Catholicism

All Catholics are Christian, but not all Christians are Catholics. So the confusion begins. Christians accept that Jesus of Nazareth is the Christ or Messiah of history, and is divine and rose from the dead; all Catholics believe this. Catholicism has been the decisive spiritual force in the history of Western civilization. Catholicism is not an island; rather, it is a continent, an entire world extending across 2,000 years and embracing more than 800 million people in every country on Earth. Catholicism is a way of being human, a way of being religious, and finally, a way of being Christian.

Catholicism touches every aspect of life and excludes none. But how does Catholicism differ from Christianity? First, Catholicism is about Catholic, which means universal. Catholicism is not about a national church, but rather a worldwide one. It is truly an international and multicultural institution. One of the first great councils of Church leaders met in Nicea in 325 and came up with the Nicean Creed. This prayer is prayed in every Catholic Church throughout the world. In it there are four “marks” of the Church: One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic. Prayers, worship, and ritual reflect the local church in language, music, and sacred art.

Catholicism today has a very optimistic view of creation and the human person. Creation and the human person are seen as fundamentally good. This has not always been the case. There have been points in history when the human person and the world were seen as being evil or corrupt. Only the spiritual was to be encouraged, not the body, worldliness, or sensuality. Thankfully, a more optimistic outlook eventually prevailed, which allowed Catholicism to underwrite sculpture, painting, stained glass windows, music, drama, plays, and scientific inquiry.

Catholicism is about holiness and wholeness. All people are to be holy every day, not just on Sunday at worship. Holiness recognizes that one needs a savior, and one cannot live in isolation. A community, the church, is needed. People are called to holiness as a group in holiness and wholeness, living up to their fullest potential. All people, every day. There is a fundamental dignity to all persons because they are all created in God's image and likeness. Catholicism attempts to hold on to the “and”: faith and reason, grace and nature, spirit and soul. Yes, one is “saved,” but one is not yet with God in heaven. There is a lifetime of trying to put one's faith into action.

There is a strong commitment in Catholicism to social transformation. One's relationship with God is in direct proportion to one's caring for those on the fringes of society. The early Church cared for widows, orphans, and the sick and dying. Throughout the history of the Church, leaders and common folk were always speaking up for those who were forgotten or neglected. In the United States, there was strong support for the early labor unions and workers' rights. A Roman Catholic priest, John Augustan Ryan, came up with the economic principles for a “just wage,” which later became the reality of the minimum wage.

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