There is something very special about being Catholic. Although through a common baptism validly made in the name of the Holy Trinity, all Christians are brothers and sisters in Christ, Catholics are members of the largest and oldest Christian denomination worldwide; a visible unified Universal Church that can clearly trace its hierarchy, sacraments and beliefs back to the Apostles and therefore Christ Himself. The orthodox Christian Church- i.e that which was actually historically founded by the 12 Apostles and their disciples- started calling itself Catholic (Universal) by the beginning of the 2nd century for certain, if not earlier into the end of the 1st century. The great Church Father, Ignatius of Antioch, a disciple of the Apostle John, tells us this in chapter 8 of his letter to the Smyrnaens http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0109.htm
To fully understand Catholicism you must understand the following fundamental points of Catholic belief;
St. Peter's Basilica Rome; founded on the tomb of the Apostle himself. This is a profound visible symbol of the Apostolicity of the Papacy and the Catholic Church
1. Christ founded his Church on a man; Peter, the Rock and like all Jewish kings, has a court; Peter was His steward. According to unanimous tradtion, Peter died in Rome and his office and authority passed down through his successors to the current Roman Pontiff, Benedict XVI.
The Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, successor of St. Peter and Bishop of Rome.
Catholics believe that the fullness of faith requires the Apostolic Church to be united with the successor of Peter, the Rock on which the Church was built. It also recognises the unique contribution that the Eastern Orthodox Churches have to offer, with its own line of Apostolic succession and longs for unity once more.
The Well of the confessio, St. Peter's Basilica, Rome. This leads down to the traditional site of the tomb of the 1st Pope, St. Peter
2. Catholics do not believe in private interpretation of scripture alone (Sola Scriptura). Any appeal to Scripture is always an appeal to an interpretation of scripture. Catholics believe that Sola Scriptura is unhistorical, illogical and has caused divisions ever since Martin Luther devised the concept in the 16th century. Christ did not give us the Bible- (there isn't even such thing as a universally accepted Biblical Canon)- He gave us His Church, which alone, as a collective, has the authority to define truth, through guidance of the Holy Spirit. What many non-Catholics do not understand today is that without the Catholic Church, there would be no Bible; there would be no external authority to tell us what books should be included and which should not and without the Church Fathers we would not even know who wrote the Gospels. The Bible is a Catholic book, written by the Catholic Church for the Catholic Church and in 2000 years, the Catholic Church has interpreted it consistently.
The Codex Vaticanus, 4th century compilation of Scripture. As with the New testament authors, the Septuagint translation is used for the Old testament. This was written 1200 years before the biblical canon was finally closed in Protestant and Catholic traditions, leaving 66 and 73 books in the respective canons.
3. Catholics do not believe truth to be relative; it does not depend on one's point of view. There is truth and there is error; and Catholics believe that through Christ's promise that the gates of Hell would never prevail against His Church (which has to be an organisation visible throughout history through authentic Apostolic succession), that it is guaranteed freedom from error in matters of faith and morals through the Magisterium (teaching authority of the Church), Tradition and Scripture. Consistency (such as the Catholic Church enjoys) is evidence of holding an objective truth while inconsistency and unfulfilled prophecies are a clear sign that a group or person is not being guided by the Holy Spirit. There are Christian groups which have even strayed away from their own original doctrinal statements.
This is not the same as saying that priests, bishops and Popes cannot sin, or be privately wrong about matters of faith and morals, or fail to live up to the teachings of the Church themselves- indeed a study of 15th and 16th century history demonstrates this clearly not to be the case. What it means is that when the Church speaks definitively as a whole in unison with the Pope, on matters of faith and morals, it cannot err; it is infallible. The best expression of this unity is in general ecumenical councils such as Nicaea, Constantinople, Chalcedon, Ephesus etc.
4. The Bishops of the Church are historically the successors of the Apostles. That the Apostles appointed successors to carry on their ministry and authority is attested to by the Church Fathers and unanimous tradition across the entire Christian Church before the Bible had even finished being written.
Mass being celebrated at a church in Bavaria. All throughout the world, the languages may be different but the Mass in the same.During the prayers of consecration, we kneel at the foot of the cross at Golgotha. The separation of Christ's body from His precious blood constitutes the same eternal sacrifice that Christ made on the cross- it is not a separate sacrifice or suggesting that the cross was somehow insufficient.
5. The Eucharist (the pinacle of the Catholic Mass), instituted by Christ at the last supper is not merely a memorial, but the same sacrifice of Christ on Calvary represented in an unbloody manner on the altar. In the transformation of the bread and the wine (the species), Christ is truly present through transubstatiation in all but appearance (the accidents). Not only is this strongly supported by scripture but is clearly defined in the authentic writings from the early Apostolic communities throughout the Roman empire. Authors such as Justin Martyr and the liturgy of St James believed to be from 1st Century Jerusalem show that they celebrated Mass as Catholics do today, with similar prayers and in some cases identical wording.
Chapel in the 6th century Sancta Maria in Aracoeli in Rome. The Altar represents Golgotha. Far from being an innovation, the theology of sacrifice of the Mass was firmly held by the early Apostolic (i.e. founded and presided over by an actual Apostle) Christian communities even while the last Apostles were still alive.
The Mass, being a sacrifice, requires a validly ordained priest (whose function it is to offer sacrifice) to offer it. This priest needs to have been ordained with the form and intention of conferring priesthood in the Catholic understanding, by a Bishop who has valid Apostolic succession. As Christ only chose men to be his Apostles (and first priests of the new covenant), even though he could have chosen women if he wanted to, the Church reserves ordination to men alone. This is something the Church has repeatedly said it does not have the right or authority to change just as much as it could not change the use of bread and wine in the Eucharist to other foods or drink, even though some other Christian groups choose to do so.
In other words, the Mass, in the liturgy of the Word and the liturgy of the Eucharist, goes back to the beginning of Christianity and has Apostolic origins.
6. There are 7 sacraments; Baptism, Penance (Confession), the Eucharist, Confirmation, Marriage, Holy Orders, Extreme Unction (anointing of the sick). Five of these (excluding Baptism and Marriage) require a validly ordained Bishop or priest to confer the sacrament. What is amazing is that every Catholic Bishop and therefore priest has an unbroken line of succession (mostly through the 16th century Cardinal Scipione Rebiba) to an Apostle.
Catholicism has so many treasures, so many beautiful things to offer; community, friendship, sacramental grace, tradition, liturgy, spirituality, prayer and a special communion with the saints that is barely rivalled in the confusing mix of Christianity today.
Author: Nick Williams (2011)/
Good links for further information