As a married Permanent Deacon of the Catholic Church, living and working with and amongst people of different races, creeds, cultures, traditions, languages and religions, I have had cause to reflect on the aspect of being Catholic. What does 'being Catholic' really mean to me? Is my Catholic identity a 'brand name' that distinguishes me from other 'brand name' Christian denominations and other religions? Does the term 'Catholic' only serve to identify me as a member of a very old (oldest) Christian movement? Do I view my Catholic identity as a superior religious status in a World where religion takes many forms; Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, Judaism, Traditional, etc?
I suppose the place to begin my reflection is with the institution of the Church as found in the New Testament Gospel of Matthew. From the text of Matthew (16: 13-19) the intention and statement of Jesus is clear concerning the institution of his Church or Community, the two words being interchangeable in various translations. Jesus desired that his disciples, led by Peter, spearhead the development of a Community founded on the proclamation of the Good News that he brings to them. He himself, through his resurrection and outpouring of the Holy Spirit, gives life, power and authority to his Church to bind or to loosed (Mt. 16: 19). So the Church which Jesus institutes is to be a sign (sacrament) of his communion and covenant with humankind and a physical presence of his Kingdom on Earth, that presence called to being "Salt of the Earth" (Mt. 5: 13) and "Light of the World" (Mt. 5: 14). It is the task (vocation) of his Church to make the Kingdom of God, first made present by him, a continuous reality for people of all nations, to the end of the ages (Mt. 28: 19-20).
In the book of Acts (11: 26c) we are told that it was at Antioch that the followers of Jesus Christ, the Church at Antioch, are identified by the term 'Christian' basically meaning; follower of Christ. Wherever the Apostles established Communities of faith these were known as Christian Communities. What set the Christian Communities apart was their openness to accept and embrace into the fold, people of different races, tribes, cultures and languages, truly manifesting the mandate entrusted to the Apostles to "go ..... make disciples of all the nations" (Mt. 28: 19). There was a universality, an all embracing inclusiveness to the faith of the Christians that was unique among religions at the time. The Good News of Jesus Christ was transforming whole societies and helping them to transcend previously fought for territorial, tribal, cultural and lingual supremacy. These conflicts, while not totally eliminated, did diminished where the Church took root and the values of the Kingdom of God were embraced.
Between 100 - 107 AD, St. Ignatius, the Bishop of Antioch and according to tradition an appointee of St. Peter, uses the Greek term 'katholikos' (catholic) to describe the Christian Church. All Christians, no matter where the Churches were located, were united to their bishop, the Apostles successor and leader of the local Church and to Jesus Christ, the head of the whole Church (Eph. 4: 4-5, 15-16). St. Ignatius writes in his letter to the Church at Smyrna: "Wherever the bishop shall appear, there let the multitude also be; even as, wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the catholic church (Gk. he katholike ekklesia)" (8). The Church which Christ instituted is first called 'Christian' at Antioch and later, the Bishop of Antioch is the first to define the Christian Community as being 'Catholic'.
It appears to me that there is a fundamental difference, between St. Ignatius' thinking then and our thinking today, in the use of the word 'Catholic'. In it's original context would St. Ignatius have used the term as a name, denoting a specific brand or denomination or branch of Christianity? Or, more likely, did he use it, at this very early stage of a unified Church, to describe the universal appeal and united nature of this body of Christians wherever they were located? The word 'Katholikos', I believe, would have originally described this universality and unity of the Christian faith; open and inclusive. It could be further interpreted as describing the unity of all Christians with each other in communion with the Apostles successors, the bishops, and again the communion of the bishops with each other and with the successor of St. Peter, the bishop at Rome, who from the very beginning of the Church is recognised as it's leader (Mt. 16: 18-19). The word 'Katholikos', as it relates to Jesus Christ in his letter, could also have been used to define a much greater communion, a key theme of St. Ignatius, not only of the Christian Community with their bishop and with all other Christian Communities in a specific period of time, but a communion of the Church that transcends both space and time. In other words, through Christ, the Church of today is in unity with the Church of the Apostles, with the Church of the future and with the Church in Heaven (as in the Apostles creed: Belief in the communion of the saints). There appears to be a great depth and bredth of relationships which the term Katholikos captures and it is clear that St. Ignatius used it to define the very nature of Church in communion with that original Catholic nature: Jesus Christ.
So this Church that Jesus Christ institutes is notable for its followers being Christian and Catholic.
I would suppose that the opposite of a katholikos Church would then be a closed, exclusive community, perhaps limited to a specific period of space and time where unity would be immediate and bound to certain dictates. In such a situation, Christians would be closed to the harmony between and positive regard for people, different to themselves or their specific beliefs and doctrines, along racial, tribal, cultural or lingual lines.
When I reflect on the life of the man Jesus, a Jew raised in the traditions and culture of his people and his time, I certainly see the marks of his catholicity. In the Gospel accounts we discover his unity in the one God, that transcends the temporal reality, we further discover his openness and invitation to non-Jewish people as well as those Jews considered outcasts of Jewish society. This is remarkable for its time but it is this katholikos nature of Jesus that becomes the greatest challenge to the human race and will continue to be a challenge to the end of time. It is this catholic nature of Jesus, captured in the Gospels and articulated by St. Ignatius, that his Church must, in fidelity to him, embrace without fear or shame. His Church must be Katholikos.
Certainly, down the ages, the Church has often wandered from its catholic path, very much as our elder siblings, the first chosen people of Israel, also often wandered from their catholic path. Our catholic failing certainly does not provoke Christ to abandon his Church, just as God has not abandoned the children of Israel, but through the power of his Holy Spirit he continually guides his Church back to the right path, encouraging his Church to be herald and witness of the Kingdom of God here on Earth.
In recent times we have seen the Church embracing its katholikos nature when seeking forgiveness for past transgressions through St. Peter's successor; Pope John Paul II: asking pardon for the inquisition, the persecution of Jews and protestants, the Crusades, failing to be "Salt of the Earth" and "Light of the World". The convening of the Second Vatican Council was the most inspirational testament to the action of the Holy Spirit in recent times and the Church will no doubt need a third Council to build even more concretely on Vatican II. Our catholicism is a dynamic, ever building reality that cannot stagnate or remain static. Our most pressing goal of Christian unity should be driving us to seek reconciliation with our separated siblings as the schisms and divisions, especially of the reformation period, make a mockery of Christ's desire that we be one (Jn. 17: 11b, 21-23).
It is a certainty that the Church instituted by Christ (Mt. 16: 13-19), with that body also called Christians (Acts 11: 26c), adopted its defining Catholic nature as articulated by St. Ignatius (Smyrna 8) as an identity. This identifying mark further solidifies the Churches fidelity to Christ's own catholic mission (Mt. 28: 18-20). During the reformation in particular, those who broke away from the Church, labeled the Church as though it was a brand or branch of Christianity. The term 'Roman Catholic' being applied and truly out of ignorance on the part of Catholics, it became an acceptable monika. It is definitively a contradiction in terms and an error for Catholics to refer to themselves as 'Roman Catholic'. The further error of those who broke the Christian unity was that they failed to recognise that the Church instituted by Christ on the Apostles, this Catholic Church, remains to this day united to the Apostles and Jesus Christ the head (Eph. 4: 1-16). Christ, as all Christians will know, will not abandon or divorce his Bride, even in her gravest error. If anything, those who chose to separate and cause the disunity have the choice, now through their followers, to unite themselves to the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church, the Church of Jesus Christ that will continue to travel through the ages.
Given this reflection, I would therefore find it proper and right to understand myself as being catholic in nature first and through that nature, being Catholic in name, a Christian who belongs to the Body of Christ here on Earth, his Church established on St. Peter and the Apostles.
Please feel free to share your comments and views.
Dcn. Greg
I suppose the place to begin my reflection is with the institution of the Church as found in the New Testament Gospel of Matthew. From the text of Matthew (16: 13-19) the intention and statement of Jesus is clear concerning the institution of his Church or Community, the two words being interchangeable in various translations. Jesus desired that his disciples, led by Peter, spearhead the development of a Community founded on the proclamation of the Good News that he brings to them. He himself, through his resurrection and outpouring of the Holy Spirit, gives life, power and authority to his Church to bind or to loosed (Mt. 16: 19). So the Church which Jesus institutes is to be a sign (sacrament) of his communion and covenant with humankind and a physical presence of his Kingdom on Earth, that presence called to being "Salt of the Earth" (Mt. 5: 13) and "Light of the World" (Mt. 5: 14). It is the task (vocation) of his Church to make the Kingdom of God, first made present by him, a continuous reality for people of all nations, to the end of the ages (Mt. 28: 19-20).
In the book of Acts (11: 26c) we are told that it was at Antioch that the followers of Jesus Christ, the Church at Antioch, are identified by the term 'Christian' basically meaning; follower of Christ. Wherever the Apostles established Communities of faith these were known as Christian Communities. What set the Christian Communities apart was their openness to accept and embrace into the fold, people of different races, tribes, cultures and languages, truly manifesting the mandate entrusted to the Apostles to "go ..... make disciples of all the nations" (Mt. 28: 19). There was a universality, an all embracing inclusiveness to the faith of the Christians that was unique among religions at the time. The Good News of Jesus Christ was transforming whole societies and helping them to transcend previously fought for territorial, tribal, cultural and lingual supremacy. These conflicts, while not totally eliminated, did diminished where the Church took root and the values of the Kingdom of God were embraced.
Between 100 - 107 AD, St. Ignatius, the Bishop of Antioch and according to tradition an appointee of St. Peter, uses the Greek term 'katholikos' (catholic) to describe the Christian Church. All Christians, no matter where the Churches were located, were united to their bishop, the Apostles successor and leader of the local Church and to Jesus Christ, the head of the whole Church (Eph. 4: 4-5, 15-16). St. Ignatius writes in his letter to the Church at Smyrna: "Wherever the bishop shall appear, there let the multitude also be; even as, wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the catholic church (Gk. he katholike ekklesia)" (8). The Church which Christ instituted is first called 'Christian' at Antioch and later, the Bishop of Antioch is the first to define the Christian Community as being 'Catholic'.
It appears to me that there is a fundamental difference, between St. Ignatius' thinking then and our thinking today, in the use of the word 'Catholic'. In it's original context would St. Ignatius have used the term as a name, denoting a specific brand or denomination or branch of Christianity? Or, more likely, did he use it, at this very early stage of a unified Church, to describe the universal appeal and united nature of this body of Christians wherever they were located? The word 'Katholikos', I believe, would have originally described this universality and unity of the Christian faith; open and inclusive. It could be further interpreted as describing the unity of all Christians with each other in communion with the Apostles successors, the bishops, and again the communion of the bishops with each other and with the successor of St. Peter, the bishop at Rome, who from the very beginning of the Church is recognised as it's leader (Mt. 16: 18-19). The word 'Katholikos', as it relates to Jesus Christ in his letter, could also have been used to define a much greater communion, a key theme of St. Ignatius, not only of the Christian Community with their bishop and with all other Christian Communities in a specific period of time, but a communion of the Church that transcends both space and time. In other words, through Christ, the Church of today is in unity with the Church of the Apostles, with the Church of the future and with the Church in Heaven (as in the Apostles creed: Belief in the communion of the saints). There appears to be a great depth and bredth of relationships which the term Katholikos captures and it is clear that St. Ignatius used it to define the very nature of Church in communion with that original Catholic nature: Jesus Christ.
So this Church that Jesus Christ institutes is notable for its followers being Christian and Catholic.
I would suppose that the opposite of a katholikos Church would then be a closed, exclusive community, perhaps limited to a specific period of space and time where unity would be immediate and bound to certain dictates. In such a situation, Christians would be closed to the harmony between and positive regard for people, different to themselves or their specific beliefs and doctrines, along racial, tribal, cultural or lingual lines.
When I reflect on the life of the man Jesus, a Jew raised in the traditions and culture of his people and his time, I certainly see the marks of his catholicity. In the Gospel accounts we discover his unity in the one God, that transcends the temporal reality, we further discover his openness and invitation to non-Jewish people as well as those Jews considered outcasts of Jewish society. This is remarkable for its time but it is this katholikos nature of Jesus that becomes the greatest challenge to the human race and will continue to be a challenge to the end of time. It is this catholic nature of Jesus, captured in the Gospels and articulated by St. Ignatius, that his Church must, in fidelity to him, embrace without fear or shame. His Church must be Katholikos.
Certainly, down the ages, the Church has often wandered from its catholic path, very much as our elder siblings, the first chosen people of Israel, also often wandered from their catholic path. Our catholic failing certainly does not provoke Christ to abandon his Church, just as God has not abandoned the children of Israel, but through the power of his Holy Spirit he continually guides his Church back to the right path, encouraging his Church to be herald and witness of the Kingdom of God here on Earth.
In recent times we have seen the Church embracing its katholikos nature when seeking forgiveness for past transgressions through St. Peter's successor; Pope John Paul II: asking pardon for the inquisition, the persecution of Jews and protestants, the Crusades, failing to be "Salt of the Earth" and "Light of the World". The convening of the Second Vatican Council was the most inspirational testament to the action of the Holy Spirit in recent times and the Church will no doubt need a third Council to build even more concretely on Vatican II. Our catholicism is a dynamic, ever building reality that cannot stagnate or remain static. Our most pressing goal of Christian unity should be driving us to seek reconciliation with our separated siblings as the schisms and divisions, especially of the reformation period, make a mockery of Christ's desire that we be one (Jn. 17: 11b, 21-23).
It is a certainty that the Church instituted by Christ (Mt. 16: 13-19), with that body also called Christians (Acts 11: 26c), adopted its defining Catholic nature as articulated by St. Ignatius (Smyrna 8) as an identity. This identifying mark further solidifies the Churches fidelity to Christ's own catholic mission (Mt. 28: 18-20). During the reformation in particular, those who broke away from the Church, labeled the Church as though it was a brand or branch of Christianity. The term 'Roman Catholic' being applied and truly out of ignorance on the part of Catholics, it became an acceptable monika. It is definitively a contradiction in terms and an error for Catholics to refer to themselves as 'Roman Catholic'. The further error of those who broke the Christian unity was that they failed to recognise that the Church instituted by Christ on the Apostles, this Catholic Church, remains to this day united to the Apostles and Jesus Christ the head (Eph. 4: 1-16). Christ, as all Christians will know, will not abandon or divorce his Bride, even in her gravest error. If anything, those who chose to separate and cause the disunity have the choice, now through their followers, to unite themselves to the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church, the Church of Jesus Christ that will continue to travel through the ages.
Given this reflection, I would therefore find it proper and right to understand myself as being catholic in nature first and through that nature, being Catholic in name, a Christian who belongs to the Body of Christ here on Earth, his Church established on St. Peter and the Apostles.
Please feel free to share your comments and views.
Dcn. Greg
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