Was the Catholic Church the original Church?

Answer 1

A:There are some doubts about what churches existed in the very earliest years of Christianity, at a time when there were different understandings of the new religion, as we can see in Paul's epistles. However, the dominant group by the second century, and probably much earlier, was certainly the forerunner of both the Roman Catholic and Orthodox Churches. This important branch of Christianity is sometimes known as the Catholic-Orthodox Church, as it distinguished itself from the Gnostic Christians by use of the terms 'Catholic', chiefly in the west, or 'Orthodox', chiefly in the Greek-speaking east.

The Church split into Roman Catholic and Orthodox Churches in 1054, in what is generally known as the Great Schism. Both new Churches can equally claim to be the original Church by inheritance.

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Catholic AnswerYes, the Catholic Church was not only the original Church but the only Church that was established by Our Blessed Lord, Jesus Christ, who personally guaranteed it and send the Holy Spirit to guide it until the end of time. And, as we profess in the Creed, it is One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic. Other "Churches" are those who maintain a valid priesthood through apostolic succession but no longer acknowledge the Holy Father as Christ's Vicar on earth. During the Schism of the East in the 12th century, most of the eastern rites of the Church split into two, with half of each remaining in the Catholic Church and half forming what are now known as the Orthodox Churches, resulting in, for instance, the Greek Orthodox Church and the Greek Uniate Rite (they look exactly the same, but the later is still part of the Catholic Church). After Vatican Council I, the Old Catholics and Polish National Catholic Churches formed. They are called "Churches" because they maintain a valid priesthood and thus valid sacraments. The protestant "churches" are known as eccelesial communities as they have not maintained a valid priesthood and valid sacraments (save baptism in some cases).

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Bottom line? The Catholic Church is the original and only Church. Others who are known as Churches - the separated brethren in the east - are Churches only insofar as they participate in the one Church's priesthood and valid sacramental life. Father Hardon explains all of this more fully in his Modern Catholic Dictionary including how those who are not visible members of the Church can be considered members, as defined by the Second Vatican Council.

from Modern Catholic Dictionary by John A. Hardon, S.J. Doubleday & Co., Inc. Garden City, NY 1980

Church

. The faithful of the whole world. This broad definition can be understood in various senses all derived from the Scriptures, notably as the community of believers, the kingdom of God, and the Mystical Body of Christ. As the community of believers, the Church is the assembly (ekklesia) of all who believe in Jesus Christ; or the fellowship (koinoia) of all who are bound together by their common love for the Savior. As the kingdom (basileia), it is the fulfillment of the ancient prophecies about the reign of the Messiah. And as the Mystical Body it is the communion of all those made holy by the grace of Christ. He is their invisible head and they are his visible members. These include the faithful on earth, those in purgatory who are not yet fully purified, and the saints in heaven.

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Since the Council of Trent, the Catholic Church has been defined as the union of human beings who are united by the profession of the same Christian faith, and by participation of and in the same sacraments under the direction of their lawful pastors, especially of the one representative of Christ on earth, the Bishop of Rome. Each element in this definition is meant to exclude all others from actual and vital membership in the Catholic Church, namely apostates and heretics who do not profess the same Christian faith, non-Christians who do not receive the same sacraments, and schismatics who are not submissive to the Church's lawful pastors under the Bishop of Rome.

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At the Second Vatican Council this concept of the Church was recognized as the objective reality that identifies the fullness of the Roman Catholic Church. But it was qualified subjectively so as to somehow include all who are baptized and profess their faith in Jesus Christ. They are the People of God, whom he has chosen to be his own and on whom he bestows the special graces of his providence. (Etym. Greek kyriakon, church; from kyriakos, belong to the Lord.)