THE ONE, TRUE, HOLY, CATHOLIC, APOSTOLIC CURCH

“I believe in the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.”

CC 23 ….Christ builds His Church on Peter….the Primacy of Peter

How does the Apostolic Succession involve Simon Peter ?   

The Apostolic Succession which has been amply treated in the previous postings, involves in a direct and personal manner SIMON PETER.

The Lord Jesus, in fact, established Peter as the ‘foundation rock’ of the Church He wanted to build, to found.  Since Christ intended the Church to last “even till the end of time” (Mt. 7:27), so also its foundation-rock must endure for all ages.  Otherwise, without permanent foundations, the House of God, “built upon the sand, would collapse, as soon as the rains and wind break out.” (Mt. 7:27)

The Church is ONE:

a)     In her Founder: Christ, who made her “one fold and one Shepherd” (Jn. 11:16)

b)    In her historical realization: She is Christ’s only Church.  The Saviour charged Peter to feed her (Jn. 21:17), and gave him and the Apostles  the mandate to rule her (Mt.28:18). This Church has its existence in the CATHOLIC CHURCH, governed by Peter’s Successor and the Bishops in communion with him.

The Church is HOLY:

“Sanctified by Christ, who gave up Himself that He might sanctify her.” (Eph. 5:25, 26.) The Saints are the sign of the Holiness of the Church.  The faithful still striving to overcome sin, “Raise their eyes to Mary,” in whom the Church is already “without stain or wrinkle” (Eph.5:27).

The Church is CATHOLIC:

..a word, first used by (+107), St.Ignatius of Antioch, means ‘universal’.   She is catholic, because she is not restricted to a single people, nor does she belong to any nation in particular, but to the whole world.  These marks are given to the Church by Christ: He is the source of the Church’s UNITY, HOLINESS, CATHOLICITY and APOSTOLICITY.                          /CC 24

Extracts by kind permission of  HG Mons. Sylvester Magro ofm, Apostolic Vicar  of Benghazi.