TheCatholic Church,also known as theRoman Catholic Church,is thelargest Christian church,with 1.28 to 1.39 billionbaptizedCatholicsworldwideas of 2024.[4][5][9]It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a prominent role in the history and development ofWestern civilization.[10][11][12][13]The church consists of 24sui iurischurches,including theLatin Churchand 23Eastern Catholic Churches,which comprise almost 3,500[14]diocesesandeparchieslocatedaround the world.Thepope,who is the bishop of Rome, is thechief pastorof the church.[15]TheDiocese of Rome,known as theHoly See,is the central governing authority of the church. The administrative body of the Holy See, theRoman Curia,has its principal offices inVatican City,a small independentcity-stateandenclavewithin the Italian capital city ofRome,of which the pope ishead of state.
 Catholic Church | |
|---|---|
| Ecclesia Catholica | |
 St. Peter's Basilicain Vatican City, the largest Catholic church building in the world | |
| Classification | Catholic |
| Scripture | Catholic Bible |
| Theology | Catholic theology |
| Polity | Episcopal[1] |
| Governance | Holy SeeandRoman Curia |
| Pope | Francis |
| Particular churches sui iuris | Latin Churchand 23Eastern Catholic Churches |
| Dioceses | |
| Parishes | 221,700 approx. |
| Region | Worldwide |
| Language | Ecclesiastical Latinandnative languages |
| Liturgy | Western and Eastern |
| Headquarters | Vatican City |
| Founder |
|
| Origin | 1st century Judaea,Roman Empire[2][3] |
| Separations | Protestantism |
| Members | 1.28 billion according to World Christian Database (2024)[4] 1.39 billion according toAnnuario Pontificio(2022)[5][6] |
| Clergy | |
| Hospitals | 5,500[7] |
| Primary schools | 95,200[8] |
| Secondary schools | 43,800 |
| Official website | www |
The core beliefs ofCatholicismare found in theNicene Creed.The Catholic Church teaches that it is theone, holy, catholic and apostolicchurch founded byJesus Christin hisGreat Commission,[16][17][note 1]that itsbishopsare thesuccessorsof Christ'sapostles,and that the pope is thesuccessortoSaint Peter,upon whomprimacywas conferred by Jesus Christ.[20]It maintains that it practises the original Christian faith taught by the apostles, preserving the faithinfalliblythroughscriptureandsacred traditionas authentically interpreted through themagisteriumof the church.[21]TheRoman Riteandothersof the Latin Church, theEastern Catholic liturgies,and institutes such asmendicant orders,enclosed monastic ordersandthird ordersreflect avarietyoftheologicaland spiritual emphases in the church.[22][23]
Of itsseven sacraments,theEucharistis the principal one, celebratedliturgicallyin theMass.[24]The church teaches that throughconsecrationby apriest,the sacrificialbreadandwinebecome thebody and blood of Christ.TheVirgin Maryisveneratedas thePerpetual Virgin,Mother of God,andQueen of Heaven;she is honoured indogmasanddevotions.[25]Catholic social teachingemphasizes voluntary support for the sick, the poor, and the afflicted through thecorporal and spiritual works of mercy.The Catholic Church operates tens of thousands of Catholic schools,universities and colleges,hospitals,and orphanages around the world, and is the largest non-government provider ofeducationand health care in the world.[26]Among its other social services are numerous charitable and humanitarian organizations.
The Catholic Church has profoundly influencedWestern philosophy,culture,art,literature,music,law,[27]andscience.[13]Catholics live all over the world throughmissions,immigration,diaspora,andconversions.Since the 20th century, the majority have resided in theSouthern Hemisphere,partially due tosecularizationin Europe. The Catholic Church sharedcommunionwith theEastern Orthodox Churchuntil theEast–West Schismin 1054, disputing particularly theauthority of the pope.Before theCouncil of Ephesusin AD 431, theChurch of the Eastalso shared in this communion, as did theOriental Orthodox Churchesbefore theCouncil of Chalcedonin AD 451; all separated primarily overdifferences inChristology.The Eastern Catholic Churches, who have a combined membership of approximately 18 million, represent a body ofEastern Christianswho returned or remained in communion with the pope during or following theseschismsfor a variety of historical circumstances. In the 16th century, theReformationled to the formation of separate,Protestantgroups. From the late 20th century, the Catholic Church has beencriticizedfor itsteachings on sexuality,itsdoctrine against ordaining women,and its handling ofsexual abuse casesinvolving clergy.
Name
Catholic(fromGreek:καθολικός,romanized:katholikos,lit. 'universal') was first used to describe the church in the early 2nd century.[30]The first known use of the phrase "the catholic church" (Greek:καθολικὴ ἐκκλησία,romanized:katholikḕ ekklēsía) occurred in the letter written about 110 AD fromSaint Ignatius of Antiochto theSmyrnaeans,[note 2]which read: "Wheresoever the bishop shall appear, there let the people be, even as where Jesus may be, there is the universal [katholike] Church."[31]In theCatechetical Lectures(c. 350) ofSaint Cyril of Jerusalem,the name "Catholic Church" was used to distinguish it from other groups that also called themselves "the church".[31][32]The "Catholic" notion was further stressed in the edictDe fide Catolicaissued 380 byTheodosius I,the last emperor to rule over both theeasternand thewesternhalves of theRoman Empire,when establishing thestate church of the Roman Empire.[33]
Since theEast–West Schismof 1054, theEastern Orthodox Churchhas taken the adjectiveOrthodoxas its distinctive epithet; its official name continues to be the Orthodox Catholic Church.[34]TheLatin Churchwas described asCatholic,with that description also denominating those in communion with theHoly Seeafter theProtestant Reformationof the 16th century, when those who ceased to be in communion became known as Protestants.[35][36]
While theRoman Churchhas been used to describe the pope'sDiocese of Romesince theFall of the Western Roman Empireand into theEarly Middle Ages(6th–10th century),Roman Catholic Churchhas been applied to the whole church in the English language since the Protestant Reformation in the late 16th century.[37]Further, some will refer to the Latin Church asRoman Catholicin distinction from the Eastern Catholic churches.[38]"Roman Catholic" has occasionally appeared also in documents produced both by the Holy See,[note 3]and notably used by certain nationalepiscopal conferencesand local dioceses.[note 4]
The nameCatholic Churchfor the whole church is used in theCatechism of the Catholic Church(1990) and theCode of Canon Law(1983). "Catholic Church" is also used in the documents of theSecond Vatican Council(1962–1965),[39]theFirst Vatican Council(1869–1870),[40]theCouncil of Trent(1545–1563),[41]and numerous other official documents.[42][43]
History
Apostolic era and papacy
TheNew Testament,in particular theGospels,records Jesus' activities and teaching, his appointment of the Twelve Apostles and hisGreat Commissionof the apostles, instructing them to continue his work.[44][45]The bookActs of Apostles,tells of the founding of the Christian church and the spread of its message to the Roman Empire.[46]The Catholic Church teaches that its public ministry began onPentecost,occurring fifty days following the date Christ is believed to haveresurrected.[47]At Pentecost, the apostles are believed to have received the Holy Spirit, preparing them for their mission in leading the church.[48][49]The Catholic Church teaches that thecollege of bishops,led by thebishop of Romeare thesuccessorsto the Apostles.[50]
In the account of theConfession of Peterfound in theGospel of Matthew,Christ designates Peter as the "rock" upon which Christ's church will be built.[51][52]The Catholic Church considers the bishop of Rome, the pope, to be the successor toSaint Peter.[53]Some scholars state Peter was the first bishop of Rome.[54]Others say that the institution of the papacy is not dependent on the idea that Peter was bishop of Rome or even on his ever having been in Rome.[55]Many scholars hold that a church structure of plural presbyters/bishops persisted in Rome until the mid-2nd century, when the structure of a single bishop and plural presbyters was adopted,[56]and that later writers retrospectively applied the term "bishop of Rome" to the most prominent members of the clergy in the earlier period and also to Peter himself.[56]On this basis,Oscar Cullmann,[57]Henry Chadwick,[58]andBart D. Ehrman[59]question whether there was a formal link between Peter and the modern papacy.Raymond E. Brownalso says that it is anachronistic to speak of Peter in terms of local bishop of Rome, but that Christians of that period would have looked on Peter as having "roles that would contribute in an essential way to the development of the role of the papacy in the subsequent church". These roles, Brown says, "contributed enormously to seeing the bishop of Rome, the bishop of the city where Peter died and where Paul witnessed the truth of Christ, as the successor of Peter in care for the church universal".[56]
Antiquity and Roman Empire
Conditions in theRoman Empirefacilitated the spread of new ideas. The empire's network of roads and waterways facilitated travel, and thePax Romanamade travelling safe. The empire encouraged the spread of a common culture with Greek roots, which allowed ideas to be more easily expressed and understood.[60]
Unlike most religions in the Roman Empire, however, Christianity required its adherents to renounce all other gods, a practice adopted from Judaism (seeIdolatry). The Christians' refusal to joinpagancelebrations meant they were unable to participate in much of public life, which caused non-Christians—including government authorities—to fear that the Christians were angering the gods and thereby threatening the peace and prosperity of the Empire. Theresulting persecutionswere a defining feature of Christian self-understanding until Christianity was legalized in the 4th century.[61]
In 313,Emperor Constantine I'sEdict of Milanlegalized Christianity, and in 330 Constantine moved the imperial capital toConstantinople,modernIstanbul, Turkey.In 380 theEdict of ThessalonicamadeNicene Christianitythestate church of the Roman Empire,a position that within the diminishing territory of theByzantine Empirewould persist until the empire itself ended in thefall of Constantinoplein 1453, while elsewhere the church was independent of the empire, as became particularly clear with theEast–West Schism.During the period of theSeven Ecumenical Councils,five primary sees emerged, an arrangement formalized in the mid-6th century by EmperorJustinian Ias thepentarchyof Rome,Constantinople,Antioch,JerusalemandAlexandria.[62][63]In 451 theCouncil of Chalcedon,in a canon of disputed validity,[64]elevated thesee of Constantinopleto a position "second in eminence and power to the bishop of Rome".[65]Fromc. 350– c. 500,the bishops, or popes, of Rome, steadily increased in authority through their consistent intervening in support oforthodox leadersin theological disputes, which encouraged appeals to them.[66]EmperorJustinian,who in the areas under his control definitively established a form ofcaesaropapism,[67]in which "he had the right and duty of regulating by his laws the minutest details of worship and discipline, and also of dictating the theological opinions to be held in the Church",[68]re-established imperial power over Rome and other parts of the West, initiating the period termed theByzantine Papacy(537–752), during which the bishops of Rome, or popes, required approval from the emperor in Constantinople or from his representative in Ravenna for consecration, and most were selected by the emperor from his Greek-speaking subjects,[69]resulting in a "melting pot" of Western and Eastern Christian traditions in art as well as liturgy.[70]
Most of the Germanic tribes who in the following centuries invaded the Roman Empire had adopted Christianity in itsArianform, which theCouncil of Niceadeclaredheretical.[71]The resulting religious discord between Germanic rulers and Catholic subjects[72]was avoided when, in 497,Clovis I,theFrankishruler, converted to orthodox Catholicism, allying himself with the papacy and the monasteries.[73]The Visigoths in Spain followed his lead in 589,[74]and the Lombards in Italy in the course of the 7th century.[75]
Western Christianity,particularly through itsmonasteries,was a major factor in preservingclassical civilization,with its art (seeIlluminated manuscript) and literacy.[76]Through hisRule,Benedict of Nursia(c. 480–543), one of the founders ofWestern monasticism,exerted an enormous influence on European culture through the appropriation of the monastic spiritual heritage of the early Catholic Church and, with the spread of the Benedictine tradition, through the preservation and transmission of ancient culture. During this period, monastic Ireland became a centre of learning and early Irish missionaries such asColumbanusandColumbaspread Christianity and established monasteries across continental Europe.[76]
Middle Ages and Renaissance
The Catholic Church was the dominant influence on Western civilization fromLate Antiquityto the dawn of the modern age.[13]It was the primary sponsor of Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance, Mannerist and Baroque styles in art, architecture and music.[77]Renaissance figures such asRaphael,Michelangelo,Leonardo da Vinci,Botticelli,Fra Angelico,Tintoretto,Titian,BerniniandCaravaggioare examples of the numerous visual artists sponsored by the church.[78]Historian Paul Legutko ofStanford Universitysaid the Catholic Church is "at the center of the development of the values, ideas, science, laws, and institutions which constitute what we callWestern civilization".[79]
In WesternChristendom,thefirst universities in Europewere established by monks.[80][81][82]Beginning in the 11th century, several older cathedral schoolsbecame universities,such as theUniversity of Oxford,University of Paris,andUniversity of Bologna.Higher education before then had been the domain of Christian cathedral schools or monastic schools, led bymonksandnuns.Evidence of such schools dates back to the 6th century CE.[83]These new universities expanded the curriculum to include academic programs for clerics, lawyers, civil servants, and physicians.[84]The university is generally regarded as an institution that has its origin in theMedieval Christiansetting.[85][86][87]
The massive Islamic invasions of themid-7th centurybegan a long struggle betweenChristianity and Islamthroughout the Mediterranean Basin. TheByzantine Empiresoon lost the lands of the easternpatriarchatesofJerusalem,AlexandriaandAntiochand was reduced to that ofConstantinople,the empire's capital. As a result ofIslamic domination of the Mediterranean,the Frankish state, centred away from that sea, was able to evolve as the dominant power that shaped the Western Europe of the Middle Ages.[88]The battles ofToulouseandPoitiershalted the Islamic advance in the West and the failedsiege of Constantinoplehalted it in the East. Two or three decades later, in 751, the Byzantine Empire lost to the Lombards the city of Ravenna from which itgovernedthe small fragments of Italy, including Rome, that acknowledged its sovereignty. The fall of Ravenna meant that confirmation by a no longer existent exarch was not asked for during the election in 752 ofPope Stephen IIand that the papacy was forced to look elsewhere for a civil power to protect it.[89]In 754, at the urgent request of Pope Stephen, the Frankish kingPepin the Shortconquered the Lombards. He thengiftedthe lands of the former exarchate to the pope, thus initiating thePapal States.Rome and the Byzantine East would delve into further conflict during thePhotian schismof the 860s, whenPhotiuscriticized the Latin west of adding of thefilioqueclause after being excommunicated byNicholas I.Though the schism was reconciled, unresolved issues would lead to further division.[90]
In the 11th century, the efforts ofHildebrand of Sovanaled to the creation of theCollege of Cardinalsto elect new popes, starting withPope Alexander IIin thepapal election of 1061.When Alexander II died, Hildebrand was elected to succeed him, asPope Gregory VII.The basic election system of the College of Cardinals which Gregory VII helped establish has continued to function into the 21st century. Pope Gregory VII further initiated theGregorian Reformsregarding the independence of the clergy from secular authority. This led to theInvestiture Controversybetween the church and theHoly Roman Emperors,over which had the authority to appoint bishops and popes.[91][92]
In 1095,ByzantineemperorAlexius Iappealed toPope Urban IIfor help against renewed Muslim invasions in theByzantine–Seljuk Wars,[93]which caused Urban to launch theFirst Crusadeaimed at aiding the Byzantine Empire and returning theHoly Landto Christian control.[94]In the11th century,strained relations between the primarily Greek church and the Latin Church separated them in theEast–West Schism,partially due to conflicts overpapalauthority. TheFourth Crusadeand the sacking of Constantinople by renegade crusaders proved the final breach.[95]In this age great gothic cathedrals in France were an expression of popular pride in the Christian faith.
In the early 13th centurymendicant orderswere founded byFrancis of AssisiandDominic de Guzmán.Thestudia conventualiaandstudia generaliaof the mendicant orders played a large role in the transformation of church-sponsored cathedral schools and palace schools, such as that ofCharlemagneatAachen,into the prominent universities of Europe.[96]Scholastictheologians and philosophers such as the Dominican priestThomas Aquinasstudied and taught at these studia. Aquinas'Summa Theologicawas an intellectual milestone in its synthesis of the legacy ofancient Greek philosopherssuch as Plato and Aristotle with the content of Christian revelation.[97]
A growing sense of church-state conflicts marked the 14th century. To escape instability in Rome,Clement Vin 1309 became the first of seven popes to reside in the fortified city ofAvignonin southern France[98]during a period known as theAvignon Papacy.The Avignon Papacy ended in 1376 when the pope returned to Rome,[99]but was followed in 1378 by the 38-year-longWestern schism,with claimants to the papacy in Rome, Avignon and (after 1409) Pisa.[99]The matter was largely resolved in 1415–17 at theCouncil of Constance,with the claimants in Rome and Pisa agreeing to resign and the third claimant excommunicated by the cardinals, who held a new election namingMartin Vpope.[100]
In 1438, theCouncil of Florenceconvened, which featured a strong dialogue focussed on understanding the theological differences between the East and West, with the hope of reuniting the Catholic and Orthodox churches.[101]Several eastern churches reunited, forming the majority of theEastern Catholic Churches.[102]
Age of Discovery
TheAge of Discoverybeginning in the 15th century saw the expansion of Western Europe's political and cultural influence worldwide. Because of the prominent role the strongly Catholic nations of Spain and Portugal played in Western colonialism, Catholicism was spread to the Americas, Asia and Oceania by explorers, conquistadors, and missionaries, as well as by the transformation of societies through the socio-political mechanisms of colonial rule.Pope Alexander VIhad awarded colonial rights over most of the newly discovered lands toSpainandPortugal[103]and the ensuingpatronatosystem allowed state authorities, not the Vatican, to control all clerical appointments in the new colonies.[104]In 1521 the Portuguese explorerFerdinand Magellanmade the first Catholic converts in thePhilippines.[105]Elsewhere, Portuguese missionaries under the Spanish JesuitFrancis Xavierevangelized in India, China, and Japan.[106]TheFrench colonization of the Americasbeginning in the 16th century established a Catholicfrancophonepopulation and forbade non-Catholics to settle inQuebec.[107]
Protestant Reformation and Counter-Reformation
In 1415,Jan Huswas burned at the stake for heresy, but his reform efforts encouragedMartin Luther,anAugustinianfriar in modern-day Germany, whosenthisNinety-five Thesesto several bishops in 1517.[108]His theses protested key points of Catholicdoctrineas well as the sale ofindulgences,and along with theLeipzig Debatethis led to hisexcommunicationin 1521.[108][109]InSwitzerland,Huldrych Zwingli,John Calvinand otherProtestant Reformersfurther criticized Catholic teachings. These challenges developed into the Reformation, which gave birth to the great majority ofProtestantdenominations[110]and alsocrypto-Protestantismwithin the Catholic Church.[111]Meanwhile,Henry VIIIpetitionedPope Clement VIIfor adeclaration of nullityconcerning his marriage toCatherine of Aragon.When this was denied, he had theActs of Supremacypassed to make himselfSupreme Head of the Church of England,spurring theEnglish Reformationand the eventual development ofAnglicanism.[112]
The Reformation contributed to clashes between the ProtestantSchmalkaldic Leagueand the Catholic EmperorCharles Vand his allies. The first nine-year war ended in 1555 with thePeace of Augsburgbut continued tensions produced a far graver conflict—theThirty Years' War—which broke out in 1618.[113]In France, a series of conflicts termed theFrench Wars of Religionwas fought from 1562 to 1598 between theHuguenots(FrenchCalvinists) and the forces of theFrench Catholic League,which were backed and funded by a series of popes.[114]This ended underPope Clement VIII,who hesitantly accepted KingHenry IV's1598Edict of Nantesgranting civil andreligious tolerationto French Protestants.[113][114]
TheCouncil of Trent(1545–1563) became the driving force behind theCounter-Reformationin response to the Protestant movement. Doctrinally, it reaffirmed central Catholic teachings such astransubstantiationand the requirement for love and hope as well as faith to attain salvation.[115]In subsequent centuries, Catholicism spread widely across the world, in part through missionaries andimperialism,although its hold on European populations declined due to the growth ofreligious scepticismduring and after the Enlightenment.[116]
Enlightenment and modern period
From the 17th century onward, the Enlightenment questioned the power and influence of the Catholic Church over Western society.[117]In the 18th century, writers such asVoltaireand theEncyclopédisteswrote biting critiques of both religion and the Catholic Church. One target of their criticism was the 1685revocation of the Edict of Nantesby KingLouis XIV of France,which ended a century-long policy of religious toleration of Protestant Huguenots. As the papacy resisted pushes forGallicanism,theFrench Revolutionof 1789 shifted power to the state, caused the destruction of churches, the establishment of aCult of Reason,[118]and the martyrdom ofnunsduring theReign of Terror.[119]In 1798,Napoleon Bonaparte's GeneralLouis-Alexandre Berthierinvaded theItalian Peninsula,imprisoningPope Pius VI,who died in captivity. Napoleon later re-established the Catholic Church in France through theConcordat of 1801.[120]The end of theNapoleonic Warsbrought Catholic revival and the return of thePapal States.[121]
In 1854,Pope Pius IX,with the support of the overwhelming majority of Catholic bishops, whom he had consulted from 1851 to 1853, proclaimed theImmaculate Conceptionas adogma in the Catholic Church.[122]In 1870, theFirst Vatican Councilaffirmed the doctrine ofpapal infallibilitywhen exercised in specifically defined pronouncements,[123][124]striking a blow to the rival position ofconciliarism.Controversy over this and other issues resulted in a breakaway movement called theOld Catholic Church,[125]
TheItalian unificationof the 1860s incorporated the Papal States, including Rome itself from 1870, into theKingdom of Italy,thus ending the papacy'stemporal power.In response, Pope Pius IX excommunicatedKing Victor Emmanuel II,refused payment for the land, and rejected the ItalianLaw of Guarantees,which granted him special privileges. To avoid placing himself in visible subjection to the Italian authorities, he remained a "prisoner in the Vatican".[126]This stand-off, which was spoken of as theRoman Question,was resolved by the 1929Lateran Treaties,whereby the Holy See acknowledged Italian sovereignty over the former Papal States in return for payment and Italy's recognition of papal sovereignty over Vatican City as a new sovereign and independent state.[127]
Catholic missionaries generally supported, and sought to facilitate, the European imperial powers'conquest of Africaduring the late nineteenth century. According to the historian of religionAdrian Hastings,Catholic missionaries were generally unwilling to defend African rights or encourage Africans to see themselves as equals to Europeans, in contrast to Protestant missionaries, who were more willing to oppose colonial injustices.[128]
20th century
During the 20th century, the church's global reach continued to grow, despite the rise of anti-Catholic authoritarian regimes and the collapse of European Empires, accompanied by a general decline in religious observance in the West. Under PopesBenedict XV,andPius XII,theHoly Seesought to maintain public neutrality through the World Wars, acting as peace broker and delivering aid to the victims of the conflicts. In the 1960s,Pope John XXIIIconvened theSecond Vatican Council,which ushered in radical change to church ritual and practice, and in the later 20th century, the long reign ofPope John Paul IIcontributed to thefall of communismin Europe, and a new public and international role for the papacy.[129][130] From the late 20th century, the Catholic Church has beencriticizedfor its doctrines onsexuality,its inability toordain women,and its handling ofsexual abuse cases.
PopePius X(1903–1914) renewed the independence of papal office by abolishing the veto of Catholic powers in papal elections, and his successorsBenedict XV(1914–1922) andPius XI(1922–1939) concluded the modern independence of the Vatican State within Italy.[131]Benedict XV was elected at the outbreak of theFirst World War.He attempted to mediate between the powers and established a Vatican relief office, to assist victims of the war and reunite families.[132]The interwarPope Pius XImodernized the papacy, appointing 40 indigenous bishops and concluding fifteen concordats, including theLateran Treatywith Italy which founded theVatican City State.[133]
His successorPope Pius XIIled the Catholic Church through theSecond World Warand earlyCold War.Like his predecessors, Pius XII sought to publicly maintain Vatican neutrality in the War, and established aid networks to help victims, but he secretlyassisted the anti-Hitler resistanceand shared intelligence with the Allies.[132]His first encyclicalSummi Pontificatus(1939) expressed dismay at the1939 Invasion of Polandand reiterated Catholic teaching against racism.[134]He expressed concern against race killingson Vatican Radio,and intervened diplomatically to attempt to block Nazi deportations of Jews in various countries from 1942 to 1944. But the Pope's insistence on public neutrality and diplomatic language has become a source of much criticism and debate.[135]Nevertheless, in every country under German occupation, priests played a major part in rescuing Jews.[136]Israeli historianPinchas Lapideestimated thatCatholic rescue of Jewsamounted to somewhere between 700,000 and 860,000 people.[137]
TheNazi persecution of the Catholic Churchwas at its most intensein Poland,andCatholic resistance to Nazismtook various forms. Some 2,579 Catholic clergy were sent to thePriest BarracksofDachau Concentration Camp,including 400 Germans.[138][139]Thousands of priests, nuns and brothers were imprisoned, taken to a concentration camp, tortured and murdered, including SaintsMaximilian KolbeandEdith Stein.[140][141]Catholics fought on both sides in the conflict. Catholic clergy played a leading role in the government of the fascistSlovak State,which collaborated with the Nazis, copied their anti-Semitic policies, and helped them carry out the Holocaust in Slovakia.Jozef Tiso,the President of the Slovak State and a Catholic priest, supported his government's deportation of Slovakian Jews to extermination camps.[142]The Vatican protested against these Jewish deportations in Slovakia and in other Nazi puppet regimes includingVichy France,Croatia,Bulgaria,Italy and Hungary.[143][144]
Around 1943,Adolf Hitlerplanned the kidnapping of the Pope and his internment in Germany. He gave SS General Wolff a corresponding order to prepare for the action.[145][146]WhilePope Pius XIIhas been credited with helping tosave hundreds of thousands of Jewsduring theHolocaust,[147][148]the church has also been accused of having encouraged centuries ofantisemitismby its teachings[149]and not doing enough to stop Nazi atrocities.[150]Many Nazi criminals escaped overseas after the Second World War, also because they had powerful supporters from the Vatican.[151][152][153]The judgment of Pius XII is made more difficult by the sources, because the church archives for his tenure as nuncio, cardinal secretary of state and pope are in part closed or not yet processed.[154]
TheSecond Vatican Council(1962–1965) introduced the most significant changes to Catholic practices since theCouncil of Trent,four centuries before.[155]Initiated byPope John XXIII,this ecumenical council modernized the practices of the Catholic Church, allowing the Mass to be said in thevernacular(local language) and encouraging "fully conscious, and active participation in liturgical celebrations".[156]It intended to engage the church more closely with the present world (aggiornamento), which was described by its advocates as an "opening of the windows".[157]In addition to changes in the liturgy, it led to changes to the church's approach toecumenism,[158]and a call to improved relations with non-Christian religions, especially Judaism, in its documentNostra aetate.[159]
The council, however, generated significant controversy in implementing its reforms: proponents of the "Spirit of Vatican II"such as Swiss theologianHans Küngsaid that Vatican II had "not gone far enough" to change church policies.[160]Traditionalist Catholics,such asArchbishopMarcel Lefebvre,however, strongly criticized the council, arguing that its liturgical reforms led "to the destruction of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and the sacraments", among other issues.[161]The teaching on the morality ofcontraceptionalso came under scrutiny; after a series of disagreements,Humanae vitaeupheld the church's prohibition of all forms of contraception.[162][163][note 5][164]
In 1978, PopeJohn Paul II,formerlyArchbishop of Krakówin thePolish People's Republic,became the first non-Italian pope in 455 years. His 26 1/2-yearpontificatewas one of the longest in history, and was credited with hastening the fall of communism in Europe.[165][166]John Paul II sought to evangelize an increasinglysecular world.He travelled more than any other pope, visiting 129 countries,[167]and used television and radio as means of spreading the church's teachings. He also emphasized thedignity of workand natural rights of labourers to havefair wagesand safe conditions inLaborem exercens.[168]He emphasized several church teachings, including moral exhortations against abortion,euthanasia,and against widespread use of the death penalty, inEvangelium Vitae.[169]
21st century
Pope Benedict XVI,elected in 2005, was known for upholding traditionalChristian valuesagainstsecularization,[170]and for increasing use of theTridentine Massas found in theRoman Missalof 1962, which he titled the "Extraordinary Form".[171]Citing the frailties of advanced age, Benedictresignedin 2013, becoming the first pope to do so in nearly 600 years.[172]
Pope Francis, the current pope of the Catholic Church, became in 2013 the first pope from the Americas, the first from theSouthern Hemisphere,and the first Pope from outside Europe since the eighth-centuryGregory III.[173][174]Francis has made efforts to further close Catholicism's estrangement with theOrthodox Churches.[175]His installation was attended byPatriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinopleof theEastern Orthodox Church,[176]the first time since theGreat Schismof 1054 that the Eastern OrthodoxEcumenical Patriarch of Constantinoplehas attended a papal installation,[177]while he also metPatriarch Kirill of Moscow,head of the largest Eastern Orthodox church, in 2016; this was reported as the first such high-level meeting between the two churches since theGreat Schismof 1054.[178]In 2017 during a visit inEgypt,Pope Francis reestablished mutual recognition of baptism with theCoptic Orthodox Church.[179]
Organization
The Catholic Church follows anepiscopal polity,led by bishops who have received the sacrament ofHoly Orderswho are given formaljurisdictionsof governance within the church.[180][181]There are three levels of clergy: the episcopate, composed of bishops who hold jurisdiction over a geographic area called adioceseoreparchy;the presbyterate, composed of priests ordained by bishops and who work in local dioceses or religious orders; and the diaconate, composed of deacons who assist bishops and priests in a variety of ministerial roles. Ultimately leading the entire Catholic Church is thebishop of Rome,known as the pope (Latin:papa,lit. 'father'), whose jurisdiction is called theHoly See(Sancta Sedesin Latin).[182]In parallel to the diocesan structure are a variety ofreligious institutesthat function autonomously, often subject only to the authority of the pope, though sometimes subject to the local bishop. Most religious institutes only have male or female members but some have both. Additionally,lay membersaid many liturgical functions during worship services. The Catholic Church has been described as the oldestmultinational organizationin the world.[183][184][185]
Holy See, papacy, Roman Curia, and College of Cardinals
Thehierarchy of the Catholic Churchis headed[note 6]by the pope, currentlyPope Francis,who was elected on 13 March 2013 bya papal conclave.[191]The office of the pope is known as thepapacy.The Catholic Church holds that Christ instituted the papacy upon giving thekeys of HeaventoSaint Peter.His ecclesiastical jurisdiction is called the Holy See, or theApostolic See(meaning the see of the apostle Peter).[192][193]Directly serving the pope is the Roman Curia, the central governing body that administers the day-to-day business of the Catholic Church.
The pope is alsosovereignof Vatican City,[194]a smallcity-stateentirely enclaved within the city of Rome, which is an entity distinct from the Holy See. It is as head of the Holy See, not as head of Vatican City State, that the pope receives ambassadors of states and sends them his own diplomatic representatives.[195]The Holy See also confersorders, decorations and medals,such as theorders of chivalryoriginating from theMiddle Ages.
While the famousSaint Peter's Basilicais located in Vatican City, above the traditional site ofSaint Peter's tomb,the papal cathedral for the Diocese of Rome is theArchbasilica of Saint John Lateran,located within the city of Rome, though enjoyingextraterritorialprivileges accredited to the Holy See.
The position ofcardinalis a rank of honour bestowed by popes on certain clerics, such as leaders within the Roman Curia, bishops serving in major cities and distinguished theologians. For advice and assistance in governing, the pope may turn to theCollege of Cardinals.[196]
Following the death or resignation of a pope,[note 7]members of the College of Cardinals who are under age 80 act as anelectoral college,meeting in apapal conclaveto elect a successor.[198]Although the conclave may elect any male Catholic as pope, since 1389 only cardinals have been elected.[199]
Canon law
Catholic canon law (Latin:jus canonicum)[200]is thesystemof laws andlegal principlesmade and enforced by thehierarchical authoritiesof the Catholic Church to regulate its external organization and government and to order and direct the activities of Catholics toward the mission of the church.[201]The canon law of the Latin Church was the first modern Westernlegal system,[202]and is the oldest continuously functioning legal system in the West,[203][204]while the distinctive traditions ofEastern Catholic canon lawgovern the 23 Eastern Catholicparticular churchessui iuris.
Positive ecclesiastical laws, based directly or indirectly upon immutable divine law ornatural law,derive formal authority in the case of universal laws frompromulgationby the supreme legislator—theSupreme Pontiff—who possesses the totality of legislative, executive and judicial power in his person,[205]while particular laws derive formal authority from promulgation by a legislator inferior to the supreme legislator, whether an ordinary or a delegated legislator. The actual subject material of the canons is not just doctrinal or moral in nature, but all-encompassing of the human condition. It has all the ordinary elements of a mature legal system:[206]laws,courts,lawyers, judges,[206]a fully articulatedlegal codefor the Latin Church[207]as well as acodefor the Eastern Catholic Churches,[207]principles oflegal interpretation,[208]and coercive penalties.[209][210]
Canon lawconcerns the Catholic Church's life and organization and is distinct from civil law. In its own field it gives force to civil law only by specific enactment in matters such as the guardianship of minors.[211]Similarly, civil law may give force in its field to canon law, but only by specific enactment, as with regard to canonical marriages.[212]Currently, the1983 Code of Canon Lawis in effect for the Latin Church.[213]The distinct 1990Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches(CCEO,after the Latin initials) applies to the autonomous Eastern Catholic Churches.[214]
Latin and Eastern churches
In the first thousand years of Catholic history, different varieties of Christianity developed in the Western andEastern Christianareas of Europe, Asia and Africa. Though most Eastern-tradition churches are no longer in communion with the Catholic Church after theGreat Schismof 1054 (as well as the earlierNestorian SchismandChalcedonian Schism), 23 autonomousparticular churchesof eastern traditions participate in the Catholic communion, also known as "churchessui iuris"(Latin:"of one's own right"). The largest and most well known is the Latin Church, the only Western-tradition church, with more than 1 billion members worldwide. Relatively small in terms of adherents compared to the Latin Church, are the 23 self-governing Eastern Catholic Churches with a combined membership of 17.3 million as of 2010[update].[215][216][217][218]
The Latin Church is governed by the pope and diocesan bishops directly appointed by him. The pope exercises a directpatriarchalrole over the Latin Church, which is considered to form the original and still major part ofWestern Christianity,a heritage of certain beliefs and customs originating in Europe and northwestern Africa, some of which are inherited by manyChristian denominationsthat trace their origins to the Protestant Reformation.[219]
The Eastern Catholic Churches follow the traditions and spirituality ofEastern Christianityand are churches that have always remained in full communion with the Catholic Church or who have chosen to re-enter full communion in the centuries following theEast–West Schismor earlier divisions. These churches are communities of Catholic Christians whose forms of worship reflect distinct historical and cultural influences rather than differences in doctrine. The pope's recognition of Eastern Catholic Churches, though, has caused controversy inecumenical relations with the Eastern Orthodoxand other eastern churches. Historically, pressure to conform to the norms of the Western Christianity practised by the majority Latin Church led to a degree of encroachment (Liturgical Latinisation) on some of the Eastern Catholic traditions. TheSecond Vatican Councildocument,Orientalium Ecclesiarum,built on previous reforms to reaffirm the right of Eastern Catholics to maintain their distinct liturgical practices.[220]
A churchsui iurisis defined in theCode of Canons for the Eastern Churchesas a "group of Christian faithful united by a hierarchy" that is recognized by the pope in his capacity as thesupreme authorityon matters of doctrine within the church.[221]The Eastern Catholic Churches are infull communionwith the pope, but have governance structures and liturgical traditions separate from that of the Latin Church.[216]While the Latin Church's canons do not explicitly use the term, it is tacitly recognized as equivalent.
Some Eastern Catholic churches are governed by a patriarch who is elected by thesynodof the bishops of that church,[222]others are headed by amajor archbishop,[223]others are under ametropolitan,[224]and others are organized as individualeparchies.[225]Each church has authority over the particulars of its internal organization,liturgical rites,liturgical calendarand other aspects of its spirituality, subject only to the authority of the pope.[226]The Roman Curia has a specific department, theCongregation for the Oriental Churches,to maintain relations with them.[227]The pope does not generally appoint bishops or clergy in the Eastern Catholic Churches, deferring to their internal governance structures, but may intervene if he feels it necessary.
Dioceses, parishes, organizations, and institutes
Individual countries, regions, and major cities are served byparticular churchesknown asdiocesesin theLatin Church,oreparchiesin theEastern Catholic Churches,each of which are overseen by a bishop. As of 2021[update],the Catholic Churchhas 3,171 diocesesglobally.[229]The bishops in a particular country are members of a national or regional episcopal conference.[230]
Dioceses are divided into parishes, each with one or morepriests,deacons,orlay ecclesial ministers.[231]Parishes are responsible for the day to day celebration of the sacraments and pastoral care of the laity.[232]As of 2016[update],there are 221,700 parishes worldwide.[8]
In the Latin Church, Catholic men may serve as deacons or priests by receiving sacramentalordination.Men and women may serve asextraordinary ministers of Holy Communion,as readers (lectors), or asaltar servers.Historically, boys and men have only been permitted to serve as altar servers; however, since the 1990s, girls and women have also been permitted.[233][note 8]
Ordained Catholics, as well as members of thelaity,may enter intoconsecrated lifeeither on an individual basis, as ahermitorconsecrated virgin,or by joining aninstitute of consecrated life(a religious institute or asecular institute) in which to takevowsconfirming their desire to follow the threeevangelical counselsofchastity,poverty and obedience.[234]Examples of institutes of consecrated life are theBenedictines,theCarmelites,theDominicans,theFranciscans,theMissionaries of Charity,theLegionaries of Christand theSisters of Mercy.[234]
"Religious institutes" is a modern term encompassing both "religious orders"and"religious congregations",which were once distinguished incanon law.[235]The terms "religious order" and "religious institute" tend to be used as synonyms colloquially.[236]
By means ofCatholic charitiesand beyond, the Catholic Church is the largest non-government provider ofeducationandhealth carein the world.[26]
Membership
As of 2020, Catholicism is the second-largestreligious bodyin the world afterSunni Islam.[237]According to World Christian Database, there are 1.278 billion Catholics globally, as of 2024.[4]According toAnnuario Pontificio,church membership, defined as baptized Catholics, was 1.378 billion at the end of 2021, which is 17.67% of the world population.[5]Brazil has the largest Catholic population in the world, followed by Mexico, thePhilippines,and the United States.[238]Catholics represent about half of all Christians.[239]
Geographic distribution of Catholics worldwide continues to shift, with 19.3% inAfrica,48.0% in theAmericas,11.0% inAsia,20.9% inEurope,and 0.8% inOceania.[5]
Catholic ministers include ordained clergy,lay ecclesial ministers,missionaries,andcatechists.Also as of the end of 2021, there were 462,388 ordained clergy, including 5,353 bishops, 407,730 priests (diocesan and religious), and 50,150 deacons (permanent).[5]Non-ordained ministers included 3,157,568 catechists, 367,679 lay missionaries, and 39,951lay ecclesial ministers.[240]
Catholics who have committed to religious or consecrated life instead of marriage or single celibacy, as a state of life or relational vocation, include 49,414 male religious and 599,228 women religious. These are not ordained, nor generally considered ministers unless also engaged in one of the lay minister categories above.[5]
Doctrine
Catholic doctrine has developed over the centuries, reflecting direct teachings of early Christians, formal definitions ofhereticalandorthodoxbeliefs byecumenical councilsand inpapal bulls,and theological debate by scholars. The church believes that it is continually guided by the Holy Spirit as it discerns new theological issues and is protectedinfalliblyfrom falling into doctrinal error when a firm decision on an issue is reached.[241][242]
It teaches that revelation has one common source,God,and two distinct modes of transmission: Sacred Scripture andSacred Tradition,[243][244]and that these are authentically interpreted by theMagisterium.[245][246]Sacred Scripture consists of the 73 books of theCatholic Bible,consisting of 46Old Testamentand 27New Testamentwritings. Sacred Tradition consists of those teachings believed by the church to have been handed down since the time of the Apostles.[247]Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition are collectively known as the "deposit of faith" (depositum fideiin Latin). These are in turn interpreted by the Magisterium (frommagister,Latin for "teacher" ), the church's teaching authority, which is exercised by the pope and theCollege of Bishopsin union with the pope, the Bishop of Rome.[248]Catholic doctrine is authoritatively summarized in theCatechism of the Catholic Church,published by the Holy See.[249][250]
Nature of God
The Catholic Church holds that there is oneeternalGod, who exists as aperichoresis( "mutual indwelling" ) of threehypostases,or "persons":God the Father;God the Son;andGod the Holy Spirit,which together are called the "Holy Trinity".[251]
Catholics believe that Jesus Christ is the "Second Person" of the Trinity, God the Son. In an event known as theIncarnation,through the power of the Holy Spirit, God became united with human nature through the conception of Christ in the womb of theBlessed Virgin Mary.Christ, therefore, is understood as being both fully divine and fully human, including possessing a humansoul.It is taught that Christ's mission on earth included giving people his teachings and providing his example for them to follow as recorded in the fourGospels.[252]Jesus is believed to have remained sinless while on earth, and to have allowed himself to be unjustly executed bycrucifixion,as a sacrifice of himself to reconcile humanity to God; this reconciliation is known as thePaschal Mystery.[253]The Greek term "Christ" and the Hebrew "Messiah" both mean "anointed one", referring to the Christian belief that Jesus' death and resurrection are the fulfilment of the Old Testament'smessianic prophecies.[254]
The Catholic Church teaches dogmatically that "the Holy Spirit proceeds eternally from the Father and the Son, not as from two principles but as from one single principle".[255]It holds that the Father, as the "principle without principle", is the first origin of the Spirit, but also that he, as Father of the only Son, is with the Son the single principle from which the Spirit proceeds.[256]This belief is expressed in theFilioqueclause which was added to the Latin version of the Nicene Creed of 381 but not included in the Greek versions of the creed used in Eastern Christianity.[257]
Nature of the church
The Catholic Church teaches that it is the "one true church",[16][258]"the universal sacrament of salvation for the human race",[259][260]and "the one true religion".[261]According to theCatechism,the Catholic Church is further described in the Nicene Creed as the "one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church".[262]These are collectively known as theFour Marks of the Church.The church teaches that its founder is Jesus Christ.[263][44]TheNew Testamentrecords several events considered integral to the establishment of the Catholic Church, including Jesus' activities and teaching and his appointment of theapostlesas witnesses to his ministry, suffering, and resurrection. TheGreat Commission,after his resurrection, instructed the apostles to continue his work. The coming of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles, in an event known asPentecost,is seen as the beginning of the public ministry of the Catholic Church.[47]The church teaches that all duly consecrated bishops have a lineal succession from the apostles of Christ, known asapostolic succession.[264]In particular, the Bishop of Rome (the pope) is considered the successor to the apostleSimon Peter,a position from which he derives hissupremacyover the church.[265]
Catholic belief holds that the church "is the continuing presence of Jesus on earth"[266]and that it alone possesses the full means ofsalvation.[267]Through thepassion(suffering) of Christ leading to hiscrucifixionas described in the Gospels, it is said Christ made himself an oblation to God the Father toreconcilehumanity to God;[268]theResurrection of Jesusmakes him the firstborn from the dead, the first among many brethren.[269]By reconciling with God and following Christ's words and deeds, an individual can enter theKingdom of God.[270]The church sees its liturgy and sacraments as perpetuating the graces achieved through Christ's sacrifice to strengthen a person's relationship with Christ and aid in overcoming sin.[271]
Final judgement
The Catholic Church teaches that, immediately after death, thesoulof each person will receive aparticular judgementfrom God, based on theirsinsand their relationship to Christ.[272][273]This teaching also attests to another day when Christ will sit in universal judgement of all mankind. Thisfinal judgement,according to the church's teaching, will bring an end to human history and mark the beginning of both a new and better heaven and earth ruled by God in righteousness.[274]
Depending on the judgement rendered following death, it is believed that a soul may enter one of three states of the afterlife:
- Heavenis a state of unending union with the divine nature of God, not ontologically, but by grace. It is an eternal life, in which the soul contemplates God in ceaselessbeatitude.[275]
- Purgatoryis a temporary condition for the purification of souls who, although destined for Heaven, are not fully detached from sin and thus cannot enter Heaven immediately.[276]In Purgatory, the soul suffers, and is purged and perfected. Souls in purgatory may be aided in reaching heaven by the prayers of the faithful on earth and by theintercession of saints.[277]
- Final Damnation:Finally, those who persist in living in a state of mortal sin and do not repent before death subject themselves to hell, an everlasting separation from God.[278]The church teaches that no one is condemned to hell without having freely decided to reject God.[279]No one ispredestinedto hell and no one can determine with absolute certainty who has been condemned to hell.[280]Catholicism teaches that through God's mercy a person can repent at any point before death, be illuminated with the truth of the Catholic faith, and thus obtain salvation.[281]Some Catholic theologians have speculated that the souls of unbaptized infants and non-Christians without mortal sin but who die inoriginal sinare assigned tolimbo,although this is not an officialdogmaof the church.[282]
While the Catholic Church teaches that it alone possesses the full means of salvation,[267]it also acknowledges that the Holy Spirit can make use ofChristian communitiesseparated from itself to "impel towards Catholic unity"[283]and "tend and lead toward the Catholic Church",[283]and thus bring people to salvation, because these separated communities contain some elements of proper doctrine, albeit admixed witherrors.It teaches that anyone who is saved is saved through the Catholic Church but that people can be saved outside of the ordinary means known asbaptism of desire,and by pre-baptismal martyrdom, known asbaptism of blood,as well as when conditions ofinvincible ignoranceare present, although invincible ignorance in itself is not a means of salvation.[284]
Saints and devotions
A saint (also historically known as a hallow) is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness or likeness or closeness to God, while canonization is the act by which a Christian church declares that a person who has died was a saint, upon which declaration the person is included in the "canon", or list, of recognized saints.[285][286]The first persons honoured as saints were themartyrs.Pious legends of their deaths were considered affirmations of the truth of their faith in Christ. By the fourth century, however, "confessors"—people who had confessed their faith not by dying but by word and life—began to be venerated publicly.
In the Catholic Church, both in Latin and Eastern Catholic churches, the act of canonization is reserved to theApostolic Seeand occurs at the conclusion of a long process requiring extensive proof that the candidate for canonization lived and died in such an exemplary and holy way that he is worthy to be recognized as a saint. The church's official recognition of sanctity implies that the person is now inHeavenand that he may be publicly invoked and mentioned officially in theliturgyof the church, including in theLitany of the Saints.Canonizationallows universal veneration of the saint in the liturgy of theRoman Rite;for permission to venerate merely locally, onlybeatificationis needed.[287]
Devotionsare "external practices of piety" which are not part of the official liturgy of the Catholic Church but are part of the popular spiritual practices of Catholics.[288]These include various practices regarding the veneration of the saints, especiallyveneration of the Virgin Mary.Other devotional practices include theStations of the Cross,theSacred Heartof Jesus, theHoly Face of Jesus,[289]the variousscapulars,novenas to various saints,[290]pilgrimages[291]and devotions to theBlessed Sacrament,[290]and the veneration ofsaintly imagessuch as thesantos.[292]The bishops at the Second Vatican Council reminded Catholics that "devotions should be so drawn up that they harmonize with the liturgical seasons, accord with the sacred liturgy, are in some fashion derived from it, and lead the people to it, since, in fact, the liturgy by its very nature far surpasses any of them."[293]
Virgin Mary
Catholic Mariologydeals with thedogmasand teachings concerning the life ofMary, mother of Jesus,as well as the veneration of Mary by the faithful. Mary is held in special regard, declared theMother of God(Greek:Θεοτόκος,romanized:Theotokos,lit. 'God-bearer'), and believed as dogma to have remained avirgin throughout her life.[294]Further teachings include the doctrines of theImmaculate Conception(her own conception without the stain of original sin) and theAssumption of Mary(that her body was assumed directly into heaven at the end of her life). Both of these doctrines were defined as infallible dogma, byPope Pius IXin 1854 andPope Pius XIIin 1950 respectively,[295]but only after consulting with the Catholic bishops throughout the world to ascertain that this is a Catholic belief.[296]In the Eastern Catholic churches, however, they continue to celebrate the feast of the Assumption under the name of theDormition of the Mother of Godon the same date.[297]The teaching that Mary died before being assumed significantly precedes the idea that she did not. St John Damascene wrote that "St Juvenal, Bishop of Jerusalem, at the Council of Chalcedon (451), made known to the Emperor Marcian and Pulcheria, who wished to possess the body of the Mother of God, that Mary died in the presence of all the Apostles, but that her tomb, when opened, upon the request of St Thomas, was found empty; wherefrom the Apostles concluded that the body was taken up to Heaven."[298]
Devotions to Maryare part of Catholic piety but are distinct from the worship of God.[299]Practices include prayers andMarian art,music,andarchitecture.Severalliturgical Marian feastsare celebrated throughout theChurch Yearand she is honoured withmany titlessuch asQueen of Heaven.Pope Paul VIcalled herMother of the Churchbecause, by giving birth to Christ, she is considered to be the spiritual mother to each member of theBody of Christ.[295]Because of her influential role in the life of Jesus, prayers and devotions such as theHail Mary,theRosary,theSalve Reginaand theMemorareare common Catholic practices.[300]Pilgrimageto the sites of severalMarian apparitionsaffirmed by the church, such asLourdes,Fátima,andGuadalupe,[301]are also popular Catholic devotions.[302]
Sacraments
The Catholic Church teaches that it was entrusted with seven sacraments that were instituted by Christ. The number and nature of the sacraments were defined by severalecumenical councils,most recently the Council of Trent.[303][note 9]These areBaptism,Confirmation,theEucharist,Penance,Anointing of the Sick(formerly called Extreme Unction, one of the "Last Rites"),Holy OrdersandHoly Matrimony.Sacraments are visible rituals that Catholics see as signs of God's presence and effective channels of God'sgraceto all those who receive them with the proper disposition (ex opere operato).[304]TheCatechism of the Catholic Churchcategorizes the sacraments into three groups, the "sacraments of Christian initiation", "sacraments of healing" and "sacraments at the service of communion and the mission of the faithful". These groups broadly reflect the stages of people's natural and spiritual lives which each sacrament is intended to serve.[305]
The liturgies of the sacraments are central to the church's mission. According to theCatechism:
In the liturgy of the New Covenant every liturgical action, especially the celebration of the Eucharist and the sacraments, is an encounter between Christ and the Church. The liturgical assembly derives its unity from the "communion of the Holy Spirit" who gathers the children of God into the one Body of Christ. This assembly transcends racial, cultural, social—indeed, all human affinities.[306]
According to church doctrine, the sacraments of the church require the proper form, matter, and intent to be validly celebrated.[307]In addition, theCanon Lawsfor both the Latin Church and the Eastern Catholic Churches govern who may licitly celebrate certain sacraments, as well as strict rules about who may receive the sacraments.[308]Notably, because the church teaches that Christ ispresentin the Eucharist,[309]those who are conscious of being in a state of mortal sin are forbidden to receive the sacrament until they have received absolution through thesacrament of Reconciliation(Penance).[310]Catholics are normally obliged to abstain from eating for at least an hour before receiving the sacrament.[310]Non-Catholics are ordinarily prohibited from receiving the Eucharist as well.[308][311]
Catholics, even if they were in danger of death and unable to approach a Catholic minister, may not ask for the sacraments of the Eucharist, penance or anointing of the sick from someone, such as a Protestant minister, who is not known to be validly ordained in line with Catholic teaching on ordination.[312][313]Likewise, even in grave and pressing need, Catholic ministers may not administer these sacraments to those who do not manifest Catholic faith in the sacrament. In relation to the churches of Eastern Christianity not in communion with the Holy See, the Catholic Church is less restrictive, declaring that "a certaincommunion in sacris,and so in the Eucharist, given suitable circumstances and the approval of Church authority, is not merely possible but is encouraged. "[314]
Sacraments of initiation
Baptism
As viewed by the Catholic Church, Baptism is the first of three sacraments of initiation as a Christian.[315]It washes away all sins, bothoriginal sinand personal actual sins.[316]It makes a person a member of the church.[317]As a gratuitous gift of God that requires no merit on the part of the person who is baptized, it isconferred even on children,[318]who, though they have no personal sins, need it on account of original sin.[319]If a new-born child is in a danger of death, anyone—be it a doctor, a nurse, or a parent—may baptize the child.[320]Baptism marks a person permanently and cannot be repeated.[321]The Catholic Church recognizes as valid baptisms conferred even by people who are not Catholics or Christians, provided that they intend to baptize ( "to do what the Church does when she baptizes" ) and that they use theTrinitarian baptismal formula.[322]
Confirmation
The Catholic Church sees the sacrament of confirmation as required to complete the grace given in baptism.[323]When adults are baptized, confirmation is normally given immediately afterwards,[324]a practice followed even with newly baptized infants in the Eastern Catholic Churches.[325]In the West confirmation of children is delayed until they are old enough to understand or at the bishop's discretion.[326]In Western Christianity, particularly Catholicism, the sacrament is calledconfirmation,because it confirms and strengthens the grace of baptism; in the Eastern Churches, it is calledchrismation,because the essential rite is the anointing of the person withchrism,[327]a mixture ofolive oiland some perfumed substance, usuallybalsam,blessed by a bishop.[327][328]Those who receive confirmation must be in a state of grace, which for those who have reached theage of reasonmeans that they should first be cleansed spiritually by the sacrament of Penance; they should also have the intention of receiving the sacrament, and be prepared to show in their lives that they are Christians.[329]
Eucharist
For Catholics, the Eucharist is the sacrament which completes Christian initiation. It is described as "the source and summit of the Christian life".[330]The ceremony in which a Catholic first receives the Eucharist is known asFirst Communion.[331]
The Eucharistic celebration, also called theMassorDivine liturgy,includes prayers and scriptural readings, as well as an offering of bread and wine, which are brought to thealtarandconsecratedby the priest to become the body and the blood of Jesus Christ, a change calledtransubstantiation.[332][note 10]Thewords of consecrationreflect the words spoken by Jesus during theLast Supper,where Christ offered his body and blood to his Apostles the night before his crucifixion. The sacrament re-presents (makes present) the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross,[333]and perpetuates it. Christ's death and resurrection give grace through the sacrament that unites the faithful with Christ and one another, remits venial sin, and aids against committing moral sin (though mortal sin itself is forgiven through the sacrament of penance).[334]
Sacraments of healing
The two sacraments of healing are theSacrament of PenanceandAnointing of the Sick.
Penance
The Sacrament of Penance (also called Reconciliation, Forgiveness, Confession, and Conversion[335]) exists for the conversion of those who, after baptism, separate themselves from Christ by sin.[336]Essential to this sacrament are acts both by the sinner (examination of conscience, contrition with a determination not to sin again, confession to a priest, and performance of some act to repair the damage caused by sin) and by the priest (determination of the act of reparation to be performed andabsolution).[337]Serious sins (mortal sins) should be confessed at least once a year and always before receiving Holy Communion, while confession ofvenial sinsalso is recommended.[338]The priest is bound under the severest penalties to maintain the "seal of confession",absolute secrecy about any sins revealed to him in confession.[339]
Anointing of the sick
While chrism is used only for the three sacraments that cannot be repeated, a different oil is used by a priest or bishop to bless a Catholic who, because of illness or old age, has begun to be in danger of death.[340]This sacrament, known as Anointing of the Sick, is believed to give comfort, peace, courage and, if the sick person is unable to make a confession, even forgiveness of sins.[341]
The sacrament is also referred to asUnction,and in the past asExtreme Unction,and it is one of the three sacraments that constitute thelast rites,together with Penance andViaticum(Eucharist).[342]
Sacraments at the service of communion
According to the Catechism, there are two sacraments ofcommuniondirected towards the salvation of others: priesthood and marriage.[343]Within the general vocation to be a Christian, these two sacraments "consecrate to specific mission orvocationamong the people of God. Men receive the holy orders to feed the Church by the word andgrace.Spouses marry so that their love may be fortified to fulfil duties of their state ".[344]
Holy Orders
The sacrament of Holy Orders consecrates and deputes some Christians to serve the whole body as members of three degrees or orders: episcopate (bishops), presbyterate (priests) and diaconate (deacons).[345][346]The church has defined rules on who may be ordained into theclergy.In the Latin Church, the priesthood is generally restricted to celibate men, and the episcopate is always restricted to celibate men.[347]Men who are already married may be ordained in certain Eastern Catholic churches in most countries,[348]and the personal ordinariates and may become deacons even in the Latin Church[349][350](seeClerical marriage). But after becoming a Catholic priest, a man may not marry (seeClerical celibacy) unless he is formally laicized.
All clergy, whether deacons, priests or bishops, may preach, teach, baptize, witness marriages and conduct funeral liturgies.[351]Only bishops and priests can administer the sacraments of the Eucharist, Reconciliation (Penance) and Anointing of the Sick.[352][353]Only bishops can administer the sacrament of Holy Orders, whichordainssomeone into the clergy.[354]
Matrimony
The Catholic Church teaches that marriage is a social and spiritual bond between a man and a woman, ordered towards the good of the spouses and procreation of children; according to Catholic teachings on sexual morality, it is the only appropriate context for sexual activity. A Catholic marriage, or any marriage between baptized individuals of any Christian denomination, is viewed as a sacrament. A sacramental marriage, once consummated, cannot be dissolved except by death.[355][note 11]The church recognizes certainconditions,such as freedom of consent, as required for any marriage to be valid; In addition, the church sets specific rules and norms, known ascanonical form,that Catholics must follow.[358]
The church does not recognize divorce as ending a valid marriage and allows state-recognized divorce only as a means of protecting the property and well-being of the spouses and any children. However, consideration of particular cases by the competent ecclesiastical tribunal can lead to declaration of the invalidity of a marriage, a declaration usually referred to as anannulment.Remarriage following a divorce is not permitted unless the prior marriage was declared invalid.[359]
Liturgy
Among the 24 autonomous (sui iuris) churches, numerous liturgical and other traditions exist, called rites, which reflect historical and cultural diversity rather than differences in belief.[360]In the definition of theCode of Canons of the Eastern Churches,"a rite is the liturgical, theological, spiritual, and disciplinary patrimony, culture and circumstances of history of a distinct people, by which its own manner of living the faith is manifested in each Churchsui iuris".[361]
The liturgy of the sacrament of theEucharist,called theMassin the West andDivine Liturgyor other names in the East, is the principal liturgy of the Catholic Church.[362]This is because it is considered the propitiatory sacrifice of Christ himself.[363]Its most widely used form is that of theRoman Riteas promulgated byPaul VIin 1969 (seeMissale Romanum) and revised byPope John Paul IIin 2002 (seeLiturgiam Authenticam). In certain circumstances, the1962 formof the Roman Rite remains authorized in the Latin Church. Eastern Catholic Churches have their own rites. The liturgies of the Eucharist and the other sacraments vary from rite to rite, reflecting different theological emphases.
Western rites
The Roman Rite is the most commonrite of worshipused by the Catholic Church, with theOrdinary Form of the Roman Riteform of the Mass. Its use is found worldwide, originating in Rome and spreading throughout Europe, influencing and eventually supplanting local rites.[364]The present ordinary form of Mass in the Roman Rite, found in the post-1969 editions of theRoman Missal,is usually celebrated in the localvernacularlanguage, using an officially approved translation from the original text inLatin.An outline of its major liturgical elements can be found in the sidebar.
In 2007, Pope Benedict XVI affirmed the licitness of continued use of the1962 Roman Missalas an "extraordinary form" (forma extraordinaria) of the Roman Rite, speaking of it also as anusus antiquior( "older use" ), and issuing new more permissive norms for its employment.[365]An instruction issued four years later spoke of the two forms or usages of the Roman Rite approved by the pope as the ordinary form and the extraordinary form ( "theforma ordinaria"and" theforma extraordinaria").[366]
The 1962 edition of the Roman Missal, published a few months before theSecond Vatican Councilopened, was the last that presented the Mass as standardized in 1570 byPope Pius Vat the request of theCouncil of Trentand that is therefore known as the Tridentine Mass.[309]Pope Pius V's Roman Missal was subjected to minor revisions byPope Clement VIIIin 1604,Pope Urban VIIIin 1634,Pope Pius Xin 1911,Pope Pius XIIin 1955, andPope John XXIIIin 1962. Each successive edition was the ordinary form of the Roman Rite Mass until superseded by a later edition. When the 1962 edition was superseded by that of Paul VI, promulgated in 1969, its continued use at first required permission from bishops;[367]butPope Benedict XVI's 2007motu proprioSummorum Pontificumallowed free use of it for Mass celebrated without a congregation and authorized parish priests to permit, under certain conditions, its use even at public Masses. Except for the scriptural readings, which Pope Benedict allowed to be proclaimed in the vernacular language, it is celebrated exclusively inliturgical Latin.[368]These permissions were largely removed by Pope Francis in 2021, who issued themotu proprioTraditionis custodesto emphasize the Ordinary Form as promulgated by Popes Paul VI and John Paul II.[369]
Since 2014, clergy in the smallpersonal ordinariatesset up for groups of former Anglicans under the terms of the 2009 documentAnglicanorum Coetibus[370]are permitted to use a variation of the Roman Rite called "Divine Worship" or, less formally, "Ordinariate Use",[371]which incorporates elements of theAnglican liturgyand traditions,[note 12]an accommodation protested by Anglican leaders.
In theArchdiocese of Milan,with around five million Catholics the largest in Europe,[372]Mass is celebrated according to theAmbrosian Rite.OtherLatin Church ritesinclude theMozarabic[373]and those of some religious institutes.[374]These liturgical rites have an antiquity of at least 200 years before 1570, the date of Pope Pius V'sQuo primum,and were thus allowed to continue.[375]
Eastern rites
The Eastern Catholic Churches share common patrimony and liturgical rites as their counterparts, includingEastern Orthodoxand otherEastern Christianchurches who are no longer in communion with the Holy See. These include churches that historically developed in Russia, Caucasus, the Balkans, North Eastern Africa, India and the Middle East. The Eastern Catholic Churches are groups of faithful who have either never been out of communion with the Holy See or who have restored communion with it at the cost of breaking communion with their associates of the same tradition.[376]
Theliturgical rites of the Eastern Catholic Churchesinclude theByzantine Rite(in its Antiochian, Greek and Slavonicrecensions), theAlexandrian Rite,theWest Syrian Rite,theArmenian Rite,and theEast Syriac Rite.Eastern Catholic Churches have the autonomy to set the particulars of their liturgical forms and worship, within certain limits to protect the "accurate observance" of their liturgical tradition.[377]In the past some of the rites used by the Eastern Catholic Churches were subject to a degree ofliturgical Latinization.However, in recent years Eastern Catholic Churches have returned to traditional Eastern practices in accord with theVatican IIdecreeOrientalium Ecclesiarum.[378]Each church has its ownliturgical calendar.[379]
Social and cultural issues
Catholic social teaching
Catholic social teaching, reflecting the concern Jesus showed for the impoverished, places a heavy emphasis on thecorporal works of mercyand thespiritual works of mercy,namely the support and concern for the sick, the poor and the afflicted.[380][381]Church teaching calls for a preferentialoption for the poorwhile canon law prescribes that "The Christian faithful are also obliged to promotesocial justiceand, mindful of the precept of the Lord, to assist the poor. "[382]Its foundations are widely considered to have been laid by Pope Leo XIII's 1891 encyclical letterRerum novarumwhich upholds the rights and dignity of labour and the right of workers to form unions.
Catholic teaching regarding sexuality calls for a practice ofchastity,with a focus on maintaining the spiritual and bodily integrity of the human person. Marriage is considered the only appropriate context for sexual activity.[383]Church teachings about sexuality have become an issue of increasing controversy, especially after the close of the Second Vatican Council, due to changing cultural attitudes in the Western world described as thesexual revolution.
The church has also addressed stewardship of the natural environment, and its relationship to other social and theological teachings. In the documentLaudato si',dated 24 May 2015, Pope Francis critiquesconsumerismandirresponsible development,and lamentsenvironmental degradationandglobal warming.[384]The pope expressed concern that the warming of the planet is a symptom of a greater problem: the developed world's indifference to the destruction of the planet as humans pursue short-term economic gains.[385]
Social services
The Catholic Church is the largest non-government provider of education and medical services in the world.[26]In 2010, the Catholic Church's Pontifical Council for Pastoral Assistance to Health Care Workers said that the church manages 26% of health care facilities in the world, including hospitals, clinics, orphanages, pharmacies and centres for those with leprosy.[386]
The church has always been involved in education, since the founding of thefirst universitiesof Europe.[83]It runs and sponsors thousands of primary and secondary schools,colleges and universitiesthroughout the world[387][8]and operates the world's largest non-governmental school system.[388]
Religious institutes for women have played a particularly prominent role in the provision of health and education services,[389]as with orders such as theSisters of Mercy,Little Sisters of the Poor,the Missionaries of Charity, theSisters of St. Joseph of the Sacred Heart,theSisters of the Blessed Sacramentand theDaughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul.[390]The Catholic nunMother TeresaofCalcutta, India,founder of the Missionaries of Charity, was awarded theNobel Peace Prizein 1979 for her humanitarian work among India's poor.[391]BishopCarlos Filipe Ximenes Belowon the same award in 1996 for "work towards a just and peaceful solution to the conflict inEast Timor".[392]
The church is also actively engaged in international aid and development through organizations such asCatholic Relief Services,Caritas Internationalis,Aid to the Church in Need,refugee advocacy groups such as theJesuit Refugee Serviceand community aid groups such as theSaint Vincent de Paul Society.[393]
Sexual morality
The Catholic Church calls all members to practisechastityaccording to their state in life. Chastity includestemperance,self-mastery,personal and cultural growth, anddivine grace.It requires refraining fromlust,masturbation,fornication,pornography, prostitution and rape. Chastity for those who are not married requires living incontinence,abstaining from sexual activity; those who are married are called to conjugal chastity.[394]
In the church's teaching, sexual activity is reserved to married couples, whether in asacramental marriageamong Christians or in anatural marriagewhere one or both spouses are unbaptized. Even in romantic relationships, particularlyengagement to marriage,partners are called to practise continence, in order to test mutual respect and fidelity.[395]Chastity in marriage requires in particular conjugal fidelity and protecting the fecundity of marriage. The couple must foster trust and honesty as well as spiritual and physical intimacy. Sexual activity must always be open to the possibility of life;[396]the church calls this the procreative significance. It must likewise always bring a couple together in love; the church calls this the unitive significance.[397]
Contraceptionand certain othersexual practicesare not permitted, althoughnatural family planningmethods are permitted to provide healthy spacing between births, or to postpone children for a just reason.[398]Pope Francis said in 2015 that he is worried that the church has grown "obsessed" with issues such as abortion,same-sex marriageandcontraception,and for prioritizing moral doctrines over helping the poor and marginalized.[399][400]
Homosexuality
The Catholic Church also teaches that "homosexual acts" are "contrary to the natural law", "acts of grave depravity" and "under no circumstances can they be approved", but that persons experiencing homosexual tendencies must be accorded respect and dignity.[401]According to theCatechism of the Catholic Church,
The number of men and women who have deep-seated homosexual tendencies is not negligible. This inclination, which is objectively disordered, constitutes for most of them a trial. They must be accepted with respect, compassion, and sensitivity. Every sign of unjust discrimination in their regard should be avoided... Homosexual persons are called to chastity. By the virtues of self-mastery that teach them inner freedom, at times by the support of disinterested friendship, by prayer and sacramental grace, they can and should gradually and resolutely approach Christian perfection.[401]
This part of theCatechismwas quoted by Pope Francis in a 2013 press interview in which he remarked, when asked about an individual:
I think that when you encounter a person like this [the individual he was asked about], you must make a distinction between the fact of a person being gay from the fact of being a lobby, because lobbies, all are not good. That is bad. If a person is gay and seeks the Lord and has good will, well who am I to judge them?[402]
This remark and others made in the same interview were seen as a change in the tone, but not in the substance of the teaching of the church,[403]which includes opposition tosame-sex marriage.[404]CertaindissentingCatholic groupsoppose the position of the Catholic Churchand seek to change it.[405]
Divorce and declarations of nullity
Canon law makes no provision for divorce between baptized individuals, as a valid, consummated sacramental marriage is considered to be a lifelong bond.[406]However, a declaration of nullity may be granted when the proof is produced that essential conditions for contracting a valid marriage were absent from the beginning—in other words, that the marriage was not valid due to some impediment. A declaration of nullity, commonly called an annulment, is a judgement on the part of anecclesiastical tribunaldetermining that a marriage was invalidly attempted.[407]In addition, marriages among unbaptized individuals may be dissolved with papal permission under certain situations, such as a desire to marry a Catholic, underPaulineorPetrine privilege.[356][357]An attempt at remarriage following divorce without a declaration of nullity places "the remarried spouse... in a situation of public and permanent adultery". An innocent spouse who lives in continence following divorce, or couples who live in continence following a civil divorce for a grave cause, do not sin.[408]
Worldwide, diocesan tribunals completed over 49000 cases for nullity of marriage in 2006. Over the past 30 years about 55 to 70% of annulments have occurred in the United States. The growth in annulments has been substantial; in the United States, 27,000 marriages were annulled in 2006, compared to 338 in 1968. However, approximately 200,000 married Catholics in the United States divorce each year; 10 million total as of 2006[update].[409][note 13]Divorce is increasing in some predominantly Catholic countries in Europe.[411]In some predominantly Catholic countries, it is only in recent years that divorce was introduced (Italy (1970),Portugal(1975), Brazil (1977), Spain (1981), Ireland (1996), Chile (2004) andMalta(2011)), while thePhilippinesand the Vatican City have no procedure for divorce (ThePhilippinesdoes, however, allow divorce for Muslims.).
Contraception
The church teaches thatsexual intercourseshould only take place between a man and woman who are married to each other, and should be without the use ofbirth controlorcontraception.In his encyclicalHumanae vitae[412](1968),Pope Paul VIfirmly rejected all contraception, thus contradicting dissenters in the church that saw thebirth control pillas an ethically justifiable method ofcontraception,though he permitted the regulation of births by means of natural family planning. This teaching was continued especially byJohn Paul IIin his encyclicalEvangelium Vitae,where he clarified the church's position on contraception,abortionandeuthanasiaby condemning them as part of a "culture of death" and calling instead for a "culture of life".[413]
Many Western Catholics have voiced significant disagreement with the church's teaching on contraception.[414]Overturning the church's teaching on this point features high on progressive agendas.[415]Catholics for Choice,a political lobbyist group that is not associated with the Catholic Church, stated in 1998 that 96% of U.S. Catholic women had used contraceptives at some point in their lives and that 72% of Catholics believed that one could be a good Catholic without obeying the church's teaching on birth control.[416]Use of natural family planning methods among United States Catholics purportedly is low, although the number cannot be known with certainty.[note 14]As Catholic health providers are among the largest providers of services to patients withHIV/AIDSworldwide, there is significant controversy within and outside the church regarding the use of condoms as a means of limiting new infections, ascondomuse ordinarily constitutes prohibited contraceptive use.[419]
Similarly, the Catholic Church opposesartificial inseminationregardless of whether it is homologous (from the husband) or heterologous (from adonor) andin vitro fertilization(IVF), saying that the artificial process replaces the love and conjugal act between a husband and wife.[420]In addition, it opposes IVF because it might cause disposal of embryos; Catholics believe an embryo is an individual with asoulwho must be treated as such.[421]For this reason, the church also opposes abortion.[422]
Due to the anti-abortion stance, some Catholics oppose receiving vaccines derived from fetal cells obtained via abortion. On 21 December 2020, and regardingCOVID-19 vaccination,theCongregation for the Doctrine of the Faithemitted a document stating that "it is morally acceptable to receive Covid-19 vaccines that have used cell lines from aborted fetuses in their research and production process" when no alternative vaccine is available, since "the moral duty to avoid such passive material cooperation is not obligatory if there is a grave danger, such as the otherwise uncontainable spread of a serious pathological agent."[423][424]The document states that receiving the vaccine does not constitute endorsement of the practice of abortion, and that "the morality of vaccination depends not only on the duty to protect one's own health, but also on the duty to pursue the common good."[424]The document cautions further:
Those who, however, for reasons of conscience, refuse vaccines produced with cell lines from aborted fetuses, must do their utmost to avoid, by other prophylactic means and appropriate behavior, becoming vehicles for the transmission of the infectious agent. In particular, they must avoid any risk to the health of those who cannot be vaccinated for medical or other reasons, and who are the most vulnerable.[424]
Death penalty and euthanasia
The Catholic Church is committed to the worldwide abolition of the death penalty in any circumstance.[425]The currentCatechism of the Catholic Churchteaches that "in the light of theGospel"the death penalty is" inadmissible because it is an attack on the inviolability anddignity of the person"and that the Catholic Church" works with determination for its abolition worldwide. "[426]In his 2020 encyclicalFratelli tutti,Francis repeated that the death penalty is "inadmissible" and that "there can be no stepping back from this position".[427]On 9 January 2022, Pope Francis stated in his annual speech to Vatican ambassadors: "The death penalty cannot be employed for a purported state justice, since it does not constitute a deterrent nor render justice to victims, but only fuels the thirst for vengeance".[428]
There is controversy about whether the Catholic Church considers the death penalty intrinsically evil.[429]American ArchbishopJosé Horacio Gómez[429]and Catholic philosopherEdward Feserargue that this is a matter of prudential judgement and that the church does not teach this as ade fidestatement;[430]others, such as CardinalsCharles Maung BoandRino Fisichella,state that it does.[429]
The Catholic Church opposes active euthanasia andphysician-assisted suicideon the grounds that life is a gift from God and should not be prematurely shortened. However, the church allows dying people to refuseextraordinary treatmentsthat would minimally prolong life without hope of recovery.[431][432]
Holy orders and women
Women and men religious engage in a variety of occupations such as contemplative prayer, teaching, providing health care, and working as missionaries.[389][433]WhileHoly Ordersare reserved for men,Catholic womenhave played diverse roles in the life of the church, with religious institutes providing a formal space for their participation andconventsproviding spaces for their self-government, prayer and influence through many centuries.Religious sistersandnunshave been extensively involved in developing and running the church's worldwide health and education service networks.[434]
Efforts in support of theordination of womento the priesthood led to several rulings by the Roman Curia or popes against the proposal, as inDeclaration on the Question of the Admission of Women to the Ministerial Priesthood(1976),Mulieris Dignitatem(1988) andOrdinatio sacerdotalis(1994). According to the latest ruling, found inOrdinatio sacerdotalis,Pope John Paul IIaffirmed that the Catholic Church "does not consider herself authorised to admit women to priestly ordination".[435]In defiance of these rulings, opposition groups such asRoman Catholic Womenpriestshave performed ceremonies they affirm as sacramental ordinations (with, reputedly, an ordaining male Catholic bishop in the first few instances) which, according tocanon law,are both illicit and invalid and considered meresimulations[436]of the sacrament of ordination.[437][note 15]TheCongregation for the Doctrine of the Faithresponded by issuing a statement clarifying that any Catholic bishops involved in ordination ceremonies for women, as well as the women themselves if they were Catholic, would automatically receive the penalty ofexcommunication(latae sententiae,literally "with the sentence already applied", i.e. automatically), citing canon 1378 ofcanon lawand other church laws.[438]
Sexual abuse cases
From the 1990s, the issue ofsexual abuse of minorsby Catholic clergy and other church members has become the subject of civil litigation, criminal prosecution, media coverage and public debate incountries around the world.The Catholic Church has been criticized for its handling of abuse complaints when it became known that some bishops had shielded accused priests, transferring them to other pastoral assignments where some continued to commit sexual offences.
In response to the scandal, formal procedures have been established to help prevent abuse, encourage the reporting of any abuse that occurs and to handle such reports promptly, although groups representing victims have disputed their effectiveness.[439]In 2014, Pope Francis instituted thePontifical Commission for the Protection of Minorsfor the safeguarding of minors.[440]
See also
Notes
- ^While the Catholic Church considers itself to be the authentic continuation of the Christian community founded by Jesus Christ, it teaches that other Christian churches and communities can be in an imperfect communion with the Catholic Church.[18][19]
- ^Quote of St Ignatius to the Smyrnaeans (c. 110 AD)
- ^Examples uses of "Roman Catholic" by the Holy See: the encyclicalsDivini Illius MagistriArchived23 September 2010 at theWayback MachineofPope Pius XIandHumani generisArchived19 April 2012 at theWayback MachineofPope Pius XII;joint declarations signed byPope Benedict XVIwithArchbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams on 23 November 2006Archived2 March 2013 at theWayback MachineandPatriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople on 30 November 2006.Archived30 April 2011 at theWayback Machine
- ^Example use of "Roman" Catholic by a bishop's conference:The Baltimore Catechism,an official catechism authorized by the Catholic bishops of the United States, states: "That is why we are called Roman Catholics; to show that we are united to the real successor of St Peter" (Question 118) and refers to the church as the "Roman Catholic Church" under Questions 114 and 131 (Baltimore Catechism).Archived23 September 2015 at theWayback Machine
- ^While ruling contraception to be prohibited, Pope Paul VI did, however, consider natural family planning methods to be morally permissible if used with just cause.
- ^According to Catholic teaching, Jesus Christ is the 'invisible Head' of the Church[186][187][188]while the pope is the 'visible Head'.[189][190]
- ^The last resignation occurred on 28 February 2013, whenPope Benedict XVIretired, citing ill health in his advanced age. The next most recent resignation occurred in 1415, as part of theCouncil of Constance's resolution of theAvignon Papacy.[197]
- ^In 1992, the Vatican clarified the 1983 Code of Canon Law removed the requirement that altar servers be male; permission to use female altar servers within a diocese is at the discretion of the bishop.[233]
- ^Other councils that addressed the sacraments include theSecond Council of Lyon(1274);Council of Florence(1439); as well as theCouncil of Trent(1547)[303]
- ^For an outline of the Eucharistic liturgy in the Roman Rite, see theside barin the "Worship and liturgy".
- ^Marriages involving unbaptized individuals are considered valid, but not sacramental. While sacramental marriages are insoluble, non-sacramental marriages may be dissolved under certain situations, such as a desire to marry a Catholic, underPaulineorPetrine privilege.[356][357]
- ^The Divine Worship variant of the Roman Rite differs from the "Anglican Use" variant, which was introduced in 1980 for the few United States parishes established in accordance with apastoral provisionfor former members of theEpiscopal Church(the American branch of the Anglican Communion). Both uses adapted Anglican liturgical traditions for use within the Catholic Church.
- ^With regard to divorce in the United States, according to the Barna Group, among all who have been married, 33% have been divorced at least once; among American Catholics, 28% (the study did not track religious annulments).[410]
- ^Regarding use ofnatural family planning,in 2002, 24% of the U.S. population identified as Catholic,[417]but according to a 2002 study by theCenters for Disease Control and Prevention,of sexually active Americans avoiding pregnancy, only 1.5% were using NFP.[418]
- ^According to Roman Catholic Womanpriests: "The principal consecrating Roman Catholic male bishop who ordained our first women bishops is a bishop with apostolic succession within the Roman Catholic Church in full communion with the pope."[437]
References
NOTE:CCCstands forCatechism of the Catholic Church.The number followingCCCis the paragraph number, of which there are 2865. The numbers cited in theCompendium of the CCCare question numbers, of which there are 598. Canon law citations from the 1990Code of Canons of the Eastern Churchesare labelled "CCEO,Canon xxx ", to distinguish from canons of the 1983Code of Canon Law,which are labelled "Canon xxx".
- ^Marshall, Thomas William (1844).Notes of the Episcopal Polity of the Holy Catholic Church.London: Levey, Rossen and Franklin.ASIN1163912190.
- ^Stanford, Peter."Roman Catholic Church".BBC Religions.BBC.Archivedfrom the original on 6 January 2021.Retrieved1 February2017.
- ^Bokenkotter 2004,p. 18.
- ^abc"Status of Global Christianity, 2024, in the Context of 1900–2050"(PDF).Center for the Study of Global Christianity, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.Retrieved23 May2024.
Christian total 2,631,941,000, Catholic total 1,278,009,000 (48.6%)
- ^abcdefgh"The Pontifical Yearbook 2024 and the Annuarium Statisticum Ecclesiae 2022".L'Osservatore Romano(in Italian). 4 April 2024.Retrieved29 April2024.
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- ^Calderisi, Robert.Earthly Mission – The Catholic Church and World Development;TJ International Ltd; 2013; p.40
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- ^Marty, Martin E. (29 April 2021)."Roman Catholicism".Encyclopedia Britannica.Archivedfrom the original on 15 June 2015.Retrieved17 June2021.
- ^Mark A. Noll.The New Shape of World Christianity(Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2009), 191.
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- ^abcO'Collins,p. v (preface).
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It is possible, according to Catholic doctrine, to affirm correctly that the Church of Christ is present and operative in the churches andecclesial communitiesnot yet fully in communion with the Catholic Church, on account of the elements of sanctification and truth that are present in them.
- ^"Declaration on the Unicity and Salvific Universality of Jesus Christ and the ChurchDominus Iesus§ 17 ". Vatican.va.
Therefore, there exists a single Church of Christ, which subsists in the Catholic Church, governed by the Successor of Peter and by the Bishops in communion with him. The Churches which, while not existing in perfectKoinoniawith the Catholic Church, remain united to her by means of the closest bonds, that is, by apostolic succession and a valid Eucharist, are trueparticular churches.Therefore, the Church of Christ is present and operative also in these Churches, even though they lack full communion with the Catholic Church since they do not accept the Catholic doctrine of the Primacy, which, according to the will of God, the Bishop of Rome objectively has and exercises over the entire Church.... 'The Christian faithful are therefore not permitted to imagine that the Church of Christ is nothing more than a collection—divided, yet in some way one—of Churches andecclesial communities;nor are they free to hold that today the Church of Christ nowhere really exists, and must be considered only as a goal which all Churches and ecclesial communities must strive to reach.'
- ^Holy Bible: Matthew16:19
- ^Catechism of the Catholic Church(2nd ed.).Libreria Editrice Vaticana.2019.Paragraph 890.
- ^Catechism of the Catholic Church(2nd ed.).Libreria Editrice Vaticana.2019.Paragraph 835.
The rich variety of... theological and spiritual heritages proper to the local churches 'unified in a common effort shows all the more resplendently the catholicity of the undivided Church'.(cf.Second Vatican Council,Dogmatic Constitution on the ChurchLumen gentium,23)
- ^Colin Gunton. "Christianity among the Religions in the Encyclopedia of Religion", Religious Studies, Vol. 24, number 1, page 14. In a review of an article from the Encyclopedia of Religion, Gunton writes: "[T]he article [on Catholicism in the encyclopedia] rightly suggests caution, suggesting at the outset that Roman Catholicism is marked by several different doctrinal, theological and liturgical emphases."
- ^Catechism of the Catholic Church(2nd ed.).Libreria Editrice Vaticana.2019.Paragraphs 1322–1327.
[T]he Eucharist is the sum and summary of our faith
- ^"The Four Marian Dogmas".Catholic News Agency.Retrieved25 March2017.
- ^abcAgnew, John (12 February 2010). "Deus Vult: The Geopolitics of Catholic Church".Geopolitics.15(1): 39–61.doi:10.1080/14650040903420388.ISSN1465-0045.S2CID144793259.
- ^Raymond Wacks,Law: A Very Short Introduction, 2nd Ed.(Oxford University Press, 2015) p. 13.
- ^John Meyendorff,Catholicity and the Church,St Vladimirs Seminary Press, 1997,ISBN0-88141-006-3,p. 7
- ^Elwell, Walter; Comfort, Philip Wesley (2001),Tyndale Bible Dictionary,Tyndale House Publishers, pp. 266, 828,ISBN0-8423-7089-7
- ^MacCulloch,Christianity,p. 127.
- ^abThurston, Herbert(1908)."Catholic".InKnight, Kevin(ed.).The Catholic Encyclopedia.Vol. 3. New York: Robert Appleton Company.Archivedfrom the original on 3 January 2024.Retrieved17 August2012.
- ^"Cyril of Jerusalem, Lecture XVIII, 26".Tertullian.org. 6 August 2004.Archivedfrom the original on 8 June 2023.Retrieved17 August2012.
- ^"Edictum de fide catholica".Archived fromthe originalon 8 February 2012.Retrieved9 October2017.
- ^"Eastern Orthodoxy"Archived31 May 2020 at theWayback Machine,Encyclopædia Britannicaonline.
- ^"catholic, adj. and n."Oxford English DictionaryOnline. Oxford University Press, June 2014. Web. 7 August 2014. Excerpt: "After the separation of East and West 'Catholic' was assumed as its descriptive epithet by the Western or Latin Church, as 'Orthodox' was by the Eastern or Greek. At the Reformation, the term 'Catholic' was claimed as its exclusive right by the body remaining under the Roman obedience, in opposition to the 'Protestant' or 'Reformed' National Churches. These, however, also retained the term, giving it, for the most part, a wider and more ideal or absolute sense, as the attribute of no single community, but only of the whole communion of the saved and saintly in all churches and ages. In England, it was claimed that the Church, even as Reformed, was the national branch of the 'Catholic Church' in its proper historical sense." Note: The full text of the OED definition of "catholic" can be consultedhere.
- ^McBrien, Richard (2008).The Church.Harper Collins. p. xvii. Online version availableBrowseinside.harpercollinsArchived27 August 2009 at theWayback Machine.Quote: "[T]he use of the adjective 'Catholic' as a modifier of 'Church' became divisive only after the East–West Schism... and the Protestant Reformation.... In the former case, the Western Church claimed for itself the titleCatholicChurch, while the East appropriated the nameOrthodoxChurch. In the latter case, those in communion with the Bishop of Rome retained the adjective "Catholic", while the churches that broke with the Papacy were calledProtestant."
- ^"Roman Catholic, n. and adj".Oxford English Dictionary.Archivedfrom the original on 25 June 2023.Retrieved24 October2017.
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Note: The pope's signature appears in the Latin version.
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- ^Catechism of the Catholic Church(2nd ed.).Libreria Editrice Vaticana.2019.Paragraph 1076.
The Church was made manifest to the world on the day of Pentecost by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit...
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The parish priest is the proper clergyman in charge of the congregation of the parish entrusted to him. He exercises the pastoral care of the community entrusted to him under the authority of thediocesan bishop,whose ministry of Christ he is called to share, so that for this community he may carry out the offices of teaching, sanctifying and ruling with the cooperation of other priests or deacons and with the assistance of lay members of Christ's faithful, in accordance with the law.
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[I]n order to preserve the Church in the purity of the faith handed on by the apostles, Christ who is the Truth willed to confer on her a share in his own infallibility.
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by the light of the Holy Spirit... vigilantly warding off any errors that threaten their flock.
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- ^Barry, p. 46
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The Second Vatican Council's Decree on Ecumenism explains: 'For it is through Christ's Catholic Church alone, which is the universal help toward salvation, that the fullness of the means of salvation can be obtained. It was to the apostolic college alone, of which Peter is the head, that we believe that our Lord entrusted all the blessings of the New Covenant, in order to establish on earth the one Body of Christ into which all those should be fully incorporated who belong in any way to the People of God.' [Unitatis redintegratio3 § 5.]
- ^Catechism of the Catholic Church(2nd ed.).Libreria Editrice Vaticana.2019.Paragraph 608.
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The Last Judgment will reveal even to its furthest consequences the good each person has done or failed to do during his earthly life
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The word 'hallow' means 'saint,' in that 'hallow' is just an alternative form of the word 'holy' ('hallowed be Thy name').
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The word hallow was simply another word for saint.
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To receive Holy Communion one must be fully incorporated into the Catholic Church and be in the state of grace, that is, not conscious of being in mortal sin. Anyone who is conscious of having committed a grave sin must first receive the sacrament of Reconciliation before going to Communion. Also important for those receiving Holy Communion are a spirit of recollection and prayer, observance of the fast prescribed by the Church, and an appropriate disposition of the body (gestures and dress) as a sign of respect for Christ.
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Because it is the memorial of Christ's Passover, the Eucharist is also a sacrifice, thus, in the ritual text of the Mass, the priest asks of the congregation present, 'Pray, brothers and sisters, that this my sacrifice and yours may be acceptable to God, the Almighty Father.' The sacrificial character of the Eucharist is manifested in the very words of institution: 'This is my body which is given for you' and 'This cup which is poured out for you is the New Covenant in my blood.' [Lk 22:19–20] In the Eucharist, Christ gives us the very body which he gave up for us on the cross, the very blood which he 'poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.' [Mt 26:28]
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The matrimonial covenant, by which a man and a woman establish between themselves a partnership of the whole of life, is by its nature ordered toward the good of the spouses and the procreation and education of offspring; this covenant between baptized persons has been raised by Christ the Lord to the dignity of a sacrament.
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'People should cultivate [chastity] in the way that is suited to their state of life. Some profess virginity or consecrated celibacy which enables them to give themselves to God alone with an undivided heart in a remarkable manner. Others live in the way prescribed for all by the moral law, whether they are married or single.' (CDF,Persona humana11.) Married people are called to live conjugal chastity; others practise chastity in continence: 'There are three forms of the virtue of chastity: the first is that of spouses, the second that of widows, and the third that of virgins. We do not praise any one of them to the exclusion of the others.... This is what makes for the richness of the discipline of the Church.' (St. Ambrose, De viduis 4,23:PL 16,255A.)
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