is entry into the clergy in the three degrees of deacon, priest, and bishop.

The study of Catholicism

Catholicism is a religion, and is studied in contexts that include theology and philosophy.

Footnotes

  • 1 Webster's College Dictionary, 1991.
  • 2 St Peter is sometimes called “the first pope”. However, if “pope” is defined as “successor of St Peter”, St. Linus is the first pope. The Roman Catholic Church teaches that the college of the bishops has succeeded, in the Church, to the group of the apostles, not that the bishops are apostles; and that, among the bishops, primacy belongs to the Bishop of Rome, as primacy among the apostles belonged to St Peter, not that the pope is on the same level as the Apostle Peter (‘’Catechism of the Catholic Church,’‘ 880-881.
  • 3 Oxford English Dictionary, Oed.com: see "catholic", In ecclesiastical use (§2).
  • 4 Methodist example

Additional reading

  • Catechism of the Catholic Church - English translation (Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2000). ISBN 1574551108 [2]
  • H. W. Crocker III, Triumph - The Power and the Glory of the Catholic Church: A 2,000-Year History (Prima Publishing, 2001). ISBN 0761529241
  • Eamon Duffy, Saints and Sinners: A History of the Popes (Yale Nota Bene, 2002). ISBN 0300091656
  • K. O. Johnson, Why Do Catholics Do That? (Ballantine, 1994). ISBN 0345397266

See also

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