Roman Catholic Church
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encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761564076/Peter.html MSN encarta Encyclopedia, 2007]).</ref>//encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761564076/Peter.html MSN encarta Encyclopedia, 2007]).</ref>
www.adherents.com/adh_branches.html#Christianity|publisher=adherents.com|accessdate=2006-09-14}}</ref> According to the Statistical Yearbook of the Church, the Catholic Church's worldwide recorded membership at the end of 2005 was 1,114,966,000, approximately one-sixth of the world's population.<ref name=StatYearbookfor2005>Modèle:Cite book</ref><ref>Number of Catholics and Priests Rises, Pontifical Yearbook of 2007 Releases Data. From: zenit.org (February 12, 2007). Retrieved on November 9, 2007.</ref><ref>The Catholic Church in the United States At A Glance. United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved on November 9, 2007.</ref>//www.adherents.com/adh_branches.html#Christianity|publisher=adherents.com|accessdate=2006-09-14}}</ref> According to the Statistical Yearbook of the Church, the Catholic Church's worldwide recorded membership at the end of 2005 was 1,114,966,000, approximately one-sixth of the world's population.<ref name=StatYearbookfor2005>Modèle:Cite book</ref><ref>Number of Catholics and Priests Rises, Pontifical Yearbook of 2007 Releases Data. From: zenit.org (February 12, 2007). Retrieved on November 9, 2007.</ref><ref>The Catholic Church in the United States At A Glance. United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Retrieved on November 9, 2007.</ref>
www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19641121_lumen-gentium_en.html Lumen gentium,] chapter III</ref> It is divided into jurisdictional areas, usually on a territorial basis. The standard territorial unit is called a diocese in the Latin church and an eparchy in the Eastern churches. Each diocese or eparchy is headed by a bishop, patriarch or eparch. At the end of 2006, the total number of all these jurisdictional areas (or "Sees") was 2,782.<ref>Modèle:Cite book</ref>//www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19641121_lumen-gentium_en.html Lumen gentium,] chapter III</ref> It is divided into jurisdictional areas, usually on a territorial basis. The standard territorial unit is called a diocese in the Latin church and an eparchy in the Eastern churches. Each diocese or eparchy is headed by a bishop, patriarch or eparch. At the end of 2006, the total number of all these jurisdictional areas (or "Sees") was 2,782.<ref>Modèle:Cite book</ref>
Terminology
Modèle:Seealso www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt3art9.htm 748–810]</ref> It has not formally declared any of these names to be the name by which it should be known. However, in view of the sensibilities of other Christians, it refers to itself in its relations with them as either "the Catholic Church"<ref>Instances of the Catholic Church: Joint International Commission between representatives of the Catholic Church and the Lutheran World Federation
. Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity . Vatican
. Retrieved on 2006-09-14.
- Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church
(October 1999)
. Official Common Statement
. Vatican
. Retrieved on 2006-09-14.
- Pope John Paul II, Mar Khanania Dinkha IV
(November 1994)
. Common Christological Declaration between the Catholic Church and the Assyrian Church of the East
. Vatican
. Retrieved on 2006-09-14. </ref> or "the Roman Catholic Church".<ref>Instances of the Roman Catholic Church: Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity
(May 2003)
. Final Communiqué of the Joint Group between the Roman Catholic Church and the World Council of Churches
. Vatican
. Retrieved on 2006-09-14.
- Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity
(May 2005)
. Anglican – Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC)
. Vatican
. Retrieved on 2006-09-14.
- Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews
(March 1982)
. Notes on the Correct Way to Present the Jews and Judaism in Preaching and Catechesis in the Roman Catholic Church
. Vatican
. Retrieved on 2006-09-14.
- Pope Pius XI
(December 1929)
. Divini Illius Magistri
. Vatican
. Retrieved on 2006-09-14.
- Pope Pius XII
(August 1950)
. Humani Generis
. Vatican
. Retrieved on 2006-09-14. </ref>//www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt3art9.htm 748–810]</ref> It has not formally declared any of these names to be the name by which it should be known. However, in view of the sensibilities of other Christians, it refers to itself in its relations with them as either "the Catholic Church"<ref>Instances of the Catholic Church: Joint International Commission between representatives of the Catholic Church and the Lutheran World Federation
. Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity . Vatican
. Retrieved on 2006-09-14.
- Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church
(October 1999)
. Official Common Statement
. Vatican
. Retrieved on 2006-09-14.
- Pope John Paul II, Mar Khanania Dinkha IV
(November 1994)
. Common Christological Declaration between the Catholic Church and the Assyrian Church of the East
. Vatican
. Retrieved on 2006-09-14. </ref> or "the Roman Catholic Church".<ref>Instances of the Roman Catholic Church: Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity
(May 2003)
. Final Communiqué of the Joint Group between the Roman Catholic Church and the World Council of Churches
. Vatican
. Retrieved on 2006-09-14.
- Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity
(May 2005)
. Anglican – Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC)
. Vatican
. Retrieved on 2006-09-14.
- Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews
(March 1982)
. Notes on the Correct Way to Present the Jews and Judaism in Preaching and Catechesis in the Roman Catholic Church
. Vatican
. Retrieved on 2006-09-14.
- Pope Pius XI
(December 1929)
. Divini Illius Magistri
. Vatican
. Retrieved on 2006-09-14.
- Pope Pius XII
(August 1950)
. Humani Generis
. Vatican
. Retrieved on 2006-09-14. </ref>
www.vatican.va/holy_father/pius_xi/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-xi_enc_31121929_divini-illius-magistri_en.html Divini illius Magistri] and Humani generis use the term Roman Catholic Church to refer to the whole church in communion with the See of Rome, never to the Western part alone. The term appears repeatedly in this sense in official documents concerning dialogue between the Church as a whole and groups outside her fold. Examples of such documents can be found at the links on the Vatican website under the heading Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. Pope John Paul II too treated "Roman Catholic Church " as equivalent to "Catholic Church" in his talk at the general audience of 26 June 1985 (actual text in Italian, Spanish translation). In the First Vatican Council's Dogmatic Constitution de fide catholica, the phrase the Holy, Catholic, Apostolic, and Roman Church (in Latin, Sancta catholica apostolica Romana ecclesia) also refers to something other than the Latin-Rite or Western church.</ref> apply the term Roman Catholic Church only to the Western or Latin church,<ref>The term "Latin Rite" or "Latin Church" refers not to a liturgical rite (such as the Roman Rite, the Ambrosian Rite or the Mozarabic Rite, or, for that matter, the Byzantine Rite) but to the Western particular church, which is analogous to, for instance, the Maronite church.</ref> excluding the Eastern Catholic Churches.<ref>These particular churches too are in full communion with the Bishop of Rome, the Pope.</ref> As for the term Catholic Church, Oriental Orthodox, Eastern Orthodox, Lutheran, Anglican, Old Catholic, and other Christians, including members of independent Catholic Churches, claim to be, or to be part of, the catholic Church (often writing "catholic" with a lower-case 'c' to distinguish it from the Roman Catholic Church). For their understandings of the term, see Catholicism, Catholic, and One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church.//www.vatican.va/holy_father/pius_xi/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-xi_enc_31121929_divini-illius-magistri_en.html Divini illius Magistri] and Humani generis use the term Roman Catholic Church to refer to the whole church in communion with the See of Rome, never to the Western part alone. The term appears repeatedly in this sense in official documents concerning dialogue between the Church as a whole and groups outside her fold. Examples of such documents can be found at the links on the Vatican website under the heading Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. Pope John Paul II too treated "Roman Catholic Church " as equivalent to "Catholic Church" in his talk at the general audience of 26 June 1985 (actual text in Italian, Spanish translation). In the First Vatican Council's Dogmatic Constitution de fide catholica, the phrase the Holy, Catholic, Apostolic, and Roman Church (in Latin, Sancta catholica apostolica Romana ecclesia) also refers to something other than the Latin-Rite or Western church.</ref> apply the term Roman Catholic Church only to the Western or Latin church,<ref>The term "Latin Rite" or "Latin Church" refers not to a liturgical rite (such as the Roman Rite, the Ambrosian Rite or the Mozarabic Rite, or, for that matter, the Byzantine Rite) but to the Western particular church, which is analogous to, for instance, the Maronite church.</ref> excluding the Eastern Catholic Churches.<ref>These particular churches too are in full communion with the Bishop of Rome, the Pope.</ref> As for the term Catholic Church, Oriental Orthodox, Eastern Orthodox, Lutheran, Anglican, Old Catholic, and other Christians, including members of independent Catholic Churches, claim to be, or to be part of, the catholic Church (often writing "catholic" with a lower-case 'c' to distinguish it from the Roman Catholic Church). For their understandings of the term, see Catholicism, Catholic, and One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church.
According to the Oxford English Dictionary (unabridged), "Roman Catholic is the designation known to English law, but 'Catholic' is that in ordinary use on the continent of Europe, especially in the Latin countries; hence historians frequently contrast 'Catholic' and 'Protestant', especially in reference to the continent; and in familiar, non-controversial use, 'Catholic' is often said instead of 'Roman Catholic'".
www.newadvent.org/cathen/13121a.htm Roman Catholic] of the Catholic Encyclopedia, "the use of this composite term (Roman Catholic) in place of the simple Roman, Romanist, or Romish, which had acquired an invidious sense, appears to have arisen in the early years of the seventeenth century. For conciliatory reasons it was employed in the negotiations connected with the Spanish Match (1618-1624) and appears in formal documents relating to this printed by Rushworth (I, 85-89). After that date it was generally adopted as a non-controversial term and has long been the recognized legal and official designation, though in ordinary use Catholic alone is very frequently employed."//www.newadvent.org/cathen/13121a.htm Roman Catholic] of the Catholic Encyclopedia, "the use of this composite term (Roman Catholic) in place of the simple Roman, Romanist, or Romish, which had acquired an invidious sense, appears to have arisen in the early years of the seventeenth century. For conciliatory reasons it was employed in the negotiations connected with the Spanish Match (1618-1624) and appears in formal documents relating to this printed by Rushworth (I, 85-89). After that date it was generally adopted as a non-controversial term and has long been the recognized legal and official designation, though in ordinary use Catholic alone is very frequently employed."
The Catholic Encyclopedia considers this statement correct in substance, but identifies earlier uses of the term Roman Catholic by two Anglican theologians, one in 1581, the other in 1588. It says that for long after the Spanish Match negotiations, in official government use "the term Roman Catholic continued to be a mark of condescension, and language of much more uncomplimentary character was usually preferred." It also cites documentary evidence of use of the term by Catholics themselves in 1630, 1632, 1659 and 1661, and says that, later, Catholic associations adopted it as part of their name. It interprets the form "Catholic Roman", used by some Catholic writers from as early as 1575 (sic) as "simply a translation of the phraseology common both in Latin and in the Romance languages 'Ecclesia Catholica Romana', or in French 'l'Église catholique romaine'." The date 1575 would indicate that the Latin and French equivalents of "Roman Catholic Church" were in "common" use even before the phrase began to be used in English. It appears therefore that "1575" may be a misprint for "1675". Even this indicates that from an early stage the use of "Roman Catholic Church" was by no means a phenomenon limited to the English language.
www.newadvent.org/cathen/03744a.htm The Church] in Catholic Encyclopedia]</ref> When in dialogue with other Christians, the Church uses either "Catholic Church" or, if this term is not acceptable to the partner in dialogue, "Roman Catholic Church".<ref>Partners who do not accept the term "Catholic Church" include the World Council of Churches (e.g. Final Communiqué of the Joint Group between the Roman Catholic Church and the World Council of Churches) and the Anglican Communion (e.g. Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC): The Seattle Statement. On the other hand, the term "Catholic Church" has been accepted by the Assyrian Church of the East (Common Christological Declaration between the Catholic Church and the Assyrian Church of the East) and the Lutheran World Federation (e.g. Official Common Statement by the Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church)</ref> Except in such dialogue, the Church most commonly refers to itself as "the Church", and uses "the Catholic Church" far less commonly, and "the Roman Catholic Church" extremely rarely.<ref>Examples of the use of "Roman Catholic Church" by Popes, even when not addressing members of other churches, are the encyclicals Divini illius Magistri and Humani generis, and the talk by Pope John Paul II at the general audience of 26 June 1985 (actual text in Italian, Spanish translation) in which he treated "Roman Catholic Church " as synonymous with "Catholic Church".</ref> The Catechism of the Catholic Church is an example: in it, "the Church" appears many hundreds of times, compared to 24 uses of "the Catholic Church" (including the title of the book) and no use of the term "the Roman Catholic Church". (Also see [1] and [2])//www.newadvent.org/cathen/03744a.htm The Church] in Catholic Encyclopedia]</ref> When in dialogue with other Christians, the Church uses either "Catholic Church" or, if this term is not acceptable to the partner in dialogue, "Roman Catholic Church".<ref>Partners who do not accept the term "Catholic Church" include the World Council of Churches (e.g. Final Communiqué of the Joint Group between the Roman Catholic Church and the World Council of Churches) and the Anglican Communion (e.g. Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC): The Seattle Statement. On the other hand, the term "Catholic Church" has been accepted by the Assyrian Church of the East (Common Christological Declaration between the Catholic Church and the Assyrian Church of the East) and the Lutheran World Federation (e.g. Official Common Statement by the Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church)</ref> Except in such dialogue, the Church most commonly refers to itself as "the Church", and uses "the Catholic Church" far less commonly, and "the Roman Catholic Church" extremely rarely.<ref>Examples of the use of "Roman Catholic Church" by Popes, even when not addressing members of other churches, are the encyclicals Divini illius Magistri and Humani generis, and the talk by Pope John Paul II at the general audience of 26 June 1985 (actual text in Italian, Spanish translation) in which he treated "Roman Catholic Church " as synonymous with "Catholic Church".</ref> The Catechism of the Catholic Church is an example: in it, "the Church" appears many hundreds of times, compared to 24 uses of "the Catholic Church" (including the title of the book) and no use of the term "the Roman Catholic Church". (Also see [3] and [4])
The name "Catholic Church" for this church is formally accepted by some other Christian churches, as shown in the joint documents referenced above, but most of these groups use "Roman Catholic Church" instead. In informal use, however, members even of the latter groups commonly understand "Catholic Church" as referring to it. As far back as 397, Saint Augustine of Hippo remarked that the term was generally thus understood even by those whom he qualified as heretics: www.ccel.org/fathers2/NPNF1-04/npnf1-04-12.htm#P969_492033 |author=St. Augustine |work=Against the Epistle of Manichaeus Called Fundamental |year=397}}</ref>//www.ccel.org/fathers2/NPNF1-04/npnf1-04-12.htm#P969_492033 |author=St. Augustine |work=Against the Epistle of Manichaeus Called Fundamental |year=397}}</ref>
www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19641121_lumen-gentium_en.html |author=Pope Paul VI |year=1964 |month=November |publisher=Vatican |accessdate=2006-09-14}}</ref>//www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19641121_lumen-gentium_en.html |author=Pope Paul VI |year=1964 |month=November |publisher=Vatican |accessdate=2006-09-14}}</ref>
Origins and history
www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2A.HTM |title=Catechism of the Catholic Church |accessdate=2007-01-01 |quote=881. The Lord made Simon alone, whom he named Peter, the "rock" of his Church. He gave him the keys of his Church and instituted him shepherd of the whole flock. 'The office of binding and loosing which was given to Peter was also assigned to the college of apostles united to its head.' This pastoral office of Peter and the other apostles belongs to the Church's very foundation and is continued by the bishops under the primacy of the Pope.}}</ref> The first known use of the term "Catholic Church" was in a letter by Ignatius of Antioch in 107, who wrote: "Where the bishop appears, there let the people be, just as where Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church."<ref> Ignatius of Antioch
. Letter to the Smyrnaeans
. Chapter VIII - Let nothing be done without the bishop.</ref>//www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2A.HTM |title=Catechism of the Catholic Church |accessdate=2007-01-01 |quote=881. The Lord made Simon alone, whom he named Peter, the "rock" of his Church. He gave him the keys of his Church and instituted him shepherd of the whole flock. 'The office of binding and loosing which was given to Peter was also assigned to the college of apostles united to its head.' This pastoral office of Peter and the other apostles belongs to the Church's very foundation and is continued by the bishops under the primacy of the Pope.}}</ref> The first known use of the term "Catholic Church" was in a letter by Ignatius of Antioch in 107, who wrote: "Where the bishop appears, there let the people be, just as where Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church."<ref> Ignatius of Antioch
. Letter to the Smyrnaeans
. Chapter VIII - Let nothing be done without the bishop.</ref>
www.catholic.com/library/Authority_of_the_Pope_Part_1.asp |work=Catholic Answers}}
Primacy of the Apostolic See, Corunum Catholic Apologetic Web Page, retrieved Nov. 30, 2006</ref> while Orthodox writers dispute this jurisdictional claim which was one of the main issues behind the East-West Schism, historically considering the Pope's role as first among equals as merely bestowing a primacy of honor.<ref> Ware , Kallistos
. The Great Schism . The Orthodox Church
. Retrieved on 2006-12-02.
“The east acknowledged the Pope as the first bishop in the church, but saw him as the first among equals.”
</ref> Although, numerous pre-schism Eastern Church leaders appear to contradict the concept.[5]//www.catholic.com/library/Authority_of_the_Pope_Part_1.asp |work=Catholic Answers}}
Primacy of the Apostolic See, Corunum Catholic Apologetic Web Page, retrieved Nov. 30, 2006</ref> while Orthodox writers dispute this jurisdictional claim which was one of the main issues behind the East-West Schism, historically considering the Pope's role as first among equals as merely bestowing a primacy of honor.<ref> Ware , Kallistos
. The Great Schism . The Orthodox Church
. Retrieved on 2006-12-02.
“The east acknowledged the Pope as the first bishop in the church, but saw him as the first among equals.”
</ref> Although, numerous pre-schism Eastern Church leaders appear to contradict the concept.[6]
Central to the doctrines of the Catholic Church is Apostolic Succession, the belief that the bishops are the spiritual successors of the original twelve apostles, through the historically unbroken chain of consecration (see: Holy Orders). The New Testament contains warnings against teachings considered to be only masquerading as Christianity,<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse; Modèle:Bibleverse; Modèle:Bibleverse; Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> and shows how reference was made to the leaders of the church to decide what was true doctrine.<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> The Catholic Church teaches that it is the continuation of those who remained faithful to the apostolic and episcopal leadership and rejected false teachings.
The Early Church and Christological Councils
www.newadvent.org/cathen/08492a.htm St. John the Evangelist], Catholic Encyclopedia, retrieved Sep. 30, 2006</ref><ref>St. John the Evangelist, ewtn.com, retrieved Sep. 30, 2006</ref> Further widespread persecutions of the Church occurred under nine subsequent Roman emperors including Domitian, Decius and Diocletian.//www.newadvent.org/cathen/08492a.htm St. John the Evangelist], Catholic Encyclopedia, retrieved Sep. 30, 2006</ref><ref>St. John the Evangelist, ewtn.com, retrieved Sep. 30, 2006</ref> Further widespread persecutions of the Church occurred under nine subsequent Roman emperors including Domitian, Decius and Diocletian.
From AD 150 christian teachers began to produce theological and "apologetic" works aimed at defending the faith. These authors are known as the Church Fathers, and study of them is called Patristics. Notable early Fathers include Ignatius of Antioch, Polycarp, Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, Tertullian, Clement of Alexandria and Origen.
Christianity was legalized in the fourth century, when Constantine I issued the Edict of Milan in 313. Constantine was instrumental in the convocation of the First Council of Nicaea in 325, which sought to address the Arian heresy and formulated the Nicene Creed, which is still currently used by the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, Anglican Communion, and various Protestant churches. In 326, Pope Sylvester I consecrated the first Basilica of St. Peter built by Constantine.
On 27 February 380, Emperor Theodosius I enacted a law establishing Catholic Christianity as the official religion of the Roman Empire and ordering others to be called heretics.<ref>"It is our desire that all the various nations which are subject to our clemency and moderation should continue to the profession of that religion which was delivered to the Romans by the divine Apostle Peter, as it has been preserved by faithful tradition and which is now professed by the Pontiff Damasus and by Peter, Bishop of Alexandria, a man of apostolic holiness. ... We authorize the followers of this law to assume the title Catholic Christians; but as for the others, since in our judgment they are foolish madmen, we decree that they shall be branded with the ignominious name of heretics, and shall not presume to give their conventicles the name of churches." www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/theodcodeXVI.html |work=Medieval Sourcebook: Banning of Other Religions |first=Paul |last=Halsall |year=1997 |month=June |publisher=Fordham University |accessdate=2006-09-19}}</ref> This period of history was also marked by the inauguration of a series of Ecumenical (worldwide) Christological Councils which established and formally codified critical elements of the theology of the Church. In 382, the Council of Rome set the Canon of the Bible, listing the accepted books of the Old Testament and the New Testament. Also, the Council of Ephesus in 431 declared that Jesus existed both as fully Man and fully God simultaneously, clarifying his status in the Trinity. The meaning of the Nicene Creed was also declared a permanent doctrine of the Church.//www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/theodcodeXVI.html |work=Medieval Sourcebook: Banning of Other Religions |first=Paul |last=Halsall |year=1997 |month=June |publisher=Fordham University |accessdate=2006-09-19}}</ref> This period of history was also marked by the inauguration of a series of Ecumenical (worldwide) Christological Councils which established and formally codified critical elements of the theology of the Church. In 382, the Council of Rome set the Canon of the Bible, listing the accepted books of the Old Testament and the New Testament. Also, the Council of Ephesus in 431 declared that Jesus existed both as fully Man and fully God simultaneously, clarifying his status in the Trinity. The meaning of the Nicene Creed was also declared a permanent doctrine of the Church.
Medieval Period
In 452, Pope Leo the Great met Attila the Hun, and dissuaded him from sacking Rome. However, in 476, the last Roman Emperor, Romulus Augustus was deposed . Following the fall of the Roman Empire in the west, the Church entered into a long period of missionary activity and expansion among the former barbarian tribes. Catholicism spread among the Germanic peoples (initially in competition with Arianism), the Celts, the Slavic peoples; the Vikings and other Scandinavians; the Hungarians, the Baltic peoples and the Finns. The rise of Islam from 630 onwards, took the formerly Christian lands of the Levant, North Africa and much of Spain out of Christian control.
In 480, St. Benedict set out his Monastic Rule, establishing a system of regulations for the foundation and running of monasteries. Monasticism became a powerful force throughout Europe, and gave rise to many early centers of learning, most famously in Ireland, Scotland and Gaul, contributing to the Carolingian Renaissance of the 9th century.
The Middle Ages brought about major changes within the Church. Pope Gregory the Great dramatically reformed ecclesiastical structure and administration. In the early eighth century iconoclasm became a divisive issue, when it was sponsored by the Byzantine emperors. The popes challenged imperial power and preserved the use of images outside the empire. The Second Ecumenical Council of Nicaea (787) finally pronounced in favour of icons. In the early tenth century, western monasticism was further rejuvenated through the leadership of the great Benedictine monastery of Cluny.
High Middle Ages
From the eleventh century onward, older cathedral schools developed into Universities (see University of Paris, University of Oxford, and University of Bologna.) Originally teaching only Theology, these steadily added subjects including Medicine, Philosophy and Law, becoming the direct ancestors of modern Western institutions of learning.
Accompanying the rise of the "new towns" throughout Europe, mendicant orders were founded, bringing the consecrated religious life out of the monastery and into the new urban setting. The two principal mendicant movements were the Franciscans and the Dominicans founded by St. Francis and St. Dominic respectively. Both orders made significant contributions to the development of the great Universities of Europe. Another new order were the Cistercians, whose large isolated monasteries spearheaded the settlement of former wilderness areas. In this period church building and ecclesiastical architecture reached new heights, culminating in the orders of Romanesque and Gothic architecture and the building of the great European cathedrals.
From 1095 under the pontificate of Urban II, the Crusades were launched. These were a series of military campaigns in the Holy Land and elsewhere, initiated in response to pleas from the Byzantine Emperor Alexios I for aid against Turkish expansion. The crusades ultimately failed to stifle Islamic aggression and even contributed to Christian enmity with the sacking and occupation of Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade.<ref>Riley-Smith, Jonathan. The Oxford History of the Crusades New York:Oxford University Press, 1999.</ref>
Beginning around 1184, following the wars brought about by the Cathar heresy, various institutions broadly referred to as the Inquisition, were established aimed at suppressing heresy and securing religious and doctrinal unity within Christianity through conversion, and prosecution, of alleged heretics. Historians distinguish between the Medieval Inquisition, the Spanish Inquisition, the Roman Inquisition, and the Portuguese Inquisition as distinct historical institutions, some under state, and others under church control.
East-West Schism
www.orthodoxinfo.com/general/greatschism.aspx The Great Schism: The Estrangement of Eastern and Western Christendom]</ref>//www.orthodoxinfo.com/general/greatschism.aspx The Great Schism: The Estrangement of Eastern and Western Christendom]</ref>
www.myriobiblos.gr/texts/english/milton1_19.html Milton V. Anastos, Constantinople and Rome]</ref> However the two principal churches remain in schism to the present day, although excommunications were lifted mutually between Rome and Constantinople in 1965.//www.myriobiblos.gr/texts/english/milton1_19.html Milton V. Anastos, Constantinople and Rome]</ref> However the two principal churches remain in schism to the present day, although excommunications were lifted mutually between Rome and Constantinople in 1965.
Reformation and Counter-Reformation
The fifteenth century Renaissance brought about a renewed interest in ancient and classical learning, and a re-examination of accepted beliefs. The discovery of the Americas by Christopher Columbus in 1492 brought about a new wave of missionary activity as the Catholic Church sought to spread the faith throughout the colonies. Pope Alexander VI awarded colonial rights over most of the newly-discovered lands to Spain and Portugal.
On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses, which protested key points of Catholic doctrine as well as the sale of indulgences. Others like Zwingli and Calvin developed even more radical and extreme critiques of catholic teaching and worship. These challenges developed into a movement called the Protestant Reformation. Repudiated issues included the primacy of the pope, clerical celibacy, the seven sacraments, the eucharist, and various other Catholic doctrines and practices.
In 1534, the English Parliament passed the Act of Supremacy making the King of England Supreme Head of the Church of England. Beginning in 1536, the monasteries throughout England, Wales, and Ireland were dissolved. Pope Paul III then excommunicated King Henry VIII in 1538, beginning what would become a decisive schism between Rome and Canterbury.
The Counter-Reformation, or Catholic Reformation, is the name given to the response of the Catholic Church to the challenge of Protestantism. Spearheaded by the Council of Trent, the essence of the Counter-Reformation was a renewed conviction in the validity of traditional Catholic doctrine and practice. This was seen as the source of ecclesiastic and moral reform, and the answer to halting the spread of Protestantism. Renewed enthusiasm led to the founding of new religious orders, such as the Jesuits, the establishment of seminaries for the proper training of priests, worldwide missionary activity, and the development of new yet orthodox forms of spirituality, such as that of the Spanish mystics and the French school of spirituality. The Council of Trent clarified and reasserted doctrine, issued dogmatic definitions, and produced the Roman Catechism. Catholicism spread worldwide, at pace with European colonialism: to the Americas, Asia, Africa and Oceania.
Modernity
In the 18th and 19th centuries the church found itself facing not only the teachings of Protestantism, but also Enlightenment and Modernist teachings about the nature of the human person, the state, and morality. Atheism and anti-clericalism were increasingly powerful forces. These expressed themselves in movements to secularise church lands , properties and functions. In many parts of the world religious orders were suppressed, worship discouraged, and education, healthcare and other functions were taken over by the state. With the coming of the Industrial Revolution, and the increased concern about the deteriorating conditions of urban workers, 19th and 20th century popes issued encyclicals such as Rerum Novarum explaining Catholic Social Teaching. The First Vatican Council (1869-1870) affirmed the doctrine of papal infallibility which Catholics hold to be in continuity with the history of Petrine supremacy in the church.
Second Vatican Council Reforms
www.vatican.va/holy_father/paul_vi/audiences/1966/documents/hf_p-vi_aud_19660112_it.html General Audience of 12 January 1966].</ref> called to make the historical teachings of the Catholic Church clear to the modern world.//www.vatican.va/holy_father/paul_vi/audiences/1966/documents/hf_p-vi_aud_19660112_it.html General Audience of 12 January 1966].</ref> called to make the historical teachings of the Catholic Church clear to the modern world.
www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19631204_sacrosanctum-concilium_en.html Sacrosanctum Concilium, 36])</ref> For consequent changes in the liturgy, see Mass of Paul VI.//www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19631204_sacrosanctum-concilium_en.html Sacrosanctum Concilium, 36])</ref> For consequent changes in the liturgy, see Mass of Paul VI.
Beliefs
www.usccb.org/catechism/text/laetamurmagnopere.htm Laetamur Magnopere]</ref> In addition, the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, first published in 2005 and in English in 2006, provides a more concise version of the Catechism, in question and answer form.//www.usccb.org/catechism/text/laetamurmagnopere.htm Laetamur Magnopere]</ref> In addition, the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, first published in 2005 and in English in 2006, provides a more concise version of the Catechism, in question and answer form.
Catholicism embodies the main beliefs of orthodox trinitarian Christianity, placing particular importance on the Church as an institution founded by Jesus and kept from doctrinal error by the presence and guidance of the Holy Spirit, as the font of salvation for humanity. The seven sacraments of the Church, of which the most important is the Eucharist, are of prime importance in obtaining salvation.
Sources: Scripture and Tradition
The teachings of the Catholic Church are derived from two sources, firstly the Sacred Scriptures (the Bible) and secondly the Sacred Tradition. Both are ultimately governed and interpreted by the Magisterium of the Church.
www.vatican.va/holy_father/pius_xii/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-xii_enc_30091943_divino-afflante-spiritu_en.html |author=Pope Pius XII |publisher=Vatican}} para. 16.</ref> The canonical list of sacred books, and their contents, accepted by the Catholic Church are those as contained in the old Latin Vulgate edition.<ref>Council of Trent Session IV; here an "edition" should not be confused with a "translation"</ref>//www.vatican.va/holy_father/pius_xii/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-xii_enc_30091943_divino-afflante-spiritu_en.html |author=Pope Pius XII |publisher=Vatican}} para. 16.</ref> The canonical list of sacred books, and their contents, accepted by the Catholic Church are those as contained in the old Latin Vulgate edition.<ref>Council of Trent Session IV; here an "edition" should not be confused with a "translation"</ref>
There is a variety of sources for knowledge of Sacred Tradition, taught by the Church to be originally passed from the apostles in the form of oral tradition. Many of the writings of the early Church Fathers reflect teachings of Sacred Tradition, such as apostolic succession. Sacred Tradition, unlike man-made traditions, is understood to be the lived experience of the teachings of Christ in the early Church.
Nature of God
Catholicism is monotheistic: it believes that God is one, eternal, all-powerful (omnipotent), all-knowing (omniscient), all-good (omnibenevolent), and omnipresent. God exists as distinct from and prior to his creation (that is, everything which is not God, and which depends directly on him for existence) and yet is still present intimately in his creation. In the First Vatican Council the Church taught that, while by the natural light of human reason God can be known in his works as origin and end of all created things,<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> God has also chosen to reveal himself and his will supernaturally in the ways indicated in the Letter to the Modèle:Bibleverse.
Catholicism is also Trinitarian: it believes that, while God is one in nature, essence, and being, this one God exists in three divine persons, each identical with the one essence, whose only distinctions are in their relations to one another: the Father's relationship to the Son, the Son's relationship to the Father, and the relations of both to the Holy Spirit, constitute the one God as a Trinity.
Catholics are baptized in the Name (singular) of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit — not three gods, but one God subsisting in three Persons. While sharing in the one divine essence, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are distinct, not simply three "masks" or manifestations of one Person. The faith of the church and of the individual Christian is based on a relationship with these three Persons of the one God.
The Catholic Church believes that God has revealed himself to humanity as Father to his only-begotten Son, who is in an eternal relationship with the Father: "No one knows the Son except the Father, just as no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him."<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref>
Catholics believe that God the Son, the Divine Logos, the second of the three Persons of God, became incarnate as Jesus Christ, a human being, born of the Virgin Mary. He remained truly divine and was at the same time truly human. In what he said, and by how he lived, he taught all people how to live, and revealed God as Love, the giver of unmerited favours or Graces.
After Jesus' crucifixion and resurrection, his followers, foremost among them the Apostles, spread more and more extensively their faith with a vigour that they attributed to the presence of the Holy Spirit, the third of the three Persons of God, sent upon them by Jesus.
Original sin
Human beings, in Catholic belief, were originally created to live in union with God. Through the disobedience of the first humans (Adam and Eve), that relationship was broken and sin and death came into the world.<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> The Fall of Man left humans in a state called original sin, that is, separated from their original state of intimacy with God which carried into death through the idea of the individual human soul being immortal. But when Jesus came into the world, being both God and man, he was able through his sacrifice to reconcile humanity with God. By becoming one in Christ, through the church, humanity was once again capable of intimacy with God and also offered participation in the divine life on Earth, which will reach its fullness in heaven in the beatific vision. The sacrament of baptism is the ordinary means for the remission of original sin.
The Church (Ecclesiology)
www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect1chpt2.htm#77 77–78]</ref> The Church is also a fount of divine grace which is administered through the sacraments (see below). The Church claims infallibility in teaching the faith, based on Jesus' scriptural promises to remain with his church always,<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> and to maintain it in truth through the Holy Spirit,<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse; Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> so that the church is, in the words of Modèle:Bibleverse, "the pillar and the ground of the truth". Furthermore, Jesus promised divine protection to the teachings and judgements of the Apostles,<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse; Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> and those who succeeded them in their teaching office (i.e. the bishops). Moreover, Jesus set up the church as the final arbiter between all believers:<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> "And if he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax-gatherer."<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref>//www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect1chpt2.htm#77 77–78]</ref> The Church is also a fount of divine grace which is administered through the sacraments (see below). The Church claims infallibility in teaching the faith, based on Jesus' scriptural promises to remain with his church always,<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> and to maintain it in truth through the Holy Spirit,<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse; Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> so that the church is, in the words of Modèle:Bibleverse, "the pillar and the ground of the truth". Furthermore, Jesus promised divine protection to the teachings and judgements of the Apostles,<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse; Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> and those who succeeded them in their teaching office (i.e. the bishops). Moreover, Jesus set up the church as the final arbiter between all believers:<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> "And if he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax-gatherer."<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> In this, it bases its doctrines both on the written Apostolic record, The New Testament, and upon the oral traditions passed down from the Apostles to their successors (the bishops) through the continuous witness of the church.<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse; Modèle:Bibleverse; Modèle:Bibleverse; Modèle:Bibleverse; Modèle:Bibleverse</ref>
Section 8 of the Second Vatican Council's Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, Lumen Gentium states that "the one Church of Christ which in the Creed is professed as one, holy, catholic and apostolic" subsists "in the Catholic Church, which is governed by the successor of Peter and by the bishops in communion with him."<ref name="LumenGentium8" /> (The term successor of Peter refers in to the Bishop of Rome, the Pope; see Petrine theory).
www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect1chpt2.htm#85 85]</ref> Catholic theology places the authoritative interpretation of Scripture in the hands of the consistent judgment of the Church down the ages (what has always and everywhere been taught) rather than the private judgment of the individual. The Magisterium does, however, encourage its flock to read Sacred Scripture.//www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect1chpt2.htm#85 85]</ref> Catholic theology places the authoritative interpretation of Scripture in the hands of the consistent judgment of the Church down the ages (what has always and everywhere been taught) rather than the private judgment of the individual. The Magisterium does, however, encourage its flock to read Sacred Scripture.
www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt3art9.htm#773 773], 775</ref>//www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt3art9.htm#773 773], 775</ref>
Salvation
www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt3sect1chpt3art2.htm#2007 2007]</ref> It is God who justifies, that is, who frees from sin by a free gift of holiness (sanctifying grace, also known as habitual or deifying grace). We can either accept the gift God gives through faith in Jesus Christ<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> and through baptism,<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> or refuse it. Human cooperation is needed, in line with a new capacity to adhere to the divine will that God provides.<ref> Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity
. Response of the Catholic Church to the Joint Declaration of the Catholic Church and the Lutheran World Federation on the Doctrine of Justification, 2–3 . Vatican
. Retrieved on 2006-09-15. </ref> The faith of a Christian is not without works, otherwise it would be dead.<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> In this sense, "by works a man is justified, and not by faith alone,"<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> and eternal life is, at one and the same time, grace and the reward given by God for good works and merits.<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1987–2016</ref> Faith, and subsequently works, are a result of God's grace - thus, it is only because of grace that the believer can be said to "merit" salvation.//www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt3sect1chpt3art2.htm#2007 2007]</ref> It is God who justifies, that is, who frees from sin by a free gift of holiness (sanctifying grace, also known as habitual or deifying grace). We can either accept the gift God gives through faith in Jesus Christ<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> and through baptism,<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> or refuse it. Human cooperation is needed, in line with a new capacity to adhere to the divine will that God provides.<ref> Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity
. Response of the Catholic Church to the Joint Declaration of the Catholic Church and the Lutheran World Federation on the Doctrine of Justification, 2–3 . Vatican
. Retrieved on 2006-09-15. </ref> The faith of a Christian is not without works, otherwise it would be dead.<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> In this sense, "by works a man is justified, and not by faith alone,"<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> and eternal life is, at one and the same time, grace and the reward given by God for good works and merits.<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1987–2016</ref> Faith, and subsequently works, are a result of God's grace - thus, it is only because of grace that the believer can be said to "merit" salvation.
The Church teaches that a person must be in a state of Sanctifying Grace at the moment of death in order to be saved. Sanctifying Grace is conferred at Baptism, and is lost when a soul commits a mortal sin. A mortal sin is a deliberate and serious transgression of God's law. Sanctifying Grace is regained when a person confesses his or her sin in the Sacrament of Penance. If a person repents of his or her sin before he or she dies but is unable to obtain the actual Sacrament of Penance before death due to reasons outside of the person's control, the person's sin is forgiven by nature of the person's desire to receive it.
The Roman Catholic Church teaches that through the graces Jesus won for humanity by sacrificing himself on the cross, salvation is possible even for those outside the visible boundaries of the Church. Christians and even non-Christians, if in life they respond positively to the grace and truth that God reveals to them through the mercy of Christ, may be saved (an attitude often referred to, in the case of non-Christians, as "baptism of desire"). This may sometimes include awareness of an obligation to become part of the Catholic Church. In such cases, "whosoever, therefore, knowing [believing] that the Catholic Church was made necessary by Christ, would refuse to enter or to remain in it, could not be saved."
www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt2sect2.htm#1265 1265]</ref><ref>Modèle:Bibleverse; Modèle:Bibleverse; Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> As such, baptism returns humanity to its original state, having been formed in the image of God<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref>. Yet there is only one image of God, for there is only one God. Therefore, with sin, we have fractured the image of God, the imago Dei. As Origen states, "where there is sin, there is multiplicity."<ref>Hauerwas, S. and S. Wells. 2006. The Blackwell Companion to Christian Ethics. Blackwell Publishing, p. 201. ISBN 1-405-15051-3.</ref>. Thus, only in Christ is the image of God restored, for "Christ is the image of the invisible God" <ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref>and "it pleased the Father that all of creation should dwell fully in him"<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref>. Therefore, when one is baptized into the Church, which is the body of Christ<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref>, the person shares in the death of Christ so that they might also share in Christ's resurrected life<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref>.//www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt2sect2.htm#1265 1265]</ref><ref>Modèle:Bibleverse; Modèle:Bibleverse; Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> As such, baptism returns humanity to its original state, having been formed in the image of God<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref>. Yet there is only one image of God, for there is only one God. Therefore, with sin, we have fractured the image of God, the imago Dei. As Origen states, "where there is sin, there is multiplicity."<ref>Hauerwas, S. and S. Wells. 2006. The Blackwell Companion to Christian Ethics. Blackwell Publishing, p. 201. ISBN 1-405-15051-3.</ref>. Thus, only in Christ is the image of God restored, for "Christ is the image of the invisible God" <ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref>and "it pleased the Father that all of creation should dwell fully in him"<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref>. Therefore, when one is baptized into the Church, which is the body of Christ<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref>, the person shares in the death of Christ so that they might also share in Christ's resurrected life<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref>.
books.google.com/books?id=qihzgFTPC_MC&pg=PA3&dq=ISO-8859-1&sig=qbDFYU2AqgTxHPkEjLg4RnxlCe0#PPA39,M1 Catholicism: Christ and the Common Destiny of Man]. Ignatius Press (translated by E. Englund and L.C. Sheppard, page 39. ISBN 0-898-70203-8.</ref>. Salvation is a communal act, not one of the individual.This is why the Roman Catholic Church rejects Protestant concepts of the Church. The essential disagreements between the two can be summed up in the following quote//books.google.com/books?id=qihzgFTPC_MC&pg=PA3&dq=ISO-8859-1&sig=qbDFYU2AqgTxHPkEjLg4RnxlCe0#PPA39,M1 Catholicism: Christ and the Common Destiny of Man]. Ignatius Press (translated by E. Englund and L.C. Sheppard, page 39. ISBN 0-898-70203-8.</ref>. Salvation is a communal act, not one of the individual.This is why the Roman Catholic Church rejects Protestant concepts of the Church. The essential disagreements between the two can be summed up in the following quote
books.google.com/books?id=qihzgFTPC_MC&pg=PA80&dq=ISO-8859-1&sig=VvwSqJbP9GOtVJ7BViESDPJSpUg#PPA63,M1 page 63].</ref>//books.google.com/books?id=qihzgFTPC_MC&pg=PA80&dq=ISO-8859-1&sig=VvwSqJbP9GOtVJ7BViESDPJSpUg#PPA63,M1 page 63].</ref>
According to doctrine, a devout Catholic will be saved. However, the church does not claim that those outside of the church will necessarily be condemned. In fact, the claim that only Catholics will be saved is considered heretical and is known as Feeneyism, after Father Leonard Feeney, who was excommunicated from the church for this belief. Catholics believe that God will not deny the help necessary for salvation to those outside of the Church. www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19641121_lumen-gentium_en.html |author=Pope Paul VI |year=1964 |month=November |publisher=Vatican |accessdate=2006-09-15}}</ref>//www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19641121_lumen-gentium_en.html |author=Pope Paul VI |year=1964 |month=November |publisher=Vatican |accessdate=2006-09-15}}</ref>
Catholic life
Catholics are obliged to endeavour to be true disciples of Jesus. They seek forgiveness of their sins and follow the example and teaching of Jesus. They believe that Jesus has provided seven sacraments which give Grace from God to the believer.
If a person dies in unrepented mortal sin, which can be forgiven through the Sacrament of Penance, he loses God's promise of salvation and goes to Hell. However, if the sinner truly regrets his or her actions before the moment of death, then he or she can undergo a purification, known as Purgatory, and eventually enter Heaven.
www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19641121_lumen-gentium_en.html |author=Pope Paul VI |year=1964 |month=November |publisher=Vatican |accessdate=2006-09-15}}</ref> ]]//www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19641121_lumen-gentium_en.html |author=Pope Paul VI |year=1964 |month=November |publisher=Vatican |accessdate=2006-09-15}}</ref> ]] Catholics believe that God works actively in the world. Catholics grow in grace through participation in the sacramental life of the Church, and through prayer, the work of mercy, and spiritual disciplines such as fasting and pilgrimage. The Catholic laity also grow in grace when they fulfill their secular duties and try to imbue society with Christian values by being a model of Christ and his teachings.
Prayer for others, even for enemies and persecutors is a Christian duty.<ref>Modèle:Bibleverse</ref> Catholics say there are four types of prayer: adoration, thanksgiving, contrition, and supplication. Catholics may address their requests for the intercession of others not only to people still in earthly life, but also to those in heaven, in particular the Virgin Mary and the other Saints. As Mother of Jesus, the Virgin Mary is also considered to be the spiritual mother of all Catholics.
Just War Doctrine and Pacifism
www.ccel.org/a/aquinas/summa/SS/SS040.html#SSQ40OUTP1 |last=Aquinas |first=Thomas |work=The Summa Theologica (Second Part of Second Part) |publisher=Benzinger Brothers |accessdate=2006-09-15}}</ref>//www.ccel.org/a/aquinas/summa/SS/SS040.html#SSQ40OUTP1 |last=Aquinas |first=Thomas |work=The Summa Theologica (Second Part of Second Part) |publisher=Benzinger Brothers |accessdate=2006-09-15}}</ref>
Sanctity of Human life
Modèle:Further Modèle:Further Modèle:Seealso www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/audiences/catechesis_genesis/documents/hf_jp-ii_aud_19800220_en.html |author=Pope John Paul II |date=20 February 1980 |publisher=Vatican |accessdate=2006-09-15}}</ref>]]//www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/audiences/catechesis_genesis/documents/hf_jp-ii_aud_19800220_en.html |author=Pope John Paul II |date=20 February 1980 |publisher=Vatican |accessdate=2006-09-15}}</ref>]] The Catholic Church affirms the sanctity of all human life, from conception to natural death. The Church believes that each person is made in the "image and likeness of God," and that human life should not be weighed against other values such as economy, convenience, personal preferences, or social engineering. Therefore, the Church opposes activities that it believes destroy or devalue divinely created life, including abortion, capital punishment, contraception, embryonic stem cell research, eugenics, euthanasia, genocide, human cloning, murder, suicide, and war.
www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_25031995_evangelium-vitae_en.html |author=Pope John Paul II |year=1995 |month=March |publisher=Vatican |accessdate=2006-09-15}}</ref> This position is also held today by Avery Cardinal Dulles, Msgr. William Smith, Germain Grisez and other Catholic moral theologians, who oppose all "intentional killing," as philosophers term it.//www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_25031995_evangelium-vitae_en.html |author=Pope John Paul II |year=1995 |month=March |publisher=Vatican |accessdate=2006-09-15}}</ref> This position is also held today by Avery Cardinal Dulles, Msgr. William Smith, Germain Grisez and other Catholic moral theologians, who oppose all "intentional killing," as philosophers term it.
Catholic social doctrine
Rerum Novarum, "On the Condition of the Working Classes," published in 1891 by Pope Leo XIII, is the first in a series of Church documents concerning social matters which together is known as Catholic Social Teaching. As the founding document of this teaching tradition, Rerum Novarum, avoiding the extremes of laissez-faire capitalism and communism, articulates a set of principles taught to this day including the dignity of the human person, the dignity of labor, the living wage, reforms against child labor, the rights to private property, the common good, the right of labor to organize, the limited work day among others. Subsequent popes have added other principles such as subsidiarity, the option for the poor, and the sanctity of life. The social teachings of the Catholic Church were a major impetus in the evolution of the labor movement and the adoption of the major labor reforms of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
Sexuality
www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt3sect2chpt2art6.htm 2331–2400]</ref>//www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt3sect2chpt2art6.htm 2331–2400]</ref> www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt3art11.htm#1015 1015]</ref> Indeed, the Church considers the expression of love between husband and wife to be a most elevated form of human activity, joining as it does, husband and wife in complete mutual self-giving, and opening their relationship to new life. “The sexual activity, in which husband and wife are intimately and chastely united with one another, through which human life is transmitted, is, as the recent Council recalled, ‘noble and worthy.’”<ref>"Humanae Vitae, no. 11"</ref> It is in cases in which sexual expression is sought outside sacramental marriage, or in which the procreative function of sexual expression within marriage is deliberately frustrated, that the Catholic Church expresses its grave moral concern.//www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt3art11.htm#1015 1015]</ref> Indeed, the Church considers the expression of love between husband and wife to be a most elevated form of human activity, joining as it does, husband and wife in complete mutual self-giving, and opening their relationship to new life. “The sexual activity, in which husband and wife are intimately and chastely united with one another, through which human life is transmitted, is, as the recent Council recalled, ‘noble and worthy.’”<ref>"Humanae Vitae, no. 11"</ref> It is in cases in which sexual expression is sought outside sacramental marriage, or in which the procreative function of sexual expression within marriage is deliberately frustrated, that the Catholic Church expresses its grave moral concern.
www.ewtn.com/library/PAPALDOC/jp2tb45.htm |author=Pope John Paul II |date=29 October 1980 |publisher=L'Osservatore Romano |accessdate=2006-09-15}}</ref> "The body, and it alone, is capable of making visible what is invisible: the spiritual and divine. It was created to transfer into the visible reality of the world the mystery hidden since time immemorial in God, and thus to be a sign of it."<ref name="GeneralAudience19800220" />//www.ewtn.com/library/PAPALDOC/jp2tb45.htm |author=Pope John Paul II |date=29 October 1980 |publisher=L'Osservatore Romano |accessdate=2006-09-15}}</ref> "The body, and it alone, is capable of making visible what is invisible: the spiritual and divine. It was created to transfer into the visible reality of the world the mystery hidden since time immemorial in God, and thus to be a sign of it."<ref name="GeneralAudience19800220" />
However the Church teaches that sexual activity outside of marriage is sinful because it violates the purpose of human sexuality to participate in the "conjugal act" before one is actually married. The conjugal act "aims at a deeply personal unity, a unity that, beyond union in one flesh, leads to forming one heart and soul" (Catechism 1643) since the marriage bond is to be a sign of the love between God and humanity (Catechism 1617).
www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt3sect2chpt2art6.htm#2351 2351–2357]</ref> and contraception are regarded by the Catholic Church as, objectively speaking, gravely disordered actions.<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2370</ref> (Whether in concrete cases they also constitute a mortal sin depends also on other factors.)<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1854-1861</ref> The procurement or performance of, as well as assistance in, abortion can carry the penalty of excommunication,<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2272</ref> as a specific offence.//www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt3sect2chpt2art6.htm#2351 2351–2357]</ref> and contraception are regarded by the Catholic Church as, objectively speaking, gravely disordered actions.<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2370</ref> (Whether in concrete cases they also constitute a mortal sin depends also on other factors.)<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1854-1861</ref> The procurement or performance of, as well as assistance in, abortion can carry the penalty of excommunication,<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2272</ref> as a specific offence. www.northwestern.edu/magazine/northwestern/fall2003/studentlife/farrell.htm Uganda's Success with AIDS Prevention]; Fred Kirungi, "Uganda beating back AIDS," Africa Recovery, Vol. 15 (June 2001)</ref>]] -->//www.northwestern.edu/magazine/northwestern/fall2003/studentlife/farrell.htm Uganda's Success with AIDS Prevention]; Fred Kirungi, "Uganda beating back AIDS," Africa Recovery, Vol. 15 (June 2001)</ref>]] -->
www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12615605/site/newsweek/ |last=Dickey |first=Christopher |year=2006 |month=May |work=Newsweek |publisher=MSNBC |accessdate=2006-09-16}}</ref> However, the president of the Pontifical Council for the Family, Cardinal Alfonso López Trujillo, in an interview reported by Catholic News Agency on May 4, 2006, said that the Church "maintains unmodified the teaching on condoms", and added that the Pope had "not ordered any studies about modifying the prohibition on condom use."<ref> Church 'will not budge one inch' on issue of condom use, says Cardinal Lopez Trujillo
. Catholic News Agency
(May 2006)
. Retrieved on 2006-09-16. </ref>//www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12615605/site/newsweek/ |last=Dickey |first=Christopher |year=2006 |month=May |work=Newsweek |publisher=MSNBC |accessdate=2006-09-16}}</ref> However, the president of the Pontifical Council for the Family, Cardinal Alfonso López Trujillo, in an interview reported by Catholic News Agency on May 4, 2006, said that the Church "maintains unmodified the teaching on condoms", and added that the Pope had "not ordered any studies about modifying the prohibition on condom use."<ref> Church 'will not budge one inch' on issue of condom use, says Cardinal Lopez Trujillo
. Catholic News Agency
(May 2006)
. Retrieved on 2006-09-16. </ref>
Practices: prayer and worship
In the Catholic Church, there is a distinction between Liturgy, which is the formal public and communal worship of the Church, and personal prayer or devotion, which may be public or private. The Liturgy is regulated by church authority and consists of the Eucharist (the Mass), the other Sacraments, and the Liturgy of the Hours. All Catholics are expected to participate in the liturgical life of the Church, but personal prayer and devotions are entirely a matter of personal preference.
Liturgy
www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19631204_sacrosanctum-concilium_en.html |author=Pope Paul VI |year=1963 |month=December |publisher=Vatican |accessdate=2006-09-15}}; Catechism of the Catholic Church 1068–69</ref>//www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19631204_sacrosanctum-concilium_en.html |author=Pope Paul VI |year=1963 |month=December |publisher=Vatican |accessdate=2006-09-15}}; Catechism of the Catholic Church 1068–69</ref>
Eucharist
Catholics see the Eucharist as the source and summit of the Christian life, and believe that the bread and wine brought to the altar are transformed through the power of the Holy Spirit into the true Body and the true Blood of Christ. The Holy Mass is a re-presentation of Christ's sacrifice on Calvary.
Sacraments
www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt2sect1chpt1art2.htm Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1131] teaches: "The sacraments are efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us. The visible rites by which the sacraments are celebrated signify and make present the graces proper to each sacrament. They bear fruit in those who receive them with the required dispositions."//www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt2sect1chpt1art2.htm Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1131] teaches: "The sacraments are efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us. The visible rites by which the sacraments are celebrated signify and make present the graces proper to each sacrament. They bear fruit in those who receive them with the required dispositions."
www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p2s1c1a2.htm Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1113], "The whole liturgical life of the Church revolves around the Eucharistic sacrifice and the sacraments. There are seven sacraments in the Church: Baptism, Confirmation or Chrismation, Eucharist, Penance, Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders, and Matrimony."//www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p2s1c1a2.htm Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1113], "The whole liturgical life of the Church revolves around the Eucharistic sacrifice and the sacraments. There are seven sacraments in the Church: Baptism, Confirmation or Chrismation, Eucharist, Penance, Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders, and Matrimony." For a discussion of St. Thomas Aquinas and the Biblical foundation of the Sacraments, go to Aquinas and the Sacraments.
Liturgy of the Hours
The Liturgy of the Hours, at least in the simple form of morning prayer and evening prayer, is the daily liturgy of all the Catholic faithful. It is intended as a communal experience, just as the Eucharist or the celebration of the other Sacraments, but is often recited by individuals.
Devotional life/Personal Prayer
In addition to the liturgy of the Church there is a variety of spirtual practices, devotions, and pietistic practices that Catholics may participate in, either communally or individually. Aside from the Mass, Catholics consider personal and communal prayer to be one of the most important elements of Christian life.
Important examples are blessings of people and of objects, as well as devotions to particular saints, spiritualities, prayers, or Catholic traditions. Popular devotions are not strictly part of the liturgy, but if they are judged to be authentic, the Church encourages them. They include veneration of relics of saints, visits to sacred shrines, pilgrimages, processions (including Eucharistic processions), the Stations of the Cross (also known as the Way of the Cross), Holy Hours, Eucharistic Adoration, Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, and the Rosary.
www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt4sect1.htm#2558 2558]</ref>//www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt4sect1.htm#2558 2558]</ref>
Nature and mission of the Church
The Church is the People of God, the Temple of the Holy Spirit, the Body of Christ. It is fundamentally a communion of members, and a communion of communions, with each other and with God. The Second Vatican Council identified the nature of the Church to be a mystery. As the Body of Christ, every member has a distinct calling, and is gifted for different kinds of participation in the mission of the Church. This mission is essentially to preach the Good News to all people, to form a worshipping communion, and to help those in need, particularly the poor and marginalized.
Churches within the Catholic Church
www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_28051992_communionis-notio_en.html |author=Joseph Card. Ratzinger, Alberto Bovone |year=1992 |month=May |publisher=Vatican |accessdate=2006-09-15}}</ref>//www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_28051992_communionis-notio_en.html |author=Joseph Card. Ratzinger, Alberto Bovone |year=1992 |month=May |publisher=Vatican |accessdate=2006-09-15}}</ref>
However, the Catholic Church attaches great importance to the particular churches within it, whose theological significance the Second Vatican Council highlighted. Two uses of the term particular church are distinguished.
- Autonomous (sui iuris) particular churches or rites. See: Eastern Catholic Churches
- Particular or local churches (Dioceses and National Conferences of Bishops). See: Particular church
Ordained Ministry
The Church has a hierarchical structure, meaning a holy ordering (as opposed to a charismatic structure). This hierarchical nature applies to the entire Church, though it is often used to refer only to the ordained ministers of the Church, who belong to one of the three holy orders: episcopate (bishops), presbyterate (priests), or diaconate (deacons).
Episcopate
www.intratext.com/IXT/ENG1199/_P16.HTM |work=Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches}}</ref> and are "constituted Pastors in the Church, to be the teachers of doctrine, the priests of sacred worship and the ministers of governance."<ref> Canon 375
. 1983 Code of Canon Law . Vatican
.</ref>//www.intratext.com/IXT/ENG1199/_P16.HTM |work=Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches}}</ref> and are "constituted Pastors in the Church, to be the teachers of doctrine, the priests of sacred worship and the ministers of governance."<ref> Canon 375
. 1983 Code of Canon Law . Vatican
.</ref>
The pope, cardinals (in principle), patriarchs, primates, archbishops and metropolitans are all bishops and members of the Catholic episcopate or college of bishops.
Presbyterate (Priesthood)
Bishops are assisted by priests and deacons. Parishes, whether territorial or person-based, within a diocese are normally in the charge of a priest, known as the parish priest or the pastor.
Priests may perform many functions not directly connected with ordinary pastoral activity, such as study, research, teaching or office work. They may also be rectors or chaplains. Other titles or functions held by priests include those of Archimandrite, Canon Secular or Regular, Chancellor, Chorbishop, Confessor, Dean of a Cathedral Chapter, Hieromonk, Prebendary, Precentor, etc.
In the Latin Rite, only celibate men, as a rule, are ordained as priests, while the Eastern Rites, again as a rule, also ordain married men. Among the Eastern particular churches, the Ethiopic Catholic Church ordains only celibate clergy, while also having married priests who were ordained in the Orthodox Church. Other Eastern Catholic churches, which do ordain married men, do not have married priests in certain countries, such as the United States of America. The Western or Latin Rite does sometimes, but very rarely, ordain married men, usually Protestant clergy who have become Catholics. All rites of the Catholic Church maintain the ancient tradition that, after ordination, marriage is not allowed. Even a married priest whose wife dies may not then marry again.
Diaconate
www.usccb.org/deacon/faqs.shtml |author=Committee on the Diaconate |publisher=United States Conference of Catholic Bishops}}</ref>//www.usccb.org/deacon/faqs.shtml |author=Committee on the Diaconate |publisher=United States Conference of Catholic Bishops}}</ref>
Candidates for the Diaconate go through a Diaconate Formation program that is designed based on the contemporaneous needs of their Diocese but must meet minimum standards set by the Bishops Conference in their home country. Upon completion of their formation program and acceptance by their local Bishop, Candidates receive the Sacrament of Holy Orders through Ordination. Generally, following Ordination, a Deacon is assigned by his Bishop to a local Parish in which he will perform his ministry and serve the local church and community.
Laity
www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt3art9p4.htm#871 871–2]</ref> While a certain percentage of the faithful perform roles related to serving the ministerial priesthood (hierarchy) and giving eschatological witness (consecrated life), the great majority of the faithful perform a specific role of exercising the three offices of Christ by "engaging in temporal affairs and directing them according to God's will...to illuminate and order all temporal things."<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, 898</ref> These are the Laity, whom John Paul II urged in the post Synodal Apostolic Exhortation Christifideles laici (December 30, 1988) "to take an active, conscientious and responsible part in the mission of the Church," for they not only belong to the Church, but "are the Church." (Italics in the original)//www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt3art9p4.htm#871 871–2]</ref> While a certain percentage of the faithful perform roles related to serving the ministerial priesthood (hierarchy) and giving eschatological witness (consecrated life), the great majority of the faithful perform a specific role of exercising the three offices of Christ by "engaging in temporal affairs and directing them according to God's will...to illuminate and order all temporal things."<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, 898</ref> These are the Laity, whom John Paul II urged in the post Synodal Apostolic Exhortation Christifideles laici (December 30, 1988) "to take an active, conscientious and responsible part in the mission of the Church," for they not only belong to the Church, but "are the Church." (Italics in the original)
www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt3art9p4.htm#899 899]</ref> They exercise the common, baptism-based priestly office by offering their prayer and works as spiritual sacrifices,<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, 901</ref> the prophetic office by their word and testimony of life in the ordinary circumstances of the world,<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, 905</ref> and the kingly office by self-mastery and conforming worldly institutions to the norms of justice.<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, 908–9</ref>//www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt3art9p4.htm#899 899]</ref> They exercise the common, baptism-based priestly office by offering their prayer and works as spiritual sacrifices,<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, 901</ref> the prophetic office by their word and testimony of life in the ordinary circumstances of the world,<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, 905</ref> and the kingly office by self-mastery and conforming worldly institutions to the norms of justice.<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, 908–9</ref>
This theology of the laity, called a "characteristic mark" of Vatican II by Paul VI and John Paul II, was complemented, and in some cases influenced, by the rise of many lay ecclesial movements and structures in the 20th century: examples are Focolare, Neocatechumenal Way, Communion and Liberation, and the personal prelature of Opus Dei. The Directory of International Associations of the Faithful, published by the Pontifical Council for the Laity, lists the names and characteristics of lay movements that have received official recognition.
Some of the non-ordained exercise formal, public ministry in the name of the church, often on a full time and life-long basis, and often in ministries that were reserved to the presbyterate in the decades leading up to the Second Vatican Council. These are called Lay Ecclesial Ministers, a broad category which may include Pastoral Life Coordinators, Pastoral Associates, Pastoral Assistants, Youth Ministers, Campus Ministers, etc. .
Members of the Consecrated Life ("Religious")
www.intratext.com/IXT/ENG0017/_P1X.HTM canons 573-746]</ref> Its members are not part of the hierarchy, unless they are also ordained priests, but remain members of the laity.<ref>cf. canon 207; Chart of showing the place of the members of the Consecrated Life among the People of God</ref> The Catholic Church recognizes several forms of the Consecrated Life, namely, the cenobitic life in the religious institutes (often referred to as religious orders or religious congregations, cf. canons 607-709), the eremitic/anchoritic life (canon 603), the order of virgins (canon 604), the life of the consecrated widows/widowers, and in Secular Institutes (canons 710-730) and Societies of Apostolic Life (canons 731-746). It also makes a provision for the approval of "new forms of consecrated life" (canon 605). Most of the existing forms of the Consecrated Life<ref>An exception are the Consecrated Virgins (canon 604) and the Societies of Apostolic Life (canons 731-746). The Consecrated Virgins do not profess the Evangelical counsels and do not make a vow; their act of consecration is the laying on of hands of the diocesan bishop.</ref> require their members to consecrate themselves to God by their public profession, confirmed by vow or other sacred bond, of the three Evangelical counsels of chastity, poverty and obedience, or their Benedictine equivalent, as stipulated in Church Law, both proper to the institute<ref>Not applicable in the case of Consecrated Hermits (cf. canon 603), nor the Consecrated Virgins (canon 604) and Consecrated Widows/Widowers.</ref> and universal (Canon law).<ref> Canons 573–746
. Code of Canon Law . Vatican
.</ref> Today the majority of those that feel called to following Christ in a more exacting way in the Consecrated Life join a religious institute,<ref> Canons 573–602, 605–709
. Code of Canon Law . Vatican
.</ref> in which they follow a common rule under the leadership of a superior. They usually live in community, although occasionally permission is given to individual members to live for a shorter or longer time as a hermit without ceasing to be a member of their religious institute, others may be given permission to reside elsewhere, for example as resident chaplain to a community of nuns, or as priest serving a non-local parish.//www.intratext.com/IXT/ENG0017/_P1X.HTM canons 573-746]</ref> Its members are not part of the hierarchy, unless they are also ordained priests, but remain members of the laity.<ref>cf. canon 207; Chart of showing the place of the members of the Consecrated Life among the People of God</ref> The Catholic Church recognizes several forms of the Consecrated Life, namely, the cenobitic life in the religious institutes (often referred to as religious orders or religious congregations, cf. canons 607-709), the eremitic/anchoritic life (canon 603), the order of virgins (canon 604), the life of the consecrated widows/widowers, and in Secular Institutes (canons 710-730) and Societies of Apostolic Life (canons 731-746). It also makes a provision for the approval of "new forms of consecrated life" (canon 605). Most of the existing forms of the Consecrated Life<ref>An exception are the Consecrated Virgins (canon 604) and the Societies of Apostolic Life (canons 731-746). The Consecrated Virgins do not profess the Evangelical counsels and do not make a vow; their act of consecration is the laying on of hands of the diocesan bishop.</ref> require their members to consecrate themselves to God by their public profession, confirmed by vow or other sacred bond, of the three Evangelical counsels of chastity, poverty and obedience, or their Benedictine equivalent, as stipulated in Church Law, both proper to the institute<ref>Not applicable in the case of Consecrated Hermits (cf. canon 603), nor the Consecrated Virgins (canon 604) and Consecrated Widows/Widowers.</ref> and universal (Canon law).<ref> Canons 573–746
. Code of Canon Law . Vatican
.</ref> Today the majority of those that feel called to following Christ in a more exacting way in the Consecrated Life join a religious institute,<ref> Canons 573–602, 605–709
. Code of Canon Law . Vatican
.</ref> in which they follow a common rule under the leadership of a superior. They usually live in community, although occasionally permission is given to individual members to live for a shorter or longer time as a hermit without ceasing to be a member of their religious institute, others may be given permission to reside elsewhere, for example as resident chaplain to a community of nuns, or as priest serving a non-local parish.
Movements, Communities and Realities within the Church
Many Movements, Communities and Realities work within the Catholic Church. These Movements, Communities and Realities are groups of usually lay members following a specific spirituality, aim or target as directed by the founder or initiator of the Movement, Community or Reality. As in the case of officially recognised movements, this specific spirituality is always in tandem with the teachings of the Church Magisterium and Canon Law. They may however consitute a specific way of Christian life.
Movements in the Catholic Church are groups of church members following a specific spirituality given to them by the founder of their movement. In the case of officially recognized movements, this specificity never finds expression in rejection or overemphasis of certain teachings of the Magisterium but constitute a specific way of Christian life.
Movements within the Catholic Church include the Italian Communion and Liberation, Focolare Movement, the Irish Legion of Mary, Regnum Christi, The Schönstatt Movement and the Couples for Christ. Recent youth movements include the Youth Fellowship.
Opus Dei, while sharing some of the characteristics of the movements listed above is not categorised by Catholic Church authorities as a Movement, because as a personal prelature, akin to a diocese or a military ordinariate, it is an integral part of the hierarchical and jurisdictional structure of the Church. The Neocatechumenal Way also does not view "itself" as a Movement, but rather as a ministry for adult faith formation. The Neocatechumenal Way has enjoyed the widespread support of the late Pope John Paul II and the present Pope, Benedict XVI, who started it in his own diocese of Munich when he was an Archbishop there in the 1970s.
Church Movements, Communities and Realities within the Church have proven to be hugely popular and have very strong followings. In the case of one particular Catholic Country, Malta, 22% of the Catholic population attends a movement, community or a reality within the Roman Catholic Church.
Membership of the Catholic Church
www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P3.HTM canon 11]</ref> Someone who renounces membership, for example by Actus Formalis Defectionis ab Ecclesia Catholica, may later be received back into the Catholic Church, after making a profession of faith or, when the person has not defected by a formal act, going to confession.<ref>To break on one's own initiative the juridical bond with the Church, a formal act is required in writing before one's local Ordinary or parish priest, who is to judge the genuineness of the act of apostasy, heresy or schism; without this formal act of defection, "heresy (whether formal or material), schism and apostasy do not in themselves constitute a formal act of defection, if they are not externally concretized and manifested to the ecclesiastical authority in the required manner"(circular letter 10279/2006 of 13 March 2006 from the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts to Presidents of Episcopal Conferences). Those who do not take this step are presumed to be still linked with the Catholic Church and thus bound by ecclesiastical laws.</ref>//www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P3.HTM canon 11]</ref> Someone who renounces membership, for example by Actus Formalis Defectionis ab Ecclesia Catholica, may later be received back into the Catholic Church, after making a profession of faith or, when the person has not defected by a formal act, going to confession.<ref>To break on one's own initiative the juridical bond with the Church, a formal act is required in writing before one's local Ordinary or parish priest, who is to judge the genuineness of the act of apostasy, heresy or schism; without this formal act of defection, "heresy (whether formal or material), schism and apostasy do not in themselves constitute a formal act of defection, if they are not externally concretized and manifested to the ecclesiastical authority in the required manner"(circular letter 10279/2006 of 13 March 2006 from the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts to Presidents of Episcopal Conferences). Those who do not take this step are presumed to be still linked with the Catholic Church and thus bound by ecclesiastical laws.</ref>
Worldwide distribution
worldchristiandatabase.org/wcd/ World Christian Database] the figure was 1,119 million (cf. World Christian Trends 2005, page 3).</ref> and continues to increase, particularly in Africa and Asia. Brazil is the country with the largest number of Catholics. The increase between 1978 and 2000 was 288 million. In most industrialized countries, church attendance has decreased since the 19th century, though it remains higher than that of other "mainline" churches. In Europe, Romance-speaking countries are historically Catholic, northern Germanic-speaking countries Protestant, and Slavic countries split between Orthodox and Catholic, although there are exceptions. Catholicism's presence in the rest of the world is due to the work of missionaries mainly from Spain, Portugal, and France, as well as immigrants from these countries and other Catholic parts of Europe such as the Irish, who planted Catholicism throughout the English-speaking world. In Latin America, where it once had a virtual monopoly, Catholicism has suffered increasing competition from Protestantism, particularly in parts of Central America and the Caribbean. In Africa, it is most dominant in the central part of the continent, while in Asia, there are only two majority-Catholic countries: the Philippines and East Timor.//worldchristiandatabase.org/wcd/ World Christian Database] the figure was 1,119 million (cf. World Christian Trends 2005, page 3).</ref> and continues to increase, particularly in Africa and Asia. Brazil is the country with the largest number of Catholics. The increase between 1978 and 2000 was 288 million. In most industrialized countries, church attendance has decreased since the 19th century, though it remains higher than that of other "mainline" churches. In Europe, Romance-speaking countries are historically Catholic, northern Germanic-speaking countries Protestant, and Slavic countries split between Orthodox and Catholic, although there are exceptions. Catholicism's presence in the rest of the world is due to the work of missionaries mainly from Spain, Portugal, and France, as well as immigrants from these countries and other Catholic parts of Europe such as the Irish, who planted Catholicism throughout the English-speaking world. In Latin America, where it once had a virtual monopoly, Catholicism has suffered increasing competition from Protestantism, particularly in parts of Central America and the Caribbean. In Africa, it is most dominant in the central part of the continent, while in Asia, there are only two majority-Catholic countries: the Philippines and East Timor.
See Membership on the conditions required for being considered in canon law a member of the Catholic Church.
In countries where a question on religion is included in the census, the number given in the Statistical Yearbook of the Church (see, above, Introduction) is that of the census returns.
Ecumenism: Quest for Christian Unity
www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19641121_lumen-gentium_en.html Lumen Gentium] §8</ref> At the same time, it affirms that "the Church, now sojourning on earth as an exile, is necessary for salvation. ... Whosoever, therefore, knowing that the Catholic Church was made necessary by Christ, would refuse to enter or to remain in it, could not be saved."<ref>Lumen Gentium §14</ref> (See Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus.)//www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19641121_lumen-gentium_en.html Lumen Gentium] §8</ref> At the same time, it affirms that "the Church, now sojourning on earth as an exile, is necessary for salvation. ... Whosoever, therefore, knowing that the Catholic Church was made necessary by Christ, would refuse to enter or to remain in it, could not be saved."<ref>Lumen Gentium §14</ref> (See Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus.)
www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/chrstuni/documents/rc_pc_chrstuni_doc_31101999_cath-luth-joint-declaration_en.html Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification]; Official Common Statement by the Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church about the Declaration</ref> The same document was adopted by the World Methodist Council in a tripartite signing ceremony that took place on 23 July 2006.<ref>Methodist Statement</ref> These landmark documents have brought closer fraternal ties with those ecclesial communities. However, recent developments, such as ordination of women to priesthood and acceptance of homosexual relationships, present new obstacles to reconciliation with some of them.//www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/chrstuni/documents/rc_pc_chrstuni_doc_31101999_cath-luth-joint-declaration_en.html Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification]; Official Common Statement by the Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church about the Declaration</ref> The same document was adopted by the World Methodist Council in a tripartite signing ceremony that took place on 23 July 2006.<ref>Methodist Statement</ref> These landmark documents have brought closer fraternal ties with those ecclesial communities. However, recent developments, such as ordination of women to priesthood and acceptance of homosexual relationships, present new obstacles to reconciliation with some of them.
Consequently, in recent years the Catholic Church has focused its efforts at reconciliation with the Orthodox Churches of the East, with which the theological differences are not as great. Relations with the Russian Orthodox Church were strained in the 1990s over property issues in countries that were formerly Soviet-dominated, and these differences are not solved (most notably the parishes belonging to the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church); however, fraternal relations with other Eastern churches continue to progress.
Role of the Church in civilization
Church doctrine and science
www.lrb.co.uk/contribhome.php?get=heil01 |publisher=London Review of Books |accessdate=2006-09-15}}</ref> A.C. Crombie, David Lindberg,<ref>Modèle:Cite book</ref> Edward Grant, Thomas Goldstein,<ref>Modèle:Cite book</ref> and Ted Davis, have argued that the Church had a significant, positive influence on the development of civilization. They hold that, not only did monks save and cultivate the remnants of ancient civilization during the barbarian invasions, but that the Church promoted learning and science through its sponsorship of many universities which, under its leadership, grew rapidly in Europe in the 11th and 12th centuries. St. Thomas Aquinas, the Church's "model theologian," not only argued that reason is in harmony with faith, he even recognized that reason can contribute to understanding revelation, and so encouraged intellectual development.<ref> Pope John Paul II
(September 1998)
. Fides et Ratio (Faith and Reason), IV
. Retrieved on 2006-09-15. </ref> The Church's priest-scientists, many of whom were Jesuits, were the leading lights in astronomy, genetics, geomagnetism, meteorology, seismology, and solar physics, becoming the "fathers" of these sciences. It is important to remark names of important churchmen such as the Augustinian abbot Gregor Mendel (pioneer in the study of genetics), Roger Bacon (a Franciscan monk who was one of the early advocates of the scientific method), and Belgian priest Georges Lemaître (the first to propose the Big Bang theory). Even more numerous are Catholic laity involved in science: Henri Becquerel who discovered radioactivity; Galvani, Volta, Ampere, Marconi, pioneers in electricity and telecommunications; Lavoisier, "father of modern chemistry"; Vesalius, founder of modern human anatomy; Cauchy one of the mathematicians who laid the rigorous foundations of calculus.//www.lrb.co.uk/contribhome.php?get=heil01 |publisher=London Review of Books |accessdate=2006-09-15}}</ref> A.C. Crombie, David Lindberg,<ref>Modèle:Cite book</ref> Edward Grant, Thomas Goldstein,<ref>Modèle:Cite book</ref> and Ted Davis, have argued that the Church had a significant, positive influence on the development of civilization. They hold that, not only did monks save and cultivate the remnants of ancient civilization during the barbarian invasions, but that the Church promoted learning and science through its sponsorship of many universities which, under its leadership, grew rapidly in Europe in the 11th and 12th centuries. St. Thomas Aquinas, the Church's "model theologian," not only argued that reason is in harmony with faith, he even recognized that reason can contribute to understanding revelation, and so encouraged intellectual development.<ref> Pope John Paul II
(September 1998)
. Fides et Ratio (Faith and Reason), IV
. Retrieved on 2006-09-15. </ref> The Church's priest-scientists, many of whom were Jesuits, were the leading lights in astronomy, genetics, geomagnetism, meteorology, seismology, and solar physics, becoming the "fathers" of these sciences. It is important to remark names of important churchmen such as the Augustinian abbot Gregor Mendel (pioneer in the study of genetics), Roger Bacon (a Franciscan monk who was one of the early advocates of the scientific method), and Belgian priest Georges Lemaître (the first to propose the Big Bang theory). Even more numerous are Catholic laity involved in science: Henri Becquerel who discovered radioactivity; Galvani, Volta, Ampere, Marconi, pioneers in electricity and telecommunications; Lavoisier, "father of modern chemistry"; Vesalius, founder of modern human anatomy; Cauchy one of the mathematicians who laid the rigorous foundations of calculus.
This position is a reverse of the view, held by some enlightenment philosophers, that the Church's doctrines were superstitious and hindered the progress of civilization.
www.newadvent.org/cathen/04352b.htm Catholic Encyclopedia]</ref> After numerous years of investigations, consultations with the Popes, promises kept and then broken by Galileo, and finally a trial by the Tribunal of the Roman and Universal Inquisition, Galileo was found "suspect of heresy" - not heresy, as is frequently misreported. Although the church includes all his books on the Index Librorum Prohibitorum, and Galileo was forced to recant his heliocentrism and spent the last years of his life under house arrest on orders of the Inquisition,<ref name="publication-ban"> Drake (1978, p.367), Sharratt (1996, p.184), Favaro (1905, 16:209, 230)Modèle:It icon. When Fulgenzio Micanzio, one of Galileo's friends in Venice, sought to have Galileo's Discourse on Floating Bodies reprinted in 1635, he was informed by the Venetian Inquisitor that the Inquisition had forbidden further publication of any of Galileo's works (Favaro, 1905, 16:209) Modèle:It icon, and was later shown a copy of the order (Favaro, 1905, 16:230).Modèle:It icon When the Dutch publishers Elzevir published Galileo's Dialogues Concerning Two New Sciences in 1638, some five years after his trial, they did so under the pretense that a manuscript he had presented to the French Ambassador to Rome for preservation and circulation to interested intellectuals had been used without his knowledge ( Sharratt, 1996, p.184; Galilei, 1954, p.xvii; Favaro, 1898, 8:43 Modèle:It icon). Return to other article: Galileo Galilei; Dialogue; Two New Sciences.</ref> Pope John Paul II, on 31 October 1992, publicly expressed regret for the actions of those Catholics who badly treated Galileo in that trial.<ref>Choupin, Valeur des Decisions Doctrinales du Saint Siege</ref> An abstract of the acts of the process against Galileo is available at the Vatican Secret Archives, which reproduces part of it on its website. Cardinal John Henry Newman, in the nineteenth century, stated that those who attack the Church can only point to the Galileo case, which to many historians does not prove the Church's opposition to science since many of the churchmen at that time were encouraged by the Church to continue their research.<ref> How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization
. Catholic Education Resource Center
(May 2005)
.</ref>Modèle:Verify source//www.newadvent.org/cathen/04352b.htm Catholic Encyclopedia]</ref> After numerous years of investigations, consultations with the Popes, promises kept and then broken by Galileo, and finally a trial by the Tribunal of the Roman and Universal Inquisition, Galileo was found "suspect of heresy" - not heresy, as is frequently misreported. Although the church includes all his books on the Index Librorum Prohibitorum, and Galileo was forced to recant his heliocentrism and spent the last years of his life under house arrest on orders of the Inquisition,<ref name="publication-ban"> Drake (1978, p.367), Sharratt (1996, p.184), Favaro (1905, 16:209, 230)Modèle:It icon. When Fulgenzio Micanzio, one of Galileo's friends in Venice, sought to have Galileo's Discourse on Floating Bodies reprinted in 1635, he was informed by the Venetian Inquisitor that the Inquisition had forbidden further publication of any of Galileo's works (Favaro, 1905, 16:209) Modèle:It icon, and was later shown a copy of the order (Favaro, 1905, 16:230).Modèle:It icon When the Dutch publishers Elzevir published Galileo's Dialogues Concerning Two New Sciences in 1638, some five years after his trial, they did so under the pretense that a manuscript he had presented to the French Ambassador to Rome for preservation and circulation to interested intellectuals had been used without his knowledge ( Sharratt, 1996, p.184; Galilei, 1954, p.xvii; Favaro, 1898, 8:43 Modèle:It icon). Return to other article: Galileo Galilei; Dialogue; Two New Sciences.</ref> Pope John Paul II, on 31 October 1992, publicly expressed regret for the actions of those Catholics who badly treated Galileo in that trial.<ref>Choupin, Valeur des Decisions Doctrinales du Saint Siege</ref> An abstract of the acts of the process against Galileo is available at the Vatican Secret Archives, which reproduces part of it on its website. Cardinal John Henry Newman, in the nineteenth century, stated that those who attack the Church can only point to the Galileo case, which to many historians does not prove the Church's opposition to science since many of the churchmen at that time were encouraged by the Church to continue their research.<ref> How the Catholic Church Built Western Civilization
. Catholic Education Resource Center
(May 2005)
.</ref>Modèle:Verify source
Recently, the Church has been both criticized and applauded for its teaching that embryonic stem cell research is a form of experimentation on human beings, and results in the killing of a human person. Criticism has been on the grounds that this doctrine hinders scientific research. The Church argues that advances in medicine can come without the destruction of humans (in an embryonic state of life); for example, in the use of adult or umbilical stem cells in place of embryonic stem cells.
Church, art, literature, and music
www.crisismagazine.com/november2001/feature7.htm |last=Boffetti |first=Jason |year=2001 |month=November |work=Crisis Magazine |publisher=Morley Publishing Group}}</ref>, C.S. Lewis, and William Shakespeare,<ref> Voss , Paul J.
(July 2002)
. Assurances of faith: How Catholic Was Shakespeare? How Catholic Are His Plays?
. Crisis Magazine
. Morley Publishing Group
.</ref> and of course, the patronage of the Renaissance popes for the great works of Catholic artists such as Michelangelo, Raphael, Bernini, Borromini and Leonardo da Vinci. In addition, we must take into account the enormous body of religious music composed for the Catholic Church, a body which is profoundly tied to the emergence and development of the European tradition of classical music, and indeed, all music that has been influenced by it.//www.crisismagazine.com/november2001/feature7.htm |last=Boffetti |first=Jason |year=2001 |month=November |work=Crisis Magazine |publisher=Morley Publishing Group}}</ref>, C.S. Lewis, and William Shakespeare,<ref> Voss , Paul J.
(July 2002)
. Assurances of faith: How Catholic Was Shakespeare? How Catholic Are His Plays?
. Crisis Magazine
. Morley Publishing Group
.</ref> and of course, the patronage of the Renaissance popes for the great works of Catholic artists such as Michelangelo, Raphael, Bernini, Borromini and Leonardo da Vinci. In addition, we must take into account the enormous body of religious music composed for the Catholic Church, a body which is profoundly tied to the emergence and development of the European tradition of classical music, and indeed, all music that has been influenced by it.
Church and economic development
www.catholiceducation.org/articles/politics/pg0010.html |last=de Torre |first=Fr. Joseph M. |year=1997 |publisher=Catholic Education Resource Center}}</ref>//www.catholiceducation.org/articles/politics/pg0010.html |last=de Torre |first=Fr. Joseph M. |year=1997 |publisher=Catholic Education Resource Center}}</ref>
www.nrbookservice.com/products/bookpage.asp?prod_cd=c6664 |work=National Review Book Service |accessdate=2006-09-16}}</ref>//www.nrbookservice.com/products/bookpage.asp?prod_cd=c6664 |work=National Review Book Service |accessdate=2006-09-16}}</ref>
Social justice, care-giving, and the hospital system
The Catholic Church has contributed to society through its social doctrine which has guided leaders to promote social justice and by setting up the hospital system in Medieval Europe, a system which was different from the merely reciprocal hospitality of the Greeks and family-based obligations of the Romans. These hospitals were established to cater to "particular social groups marginalized by poverty, sickness, and age," according to historian of hospitals, Guenter Risse.<ref>Modèle:Cite book</ref>
James Joseph Walsh wrote the following about the Catholic Church's contribution to the hospital system:
During the thirteenth century an immense number of [these] hospitals were built. The Italian cities were the leaders of the movement. Milan had no fewer than a dozen hospitals and Florence before the end of the Fourteenth century had some thirty hospitals. Some of these were very beautiful buildings. At Milan a portion of the general hospital was designed by Bramante and another part of it by Michelangelo. The Hospital of the innocents in Florence for foundlings was an architectural gem. The Hospital of Sienna, built in honor of St. Catherine, has been famous ever since. Everywhere throughout Europe this hospital movement spread. Virchow, the great German pathologist, in an article on hospitals, showed that every city of Germany of five thousand inhabitants had its hospital. He traced all of this hospital movement to Pope Innocent III, and though he was least papistically inclined, Virchow did not hesitate to give extremely high praise to this pontiff for all that he had accomplished for the benefit of children and suffering mankind.<ref>Modèle:Cite book</ref>
In spite of the lingering problems of the Dark Ages, hospitals began to appear in great numbers in France and England. Following the French Norman invasion into England, the explosion of French ideals led most Medieval monasteries to develop a hospitium or hospice for pilgrims. This hospitium eventually developed into what we now understand as a hospital, with various monks and lay helpers providing the medical care for sick pilgrims and victims of the numerous plagues and chronic diseases that afflicted Medieval Western Europe. Benjamin Gordon supports the theory that the hospital – as we know it - is a French invention, but that it was originally developed for isolating lepers and plague victims, and only later undergoing modification to serve the pilgrim.<ref>Modèle:Cite book</ref>
Owing to a well-preserved 12th century account of the monk Eadmer of the Canterbury cathedral, there is an excellent account of Bishop Lanfranc’s aim to establish and maintain examples of these early hospitals:
But I must not conclude my work by omitting what he did for the poor outside the walls of the city Canterbury. In brief, he constructed a decent and ample house of stone…for different needs and conveniences. He divided the main building into two, appointing one part for men oppressed by various kinds of infirmities and the other for women in a bad state of health. He also made arrangements for their clothing and daily food, appointing ministers and guardians to take all measures so that nothing should be lacking for them.<ref>Modèle:Cite book</ref>
The beauty and efficiency of the Italian hospitals inspired even some who were otherwise critical of the Church. The German historian Ludwig von Pastor recounts the words of Martin Luther who, while journeying to Rome in the winter of 1510–1511, had occasion to visit some of these hospitals:
books.google.com/books?id=OgSUwBA0M98C&vid=LCCN24012249&dq=volume+V+%22ludwig+pastor%22&jtp=65}} cf. Luther, Martin. (1967). Luther's Works, American Edition, 55 vols. Helmut T. Lehmann, Theodore G. Tappert, editors, Concordia Publishing House and Fortress Press, Table Talk, vol. 54, p.296, No. 3930, ( recorded by Anthony Lauterbach, August 1, 1538 ). ISBN 0-8006-0354-0</ref></blockquote>//books.google.com/books?id=OgSUwBA0M98C&vid=LCCN24012249&dq=volume+V+%22ludwig+pastor%22&jtp=65}} cf. Luther, Martin. (1967). Luther's Works, American Edition, 55 vols. Helmut T. Lehmann, Theodore G. Tappert, editors, Concordia Publishing House and Fortress Press, Table Talk, vol. 54, p.296, No. 3930, ( recorded by Anthony Lauterbach, August 1, 1538 ). ISBN 0-8006-0354-0</ref></blockquote>
The Catholic Church as opus proprium, says Benedict XVI in Deus Caritas Est, has conducted throughout the centuries from its very beginning and continues to conduct many charitable services — hospitals, schools, poverty alleviation programs, among others.
On November 14, 2006, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops also issued the document Ministry to Persons with a Homosexual Inclination to provide "guidelines for the pastoral care of people with a homosexual inclination".
Sexual abuse cases
news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070907/ap_on_re/church_abuse_bankruptcy;_ylt=AlGal3Us6Vlrtj7uzwf.wkis0NUE] The U.S. Bishop's National Review Board study concluded that 81% of the abuse victims were male (while, the study said, in the general U.S. society the main problem is men abusing girls), and that only a small percentage of the priests were accused of abusing children who had not reached puberty.<ref>"An overwhelming majority of the victims, 81 percent, were males. The most vulnerable were boys aged 11 to 14, representing more than 40 percent of the victims. This goes against the trend in the general U.S. society where the main problem is men abusing girls. A majority of the victims were post-pubescent adolescents with a small percentage of the priests accused of abusing children who had not reached puberty" (Study commissioned by the U.S. Bishops' National Review Board, published by John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York, 27 February 2004, as reported at AmericanCatholic.org).</ref>//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070907/ap_on_re/church_abuse_bankruptcy;_ylt=AlGal3Us6Vlrtj7uzwf.wkis0NUE] The U.S. Bishop's National Review Board study concluded that 81% of the abuse victims were male (while, the study said, in the general U.S. society the main problem is men abusing girls), and that only a small percentage of the priests were accused of abusing children who had not reached puberty.<ref>"An overwhelming majority of the victims, 81 percent, were males. The most vulnerable were boys aged 11 to 14, representing more than 40 percent of the victims. This goes against the trend in the general U.S. society where the main problem is men abusing girls. A majority of the victims were post-pubescent adolescents with a small percentage of the priests accused of abusing children who had not reached puberty" (Study commissioned by the U.S. Bishops' National Review Board, published by John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York, 27 February 2004, as reported at AmericanCatholic.org).</ref>
www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/motu_proprio/documents/hf_jp-ii_motu-proprio_20020110_sacramentorum-sanctitatis-tutela_lt.html Sacramentorum sanctitatis tutela] and its accompanying norms (both documents in Latin). Under the Church's 1983 Code of Canon Law clerical sexual abuse against a minor can be punished with dismissal from the clerical state ("laicization").<ref> Canon 1395
. Code of Canon Law . Vatican
.</ref> Rome's Congregation for Catholic Education issued an official document, the Instruction Concerning the Criteria for the Discernment of Vocations with regard to Persons with Homosexual Tendencies in view of their Admission to the Seminary and to Holy Orders (2005). The document states that the Church "cannot admit to the seminary or to holy orders those who practise homosexuality, present deep-seated homosexual tendencies or support the so-called 'gay culture'".//www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/motu_proprio/documents/hf_jp-ii_motu-proprio_20020110_sacramentorum-sanctitatis-tutela_lt.html Sacramentorum sanctitatis tutela] and its accompanying norms (both documents in Latin). Under the Church's 1983 Code of Canon Law clerical sexual abuse against a minor can be punished with dismissal from the clerical state ("laicization").<ref> Canon 1395
. Code of Canon Law . Vatican
.</ref> Rome's Congregation for Catholic Education issued an official document, the Instruction Concerning the Criteria for the Discernment of Vocations with regard to Persons with Homosexual Tendencies in view of their Admission to the Seminary and to Holy Orders (2005). The document states that the Church "cannot admit to the seminary or to holy orders those who practise homosexuality, present deep-seated homosexual tendencies or support the so-called 'gay culture'".
See also
- Anti-Catholicism
- Apostleship of the Sea (welfare agency for seafarers)
- Aquinas and the Sacraments
- Canon law (Catholic Church)
- Catholic church hierarchy
- Catholic
- Catholicism
- Catholicism and Freemasonry
- Christian apologetics
- Christianity
- Criticism of the Catholic Church
- Cultural Catholic
- Eastern Catholic Church
- Forgiveness
- Global organisation of the Roman Catholic Church
- History of the Roman Catholic Church
- International Union of Catholic Esperantists
- Jesus
- Latin (the language)
- Lay Ecclesial Ministry
- List of canonizations
- List of people who converted to Catholicism
- Lists of Roman Catholics
- Marian doctrines of the Catholic Church
- Moral theology
- Primacy of the Roman Pontiff
- Pro-life
- Roman Catholic calendar of saints
- Thought of Thomas Aquinas Part I
- Traditionalist Catholic
Footnotes
References and readings
www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/ccc_toc.htm |publisher=Libreria Editrice Vaticana |year=1993}}//www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/ccc_toc.htm |publisher=Libreria Editrice Vaticana |year=1993}} www.vatican.va/archive/compendium_ccc/documents/archive_2005_compendium-ccc_en.html |publisher=Libreria Editrice Vaticana |year=2005}}//www.vatican.va/archive/compendium_ccc/documents/archive_2005_compendium-ccc_en.html |publisher=Libreria Editrice Vaticana |year=2005}} www.ewtn.com/library/CHISTORY/annu2004.HTM |year=2004 |month=July |publisher=EWTN |accessdate=2006-09-14}}//www.ewtn.com/library/CHISTORY/annu2004.HTM |year=2004 |month=July |publisher=EWTN |accessdate=2006-09-14}}
- Modèle:Cite book 4 Volumes.
- Modèle:Cite book
- Modèle:Cite book
www.newadvent.org/cathen/index.html |year=1913 |month=April |publisher=Encyclopedia Press |author=Herbermann, Charles G. et al.}}//www.newadvent.org/cathen/index.html |year=1913 |month=April |publisher=Encyclopedia Press |author=Herbermann, Charles G. et al.}}
External links
www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican//www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican//www.catholic-hierarchy.org/ Catholic Hierarchy] Information on Catholic bishops and dioceses www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican//www.fiu.edu/~mirandas/cardinals.htm The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church] Information on the Cardinals of the Catholic Church www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican//www.britannica.com/holocaust/print?articleId=109699&fullArticle=true&tocId=43745 Roman Catholicism] Overview in Encyclopaedia Britannica www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican//thecatholicguide.com The Catholic Guide] - Information site about the Roman Catholic faith www.earthhealing.info/catholicstats.pdf Global Catholic Statistics: 1905 and Today]|26.3 KiB}} by Albert J. Fritsch, SJ, PhD//www.earthhealing.info/catholicstats.pdf Global Catholic Statistics: 1905 and Today]|26.3 KiB}} by Albert J. Fritsch, SJ, PhD www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican//www.catholic.com Catholic Answers] One of the largest lay-run apostolates of Catholic apologetics and evangelization www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican//www.maryfoundation.com Mary Foundation] Free CDs summarizing basic Roman Catholic teaching on the Mass, Mary, etc. www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican//www.catecheticsonline.com/wiki/index.php?title=Main_Page Catholic Wiki] - An orthodox wiki site dedicated to building up a plethora of information on the Catholic Church. www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican//www.masstimes.org/ MassTimes] - A comprehensive database of every Catholic Church and Mass in the entire world. www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican//www.parishesonline.org/ ParishesOnline] - U.S. directory of the Catholic Church. www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican//ihmhermitage.stblogs.com/ Immaculate Heart of Mary’s Hermitage Report] - Catholic News, History and Spirituality www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican//catholic.christianityinview.com/ Introduction to Roman Catholicism] - An introduction to Roman Catholicism (part of the Christianity in View web site).
Vatican news
www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican//www.vatican.va/news_services/press/vis/vis_en.html Vatican Information Service] www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican//212.77.1.245/news_services/bulletin/bollettino.php?lang=en Holy See Press Office: Daily Bulletin] www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican//www.vatican.va/news_services/or/or_eng/index.html L'Osservatore Romano, English weekly edition] www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican//www.vatican.va/news_services/radio/multimedia/internet_en.htm Vatican Radio] www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican//www.vatican.va/news_services/television/multimedia/live_en.html Vatican Television Center schedule] www.vatican.va/ Vatican: the Holy See] the official website of the Vatican//www.romereports.com/ Internet TV project promoted by Fondazione Perseus, a non-profit Italian organization][7]
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