What does the word Catholic mean and where in the world does it come from?
Ignatius of Antioch, a Bishop in the first century was the first to use the word Catholic in writings, the quote follows:
Shun schisms, as the source of troubles. Let all follow the bishop as Jesus Christ did the Father, and the priests, as you would the Apostles. Reverence the deacons as you would the command of God. Apart from the bishop, let no one perform any of the functions that pertain to the Church. Let the Eucharist be held valid which is offered by the bishop or by one to whom the bishop has committed this charge. Wherever the bishop appears, there let the people be; as wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church., It is not lawful to baptize or give communion without the consent of the bishop. On the other hand, whatever has his approval is pleasing to God. Thus, whatever you do will be safe and valid.
The Catholic Church believes that Jesus Christ inaugurated, or instituted the Church. Peter, being enlightened by the Heavenly Father, stated who Jesus was, Peter stated, “You are the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the Living God” [Mt 16:16-20]. Jesus then said to Peter that he would be given the keys of the kingdom of God, and that Peter, whose name means Rock, is the Rock on which Jesus said that he would build His Church. Peter was the first Pope and since then, someone has been entrusted to be in, what is known in Catholicism as, the Chair of Peter. Since St. Peter there has been 262 popes. It is important to know that the Church or the Pope cannot fashion new doctrine or invent teachings. The charism, or gift, of the Pope is not one that lets him say anything, but rather in specific instances when speaking ex cathedra (from the chair) the Church believes that the Pope infallibly interprets the tradition (see 2 Thes 2:15) that Christ established.
All the teachings of the Church are in service of the People of God. The Church is an institution which solely exists to serve Jesus Christ and His Mystical body, the People of God. God has, throughout the ages, attempted to reveal Himself. God first did this through the chosen people of Israel and the prophets. The Church has a lot of things to say, but all is for one purpose, to help people reach their final destiny, Eternal life with God. We will reach this goal if we learn how to be like God. This means that we must strive to love like God, unconditionally, totally and faithfully.
The bible is a book that is a thorough accounting of salvation history. The story of God revealing God in human history. The bible is not a history book in the sense that we would think of a history book, but we believe that the bible is without error when it relates the saving truth that God intended to convey. The Catholic Church reveres the bible, and grants indulgences for reading the bible.
One of the greatest theologians of the Church, St. Thomas Aquinas, stated that the Bible is the soul of Sacred Theology. This section of RCIA relates to the basic foundations of the Catholic Faith. The Catholic Church understands herself to be the Church established by Jesus Christ almost two thousand years ago. And the Church was not something new as much as it was the fulfillment and completion of the Jewish faith. The Church in her teaching is very balanced and always tries to make sense out of seemingly contradictory things. For example Faith and Reason. The Catholic Church believes that faith and reason go together and are not against or opposed to one another.
The Church tries to communicate to all people, both the scholars and those who just live their lives. Sometimes the Church can come across as being this very complex huge institution that has little interest in everyday life. This is not the case. A fundamental assumption is that truth is transcendent. In other words, truth does not depend on what one thinks but rather upon reality. For most people this makes obvious sense, but it really is not all that obvious when one delves into the arena of ideas. This gets a little deep, but it is very important. The church is often perceived as being dictatorial and unyielding and “not very open”. In Alan Bloom’s book, “The Closing of the American Mind”, I believe it is stated, “We need an open mind, but not so open that our brain falls out!”
The Catholic Church has some fundamental assumptions that she feels she cannot deny. 1) God is God and man is man. To truly recognize this, one has discovered the root of true humility. In other words, it was God who said, “Let there be Light, and there was light!” God’s Word is Creative, not the human person’s word. 2) God is good, and the source of all things. Before the world was created, God was, is and always will be I AM. 3) Since God is All Good, He is not the source of Evil, but rather evil is a lack, evil has no material existence, but is indeed a reality that was the result in man’s disobedience. 4) God can only create Good things, so Man, the human person, is intrinsically good, though wounded by Original Sin, in fact all creation is good.
Sadly man has the capacity to pervert God’s goodness and His creation. There certainly are others, but these serve to ground our reflections. These assumptions were revealed to us through God’s Sacred Scriptures. The Church always is trying to help make sense out of the experience of man. Flowing from the assumptions, Since man is good, and God gave man a brain, and man uses his brain well, reasoning will not lead the human person away from God. The church accepts experience and assumes that things are as they appear. In other words, a rock is a rock, or to use that oft repeated example, “If a tree falls in the woods, does it make a sound if no person is there to hear it?” The answer is, “Of course!”. Sadly many people who call themselves intellectuals seriously entertain this question because they want to say that even a physical reality like sound waves depends on a human person. This is nonsense and not rational. It is not logical. The church uses logic and basic rules of logic to reflect on God’s Majesty.
