Opening Song

Opening Prayer

Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle
in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and
they shall be created. And You shall renew the face of the
earth. O, God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did
instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same
Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever enjoy His
consolations, through Christ Our Lord, Amen.
Activity: 4 pics 1 word
O N E
H O L Y
C A T HO L I C
APOS TOL I C
 A Test Case:
One, Holy, Catholic and
Apostolic Church
Prepared by:
Honney Angel S. Arsenal BSED RE 3
 Objectives:
At the end of the lesson, the students are expected to:
a. explain comprehensively the importance of
the four attributes in the life of the
Catholic Church.
b. create a symbol that speaks of one’s experience
of the four attributes of the church .
c. thank God for the gifts of the four attributes through
a prayer.
What does each of the words below mean?

• One
• Holy
• Catholic
• Apostolic
 Introduction

The four marks of the Church are an important

element of the Catholic faith, dating back to the earliest
ecumenical councils in Church history (Nicea in 325
and First Constantinople in 381). In the Nicene Creed
we profess one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church.
This is the sole Church of Christ, which in the Creed
we profess to be one, holy, catholic, and apostolic.
These four characteristics, inseparably linked with each
other, indicate essential features of the Church and her
mission. The Church does not possess them of herself;
it is Christ who, through the Holy Spirit, makes his
Church one, holy, catholic, and apostolic, and it is he
who calls her to realize each of these qualities (CCC
no. 811).
Our profession of one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church was
not only affirmed in the first Church councils, but reaffirmed at
the Council of Trent in the 16th century. In the 19th century, the
Vatican Holy Office reiterated this teaching, writing:

The true Church of Jesus Christ was established by

divine authority, and is known by a fourfold mark, which
we assert in the Creed must be believed; and each one of
these marks so clings to the others that it cannot be
separated from them; hence it happens that Church
which truly is, and is called Catholic should at the same
time shine with the prerogatives of unity, sanctity, and
apostolic succession.
 Roman Catholic Apologetics

• Identification of the true Church with a particular

visible society
• Roman Catholic Church
• With its doctrines
• Laws
• Hierarchy
• Institutions
 Roman Catholic Apologetics

 Do you believe that only Roman Catholic Church is

the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church and
hence the only true Church? Why?

 it has its source, root and origin in the supreme

authority.
 other Churches can only regain unity by
submitting to the authority of the Roman Pontiff.
 Roman Catholic Apologetics

 One – unity in diversity.

 Catholicity – uniformity (creed, worship & law).
 Holiness – obtain sanctity (7 Sacraments,
religious vows,
priestly celibacy & etc.)
 Apostolicity – legitimate succession of popes,
legitimation of
episcopal and
priestly succession.
 Gift, Task and Promise
 “the one Church of Christ goes beyond the visible
limits of the Catholic Church.” (Vat. II- Cardinal Willebrands)
Historical Approach that the Church of Christ:
• Gift, we are called together by the Spirit of Jesus.
• Task, something to be realized a new in every changing historical
situation.
• Promise, what has to be said in the Church has also to be said
about the attributes.
The four attributes are dynamic which continuously undergo a
double conversation:
 Conversation as community to the Kingdom of God, to
disciple with Jesus
 To the world for the sake of the Kingdom.

The attributes were formulated and laid down for the first
time at the great imperial synods of the early Church,
therefore what was said at that time about the marks must
be seen in the context of the Church’s development into the
Church of the empire.
 One Church
• One is more than just a number, it also conveys unity. This
unity comes from her source which is the eternal Godhead
itself.

“The highest exemplar and source of this mystery is the

unity, in the Trinity of Persons, of one God, the Father and
the Son in the Holy Spirit (CCC 233).”

• This does not mean that disagreements do not exist, but it

does mean that doctrinally we have a united front.
 One Church
Unity is an attribute of God. God is one. Christ is one with His Father
and fervently prayed that His disciples would fully experience this
unity. Unity in the family, Church, and in all social structures are all
reflections of God’s unity; the disunity we encounter reminds us of the
lingering effects of sin in our lives and in the world. Unity requires
obedience to lawful authority, and all authority comes from God.
Those to whom God has entrusted authority are to exercise their
authority for the sake of unity. In fact, Vatican II emphasizes that
individual bishops are the visible source and foundation of unity in
their own particular Churches .
(cf. Catechism, nos. 886, 938).
 One Church
• One gift that people have is the beauty of unity.
• One person may be good at administration, another in teaching, and
yet another may be able to speak in tongues. In this way the church
has a valuable lesson for society. Every gift that a person possesses is
useful in the building up of the church. This is another way that the
church is one.
• “He leads the church in all truth, and he makes it one fellowship and
ministry, instructing and directing it through a diversity of gifts both
hierarchical and charismatic, and He adorns it with His fruits
(Norman Tanner 108).” (Vat. II, LG p4)
 One Church
The Church teaches that there are three visible bonds of unity in
the Church:
(1) profession of one faith received from the apostles;
(2) common celebration of divine worship, especially of the
sacraments; and
(3) apostolic succession through the sacrament of Holy Orders,
maintaining the fraternal concord of God’s family (Catechism, no. 815).

Catholics share a common belief, worship, and Church governance. Above all,
charity, as St. Paul writes in Colossians 3:14, binds everything together in perfect
harmony.
 One Church
How can we say the Church is one?

So we don’t pray for the unity of the Church, but we fervently

pray for the unity of all Christians (even of all Catholics!).
Vatican II and our Holy Father have made ecumenism, or the
quest for Christian unity, a real priority in our time. The division
among believers is a cause of scandal and hinders the Church
in her mission of bringing Christ to the world.
 One Church
Church today facing conflicts situations:
 “Doctrine divides but service unites”
 “Doctrine unites but politics divide”

Our unity today is a unity under the sign of the cross,

unity in service, facing division, conflict and confrontation,
and yet looking forward to the universal homecoming of
all humanity in the kingdom.
 The Church is Holy

• The church is holy based on Jesus Christ who is its

founder.
• “To those who are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to
be saints (1 Corinthians, 1:2, RSV).”
• The church is sanctified, or made holy, by virtue of its
call and mission. The church is made up of sinners
who, by the grace of God, carry out the great
commission of teaching and baptizing.
 The Church is Holy
• The church is the bride of Christ, and just as a husband and wife
are one flesh, so is the church holy because of the bridegroom.
• “United with Christ, the church is sanctified by him; through him
and with him she becomes sanctifying (CCC 237 p 824).”
• The church acknowledges that the people within are not perfect,
but are in need of God’s saving grace. Like a loving mother, the
church holds those souls closely and provides them the means of
which to be saved. The church, through its liturgy and sacraments,
provides the means of grace which Christ instituted fully and
perfectly.
 The Church is Holy
 Ecclesiastical History
- depressing story of failure, weakness and sinfulness.
“the Church, embracing sinners in her bossom, is at the same holy
and always in need of being purified, and incessantly pursue the
penance and renewal”(LG 8)
 Looking for holiness within its own walls, alienating itself from
“this evil world”.
 Holiness in poverty
 Salvation is for the sake of many, an election for mission.
 The Church is Holy
 Election of the Holy people:
- mission of peace
- working for the increase of justice in social, economic and
political terms
- always going forward under the sign of the cross and
service.
 Led in service and solidarity with the suffering
 The Church in splendor will come about in the final kingdom,
not on earth!
 The Church is Catholic

• More than the name of the Roman Catholic Church

• Saint Ignatius writes in his epistle to the Smyrna's, “Wherever

the bishop shall appear, there let the multitude [of the people]
also be; even as, wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic
Church (Alexander Roberts 701).”

• St. Ignatius tells his readers that the church is universal. It is a

church not just for the Jews and gentiles, but for all people. It is
for the rich, the poor, slave, or free because we are all children of
God and his message is to be taught to everyone.
 The Church is Catholic

• The church is also Catholic because the full deposit of

faith, sacred scripture and sacred tradition, have been
given to her. Through these deposits she can fulfill the
final command of Christ laid out in Matthew 28:19-20.
• How does this relate to other ecclesial communities?
• The church is also Catholic because of its structure of
Bishops, Priests, and deacons. Of course, the Pope, the
Bishop of Rome, has authority. This, or course, is a big
hurdle for some Protestants.
 The Church is Catholic

• However, this does not mean that they are not Christians and are
not somehow part of the universal church. They are just not in
full communion with the Church that was established by Christ.

• “Evangelizing means bringing the Good news into all strata of

humanity and its influence transforming humanity from within
and making it new”(EN 18).
 The Church is Catholic

 Form Partisanship, historical form of universal

love in a world in which people oppress and hate
each other.
 Partisanship to the poor, oppressed and the
handicapped in society.
 Christian partisan intervention should never lose
sight of the universal goal.
 The Church is Apostolic

• Contrary to what some think, scripture is not self-interpreting and

interpretation can change based on one’s presupposition. The church is
apostolic because the teaching office of the church, the Magisterium, was
given the divine task to interpret scripture (Hitchcock 79).
• “And they prayed and said, ‘Lord, you know the hearts of all men, show
which one of these two you have chosen to take the place in this ministry
and apostleship from which Judas turned aside, to go to his own place.
(New American Bible).” Acts 1:24-25
• Since the apostles replaced Judas, it is only natural that this was meant to
continue. History shows that the apostles appointed men who would take
over their ministry (LG 20).
 The Church is Apostolic

• The apostles were given the authority from Christ to establish

it.
• “the church was built on the foundation of the Apostles, with
the help of the Holy Spirit, the Church keeps and hands on the
teaching, she continues to be taught, sanctified, and guided by
Christ through their successors (Catholic Church 247)”. CCC p. 857
• As previously stated, the Catholic church is made up of
bishops along with the Pope. This group of men have the great
honor of carrying on the teaching of the apostles. This is
known as the teaching office of the Magisterium.
 The Eschatological Component
 One, Holy, Catholic are eschatological concepts.
- designations of the kingdom
- a promise for the future
- they point back to the historical Church
- the community of pilgrims
- gift and task.
 Apostolicity is a historical designation pointing to the apostolic
mission which will come to an end when the church is glorified
in the kingdom.
 The Eschatological Component
 “the Church of Christ” and “the Catholic Church”
- avoids the identification of the two
- the positive sense it expresses that the one
true Church of Christ subsists on earth in the
Catholic Church.
 Special responsibility to search for a greater unity in
freedom and diversity, catholicity in partisanship,
holiness and poverty, and apostolicity and service.
 The Eschatological Component

 Invitation for dialogue, dialogue with other

churches, other religious traditions
 Same path towards the oneness, catholicity
and holiness of the kingdom.
References:

https://catholicexchange.com/ecclesiology-four-marks
https://sfayouth.net/four-marks-of-the-church
Doing Ecclesiology by Lode Wostyn
Thank
You