Roman Catholic Church

The Roman Catholic Church

1. A Brief History of the Roman Catholic Church
• As the early church grew, the bishop of Rome gained more and more influence over the other churches, especially after Constantine made Christianity the official language of the empire
• After the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476, the Catholic faith competed with Arian Christianity for the conversion of the barbarian tribes
• The 496 conversion of Clovis I, pagan king of the Franks, marked the beginning of a steady rise of the Catholic faith in the West
• In 530, Saint Benedict wrote his monastic Rule, which became a blueprint for the organization of monasteries throughout Europe
• From 590 Pope Gregory the Great dramatically reformed church practice and administration, launching renewed missionary efforts
• In 800, continuing disagreements with the east culminated when the pope crowned Charlemagne Holy Roman Emperor in the west, who attempted to unify Western Europe through the common bond of Christianity, creating an improved system of education and establishing unified laws
• In 1095, Byzantine emperor Alexius I appealed to Pope Urban II for help in warding off a Turkish invasion, so Urban launched a military campaign known as the First Crusade, believing that it might help to bring about reconciliation with Eastern Christianity
• King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella formed an inquisition in 1480, originally to deal with distrusted ex-Jewish and ex-Muslim converts, and over a 350-year period, this Spanish Inquisition executed between 3,000 and 4,000 people
• In 1517, Martin Luther included his Ninety-Five Theses in a letter to several bishops, protesting key points of Catholic doctrine as well as the sale of indulgences
• At the Council of Trent (1545–1563) the Catholic Church launched a counter-reformation, reaffirming core doctrines as well as instigating some important reforms
• Vatican II (1962-1965) encouraged more active participation of the laity and allowed mass in the vernacular

2. The Bible and Church Authority
• The Roman Catholic Bible consists of 73 books and includes some Apocryphal books: Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Ecclesiasticus, Baruch, First and Second Maccabees, Additions to Esther and Daniel
• The Authorized Roman Catholic Bible, the Douay-Rheims Bible, is an English translation of the Latin Vulgate
• The Catholic Church believes that it is guided by the Holy Spirit and so protected from falling into doctrinal error
• The Church teaches that the Holy Spirit reveals God's truth through Sacred Scripture, Sacred Tradition and the Magisterium
• The Catholic Church has been entrusted with the seven sacraments, which are Baptism, Confirmation, the Eucharist, Penance, Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders and Holy Matrimony

3. Theology
• The Catholic Church is trinitarian in that it holds that there is one eternal God who exists as a mutual indwelling of three persons: the Father; the Son, Jesus; and the Holy Spirit
• God is the creator of nature and all that exists and he loves his creation and desires to have a relationship with it
• Satan rebelled against God, taking many angels with him, and then deceived Adam so that he and Eve sinned
• Jesus is the Savior of the world who is the only begotten son of God, one in being with the Father, and through whom all things were made
• Jesus was born without sin of the Virgin Mary, who also was conceived without sin (the immaculate conception)
• Jesus died on the cross as the sacrifice for man’s sin
• All men will be resurrected and face a final judgment before God and spend eternity in Heaven, Hell or Purgatory

4. Salvation
• Forgiveness of sin comes when one believes in Jesus, confesses his sins and is baptized
• Subsequent sins require penance, confession to a priest and a penance appropriate to the sin
• The Holy Spirit is one with God the Father and God the Son and is received through the sacrament of Confirmation

5. The Church and Worship
• The Church is the continuing presence of Jesus on earth and has been given his authority by Christ himself
• Church hierarchy consists of the Pope, Cardinals, Bishops and Priests (clergy) and deacons (laity)
• Catholic worship consists of the Eucharist and Mass, the other sacraments, and the Liturgy of the Hours
• The Eucharist is celebrated at every Mass where the elements are transformed into the real body and blood of Jesus
• Prayers are said to God, Jesus, Mary and the Saints, and the three main prayers are are The Lord's Prayer, the Rosary and Stations of the Cross
• There are over 300 Catholic religious orders for both men and women