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How Did the Catholic Church Get Her Name?

by Kenneth D. Whitehead
The Creed which we recite on Sundays and holy days speaks of one, holy, catholic and apostolic
Church. As everybody knows, however, the Church referred to in this Creed is more commonly
called just the Catholic Church. It is not, by the way, properly called the Roman Catholic
Church, but simply the Catholic Church.
The term Roman Catholic is not used by the Church herself; it is a relatively modern term, and
one, moreover, that is confined largely to the English language. The English-speaking bishops at
the First Vatican Council in 1870, in fact, conducted a vigorous and successful campaign to
insure that the term Roman Catholic was nowhere included in any of the Council's official
documents about the Church herself, and the term was not included.
Similarly, nowhere in the 16 documents of the Second Vatican Council will you find the term
Roman Catholic. Pope Paul VI signed all the documents of the Second Vatican Council as "I,
Paul. Bishop of the Catholic Church." Simply that -- Catholic Church. There are references to the
Roman curia, the Roman missal, the Roman rite, etc., but when the adjective Roman is applied to
the Church herself, it refers to the Diocese of Rome!
Cardinals, for example, are called cardinals of the Holy Roman Church, but that designation
means that when they are named to be cardinals they have thereby become honorary clergy of
the Holy Father's home diocese, the Diocese of Rome. Each cardinal is given a titular church in
Rome, and when the cardinals participate in the election of a new pope. they are participating in
a process that in ancient times was carried out by the clergy of the Diocese of Rome.
Although the Diocese of Rome is central to the Catholic Church, this does not mean that the
Roman rite, or, as is sometimes said, the Latin rite, is co-terminus with the Church as a whole;
that would mean neglecting the Byzantine, Chaldean, Maronite or other Oriental rites which are
all very much part of the Catholic Church today, as in the past.
In our day, much greater emphasis has been given to these "non-Roman" rites of the Catholic
Church. The Second Vatican Council devoted a special document, Orientalium
Ecclesiarum(Decree on Eastern Catholic Churches), to the Eastern rites which belong to the
Catholic Church, and the new Catechism of the Catholic Church similarly gives considerable
attention to the distinctive traditions and spirituality of these Eastern rites.
So the proper name for the universal Church is not the Roman Catholic Church. Far from it. That
term caught on mostly in English-speaking countries; it was promoted mostly by Anglicans,
supporters of the "branch theory" of the Church, namely, that the one, holy, catholic and
apostolic Church of the creed was supposed to consist of three major branches, the Anglican, the
Orthodox and the so-called Roman Catholic. It was to avoid that kind of interpretation that the
English-speaking bishops at Vatican I succeeded in warning the Church away from ever using
the term officially herself: It too easily could be misunderstood.
Today in an era of widespread dissent in the Church, and of equally widespread confusion
regarding what authentic Catholic identity is supposed to consist of, many loyal Catholics have
recently taken to using the term Roman Catholic in order to affirm their understanding that the
Catholic Church of the Sunday creed is the same Church that is united with the Vicar of Christ in
Rome, the Pope. This understanding of theirs is correct, but such Catholics should nevertheless
beware of using the term, not only because of its dubious origins in Anglican circles intending to
suggest that there just might be some other Catholic Church around somewhere besides the
Roman one: but also because it often still is used today to suggest that the Roman Catholic
Church is something other and lesser than the Catholic Church of the creed. It is commonly used
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by some dissenting theologians, for example, who appear to be attempting to categorize the
Roman Catholic Church as just another contemporary "Christian denomination"--not the body
that is identical with the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church of the creed.
The proper name of the Church, then, is the Catholic Church. It is not ever called "the Christian
Church," either. Although the prestigious Oxford University Press currently publishes a learned
and rather useful reference book called "The Oxford Book of the Christian Church," the fact is
that there has never been a major entity in history called by that name; the Oxford University
Press has adopted a misnomer, for the Church of Christ has never been called the Christian
Church.
There is, of course, a Protestant denomination in the United States which does call itself by that
name, but that particular denomination is hardly what the Oxford University Press had in mind
when assigning to its reference book the title that it did. The assignment of the title in question
appears to have been one more method, of which there have been so many down through history,
of declining to admit that there is, in fact, one--and only one--entity existing in the world today
to which the designation "the Catholic Church" in the Creed might possibly apply.
The entity in question, of course, is just that: the very visible, worldwide Catholic Church, in
which the 263rd successor of the Apostle Peter, Pope John Paul II, teaches, governs and
sanctifies, along with some 3,000 other bishops around the world, who are successors of the
apostles of Jesus Christ.
As mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles, it is true that the followers of Christ early became
known as "Christians" (cf. Acts 11:26). The name Christian, however, was never commonly
applied to the Church herself. In the New Testament itself, the Church is simply called "the
Church." There was only one. In that early time there were not yet any break-away bodies
substantial enough to be rival claimants of the name and from which the Church might ever have
to distinguish herself.
Very early in post-apostolic times, however. the Church did acquire a proper name--and
precisely in order to distinguish herself from rival bodies which by then were already beginning
to form. The name that the Church acquired when it became necessary for her to have a proper
name was the name by which she has been known ever since-the Catholic Church.
The name appears in Christian literature for the first time around the end of the first century. By
the time it was written down, it had certainly already been in use, for the indications are that
everybody understood exactly what was meant by the name when it was written.
Around the year A.D. 107, a bishop, St. Ignatius of Antioch in the Near East, was arrested,
brought to Rome by armed guards and eventually martyred there in the arena. In a farewell letter
which this early bishop and martyr wrote to his fellow Christians in Smyrna (today Izmir in
modern Turkey), he made the first written mention in history of "the Catholic Church." He
wrote, "Where the bishop is present, there is the Catholic Church" (To the Smyrnaeans 8:2).
Thus, the second century of Christianity had scarcely begun when the name of the Catholic
Church was already in use.
Thereafter, mention of the name became more and more frequent in the written record. It appears
in the oldest written account we possess outside the New Testament of the martyrdom of a
Christian for his faith, the "Martyrdom of St. Polycarp," bishop of the same Church of Smyrna to
which St. Ignatius of Antioch had written. St. Polycarp was martyred around 155, and the
account of his sufferings dates back to that time. The narrator informs us that in his final prayers
before giving up his life for Christ, St. Polycarp "remembered all who had met with him at any
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time, both small and great, both those with and those without renown, and the whole Catholic
Church throughout the world."
We know that St. Polycarp, at the time of his death in 155, had been a Christian for 86 years. He
could not, therefore, have been born much later than 69 or 70. Yet it appears to have been a
normal part of the vocabulary of a man of this era to be able to speak of "the whole Catholic
Church throughout the world."
The name had caught on, and no doubt for good reasons.
The term "catholic" simply means "universal," and when employing it in those early days, St.
Ignatius of Antioch and St. Polycarp of Smyrna were referring to the Church that was already
"everywhere," as distinguished from whatever sects, schisms or splinter groups might have
grown up here and there, in opposition to the Catholic Church.
The term was already understood even then to be an especially fitting name because the Catholic
Church was for everyone, not just for adepts, enthusiasts or the specially initiated who might
have been attracted to her.
Again, it was already understood that the Church was "catholic" because -- to adopt a modern
expression -- she possessed the fullness of the means of salvation. She also was destined to be
"universal" in time as well as in space, and it was to her that applied the promise of Christ to
Peter and the other apostles that "the powers of death shall not prevail" against her (Mt 16:18).
The Catechism of the Catholic Church in our own day has concisely summed up all the reasons
why the name of the Church of Christ has been the Catholic Church: "The Church is catholic,"
the Catechism teaches, "[because] she proclaims the fullness of the faith. She bears in herself and
administers the totality of the means of salvation. She is sent out to all peoples. She speaks to all
men. She encompasses all times. She is 'missionary of her very nature'" (no. 868).
So the name became attached to her for good. By the time of the first ecumenical council of the
Church, held at Nicaea in Asia Minor in the year 325 A.D., the bishops of that council were
legislating quite naturally in the name of the universal body they called in the Council of
Nicaea's official documents "the Catholic Church." As most people know, it was that same
council which formulated the basic Creed in which the term "catholic" was retained as one of the
four marks of the true Church of Christ. And it is the same name which is to be found in all 16
documents of the twenty-first ecumenical council of the Church, Vatican Council II.
It was still back in the fourth century that St. Cyril of Jerusalem aptly wrote, "Inquire not simply
where the Lord's house is, for the sects of the profane also make an attempt to call their own dens
the houses of the Lord; nor inquire merely where the church is, but where the Catholic Church is.
For this is the peculiar name of this Holy Body, the Mother of all, which is the Spouse of Our
Lord Jesus Christ" (Catecheses, xviii, 26).
The same inquiry needs to be made in exactly the same way today, for the name of the true
Church of Christ has in no way been changed. It was inevitable that the Catechism of the
Catholic Church would adopt the same name today that the Church has had throughout the whole
of her very long history.

From The Catholic Answer, May/June 1996?

Published by Our Sunday Visitor, Inc., 200 Noll Plaza, Huntington, IN 46750, 1-800-521-0600.

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Catholic Church

St. Cyril of Jerusalem, successor of the Apostle James as bishop of that city,
reigned from 348-386 and vigorously enforced the faith of the Council of Nicea
(325) against the heretical sects. This lead to several expulsions from his See and
several returns. He lived to participate in the Council of Constantinople (381)
which completed the Creed which is said by Catholics at Masses on Sundays and
Solemnities. In his Catecheses St. Cyril explains to catechumens and newly
baptized Christians the meaning of this greatest of the Creeds. In the following
excerpt from Lecture 18 he explains the implication of catholic, in the article "One,
Holy, Catholic Church."

22. . . . Now then let me finish what still remains to be said for the Article, "In one
Holy Catholic Church," on which, though one might say many things, we will
speak but briefly.

23. It is called Catholic then because it extends over all the world, from one end of
the earth to the other; and because it teaches universally and completely one and all
the doctrines which ought to come to men’s knowledge, concerning things both
visible and invisible, heavenly and earthly ; and because it brings into subjection to
godliness the whole race of mankind, governors and governed, learned and
unlearned; and because it universally treats and heals the whole class of sins, which
are committed by soul or body, and possesses in itself every form of virtue which is
named, both in deeds and words, and in every kind of spiritual gifts.

24. And it is rightly named Church [Ecclesia/Assembly] because it calls forth and
assembles together all men; according as the Lord says in Leviticus, And make an
assembly for all the congregation at the door of the tabernacle of witness. And it is
to be noted, that the word assemble, is used for the first time in the Scriptures here,
at the time when the Lord puts Aaron into the High-priesthood. And in
Deuteronomy also the Lord says to Moses, Assemble the people unto Me, and let
them hear My words, that they may learn to fear Me. And he again mentions the
name of the Church, when he says concerning the Tables, And on them were
written all the words which the Lord spake with you in the mount out of the midst
of the fire in the day of the Assembly; as if he had said more plainly, in the day in
which ye were called and gathered together by God. The Psalmist also says, I will
give thanks unto Thee, O Lord, in the great Congregation; I will praise Thee
among much people.

25. Of old the Psalmist sang, Bless ye God in the congregations, even the Lord, (ye
that are) from the fountains of Israel. But after the Jews for the plots which they
made against the Saviour were cast away from His grace, the Saviour built out of
the Gentiles a second Holy Church, the Church of us Christians, concerning which
he said to Peter, And upon this rock I will build My Church, and the gates of hell
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shall not prevail against it. And David prophesying of both these, said plainly of
the first which was rejected, I have hated the Congregation of evil doers; but of the
second which is built up he says in the same Psalm, Lord, I have loved the beauty
of Thine house; and immediately afterwards. In the Congregations will I bless thee,
O Lord. For now that the one Church in Judaea is cast off, the Churches of Christ
are increased over all the world; and of them it is said in the Psalms, Sing unto the
Lord a new song, His praise in the Congregation of Saints. Agreeably to which the
prophet also said to the Jews, I have no pleasure in you, saith the Lord Almighty;
and immediately afterwards, For from the rising of the sun even unto the going
down of the same, My name is glorified among the Gentiles. Concerning this Holy
Catholic Church Paul writes to Timothy,That thou mayest know haw thou oughtest
to behave thyself in the House of God, which is the Church of the Living God, the
pillar and ground of the truth.

26. But since the word Ecclesia [Church/Assembly] is applied to different things
(as also it is written of the multitude in the theatre of the Ephesians, And when he
had thus spoken, he dismissed the Assembly), and since one might properly and
truly say that there is a Church of evil doers, I mean the meetings of the heretics,
the Marcionists and Manichees, and the rest, for this cause the Faith has securely
delivered to thee now the Article, "And in one Holy Catholic Church;" that thou
mayest avoid their wretched meetings, and ever abide with the Holy Church
Catholic in which thou wast regenerated. And if ever thou art sojourning in cities,
inquire not simply where the Lord’s House is (for the other sects of the profane
also attempt to call their own dens houses of the Lord), nor merely where the
Church is, but where is the Catholic Church. For this is the peculiar name of this
Holy Church, the mother of us all, which is the spouse of our Lord Jesus Christ, the
Only-begotten Son of God (for it is written, As Christ also loved the Church and
gave Himself for it, and all the rest,) and is a figure and copy of Jerusalem which is
above, which is free, and the mother of us all; which before was barren, but now
has many children. [my emphasis]

27. For when the first Church was cast off, in the second, which is the Catholic
Church, God hath set, as Paul says, first Apostles, secondly Prophets, thirdly
teachers, then miracles, then gifts of headings, helps, governments, divers kinds of
tongues , and every sort of virtue, I mean wisdom and understanding, temperance
and justice, mercy and loving-kindness, and patience unconquerable in
persecutions. She, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left,
by honour and dishonour , in former days amid persecutions and tribulations
crowned the holy martyrs with the varied and blooming chaplets of patience, and
now in times of peace by God’s grace receives her due honours from kings and
those who are in high place, and from every sort and kindred of men. And while
the kings of particular nations have bounds set to their authority, the Holy Church
Catholic alone extends her power without limit over the whole world; for God, as it
is written, hath made her border peace. But I should need many more hours for my
discourse, if I wished to speak of all things which concern her.
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28. In this Holy Catholic Church receiving instruction and behaving ourselves
virtuously, we shall attain the kingdom of heaven, and inheritEternal Life; for
which also we endure all toils, that we may be made partakers thereof from the
Lord. For ours is no trifling aim, but our endeavour is for eternal life.

https://www.ewtn.com/expert/answers/catholic_church.htm

http://christianity.stackexchange.com/questions/25331/why-catholic-church-is-called-the-roman-
catholic-church

If the word "catholic", from the Greek adjective καθολικός (katholikos), means
"universal", why The Catholic Church is known as "The Roman Catholic Church"?
6down
Is it possible be "universal" and "roman" at the same time?
vote favor ite

The Catholic Church does indeed usually refer to itself just as "The Catholic
Church". That is what it's Wikipedia article calls it (Wikipedia usually names all
9dow
organizations according to what they call themselves). Many Catholic-related
n organizations just use the word "Catholic" in their names - CAFOD is an
vote example; Catholic School boards are another.
The term 'Roman Catholic' was originally applied by people who disagree with the
Catholic church's claim to be the church (when they were not just referring to it as
'the Roman Church'). Over the centuries the usage has mutated, and term has
been applied for various reasons, and is used by many people as if it were the
official name of the church. However the history of the usage is extremely
complicated. Even the Catholic Church sometimes refers to itself as the "Roman
Catholic Church", especially if there is any danger of confusion, or of offence. This
Wikipedia article gives some history of the usage of the term Catholic.
Those of you with way too much time on your hands can go and look through the
Wikipedia debates on the correct naming of the church in the Catholic Church talk
pages.
shareimprove this answer

There are two parts for this:

First part: The Catholic Church ('C' as capital) is that group of churches in communion with
the pope. If a group isn’t in communion with the pope, it isn’t part of the Catholic Church.
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Within the Catholic Church there are a number of individual churches, sometimes called
rites. One of these is the Roman rite or Roman church. It includes most of the Catholics in
the Western world. A Roman Catholic is a Catholic who is a member of the Roman rite.

There are many Catholics in the East who are not Roman Catholics, such as Maronite
Catholics, Ukrainian Catholics, and Chaldean Catholics. These are all in communion with
the pope, but they are not members of the Roman rite, so they are not Roman Catholics.

The Roman rite is not stricter than these other rights. They are equal. They all teach the
same faith; it is only local customs that are different among them.

Second part: How the term Roman got attached to it?

It is not possible to give an exact year when the term "Roman Catholic Church," began to be
called. The term is assumed to originated as a reference created by Anglicans who wished to
refer to themselves as Catholic. They thus coined the term "Roman Catholic" to distinguish
those in union with Rome from themselves.

From Catholic Answers:

Different variants of the reference "Roman" appeared at different times. The earliest form
was the noun "Romanist" (one belonging to the Catholic Church), which appeared in
England about 1515-1525. The next to develop was the adjective "Romish" (similar to
something done or believed in the Catholic Church), which appeared around 1525-1535.
Next came the noun "Roman Catholic" (one belonging to the Catholic Church), which was
coined around 1595-1605. Shortly thereafter came the verb "to Romanize" (to make
someone a Catholic or to become a Catholic), which appeared around 1600-10. Between
1665 and 1675 we got the noun "Romanism" (the system of Catholic beliefs and practices),
and finally we got a latecomer term about 1815-1825, the noun "Roman Catholicism," a
synonym for the earlier "Romanism."
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Questions and Answers about the Catholic Church

136. What is the Church?

The Church is the congregation of all baptized persons united in the same true faith, the same
sacrifice, and the same sacraments, under the authority of the Sovereign Pontiff and the bishops
in communion with him.

(a) Since Baptism, according to the ruling of Christ, is the gateway to the Church, a person
becomes a member of the Church on receiving this sacrament. To remain a real member of the
Church after Baptism a person must profess the one true faith and must not withdraw from the
unity of the body of the Church in schism or heresy or be excommunicated by legitimate
authority because of serious sins. Even schismatics, heretics, and those excommunicated are
subjects of the Church and are obliged by its laws unless exempted by the Church.

(b) Sacred Scripture refers to the Church as the Body of Christ, as a sheepfold, as the kingdom of
God, and as the kingdom of heaven.

137. Who founded the Church?

Jesus Christ founded the Church.

(a) Christ completed the founding of His Church just before His Ascension, when He
commissioned the apostles to make disciples of all nations. Earlier in His public ministry He had
instituted the sacraments, chosen the twelve apostles, instructed them by word and example, and
conferred on them the power of teaching, ruling, and sanctifying.

(b) The Gospels show that Christ founded the Church in the form of a visible, hierarchical
society, that is, one made up of subjects and superiors who rightfully rule subjects. The Roman
Pontiff and the bishops under him are the ruling hierarchy of the Church. The Church is also a
monarchical society in which the Pope rules with full power, that is, with jurisdiction over the
entire Church. Peter was the first head of the Church founded by Christ.

(c) After Pentecost Sunday the apostles began to carry out their mission, which through them and
their successors continues and will continue until the end of time.

138. Why did Jesus Christ found the Church?

Jesus Christ founded the Church to bring all men to eternal salvation.

(a) The Church instituted by Christ is the only way to eternal salvation. Christ gave the Church
the means whereby man can be sanctified and saved.

139. How is the Church enabled to lead men to salvation?

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The Church is enabled to lead men to salvation by the indwelling of the Holy Ghost, who gives it
life.

(a) Although the work of salvation is the result of the operation of all three Persons of the
Blessed Trinity, it is especially the result of the Redemption by Christ, and because this work is
one of divine love it is attributed to the Holy Ghost, who is the soul of the Church, of which
Christ is the Head.

140. When was the dwelling of the Holy Ghost in the Church first visibly manifested?

The dwelling of the Holy Ghost in the Church was first visibly manifested on Pentecost Sunday,
when He came down upon the apostles in the form of tongues of fire.

(a) The word "Pentecost" means fiftieth and is applied to the fiftieth day after Our Lord's
Resurrection.

(b) The apostles were sent by Christ to preach His doctrines to all men.

141. How long will the Holy Ghost dwell in the Church?

The Holy Ghost will dwell in the Church until the end of time.

(a) Christ foretold that the Holy Ghost would dwell in the Church until the end of time.

142. Who sent the Holy Ghost to dwell in the Church?

God the Father and God the Son sent the Holy Ghost to dwell in the Church.

(a) It is a matter of faith that the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and the Son and is sent by
Both to dwell in the Church.

143. What does the indwelling of the Holy Ghost ennoble the Church to do?

The indwelling of the Holy Ghost enables the Church to teach to sanctify, and to rule the faithful
in the name of Christ.

(a) The Church must teach because otherwise men would not know the truths of divine
revelation taught by Christ.

(b) The Church must sanctify, that is, bring grace to the world through the sacraments, because
otherwise men could not be saved.

(c) The Church must rule because it was established by Our Savior as a society, which is
inconceivable without authority.

144. What is meant by teaching, sanctifying, and ruling in the name of Christ?
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By teaching, sanctifying, and ruling in the name of Christ is meant that the Church always does
the will of its Divine Founder, who remains forever its invisible Head.

(a) The will of the Founder of the Church is expressed in the commission He gave to His apostles
to teach all nations, to baptize them, and to have them observe all the things He had commanded.
This commission, as well as the guarantee that Christ would be with His Church until the end of
time, is related in the Gospel.

145. To whom did Christ give the power to teach, to sanctify, and to rule the members of
His Church?

Christ gave the power to teach, to sanctify, and to rule the members of His Church to the
apostles, the first bishops of the Church.

(a) That Christ gave His apostles the power to teach, to rule, and to sanctify is evident from the
Gospels, the inspired account of Our Lord's life written by Saints Matthew, Mark, Luke, and
John. Christ gave the apostles the power to bind and loose, to baptize, to forgive sin, and to offer
the sacrifice of the Mass.

(b) The power to teach and to rule is the power of jurisdiction; the power to sanctify is the power
of orders. The power to sanctify sometimes requires jurisdiction, as in the sacrament of Penance.

146. Did Christ intend that this power should be exercised by the apostles alone?

No, Christ intended that this power should be exercised also by their successors, the bishops of
the Church.

(a) Christ founded the Church to last until the end of time. The apostles lived for a short time
only. Christ must, then, have intended that the apostles provide duly authorized successors to
carry on the work of teaching, sanctifying, and ruling.

(b) The Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles of Saint Paul contain references to the work done
by the successors of the apostles.

147. Did Christ give special power in His Church to any one of the apostles?

Christ gave special power in His Church to Saint Peter by making him the head of the apostles
and the chief teacher and ruler of the entire Church.

(a) The power of the keys was promised to Saint Peter and was actually conferred on him.

(b) Saint Peter was recognized by the early Christians from the beginning as the head of the
Church.

148. Did Christ intend that the special power of chief teacher and ruler of the entire
Church should be exercised by Saint Peter alone?
11

Christ did not intend that the special power of chief teacher and ruler of the entire Church should
be exercised by Saint Peter alone, but intended that this power should be passed down to his
successor, the Pope, the Bishop of Rome, who is the Vicar of Christ on earth and the visible head
of the Church.

(a) A successor to Saint Peter, the first Bishop of Rome, was required as chief teacher and ruler
for the same reason that successors were required for the other apostles. From the very beginning
it was acknowledged by the Church that the successor of Saint Peter as Bishop of Rome was at
the same time the head of the entire Church. This successor of Saint Peter is called the Pope.

(b) The bishops of the Church are the successors of the apostles because they have received their
power of orders by valid consecration through an unbroken line of successors of the apostles, and
have received their power of jurisdiction through their union with the Pope, the successor of
Saint Peter.

(c) The Pope is now elected by the College of Cardinals.

149. Who assist the bishops in the care of souls?

The priests, especially parish priests, assist the bishops in the care of souls.

(a) Although all priests assist the bishop of a diocese in the care of souls, parish priests especially
are given the definite care of a section of a diocese, which is called a parish and is of
ecclesiastical institution.

150. Who are the laity of the Church? The laity of the Church are all its members who do
not belong to the clerical or to the religious state.

(a) The clerical state includes all priests and all aspirants to the priesthood who have received
tonsure, which is the initiation into the ecclesiastical state. Students of minor and major
seminaries are aspirants to the priesthood.

(b) The religious state includes men and women who embrace a community life and make the
vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. Those who are preparing to embrace the religious state
are called aspirants, postulants, or novices.

(c) Religious and clerics enjoy special canonical privileges and have many more obligations than
lay people have.

(d) Among the laity are secular persons who have embraced the state of celibacy or virginity, or
the matrimonial state.

151. How can the laity help the Church in her care of souls?

The laity can help the Church in her care of souls by leading lives that will reflect credit on the
Church, and by co-operating with their bishops and priests, especially through Catholic Action.
12

(a) The lay people can assist in a special way by prayer.

(b) Catholic Action is the participation of the laity in the apostolate of the hierarchy of the
Church. There can be no Catholic Action without an episcopal commission.

The Baltimore Catechism, no. 3, Lesson 11.

https://www.ewtn.com/faith/teachings/chura1a.htm

Did the church begin in John 20:22 or at Pentecost in Acts 2:4?

In answer to your question I have taken some of the arguments from Ryrie’s Basic Theology and
added a few comments with a few more verses as well in some places. I would strongly
recommend this excellent Theology for its soundness and simplicity.
The church did not exist in Old Testament times but was constituted on the Day of Pentecost
(arguments to support the day of Pentecost will be given below). It is distinct to this present time
period. Several lines of evidence support this conclusion.
(1) Our Lord said: “I will build My church” (Matt. 16:18). He did not say that He would continue
to add to something already in existence, but that He would do something not yet begun.
(2) The church could have no functioning Head until after the resurrection of Christ; therefore, it
could not exist until some time after He rose from the dead (Eph. 1:20-23—note how these
verses connect His resurrection, ascension, and session to His headship over the church).
(3) The church could not have been an operating entity with functioning spiritual gifts until after
Christ’s ascension. This is the clear implication of Eph. 4:7-12.
By a comparison of a number of passages, it seems clear that Pentecost marked the beginning of
the church as a functioning body (the body of Christ) by the outpouring of the Spirit on that day.
Note the following arguments:
(1) Before His ascension the Lord promised that the disciples would be baptized with the Holy
Spirit soon (Acts 1:5).
(2) Though the word “baptism” does not appear in the account of Pentecost in chapter 2, it is
quite clear from 11:15-16 that the baptism occurred for the first time on that day. Note carefully
Peter’s argument here. In verse 15 he equated the indwelling of the Spirit in Acts 10:44on the
Gentile believers there with the coming of the Spirit and His indwelling in Acts 2. Then in verse
16, he equated all of this with the Lord’s promise of the baptizing of the Spirit in Acts 1:5which
shows these were one and the same, i.e., the baptizing of the Spirit. But what exactly is that?
(3) According to Paul in 1 Corinthians 12:13, Spirit baptism is a special work of the Spirit that
places people (believers) in the body of Christ. So what is the body of Christ? The body of Christ
is the church according to Ephesians 1:22-23. Thus, the church, the body, began when those first
individuals were baptized by the Spirit which began the process of placing believers into the
Body whenever any one believes in Christ. This process began at Pentecost.
Several other things occurred on the Day of Pentecost. The disciples were filled with the Spirit
(Acts 2:4). Three thousand were baptized with water (v. 41). The visible church began that day
(vv. 42-47).
In addition to baptizing those who believe into the body, the Spirit also indwells individual
Christians (1 Cor. 6:19), local churches (3:16), and the body of Christ (Eph. 2:22). The Spirit
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also empowers, leads, comforts, and gives gifts to the church (Acts 1:8; 9:31; 1 Cor. 12:3). In a
very real sense, the Spirit is the energizing life and power of the church.
So, what about the John 20:22 passage?
(1) This may have been a temporary indwelling until Pentecost similar to the indwelling of the
Spirit in OT times as with Saul and David, an indwelling that could be removed as it was with
Saul (cf. also Ps. 51:10-11 and Luke 11:13). David prayed that the HS might not be taken from
Him, a prayer we can’t pray today since Spirit is given to us permanently as a seal unto the day
of redemption (cf. Eph. 1:13-14; 4:30; see also John 14:16). In Luke 11:13 the Lord told the
disciples they could at that time ask for the indwelling of the Spirit. They evidently did not and
so, until Pentecost, He gave them the Spirit as a temporary enabling. At Pentecost, when the
church began, the Spirit’s indwelling became permanent.
(2) On the other hand, some believe that this act of breathing on them was a kind of prophecy or
a symbolic act in anticipation of the Spirit’s ultimate fulfillment of Ezekiel 37. For the argument
of this view, see the footnote in the NET Bible on John 20:22 on our web site.
Related Topics: Ecclesiology (The Church)

When Did the Church Start?

Eleven Reasons Why Jesus' Church Was in Existence Prior to The Day of Pentecost
Some Scriptural reasons why the Church was not established on the day of Pentecost, but rather, began
with the first family back in Genesis:
It had a rule of discipline before Pentecost (Matthew 18:17).
We read that Jesus sang in the Church (Hebrews 2:12). The only time that Jesus ever sang, so far as we
have any record of it, was at the institution of the Lord's Supper (Mark 14:26). This was before
Pentecost.
They had a business meeting before the day of Pentecost and elected a successor to take the place of
Judas (Acts 1:15-26).
The Apostles were in the Church before the day of Pentecost (1st Corinthians 12:28). The first ones who
were put in the Church were the Apostles, and this was at least three years before the day of Pentecost.
The Church had its commission to preach before Pentecost (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15).
The Church had its authority to baptize before Pentecost (John 4:2).
The Church had the Lord's Supper before Pentecost (Matthew 26:30).
The keys of the Kingdom were given to it before Pentecost (Matthew 16:19).
It had a church roll before Pentecost with names on the roll (Acts 1:15).
To this church there were about 3,000 "added" on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:42). If I were to tell you I
was going to "add" $200 to my bank account, this would imply that I already have a bank account to
begin with. In view of the fact that 3,000 were "added" to the Church on the day of Pentecost, then we
are led to believe that the Church was in existence before Pentecost.
And perhaps the strongest evidence of all that the Church DIDN'T begin on Pentecost is found in Acts
7:37,38 where we read about the "church in the wilderness" in the Old Testament...
"This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up
unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear. This is he, that was in the CHURCH IN THE
WILDERNESS with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received
the lively oracles to give unto us."
Let any other man who believes that the Church was founded on the day of Pentecost, answer these
eleven reasons. Until such an answer is forthcoming, accept only the Word of God, and not the words of
men.
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Certainly, the debate over "when" the Church started is not a fundamental doctrine of the Christian
faith. Many good many, such as Oliver B. Greene and M.R. DeHann believe that the Church began on
the Day of Pentecost. I disagree. I personally agree with Pastor Jack Hyles that the Church began back
in Genesis with the first Christian family. The local church today is a surrogate family. In the Old
Testament, the eldest in the family was the spiritual leader, who provided guidance for the rest of the
family. Due to urbanization and the migration of the family, churches became a necessity to provide a
surrogate family. Howbeit, the Church has been around for thousands of years, going back at least
4,000 years to the "church in the wilderness." The Church could not have begun on the Day of
Pentecost.