Roman Catholic Church
History of Catholic Church
When the Germanic peoples invaded the Roman Empire territories in the early middle ages, what followed was a period of total chaos. The empire was taken over by barbarian kingdoms causing the ancient culture to disappear though the church preserved a part of it. The pope of that time made Charlemagne the emperor so as to resurrect the Western Roman Empire. During the middle ages, there was reformation in the Catholic Church at the same time when the crusades were taking place. This is the time when great cathedrals were built with the pope growing to be a very powerful and prestigious figure, with the most notable one being Pope Innocence III (1198-1216) (All about Religion, 2010). The papacy decline took place in the late Middle Ages with the popes seat, moving to Avignon (French border) from Rome. This was the time of what is commonly referred to as Great Western Schism (1378-1423), with as many as three persons claiming to be popes. However, the council met and the restoration of one pope took place. It is after this time that the popes began constructing beautiful palaces and declared war against Italian potentates. Between 1453 and 1600, the church underwent Counter Reformation after America was conquered and after the protestant reformation. It is until 1870 that the First Vatican Council was held and where the pope was declared infallible. Christianity became universal as more parts of the world received missionaries. The Roman Catholic Church experienced further reforms in 1962 when the second Vatican council met (Norman, 2007).
Catholic Beliefs
Roman Catholics have beliefs, some of which differ from those of the other protestant denominations. The first of this belief is that the churchs authority lies within the churchs hierarchy and not within a believer (Rudd, 2010). Secondly the Roman Catholic Church believes that truth is in the bible as inferred by the church but also as found in the traditions of the church. Another notable aspect of the Catholic Church dissimilar with other denominations is that the bible they use has more books than that of a protestant bible. They have additional books that they refer to as apocrypha (Fairchild, 2010).
The other notable feature of the church is that its clergy only consists of the unmarried male. Moreover, Roman Catholics believe that forgiveness can be done through the help of a church priest when confessing (Hanna, 1911). In addition to believe in the presence of hell, the Roman Catholics also include purgatory and limbo in its definition. There is a belief in the Roman Catholic Church that Mary the mother of Jesus was without the original sin during her birth. In addition, they believe that she is below Jesus but above other Christians and can act as their mediators. Catholics pray to God directly but also to Mary and other saints who act as their intercessors. Regarding religious doctrines, the Catholics hold it that the pope is infallible. Regarding salvation, the Roman Catholics believe that it by works, sacraments and faith while the Protestants believe that salvation is only by faith (Fairchild, 2010).
Interview
Under the instructions given by our professor to visit a place of worship of a religion different from ours, I visited St. Elizabeth of Hungary Raeford North Carolina located at 124 Palmer street Raeford, NC 28376. The parish seems extremely tight knit and embraces their religion. They strive to embrace their faith through living according to the Gospel. Everyone was friendly. The church mission statement was written clearly We, the parishioners of St. Elizabeth of Hungary Catholic Church, embrace our baptismal responsibility to enrich our personal, family and communal faith by living according to the challenge of the Gospel and by spreading the Good News. As followers of Jesus, we reach out to the special needs of all. I had booked an appointment with the priest in charge and was able to interview him in his office.
First, he pointed out that religion has shaped his life so much as it has helped him to know what is right and wrong. It has been a moral compass for him and his family. Regarding the hardest challenges that are found when practicing Catholicism, the priest stated that it is remembering what is religiously immoral according to his religion. He added that Catholicism has so many of such that he sometimes lives in fear of doing something he is not supposed to. He however added that such challenges are the reason why there is Penance. He described Penance as a sacrament of the law that was instituted by Jesus, whereby the forgiveness of sins which are committed after baptism is offered via the absolution of the priest to those who confess and repent.
I asked him what the important holidays and traditions in Catholicism are and he named Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, Ash Wednesday, Lent, Good Friday, Easter, and Palm Sunday. He added that the church worship is expressed through rites such as baptism, confirmation, ordinations, weddings, burial rites, penitential rites, singing and burial rites. When I asked him why the Roman Catholics make a sign of the cross, he answered that it is seen a statement of belief the belief in the Trinity the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. It is a vow to defend this belief.
I also wanted to know how the Roman Catholic Church is organized. He answered that locally, it is the Parish usually headed by a Priest. The second tier is called the Diocese headed by a Bishop. The third level is a Province headed by an Archbishop. Conference which is a collection of all the Bishops from a particular country is next. Lastly is The Roman Curia. This is where the Catholic Church, as a universal whole, is departmentalized for governance and guidance. Each department is seen over by a Cardinal. However, he clarified that the hierarchy of the church is simple. At the top is the pope who is the world head at St. John Lateran Basilica, the only catholic church that has three authority levels world head, diocese head and local parish. The next level of authority is the bishops who head dioceses and preach in a cathedral (local church). The next in the authority is the priest who heads a parish and finally the Catholics.
In response to whether the Catholics worships Mary or not, he stated that they do not worship her but they respect and acknowledge her because she is the mother of Jesus. He also defended his religion stating that his religion does not worship idols (statues) but that the statues found in churches and shrines are just visual reminders of the heroes and saints in the faith. He added that Catholics do not pray at the foot of any statue. I wanted to know why Roman Catholics confess their sins to a priest and the response was there are many opportunities to not adhere to the Catholic religious belief doctrines. Therefore, the priest is a representative of God and Gods mercy and he is able to forgive them and deal them penance for those sins.
On the question of why the Roman Catholics refer to the priests as Fathers, he added that it is a term of respect dating back to the beginning of Catholicism and the founding fathers of the religion. Lastly, I asked him what purgatory is and he explained that it is period of purification of our souls after death. According to him, this is because of the sins we have on our soul upon death or throughout life. Comparison between Roman Catholicism and Judaism
There is a close relationship between Judaism and Christianity and in this case Roman Catholicism, both theologically and historically. Jesus Christ of whom Christianity as a religion is based, his twelve disciples as well as the majority of the authors of the New Testament were all professing Jews. In fact the early Christians used to practice Jewish religious beliefs in addition to worshipping in the temples and synagogues and marking Jewish festivals. The family of Jesus Christ was in fact Jewish and He himself used to quote Jewish bible. The followers of Jesus used to believe that he was the Messiah (Greek Christ) an important Jewish figure that had been prophesied in the Bible and whom all had waited for salvation. Though the early Christians also regarded themselves as the Jews, they later regarded their new sect as different from Judaism. The Christian council that had been called together by the apostles led by Peter and James made conclusions that those who had converted to Christianity from paganism needed not to observe the ritual laws of the Jews (Religion Facts, 2009).
There are many different similarities and differences between Christianity (and in this case Roman Catholicism) and Judaism. The first difference between these two religions is that Judaism believes in the idea of monotheism, the notion that there is only one God. They have often stated that God cannot be subdivided, whether united mysteriously or not. On the other hand, the Roman Catholicism holds to the belief of trinitarianism, meaning that God is one in three, God the Father, God the son and God the Holy Spirit. Though the Roman Catholicism have made it clear that their religion is monotheistic, the Jews disagree with this claiming that the idea of trinity weakens the notion of God being one. Judaism sees the idea of trinitarianism as a compromise to the conception of many gods by the pagans (Bezzina, 2010).
The second main difference between Roman Catholicism and Judaism is on the view of Jesus as the Messiah and the savior of human kind, which is a belief among the Roman Catholics. According to the Catholics, Jesus is God incarnate, who became flesh to take away the sins of people and free those who accepted him from sin. The Jews do not believe that Jesus was a son of God or the Messiah but just another wonderful story teller and teacher. According to Judaism, Jesus never rose from the dead and cannot save any soul and that only God can do so. Judaism does not accept that Jesus can forgive sins and that only God can do so after one prays for forgiveness from Him as well as from people who one has sinned against. Though Roman Catholics believe that Jesus replaced the Jewish law, Judaism still believes that the commandments and the Jewish law are binding even presently. As opposed to the Roman Catholics who believe that Jesus is the son of God, the Jews believe that the Messiah will be a human being who will bring peace on earth (Bezzina, 2010).
The Roman Catholics just like other Christian groups believe that there is no other way a Christian can be saved but only through Jesus Christ by his grace which he manifested by his sacrificial death on the cross. Judaism on the other hand refutes the claim that human beings were born with the original sin. Jews state that man is not born good or bad but has inclinations for both. He however has the freewill to choose good or bad. To the Jews, human beings decide what to act for they are not helpless when faced by a temptation (Bezzina, 2010).
While Roman Catholics are more concerned with where their destiny will be after they die, the Jews are less concerned. Judaism focuses more on how one can live good lives on earth so that they can improve their world, not being more concerned with life after death until the right time. Judaism does not have a vivid sense of hell and heaven, with various places in hell meant for different punishments. The idea that Judaism brings about is that God has set apart the afterlife to offer absolute justice (as well as final redemption for wicked) (Bezzina, 2010).
Similarities between Roman Catholicism and Judaism
Due to the fact that Christianity was born in the Jewish culture, there are several similarities between the two religions. First, both the Jews and Catholics regard the Old Testament as being canonical and thus authoritative. Though Judaism does not regard the New Testament as canonical, both groups read and study the Old Testament from Genesis to Malachi (Religion Facts, 2009). The other major similarity between Roman Catholicism and Judaism is that both religions as monotheistic. Judaism believes in one God Yahweh or Jehovah while Roman Christians believe in one in three God. Both religious groups regard idolatry or polytheism and as a great sin before God. Both religious groups believe that in addition to God, there are other spiritual beings that include angels and demons. Both Roman Catholicism and Judaism though may differ slightly generally believe in eternal reward and punishment after ones death. The concept of Heaven and Hell appears in the two religions. For one to receive salvation, both religions agree to the fact that one has to perform good deeds while on the earth. Both religions regard any form of offence against God will whether in deeds, words or thoughts as sin. In addition, though both Roman Catholics and Jews regard abortion as a sin against God, both view it as permissible in some circumstances as when attempting to save the life of the mother.
Conclusion
Despite the fact that the Roman Catholic Church is the largest Christian group in the world, its structure has enabled it to remain united. All the members recognize the authority of the pope as the head of the Catholic Church. In addition, the church has beliefs that bind its membership though some may be different from those of other Christian groups. There are several similarities and differences between Judaism and Catholicism. The similarities are due to the fact that Christianity originated from Judaism in one way or the other. The differences however should not be used to bring conflicts between the two religious groups but as a way to appreciate each other. ChristianJudaism forums should be organized to discuss common issues in the group and how both can try to tackle them.
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