Catholic Answers to the church of Christ

The name "Holy Apostolic Roman Catholic Church" is not Christian, the words "Roman" and "Catholic" contradict each other, and the word Holy cannot be applied to a church that has seen so much corruption

The name Catholic Church, καθολικός ἐκκλησία (katholikos ekklesia), is found for the first time in the letter of St. Ignatius to the Smyrnaeans, written about the year 110: "Wheresoever the bishop shall appear, there let the people be, even as where Jesus may be, there is the universal [catholic] Church." No one would argue against calling Christ's Church universal, and therefore the name Catholic Church truly describes the Church of Christ. It is true that the words Catholic and Roman contradict each other if the true meaning is not understood. Roman Catholic refers to the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, that is the Church of the Holy Roman Empire. The Holy Roman Empire fell, but the Catholic Church did not; therefore, the Church of the West is still refereed to as the Roman Church. As well as being the Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church, the Pope is the Patriarch of the West, that is the Roman Church; although the term Patriarch of the West is no longer used. The Roman Rite is also called the Latin Rite, since this Rite officially uses the Latin language. While the Roman, or Western, Catholic Church is the largest, there are a number of Eastern Rites that have identical doctrine and recognize the authority of the Pope as the Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church.

The Church of Christ has seen much corruption, as has any institution that contains human members, including the church of Christ. But as Peter says in 1 Peter 2:9, we are a "holy nation"; though we are sinners, we still belong to Christ, and are therefore holy. The Church also belongs to Christ; and is therefore holy.

The church of Christ uses the name "Church of Christ"

While the church of Christ does use the name "Church of Christ," it is not the first, nor is it the only church to use a name like this. All churches that call themselves Christian refer to themselves as the Church of Christ, as the word Christian implies. It is also popular to refer to all churches that call themselves Christian collectively as the Church of Christ. And, there are many churches that use similar names: Church of Christ (Holiness) U.S.A.; Church of Christ, Scientist; Church of God (there are many different churches using this name); Church of Jesus Christ; Church of Our Lord Jesus Christ of the Apostolic faith, Inc.; Church of the Nazarene; Churches of Christ in Christian Union; Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; Christian Church (Disciples of Christ); Christian Churches; Churches of Christ; and many others. The Catholic Church was the first church to use the name Church of Christ in the first century, and it has continued to use this name until the present. The name Church of Christ can be found in many document of the Catholic Church. The Catholic Church is the only church that uses this name correctly, as all other churches are heretic churches, and are only connected to Christ through the Catholic Church.

It is interesting to note the correct name of the Catholic Church that encompasses all the different Rites, as well as the connection with all the heretic churches, and non-Christians. The correct name of the Catholic Church is found in its three principal creeds: the Apostles' Creed, the Nicene Creed, and the Athanasian Creed. The Apostles' Creed says, "holy catholic Church", and the Nicene Creed says, "one holy catholic and apostolic Church". You will notice that the only capitalized word is "Church", the words "one", "holy", "catholic", and "apostolic" are adjectives of this word. They are not part of the actual name, but are adjectives of the name. The actual name is simply the Church. The adjective "one" signifies that it is the one Church established by Christ, and there are no others. The adjective "holy" signifies that this is the Church of God; that is, the Church of the Father, the Church of Christ, and the Church of the Holy Spirit. The adjective "catholic" signifies that this Church is universal, as it is through this Church that all creation is connected to God, and through this Church that mankind receives salvation. The adjective "apostolic" signifies that this is the Church of Christ's Apostles, and therefore holds all the teachings Christ handed down through the Apostles. The Athanasian Creed does not name the Church, but refers to the "Catholic Faith", and the "Catholic Religion". The "Catholic Faith" refers to the universal faith of the Church, through which mankind receives salvation. The "Catholic Religion" refers to the universal theology and doctrine of the Church, through which God is revealed to mankind. To reduce confusion, the Church is usually referred to as the Catholic Church; however, since it is so unique, as the only bond between mankind and God, its name is "The Church".

The Catholic Church was the first denomination

From the first century until the sixteenth century there have been a number of heretic groups within the Church, and some that continued outside the Church such as the Nestorians, and the Monophysites in the fifth century. As well there are the Eastern Churches that are in schism with the Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church, as a result of the schisms of Photius in the ninth century, and Cærularius in the eleventh century. But it was not until the Protestant heresy of the sixteenth century that the idea was established that different denominations existed within Christianity. The Webster Dictionary defines the word denomination as "a religious body comprising a number of local congregations having similar beliefs" or "a general name for a class of things". According to the first definition, the Catholic Church was the first Christian denomination; however, this definition is a result of applying the second definition to Christianity after the Protestant churches were formed. Before any heretic churches existed the Catholic Church was not "a class of things" but singular and unique. And, even after the heretic churches were formed, they descended from the Catholic Church; therefore, the Catholic Church remained unique among these churches, as in a class by itself. Since the Catholic Church is not in the same class as all the heretic churches, it is truly non-denominational. The church of Christ likes to call itself non-denominational because they do not accept other established churches as Christian, thereby making itself unique, and in a class by itself. However, the church of Christ is just a heretic church that is a descendant of other heretic churches that ultimately traces their roots back to the Catholic Church. The only Christian church that can truly call itself non-denominational is the Catholic Church, as it is the mother church of all other Christian churches, and is the channel through which all other Christian churches are in communion with Christ.

There are many different Catholic churches, just like there are many Protestant churches

It is true that there are different Rites within the Catholic Church, but they are not different in the manner that the Protestant churches are different. The different Rites of the Catholic Church each hold identical doctrinal beliefs and recognize the authority of the Bishop of Rome as the Vicar of Jesus Christ, Successor of the Prince of the Apostles, Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church, and Servant of the Servants of God. The servant of the servants of each Rite is called the Patriarch. The Patriarch of the Roman Rite, known as the Patriarch of the West, although this term is no longer used, is the Bishop of Rome, who also holds the title of Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church. There are six Uniat Patriarchs: the Melchite Patriarch of Antioch, Alexandria, Jerusalem, and all the East; the Syrian Patriarch of Antioch and all the East; the Maronite Patriarch of Antioch and all the East; the Coptic Patriarch of Alexandria; the Patriarch of Cilicia and the Armenians; and the Patriarch of Babylon and the Chaldees. These Patriarchs rule over all members of their rite, except that the Armenian Patriarch has no jurisdiction in Austria or the Crimea, where the Armenian Bishops of Lemberg and Artwin are exempt, being immediately subject to the Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church. There are also the Latin Patriarchs of Constantinople, Antioch, and Jerusalem; as well, the "minor" Patriarchs of Venice, Lisbon, the West Indies, and the East Indies. Each Rite is free to decide how they practice Catholicism, such as ritual laws, and whether of not they have a celibacy clergy. However, each Rite shares identical doctrinal beliefs and is under the rule of the Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church.

Some confusion may exist because many heretic churches use the name "Catholic," as do the Orthodox Churches. Many Protestant churches refer to themselves as catholic in the sense that all Christian churches belong to Christ's universal church. The Protestant churches that do this are close to being right, as heretic churches they belong to the Catholic Church, but are not in full communion with it. The most confusing name is that of the Old Catholic Churches, which include a number of churches in Europe and America. These churches broke away from the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church after the declaration of Papal infallibility at the Vatican Council of 1869. All of these churches are not in full communion with the Catholic Church, and are only Catholic by the fact that they are heretic churches.