Pope in Rome the Vicar of Christ the History of the Church of Jesus Christ

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The Roman Catholics the pope as Christ's vicar, who means, "Father" or "Pope," because Peter believed

in Jesus Christ and obeyed His words. Traditional Roman Catholic dogma teaches that Jesus declared He

would build His church upon the Apostle Peter (Matt.16.17-19). Thus we see that in Rome both parts of

the Church were we know Jesus Christ, the human face of God, the human history of God in this world!

Who is the Bishop of Rome, the Vicar of Christ on earth?



While the Pope to this day proclaims himself the Vicar of Christ, Jesus' the pretensions of the Roman

church as representatives of this Church of Christ is a human institution first and foremost. To the

supreme Governor of the world I would have preferred, of course, “the pope is the Vicar of Christ in the

Catholic Church.

Strictly speaking, the Pope is the Bishop of Rome in that he has all ordinary, proper, and immediatepower that is required .As a permanent assembly, Jesus chose Peter to be their head. Only the Pope, as

the Vicar of Christ, can appoint bishops a history of Catholic Church views. The pope of Rome is called

the Vicar of the Son of God (Vicarius Filii Dei).The Roman Catholic Church teaches that Jesus Christ

ordained the twelve apostles. History of the Popes of Rome, from Saint Peter, the First Bishop "Know,

prince, that the vicars of Christ (the popes) are above the judgment of the Holy, Catholic, Roman Church

to be the only true Church of Jesus Christ. Roman Catholics believe that they are the Church that Christ

founded upon Peter. Christ has given the keys of the kingdom, and made them the Vicar of Christ.

For now it is important to know that because Peter established the Church at Rome (along with St. Paul)

and ruled there Peter and they are in the history of the Church exercised authority Pope, major issue

recurs claims to be the Vicar of Christ the Pope, the history of the Catholic Church Bishop of Rome and

Jesus Christ.

La Palabra revelada de Dios es la constitución de la Iglesia. Esta es la Carta Magna de

nuestra fe cristiana. El Papa es el tutor legal de nuestra constitución religiosa como el

guardián de nuestra constitución civil.

Cuando surge una controversia en la Iglesia en relación con el sentido de la Escritura el

Sumo Pontífice, antes de decidir el caso, recoge él sus venerables colegas, los

cardenales de la Iglesia en todo, o que él llama un consejo de sus conjueces de la fe, los

obispos de la cristiandad , o se puede recurrir a otras luces que el Espíritu Santo puede sugerir a él. Entonces, después de madura reflexión y de oración, que pronuncia el juicio

y su sentencia es definitiva, irrevocable e infalible.

Si la Iglesia Católica no fue fortificada por este tribunal supremo divinamente

establecida, sería disuelta, al igual que las sectas a su alrededor, en mil pedazos y la

anarquía religiosa pronto seguiría. Pero a través de este tribunal infalible su maravillosa

unidad se conserva en todo el mundo. Esta doctrina es la piedra angular del arco de la

fe católica y, lejos de suscitar la oposición, que debe comandar la admiración

incondicional de toda mente reflectante.

These explanations being premised, let us now briefly consider the grounds of the doctrine itself.

The following passages of the Gospel, spoken at different times, were addressed exclusively to Peter:

"Thou art Peter; and on this rock I will build My Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."

"I, the Supreme Architect of the universe," says our Savior, "will establish a Church which is to last till

the end of time. I will lay the foundation of this Church so deep and strong on the rock of truth that the

winds and storms of error shall not prevail against it. Thou, O Peter, shalt be the foundation of this

Church. It shall never fall, because thou shalt never be shaken; and thou shalt never be shaken, because



thou shalt rest on Me, the rock of truth." The Church, of which Peter is the foundation, is declared to be

impregnable--that is, proof against error. How can you suppose an immovable edifice built on a

tottering foundation? For it is not the building that sustains the foundation, but it is the foundation that

supports the building.

"And I will give to thee the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven." Thou shalt hold the keys of truth with whichto open to the faithful the treasures of heavenly science. "Whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be

bound also in Heaven." The judgment which thou shalt pronounce on earth I will ratify in heaven. Surely

the God of Truth is incapable of sanctioning an untruthful judgment.

"Behold, Satan hath desired to have you (My Apostles), that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayer

for thee (Peter) that thy faith fail not; and thou, being once converted, confirm thy brethren It is worthy

of note that Jesus prays only for Peter. And why for Peter in particular? Because on his shoulders was to

rest the burden of the Church. Our Lord prays for two things: First--That the faith of Peter and of his

successors might not fail. Second--That Peter would confirm his brethren in the faith, "in order," as St.

Leo says, "that the strength given by Christ to Peter should descend on the Apostles."

Annuario Pontificio, the official Vatican yearbook, carries 8 traditional titles for the Pope, but does not

include the "Patriarch of the West" designation that appeared in previous editions. The first ceremonial

copy of the Annuario was presented to Pope Benedict on February 18, 2006.

The Pope is now identified in the Annuario as: "Bishop of Rome, Vicar of Jesus Christ, Successor of the

Prince of the Apostles, Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church, Primate of Italy, Archbishop and

Metropolitan of the Roman province, Sovereign of the State of the Vatican City, Servant of the Servants

of God."

Pope Benedict, who reportedly made the decision himself to drop the title, evidently wished toeliminate any notion that the Holy See represents the Church of "the West," and is therefore separate

from the Eastern tradition.

The designation "Patriarch of the West," which traditionally appeared in that list of titles just before

"Primate of Italy," has rarely been employed since the Great Schism of 1054, which separated the

Orthodox churches from the Holy See. From the Orthodox perspective, authority in the Church could be

traced to the five original patriarchates of Rome, Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem.

But some Catholic theologians-- notably the late Cardinal Yves Congar-- have argued that the term

"Patriarch of the West" has no clear historical or theological basis. It was introduced into papal

nomenclature in 1870, at the time of the First Vatican Council. Pope Benedict chose to remove the title

at a time when discussions with the Orthodox churches have centered on the issue of papal primacy.

The Holy Father wishes to emphasize the service that the Bishop of Rome performs for the entire

Christian community, as the focus of unity in the universal Church. Pope John Paul II -- who reportedly

considered dropping the "Patriarch of the West" title during his own pontificate-- had also emphasizes

this service to the universal Church. And Pope Paul VI made the same point by signing the documents of

Vatican II as Episcopus Catholicae Ecclesiae, confirming that the Bishop of Rome is the pastor of the

universal Church.



The titles accorded to the Roman Pontiff have developed over the centuries, with the different

designations reflecting the shifts in perception of the Pope's power and apostolic authority. The very

term "pope" was not always used exclusively in reference to the Bishop of Rome. It was applied to other

bishops until the 11th century, when Pope Gregory VII issued an order that the title Pope should be

reserved for the successor to St. Peter.

The first title listed for the Pontiff, "Bishop of Rome," sets out the primary function of the Pope, who is

elected by the clergy of Rome (represented by the College of Cardinals in a conclave). The richest of his

titles is "Vicar of Christ," which refers not to his temporal power but to his divine commission. This title

came into use in the 5th and 6th centuries.

Beginning in the 12th century, as Roman Pontiffs claimed greater authority over diocesan bishops, new

titles were introduced. Pope Innocent IV (1234-1254) claimed the title "Vicar of God"-- a term that is no

longer used. The First Vatican Council definitively established the authority of the Pope, as the primacy

conferred by Christ upon Peter and his successors. Vatican II confirmed the titles "Vicar of Christ" and

"Successor of Peter."

The term "Sovereign Pontiff" can be traced back to the close of the 5th century. The title, which has its

origins in the title for the Roman emperors of an earlier era, was initially applied to all metropolitan

archbishops. Again it was in the 11th century that the title came to be applied exclusively to the Bishop

of Rome. The addition of the phrase "of the Universal Church" is a more recent alteration of this title.

The final title attached to the Pope, "Servant of the Servants of God," was used by Church leaders

including Sts. Augustine and Benedict. It was not reserved for the Pope until the 13th century. The

documents of Vatican II reinforce the understanding of this title as a reference to the Pope's role as a

function of collegial authority , in which the Bishop of Rome serves the world's bishops.

Saint Peter by Peter Paul Rubens depicting the saint as Pope (1611-1612) –

1. Pope St. Peter (32-67)

St. Peter held a primacy amongst the twelve disciples that earned him the title “Prince of the Apostles.”

This primacy of St. Peter was solidified when he was appointed by Jesus to the Office of the Vicar –

demonstrated by Christ giving St. Peter the Keys to the Kingdom. To understand St. Peter, one must first

understand Christ and the Church Christ came to establish. Jesus is the “Son of David” and his life and

ministry fulfilled the Old Testament prophecies of the New Davidic Kingdom and New Jerusalem; hence,

we look to the historic kingdom of King David as a guide to the New Davidic Kingdom. King David had a

vicar that ruled his kingdom when David was absent and the sign of authority for this vicar was the keysof the kingdom. In the New Davidic Kingdom, Christ the Son of David gave the keys to his Vicar to guide

the Kingdom until the return of Christ – we now refer to this vicar as “the pope.” SPL has written

extensively on this issue in 10 Biblical Reasons Christ Founded the Papacy and 13 Reasons St. Peter Was

the Prince of the Apostles.



Saint Peter the saint as Pope (1611-1612)

2. Pope St. Linus (67-76)

All the ancient records of the Roman bishops which have been handed down to us by St. Irenaeus, Julius

Africanus, St. Hippolytus, Eusebius, also the Liberian catalogue of 354, place the name of Linus directly

after that of the Prince of the Apostles, St. Peter. These records are traced back to a list of the Roman

bishops which existed in the time of Pope Eleutherus (about 174-189), when Irenaeus wrote his book

“Adversus haereses”. As opposed to this testimony, we cannot accept as more reliable Tertullian’s

assertion, which unquestionably places St. Clement (De praescriptione, xxii) after the Apostle Peter, as

was also done later by other Latin scholars (Jerome, Illustrious Men 15). The Roman list in Irenaeus has

undoubtedly greater claims to historical authority. This author claims that Pope Linus is the Linus

mentioned by St. Paul in his 2 Timothy 4:21. The passage by Irenaeus (Against Heresies III.3.3) reads:

After the Holy Apostles (Peter and Paul) had founded and set the Church in order (in Rome) they gave

over the exercise of the episcopal office to Linus. The same Linus is mentioned by St. Paul in his Epistle

to Timothy. His successor was Anacletus.

We cannot be positive whether this identification of the pope as being the Linus mentioned in 2 Timothy

4:21 goes back to an ancient and reliable source, or originated later on account of the similarity of thename.



3. Pope St. Anacletus (Cletus) (76-88)

The second successor of St. Peter. Whether he was the same as Cletus, who is also called Anencletus as

well as Anacletus, has been the subject of endless discussion. Irenaeus, Eusebius, Augustine, Optatus,

use both names indifferently as of one person. Tertullian omits him altogether. To add to the confusion,

the order is different. Thus Irenaeus has Linus, Anacletus, Clement; whereas Augustine and Optatus put

Clement before Anacletus. On the other hand, the “Catalogus Liberianus”, the “Carmen contra

Marcionem” and the “Liber Pontificalis”, all most respectable for their antiquity, make Cletus and

Anacletus distinct from each other; while the “Catalogus Felicianus” even sets the latter down as a

Greek, the former as a Roman.

4. Pope St. Clement I (88-97)

Pope Clement I (called CLEMENS ROMANUS to distinguish him from the Alexandrian), is the first of the

successors of St. Peter of whom anything definite is known, and he is the first of the “Apostolic Fathers”.

His feast is celebrated 23 November. He has left one genuine writing, a letter to the Church of Corinth,

and many others have been attributed to him.

According to Tertullian, writing c. 199, the Roman Church claimed that Clement was ordained by St.

Peter (De Praescript., xxxii), and St. Jerome tells us that in his time “most of the Latins” held that

Clement was the immediate successor of the Apostle (Illustrious Men 15). St. Jerome himself in several

other places follows this opinion, but here he correctly states that Clement was the fourth pope.



In defense of the historical fact that the “Early Church” was also the Catholic Church, SPL composed a list

entitled The Apostles Appointed Bishops: 9 Teachings from St. Clement AD 97. The list shows a very

early snapshot of the Early Church and its Catholicity.

5. Pope St. Evaristus (97-105)

Date of birth unknown; died about 107. In the Liberian Catalogue his name is given as Aristus. In papal

catalogues of the second century used by Irenaeus and Hippolytus, he appears as the fourth successor

of St. Peter, immediately after St Clement. The same lists allow him eight years of reign, covering the

end of the first and the beginning of the second century (from about 98 or 99 to about 106 or 107). The

earliest historical sources offer no authentic data about him. In his “Ecclesiastical History” Eusebius says

merely that he succeeded Clement in the episcopate of the Roman Church which fact was already

known from St. Irenæus. This order of succession is undoubtedly correct.

6. Pope St. Alexander I (105-115)

St. Irenaeus of Lyons, writing in the latter quarter of the second century, reckons him as the fifth pope in

succession from the Apostles, though he says nothing of his martyrdom.

His pontificate is variously dated by critics, e.g. 106-115 (Duchesne) or 109-116 (Lightfoot). In Christian

antiquity he was credited with a pontificate of about ten years (Eusebius, Church History IV.1) and there

is no reason to doubt that he was on the “catalogue of bishops” drawn up at Rome by Hegesippus

(Eusebius, IV, xxii, 3) before the death of Pope Eleutherius (c. 189). According to a tradition extant in the

Roman Church at the end of the fifth century, and recorded in the Liber Pontificalis he suffered a

martyr’s death by decapitation on the Via Nomentana in Rome, 3 May.



7. Pope St. Sixtus I (115-125)

Pope St. Sixtus I (in the oldest documents, Xystus is the spelling used for the first three popes of that

name), succeeded St. Alexander and was followed by St. Telesphorus. According to the “Liberian

Catalogue” of popes, he ruled the Church during the reign of Adrian “a conulatu Nigri et Aproniani usque

Vero III et Ambibulo”, that is, from 117 to 126. Eusebius, who in his “Chronicon” made use of a

catalogue of popes different from the one he used in his “Historia ecclesiastica”, states in his

“Chronicon” that Sixtus I was pope from 114 to 124, while in his “History” he makes him rule from 114

to 128. All authorities agree that he reigned about ten years. He was a Roman by birth, and his father’s

name was Pastor.

8. Pope St. Telesphorus (125-136)

St. Telesphorus was the seventh Roman bishop in succession from the Apostles, and, according to the

testimony of St. Irenæus (Against Heresies III.3.3), suffered a glorious martyrdom. Eusebius (Church

History IV.7, IV.14) places the beginning of his pontificate in the twelfth of Hadrian’s reign (128-129), his

death in the first year of the reign of Antoninus Pius (138-139).

9. Pope St. Hyginus (136-140)



Reigned about 138-142; succeeded Pope Telesphorus, who, according to Eusebius (Church History

IV.15), died during the first year of the reign of the Emperor Antonius Pius — in 138 or 139, therefore.

But the chronology of these bishops of Rome cannot be determined with any degree of exactitude by

the help of the authorities at our disposal today. According to the “Liber Pontificalis”, Hyginus was a

Greek by birth. The further statement that he was previously a philosopher is probably founded on the

similarity of his name with that of two Latin authors.

10. Pope St. Pius I (140-155)

Date of birth unknown; pope from about 140 to about 154. According to the earliest list of the popes,

given by Irenaeus (Against Heresies II.31; cf. Eusebius, Church History V.6), Pius was the ninth successor

of St. Peter. The dates given in the Liberian Catalogue for his pontificate (146-61) rest on a false

calculation of earlier chroniclers, and cannot be accepted. The only chronological datum we possess is

supplied by the year of St. Polycarp of Smyrna’s death, which may be referred with great certainty to

155-6.

During the pontificate of Pius the Roman Church was visited by various heretics, who sought to

propagate their false doctrine among the faithful of the capital. The Gnostic Valentinus, who had made

his appearance under Pope Hyginus, continued to sow his heresy, apparently not without success. The

Gnostic Cerdon was also active in Rome at this period, during which Marcion arrived in the capital (see

MARCIONITES). Excluded from communion by Pius, the latter founded his heretical body (Irenaeus,

Against Heresies III.3). But Catholic teachers also visited the Roman Church, the most important being

St. Justin, who expounded the Christian teachings during the pontificate of Pius and that of his

successor. A great activity thus marks the Christian community in Rome, which stands clearly

conspicuous as the centre of the Church.

THE LIFE AND TEACHINGS OF JESUS CHRIST

The point of origin and central figure of the Christian faith is our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, Son of

God. Jesus was born of a virgin in Bethlehem (Matthew 1:18 - 2:23), in fulfillment of the prophecies of

the Scriptures, such as Isaiah 7:14 and Micah 5:2. To avoid Herod and the Slaughter of the Innocents,

Joseph took flight to Egypt with Mary and the infant Jesus. Upon their return, they settled in Nazareth,

where Jesus grew and spent his childhood and early years as an adult. Hardly anything is known of his

life at that time except that at age 12 he was found teaching in the Temple in Jerusalem (Luke 2:41).



The life of Jesus is best described in the Four Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, while his

teachings are presented by all the writers of the New Testament of the Bible.

Jesus began his public ministry when he was about thirty years old. He spent much of his ministry in

Galilee, preaching in Capernaum (John 6:59), Bethsaida (Mark 8:22), Magdala (Matthew 15:39), and

other towns along the Sea of Galilee. He took many journeys to surrounding areas, such as CaesareaPhilippi (Matthew 16:13), Cana (John 2:1-11), and Tyre (Mark 7:24-30). When his hour came near, he

headed toward Jerusalem (Luke 9:51).

Jesus often taught in parables, an ancient Eastern literary genre. A parable is a narrative that presents

comparisons to teach an important moral lesson. The Parables are recorded in the Synoptic Gospels of

Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Some parables are common to all three Synoptic Gospels, such as the Parable

of the Sower (Matthew 13:3-23, Mark 4:2-20, and Luke 8:4-15). Matthew relates ten Parables on the

Kingdom of Heaven, seven of which occur in Chapter 13 and are central to his Gospel. Examples of

parables unique to each Gospel are the Weeds Among the Wheat (Matthew 13:24-30), the Laborers in

the Vineyard (Matthew 20:1-16); the Growing Seed (Mark 4:26-29); the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-

37); the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32); Lazarus and the Rich Man (Luke 16:19-31); and the Pharisee and

the Publican (Luke 18:9-14).

Jesus performs many miracles, demonstrating his power over nature and spirits, and thus confirming

that the Kingdom of God is at hand (Mark 1:15). In a physical miracle, such as making the blind see, or

walking on water, or calming a storm, the laws of the universe are suspended through divine

intervention. In a moral miracle, such as forgiveness of sins or driving out demons, the blessing of Jesus

purifies the spirit. In Mark 2:1-12, Jesus performed a physical miracle, healing the paralytic, to

demonstrate a moral miracle, the forgiveness of sins. Only two miracles appear in all four Gospels - hisown Resurrection, the greatest miracle of them all; and the feeding of the 5000 through the

multiplication of the loaves, found in Matthew 14:13-21, Mark 6:30-44, Luke 9:10-17, and John 6:1-14.

The Gospel of John enumerates seven miracles of Jesus, as well as records three visits of Christ to his

disciples following his Resurrection. The Gospels record twelve miracles in Capernaum, more than

anywhere else in the Holy Land.

His public ministry lasted about three years, prior to his Passion, Crucifixion, and Resurrection. His

mission was one of love, mercy, and peace (John 15:12-13).

Christ Jesus is the fulfillment of salvation history, and the mediator and fullness of all revelation. Jesus

Christ is the Son of God, the Word made flesh. He is the Authority on Scripture (Luke 24:25-27, Galatians

1:11-12, 2 Timothy 3:15-17, 2 Peter 1:21). We refer you to our home page, Jesus Christ our Savior for a

more complete discussion. 1, 3, 5-7, 9-14

THE APOSTOLIC AGE AND THE EARLY CHRISTIAN CHURCH



Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God which he promised

beforehand through his prophets in the holy scriptures, the gospel concerning his Son, who was

descended from David according to the flesh and designated Son of God in power according to the Spirit

of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received

grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the

nations

St. Paul to the Romans 1:1-5

Jesus named the Apostles, often called the Twelve (John 6:67), to be with him and carry on his ministry:

Simon Peter and his brother Andrew; James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and

Nathaniel Bartholomew, Thomas and Matthew, James the son of Alpheus, Jude Thaddeus, Simon the

Zealot; and Judas Iscariot, the one who betrayed him (Matthew 10:1-4, Mark 3:14-19, Luke 6:13-16, Acts

1:13). Following the Resurrection, Matthias was chosen to replace Judas Iscariot (Acts 1:26).

To the question of Jesus, "Who do you say that I am?", it was Peter the fisherman that answered, "You

are the Messiah, the Son of the living God" (Matthew 16:15-16). Whereupon Jesus responded, " You are

Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church...I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven;

whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed

in heaven" (Matthew 16:18-19).

Prior to his Ascension, Jesus commissioned his disciples to be his witnesses to the ends of the earth (Acts

1:8). The Holy Spirit descended at Pentecost on about 120 Apostles and disciples in the Upper Room

(Acts 1:15, 2:1-4). This strengthened the Apostles to spread the word of Christ Jesus. The Acts of the

Apostles describes the infancy period of the Church, a time following the Pentecost when Christianity

spread like wildfire. The Apostles all gathered in Jerusalem (Acts 15) to discuss whether Gentiles who

had been converted to Christianity had to observe all the ceremonial precepts of the Mosaic Law. Thisgathering of the Apostles became known as the Council of Jerusalem, and set the pattern of future

Councils to resolve issues that arose within the Church.

The Conversion of Paul, occurred on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:1-9). Saul persecuted the Church, and

consented to the death of the first martyr Stephen, and had men and women who lived the Way thrown

into prison (Acts 8:1-3). But while going to Damascus, Saul was struck from his horse by a great light, and

a voice asked "Why do you persecute me?" Saul asked who spoke. Christ identified himself with his

Church: "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting" (Acts 9:4-5). Saul experienced the grace of conversion,

and Paul, as Apostle to the Gentiles, became just as passionate spreading the Christian faith as he was in

persecuting the Church.

The Acts of the Apostles then primarily describes the missionary efforts of Peter and Paul. Peter and

Paul first went to Antioch (Galatians 2:11). Peter then went to Rome, while Paul made three missionary

journeys from Antioch (see following map), visiting many places, as far round as Illyricum (Romans

15:19). The Acts of the Apostles concludes with Paul's fourth missionary journey to Malta and Rome as a

prisoner in chains. Saints Peter and Paul were both martyred in Rome during the persecution of

Christians 64-68 AD by Nero, Emperor of the Roman Empire. St. Peter was crucified head down and St.



Paul was beheaded, both probably from 64-68 AD. In fact, all of the Apostles were martyred for having

preached the Gospel, except for St. John the Evangelist.

Heeding the message of Jesus to Go therefore and teach all nations (Matthew 28:19-20), the Apostles

traveled to all parts of the known world to spread Christianity. Andrew, Peter's brother, was the first to

be called to follow Jesus, and is called by the Byzantine Church the Protoclete, meaning the first called.Andrew evangelized Byzantium, and was crucified in Patras, Greece. James, the son of Zebedee and

brother of John, stayed in Jerusalem, but is also believed to have preached in Spain; he is the only

Apostle to have his martyrdom recorded in the Bible (Acts 12:1-2). John, the son of Zebedee and the

brother of James, was the "one Jesus loved." He is called the Theologian for his mystical writings - the

Gospel of John and three Letters. Christ on the Cross entrusted his mother Mary to John (19:26-27), who

took her with him to Ephesus; he was later exiled to the island of Patmos, where he wrote the Book of

Revelation in his elderly years. The other James, son of Alpheus, is sometimes called James the Less, to

distinguish him from James the Son of Zebedee. He played an important role as head of the Church of

Jerusalem, and writer of the Letter of James in the Bible. According to the historian Flavius Josephus, he

was stoned to death in 62 AD. Tradition has it that Matthew went to Antioch and wrote his Gospel therein Hebrew or Aramaic. Philip preached the Gospel in Phrygia, Asia Minor and was martyred in Hierapolis.

Nathaniel, Son of Talmay, or in Aramaic Nathaniel Bartholomew, and Jude Thaddeus, the author of the

Letter of Jude, brought the faith to Armenia. Thomas Didymus, or Thomas the Twin, is known as

Doubting Thomas, for questioning the Lord's Resurrection. But when he put his hand in the Lord's side,

he reacted with a beautiful profession of faith: "My Lord and My God: (John 20:28). Thomas traveled

through Chaldea all the way to India! Little is known about Simon the Zealot or Matthias. 1, 3, 5, 7, 12-

14



ST. IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH AND CHURCH LEADERSHIP

St. Ignatius of Antioch was Bishop of Syria about 75-110 AD, and is one of the Apostolic Fathers of the

Church. The Apostolic Fathers were a group of early Christian writers from about 75-150 AD, such as

Ignatius, Clement of Rome, Polycarp of Smyrna, and the author(s) of the Didache. Tradition has it St.

Peter, on his trip to Antioch to meet St. Paul (Galatians 2:11), designated Ignatius to become Bishop. St.

Ignatius was the first to use the term Catholic Church in his Letter to the Smryneans (8:2):

"Wherever the bishop appears let the congregation be present;

just as wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church."

The word catholic means universal and refers to the universal Church of Jesus Christ.

Ignatius of Antioch would not worship the Emperor Trajan, and thus was placed in chains and ordered to

Rome to be thrown to the lions in the Roman Coliseum. He wrote 7 letters to the local Churches on the

way to Rome. He wrote 4 letters from the town of Smyrna, to the Churches in Ephesus, Tralles,

Magnesia, and Rome. He wrote to the Church of Philadelphia and Smyrna from the town of Troas, as

well as to Polycarp, then the young Bishop of Smyrna.





Early Christianity, in spite of persecution, fluorished primarily in five centers: Jerusalem, the birthplace

of Christianity, and Antioch, Rome, Alexandria, and Byzantium. The five centers became Patriarchates

with the formal recognition of Christianity. The Eastern Catholic and Orthodox Churches originate from

Antioch, Alexandria, and Byzantium, while the Western Latin rite originates from Rome.

Constantine became Emperor of the West in 306. As he was in Gaul at the time, he still had to captureRome where Maxentius held sway. Prior to battle, he had a dream or vision of Christ on the Cross, a

cross of light, and was instructed to ornament the shields of his soldiers with the Savior's monogram -

the Greek letters chi and rho. He defeated Maxentius at the Battle at Milvian Bridge over the River Tiber

and became the sole Roman Emperor in 312, attributing his victory to the Christian God.

Welcome relief from Christian martyrdom came with the Edict of Milan in 313, through which

Constantine and Licinius, the Emperor of the East, granted Christianity complete religious tolerance. His

defeat of Licinius in 324 made him sole Emperor of the entire Roman Empire, and he moved the seat of

the Empire to Byzantium, and renamed it Constantinople.

Constantine considered himself Christian, and did much to protect and support Christianity. Sunday as

the Lord's Day was made a day of rest, and December 25 was celebrated as the birthday of Jesus. He

restored property that once belonged to Christians. Often at the request of his mother Helena, he built

exquisitely beautiful churches, particularly the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, the Church of

the Nativity in Bethlehem, and the Church of St. Peter in Rome.

A dispute concerning the relation of the Father and the Son arose in the East, known as the Arian

controversy. An Alexandrian priest named Arius claimed that Jesus the Son of God was created by the

Father. Constantine called the First Ecumenical Council of all five Patriarchates in 325, known as the

Council of Nicaea. The Council declared that the Son was of the same substance - homoousios - with the

Father, and formed the initial Nicene Creed.

However, the battle was not yet over. Athanasius, the champion of traditional thought, was exiled 5

times by Arian bishops. He argued his case from the theology of Christian redemption, that Christ had to

be divine for our own salvation and redemption. Then controversy arose over the Holy Spirit. Joined

finally by the Cappodochian Fathers (Basil, Gregory of Nazianzus, Gregory of Nyssa) who supported

homoousios for the Holy Spirit as well, the Nicene Creed was expanded to quote John 15:26, the Holy

Spirit proceeding from the Father, at the Council of Constantinople in 381. While still called the Nicene

Creed, the final version was actually the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed. The Apostles' and Nicene

Creeds are important to the Tradition of the early Christian Churches.

In keeping with the custom of the time, Constantine was baptized just prior to his death in 337. Because

he saw himself as both head of state and father of the Christian Churches, he is considered the architect

of the Middle Ages as the founder of Christendom. 1, 4, 7, 8, 19

THE CANON OF THE NEW TESTAMENT (397 AD)



There were eight named writers of the New Testament: Saints Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Paul, Peter,

James, and Jude. Since no original manuscript by the author of a biblical book has yet been discovered,

we cannot truly say when the books of the New Testament were actually written. An important

observation is that not one of the New Testament writers mentions the destruction of Jerusalem in 70

AD, which suggests that they were all written prior to that date.

The canon of the New Testament was formed within the early Christian community, the Church. The

Fathers of the Church were saintly writers who were sources of Christian teaching on faith and morals in

the first few centuries after Christ. The Tradition of the Church Fathers was important to the early

Church, for they were the ones who had an important role in the process of the formation of the canon

of the New Testament, as well in the interpretation of Scripture. Irenaeus, the Bishop of Lyons, first

proposed a canon of the New Testament in 180 AD. Three Fathers of the Church - Athanasius of

Alexandria in his Letter of 367, Jerome in Bethlehem with the publication of his Latin New Testament in

384, and Augustine at the Council of Hippo in 393 - agreed that 27 Books were the inspired Word of

God. The Canon of the New Testament of the Bible was confirmed at the Third Council of Carthage in

397 AD. 1, 3, 7, 16, 19

ST. JEROME PUBLISHES THE LATIN VULGATE IN 405

St. Jerome (345-420) was born in Dalmatia and became a highly educated linguist in Greek and Latin. He

experienced a dramatic conversion following a dream in which he was accused of following Cicero and

not Christ, and began leading an ascetic life in Antioch. It was during this time in the Syrian desert that

he became an avid student of Hebrew. On return to Rome, he was commissioned by Pope Damasus in

382 to produce a new Latin translation of the Bible. Jerome settled in Bethlehem, and translated both

Old and New Testaments from the original languages into Latin. Jerome completed the translation of the

Greek New Testament into Latin in 384, and the Old Testament in 405. His translation has become

known as the Latin Vulgate or "the common translation."

St. Jerome translated from both Greek and Hebrew manuscripts of the Old Testament and noted the

difference between the larger canon of the Greek Septuagint and the shorter Hebrew canon, and called

those books comprising the difference the "hidden or secret books," or the Apocrypha.

As the Greek Septuagint was the accepted version of the Old Testament for Christianity at that time,

Jerome translated 46 books that were affirmed as Old Testament canon at the Councils of Hippo (393)

and Carthage (397). In view of his work, St. Jerome is the Father of Biblical scholars. The Latin Vulgate

Bible published by St. Jerome served as the standard Bible for Western civilization for over 1000 years.

1, 3, 4, 7, 16

THE WRITINGS OF ST. AUGUSTINE

St. Augustine (354-430 AD) was the greatest of the Latin Fathers of the Church and a foundational figure

to Western Christian civilization. He was born in Tagaste, near Hippo, in north Africa. His mother St.

Monica was a devout Christian and taught him the faith. However, when he studied rhetoric in

Carthage, he began living a worldly life.



He obtained a post as master of rhetoric in Milan, accompanied by an unnamed woman and child

Adeodatus, born out of wedlock in 372. The woman soon left him and their son and returned to Africa,

and Monica joined them in Milan. Under the incessant prayers of his mother, and the influence of St.

Ambrose of Milan, he eventually converted at age 32 in 386 AD. Perhaps the most eloquent examination

of conscience is found in The Confessions of St. Augustine, where he describes his moment of

conversion in the garden reading St. Paul to the Romans 13:14, But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and

make no provisions for the lusts of the flesh.

Both his mother and son died soon afterwards, and he returned in 388 to his home in Tagaste. He was

ordained a priest in 391, and became Bishop of Hippo in 395. Augustine was people-oriented and

preached every day. Many of his followers lived an ascetic life. He had a great love for Christ, and

believed that our goal on earth was God through Christ himself, "to see his face evermore." Our goal in

life should be to please God, not man.

Augustine was one of the most prolific writers in history, and his writings show an evolution of thought,

and at times a reversal of ideas, as seen in his Retractations. His Scriptural essays on Genesis and Psalms

remain starting points for modern Biblical scholars. His commentary on the Sermon on the Mount is still

read today. Perhaps most debated are his views on predestination.

In his book Grace and Free Will, he explains simply why he believes in free will. If there was no free will,

then why did God give us the ten commandments, and why did he tell us to love our neighbor?

St. Augustine is the doctor of grace. In his Tractates on the Gospel of John (81), he quotes Jesus the

Gospel of John 15:5, I am the vine, you are the branches. Augustine pointed out that "Jesus did not say,

'without me, you can do a little. No, he said, without me you can do nothing!'"

Augustine's arguments against the Pelagian heresy set the doctrine of grace for the Catholic Church tothe present day. Pelagius thought that man could achieve virtue and salvation on his own without the

gift of grace, that Jesus was simply a model of virtue. This of course attacks the Redemption of man by

Christ! If man could make it on his own, then the Cross of Christ becomes meaningless! But Augustine

saw man's utter sinfulness, and the wonderful blessing and efficacy of grace, disposing man to accept his

moment of grace, and hopefully ultimate salvation. Grace raises us to a life of virtue, and is the ground

of human freedom. "When I choose rightly I am free." The Council of Orange enshrined Augustine's

teaching on grace and free will in 529 AD.

Perhaps one of his greatest works was The City of God, which took 13 years to complete, from 413 to426. History can only be understood as a continued struggle between two cities, the City of God,

comprised of those men who pursue God, and the City of Man, composed of those who pursue earthly

goods and pleasures. He refers to the two sons of Adam, Cain and Abel, as the earliest examples of the

two types of man. The Roman empire was an example of the city of man (which had just been sacked by

Alaric in 410, and was the occasion of the book).



St. Augustine was a living example of God's grace that transformed nature. He died August 28, 430,

during the sack of Hippo by the Vandals. August 28 is celebrated as his Feast Day in the liturgical

calendar. 4, 16, 20-22

POPE LEO THE GREAT (440-461) AND PAPAL PRIMACY

And I say to you, thou art Peter,

and upon this rock I will build my church,

and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Gospel of Matthew 16:18

Pope Leo entered the Papacy at a difficult time. Alaric had sacked Rome in 410, and the Huns and the

Visigoths were gaining strength. However the Pope proved to be a master statesman and history has

deservedly accorded him the title of Pope Leo the Great.

One of his first actions in 441 was to bless the missionary efforts of St. Patrick and to ordain him as

Bishop of Ireland.

A tension in Church leadership between Papal primacy and Collegiality of the Bishops was developing

over theological questions. Rome was the place of martyrdom for Saints Peter and Paul, two great

Apostles of the Church. The Bishop of Rome as successor to St. Peter was generally given a leadership

role, as seen with Clement of Rome in his First Letter to the Corinthians in 96 AD. Rome's position as the

capital of the Roman Empire was also supportive of a leadership role for the Bishop of Rome.

The Council of Ephesus in 431 recognized Mary as Theotokos or Mother of God, which was intrinsic to

the human nature of Christ. However, controversy between the Schools of Antioch and Alexandria raged

on concerning the relation of Christ's human and divine natures. Pope Leo made a study of the

theological question and addressed a letter known as the Tome, a masterpiece of dogmatic theology

and a synthesis of the two opposing schools. The Council of Chalcedon, the fourth ecumenical council,

was called in 451, which ultimately supported Leo's stance that Christ had two natures, both Divine and

human, without confusion, in one Person. Resolution of the controversy by Leo was important to the

primacy of the Pope and unity of the West.

Just one year later (452), Attila and the Huns were threatening outside the walls of Rome. The legends

surrounding this event are innumerable, but Pope Leo met Attila, who decided to call off the invasion!

Later when Gaiseric the Vandal invaded Rome in 455, Leo influenced him to spare the destruction of Rome. 1, 4, 5, 7, 16

THE MONKS SAVE EUROPEAN CIVILIZATION

The Monastic Orders have been a premium influence on the formation of Christian culture. For not only

have they been islands of asceticism and holiness that have served as ideals to a secular world, but also

they have provided many if not most of the religious leaders within each historic age, especially during



times of renewal and reform. The word monos is the Greek word for alone. Monasticism began in the

East and spread throughout Europe and saved European civilization.

The practice of leaving the ambitions of daily life and retreating to the solitude of the desert was seen

throughout Palestine, Syria, and Egypt, St. John the Baptist (Mark 1:4) an early example.

The father of Christian monasticism was St. Antony of the Desert (251-356), the first of the Desert

Fathers. Antony of Egypt took to heart the words of Christ to the rich young man, " Go sell what you

have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven" (Matthew 19:21). He headed across the

Nile to a mountain near Pispir to live a life of solitude, prayer, and poverty . Soon many gathered around

him to imitate his life, living as hermits in nearby caves in the mountain, and in 305 he emerged from

solitude to teach his followers the way of the ascetic. He then moved further into the desert by Mount

Kolzim near the Red Sea, where a second group of hermits gathered and later formed a monastery. He

lived there for 45 years until his death in 356.

St. Maron (350-410), a contemporary of St. John Chrysostom, was a monk in the fourth century who left

Antioch for the Orontes River to lead a life of holiness and prayer. As he was given the gift of healing, his

life of solitude was short-lived, and soon he had many followers that adopted his monastic way.

Following the death of St. Maron in 410, his disciples built a monastery in his memory, which would

form the nucleus of the Eastern Catholic Maronite Church of Lebanon.

The fall of the Roman Empire to the barbarian invasions left European civilization in disarray, for the

social structure under one ruler in Rome was destroyed. The preservation of culture and the conversion

of the barbarians to Christianity was left to an unlikely group: the monastics of Europe. Their missionary

efforts converted one tribe after another, so that eventually all of Europe was united in the worship of

the one Christian God.

St. Patrick as Apostle to Ireland pioneered the founding of monasteries throughout Ireland. As the social

unit in Ireland and much of Europe at the time was the tribe in the countryside, the monastery was the

center of Church life and learning. The Irish monks that followed him converted much of northern

Europe. St. Columba (521 -597) and his followers converted Scotland and much of northern England. The

strict and austere St. Columban, also known as Columbanus (542-615), crossed over to Gaul and

founded a number of monasteries in France and converted many of the Franks. His disciple the Irish

monk St. Gall (550-645) became the disciple to Switzerland and founded the monastery of St. Gall in

612. St. Aidan served Northumbria in England by the North Sea and became Bishop of Lindisfarne. The

lasting legacy of the Irish monks has been the present-day form of confession. In early times, penance

was in public and severe, often lasting for years, such that Baptism was generally postponed until one'sdeathbed. The Irish monks began private confession and allowed one to repeat confession as necessary.

The monk St. Benedict (480-547) was born in Nursia of nobility but chose a life of solitude in Subiaco

outside of Rome. Soon he moved nearby to build a monastery at Monte Cassino in 529 and there wrote

the Rule of Benedict. Monte Cassino placed all of the monks in one monastery under an abbot. The

guiding principle for the monastery was ora et labora, or pray and work. The monastery provided

adequate food and a place to sleep and served as a center of conversion and learning. Known for its



moderation, Monte Cassino and Benedict's rule became the standard for monasteries throughout

Europe and the pattern for Western civilization.

The first monk to become Pope was St. Gregory the Great (540-604). Born to Roman nobility, Gregory at

first pursued a political career and became Prefect of Rome. However he gave up position and wealth

and retreated to his home to lead a monastic life. He was recalled to Rome and soon was elected Popein 590 and served until his death in 604. A man of great energy, he is known for four historic

achievements. His theological and spiritual writings shaped the thought of the Middle Ages; he made

the Pope the de facto ruler of central Italy; his charisma strengthened the Papacy in the West; and he

was dedicated to the conversion of England to Christianity. Gregory sent the monk Augustine to

England. The conversion of King Aethelbert of Kent led St. Augustine to be named the first Bishop of

Canterbury. Soon English Benedictine monks were being sent to convert the rest of Europe, such as St.

Wilfrid, a missionary to the Saxons and Friesland (part of Holland); St. Willibrord, named Bishop of the

Netherlands in 695; and the English monk Winfrid, better known as St. Boniface, who evangelized

Germany from 723-739 AD and is known as the Apostle to Germany. 1, 2-4, 7, 8, 16, 23

CHRISTIANITY THRIVES UNDER THE CAROLINGIAN EMPIRE (732-814)

The Carolingian Empire effectively began with Charles Martel, the Mayor of the Palace under the

Merovingian Franks. He stopped the Muslim invasion of Europe at the Battle of Tours near Poitiers in

732, and supported St. Boniface in his conversion of Germany.

His son Pepin and the Papacy formed an historic alliance. Pepin needed the blessing of the Pope in his

seizure of leadership of Gaul from the Merovingians. Pope Stephen ll, besieged by the Lombards in Italy,

was the first Pope to leave Italy and cross the Alps in 754. He named King Pepin Patrician of the Romans,

and in turn Pepin swept into Italy and conquered the Lombards, securing the Papal states. Pepin died in

768 and divided his realm between his two sons, Carloman and Charles.

Charles took over all of Gaul upon the death of his brother in 771, and soon conquered most of

mainland Europe. He was a vigorous leader and ruled until 814, and has been called Charles the Great or

Charlemagne. Charlemagne was a strong supporter of Christianity. He instituted a school of learning in

his palace at Aachen. In the Middle Ages there was in theory a division between temporal power and

spiritual authority, but in practice one saw a strong Emperor take control of some spiritual affairs and a

strong Pope take control of some affairs of state. Charlemagne, as Constantine, considered himself the

leader of Christendom as political head of state and protector of the Church. Pope Leo lll crowned

Charlemagne Emperor of the Romans on Christmas Day 800, and this marked the formal alliance of the

Carolingian Empire and the Papacy. The historian Christopher Dawson has called this the beginning of medieval Christendom. 4, 5, 7, 8, 23

THE SCHISM OF 1054

One of the most tragic events in Church history has been the Schism of 1054 between what is now the

Catholic Church in Rome and the Byzantine Orthodox Church in Constantinople.



What began as a diplomatic effort between Pope Leo IX of Rome and the Byzantine Patriarch Michael

Cerularius of Constantinople ended in disaster. The actual event occurred on July 16, 1054 when

Cardinal Humbert, an abrasive emissary of Pope Leo IX, laid a papal bull of excommunication on the altar

right during the liturgy, which led the Eastern Church to excommunicate the envoy. While the event

obviously did not end the relationship between the Eastern and Western Churches, it has become

symbolic for the distrust and strain between the East and the West that developed through the

centuries. The break was sealed in 1204 with the sacking of Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade.

On 11 May 330 Constantine renamed the Greek city of Byzantium in his honor, and Constantinople

became the seat of the Holy Roman Emperor. While Church authority rested in Rome, the Patriarch of

Constantinople had the ear of the Byzantine Emperor.

The five Patriarchates held seven ecumenical Councils that defined theological beliefs on the Trinity and

Jesus Christ, all of which were accepted by Rome and Constantinople. The fifth ecumenical council at

Constantinople (ll) in 553 reaffirmed that there is but one hypostasis or person, our Lord Jesus Christ. In

response to the Monothelite heresy, that Christ had only one will, the sixth ecumenical council at

Constantinople (lll) in 681 confessed that Christ had two wills and two natural operations, divine and

human in harmony. As Jesus had a true humanity and his body was finite, the seventh ecumenical

council at Nicaea II in 787 resolved the iconoclast controversy by recognizing that the human face of

Jesus could be represented in holy images.

The Byzantine Empire flourished for a thousand years, while the West was under constant attack by

barbarian invasions. The Empire reached its zenith under Emperor Justinian, the author of the Justinian

Code of Law, who ruled from 527 to 565.

The language of Rome was Latin, but that of Constantinople Greek.

There was a difference in perception of Church authority between the East and West. Latin Rome

believed the Pontiff, as the representative of Peter, had supreme authority over all of Christianity,

whereas the Greek East saw the Pope, the Bishop of Rome and representative of Peter, as presiding with

love in a sense of collegiality, as a first among equals.

This difference in perception of Church authority produced the conflict over the addition of the word

filioque - and the Son - to the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed by the Roman Catholic Church.

Theological thought on the Trinity had progressed with time, particularly with St. Augustine, who saw

the Holy Spirit as an expression of love between the Father and the Son. King Recared and his Visigothic

bishops converted from Arianism to Catholicism at the The Third Council of Toledo, Spain in 587 and

were required to add the word filioque to the Creed. Charlemagne in 794 insisted on the addition of

filioque to the Creed, so that the phrase read the Holy Spirit proceeded from the Father and the Son.

Pope Leo III at the time refused to allow the change and supported the original Creed; however the

Papacy finally accepted the addition of filioque at the coronation of King Henry II in 1014. The Eastern

Orthodox Churches claim that the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed is the common possession of the

whole church and that any change must be done by an ecumenical Council.



Many of the Christian Churches of Eastern Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean, except the Maronites

and the Italo-Albanians, joined the Byzantine or Greek Orthodox Church of Constantinople. 4, 5, 7, 8, 23,

24



SPAIN IN 1033 AD

THE RECONQUEST OF SPAIN

Catholic Spain was the first European territory to suffer Islamic invasion in 711 when the Berber general

Ibn Tariq conquered nearly all of Spain except the northern rim. The Visigoth Pelayo held off the

Muslims at Covadonga at Asturias in the Cantabrian mountains in 722. Spain, named Al-Andalus by

Muslim leaders, prospered under the Umayyad Abd al-Rahman family of Córdoba, where Muslims, Jews,

and Christians for a while lived side by side in a spirit of religious toleration.

St. James was the only Apostle whose martyrdom was described in the Bible (Acts 12:2). The discovery

of the tomb of St. James in a Field of Light in Galicia supported the Catholic heritage of Spain, and a

church was built at the pilgrimage site of Santiago de Compostela by Asturian King Alfonso II (791-842).

As recorded in the late ninth-century Chronicle of Alfonso III, Pelayo became the inspiration for the

rightful recovery of Spanish territory lost to Muslim invasion.



Spain was troubled in 997 when the Moor Almanzor usurped the power of the Caliphate and sacked the

city and Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in the northwest tip of Spain, but spared the tomb of St.

James (Santiago in Spanish). He took the cathedral bells of the church as a memento of his victory and

placed them in the great mosque of Córdoba. With the loss of respect for the Caliphate, Al-Andalus

fractured into multiple petty states, known as Taifas.

King Alfonso VI (1065-1109) of León-Castile recaptured Toledo in 1085. El Cid held off the Muslims in

Valencia until his death in 1099. King Alfonso I of Navarre and Aragon recaptured Zaragoza in 1118. King

Alfonso VIII won a major battle against the Almohad Muslims at Las Navas de Tolosa in 1212. King

Fernando III recaptured Córdoba in 1236 and returned the cathedral bells to the Church of Santiago de

Compostela. The Reconquista of Spain, or the unification of Spain under Christian rule, was not formally

completed until the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella, when Granada was captured from the Moors on

January 2, 1492. 25

POPE URBAN II AND THE FIRST CRUSADE (1095)

Undertake this journey for the remission of your sins,

with the assurance of the imperishable glory of the Kingdom of Heaven!



Pope Urban II, in one of history's most powerful speeches, launched 200 years of the Crusades at the

Council of Clermont, France on November 27, 1095 with this impassioned plea. In a rare public session

in an open field, he urged the knights and noblemen to win back the Holy Land, to face their sins, and

called upon those present to save their souls and become Soldiers of Christ. Those who took the vow for

the pilgrimage were to wear the sign of the cross (croix in French): and so evolved the word "Crusade"

or croisade. By the time his speech ended, the captivated audience began shouting Deus le volt! - God

wills it! The expression became the battle-cry of the crusades.

Why did Pope Urban II call for the recapture of the Holy Land? Three reasons are primarily given for the

beginning of the Crusades: (1) to free Jerusalem and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre; (2) to aid the

Christian East, thereby healing the rift between Roman and Orthodox Christianity following the Schism

of 1054; and (3) to marshal the energy of the constantly warring feudal lords and knights into the one

cause of penitential warfare.

Led by the papal legate Bishop Adhemar of Le Puy, the only successful Crusade (of eight major efforts)

was the First, when the Crusaders freed Jerusalem on July 15, 1099. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre

was once again in Christian hands. The four Crusader states of Jerusalem, Tripoli, Antioch, and Edessa

were established. Saladin recaptured Jerusalem October 2, 1187. King Richard the Lionheart of England

negotiated a settlement with Saladin during the Third Crusade whereby Christian pilgrims were given

free access to Jerusalem.

The four Crusader states eventually collapsed; the surrender of Acre in 1291 ended 192 years of formal

Christian rule in the Holy Land. 1, 5, 26

\

THE MENDICANT ORDERS, ST. THOMAS AQUINAS & SCHOLASTICISM



The thirteenth century was the peak of the Medieval Age. It was the flowering of Christendom, a time of

extraordinary intellectual activity, due to the introduction of Arabian, Hebrew, and Greek works into the

Christian schools, and the rise of the University. A new form of religious order arose whose aim was to

pursue the monastic ideals of poverty, renunciation, and self-sacrifice, but also, instead of withdrawing

from the world, to maintain a presence and convert the world by example and preaching. They were

known as friars and called the mendicant orders (Franciscans, Dominicans, Carmelites, Augustinians, and

the Servites), because of begging alms to support themselves.

St. Francis of Assisi (1182-1226) was born to wealth. He loved adventure, but experienced conversion

after joining the military. He returned home, and heard a voice saying to him, "Francis, go and rebuild

my house; it is falling down." He adopted a life of poverty, and began to preach the Kingdom of Heaven.

Francis loved creation (unlike the Cathari) and considered it good, for Christ himself took on flesh in the

Incarnation. He loved all living creatures. St. Francis originated the Christmas manger scene. He founded

the Franciscan order, and received approval from Rome in 1209. The Poor Clare Nuns began when St.

Clare joined the Franciscans in 1212 in Assisi. In 1219 St. Francis risked his life in the Fifth Crusade by

calling directly upon the Sultan of Egypt in an effort to convert him and bring peace. He received thestigmata of Christ in 1224, 2 years before his death in 1226.

St. Dominic de Guzman (1170-1221) was born in Calaruega, Spain. On a journey through France he was

confronted by the Albigensian heresy (as Manichaeism and the Cathari). As he came with a Bishop in

richly dressed clothes on horses, he realized the people would not be impressed with his message. This

led him to a life of poverty. He spent several years preaching in France in an attempt to convert the

Albigensians. In 1208 in Prouille, France, he received a vision of the Blessed Virgin Mary and began to

spread devotion to the Rosary. Dominic was a man of peace and converted many through prayer,

preaching, and his example of poverty. He founded the Order of Preachers in 1216 known as the

Dominican Friars.

The universities in Europe began as guilds of scholars, which first attracted members of the clergy and

were supported financially by the Church. The first universities in Europe were founded in Salerno,

Bologna, and Paris, and Oxford and Cambridge soon followed. Theology, law, and medicine were the

fields of advanced study. The University of Paris was especially noted for studies in Theology. The age

was the time of Scholasticism - of the schools, a method of learning that placed emphasis on reasoning.

Important writers at the time were Bonaventure, Duns Scotus, Albertus Magnus, and his student

Thomas Aquinas, who became the greatest theologian and philosopher of the age.

St. Thomas Aquinas was a Dominican priest who lived from 1225 to 1274. Born in Roccasecca, Italy to

the Aquino family, he joined the Dominicans at the age of 18. He received his doctorate in theology and

taught at the University of Paris during the height of Christendom.

One of the greatest contributions by Thomas was his incorporation of the philosophy of Aristotle into

the theology of the Catholic Church. Thomas saw reason and faith as one and mutually supportive, and

combined the Bible and Church Fathers and the reasoning of Aristotle into one unified system of

understanding Christian revelation through faith enlightened by reason.



His most noted work was the Summa Theologica, a five-volume masterpiece. St. Thomas Aquinas

presented the classical approach to Biblical Exegesis. Recalling the words of Gregory that Scripture

transcends every science, " for in one and the same sentence, while it describes a fact, it reveals a

mystery." In addition to the literal sense, Thomas described the three spiritual senses of Scripture, the

allegorical, the truth revealed, the moral, the life commended, and the anagogical, the final goal to be

achieved. His exposition on the Seven Sacraments remains a standard to our present day. 1, 4, 5, 7, 8,

16, 19, 27

THE PROTESTANT REFORMATION

The Protestant Reformation resulted from the failure of the Catholic Church to reform itself in time.

The dark side of the thirteenth through fifteenth centuries witnessed the errant Fourth Crusade to

Constantinople in 1204, the Albigensian Crusade against the Cathari in 1209, and the beginning of the

Inquisition which became severely punitive.

The Papacy suffered a great loss of respect during the Avignon Papacy (1305-1378), and especiallyduring the Papal Schism (1378-1417), when two and at one point three men declared themselves Pope

and fought with each other. The Papal Schism had to be resolved by Emperor Sigismund of Luxembourg

and the Council of Constance 1414-1417, which finally deposed all three Popes and chose Martin V to

continue the Papacy. However the Council also declared John Hus, the Prague reformer, a heretic; he

was burned at the stake on July 6, 1415.

Another victim of the Inquisition was St. Joan of Arc, who saved France during the Hundred Years War

with England. She was burned at the stake on May 30, 1431 in Rouen, France. The Spanish Inquisition in

the fifteenth century was particularly ruthless. These events led many to question the compassion and

integrity of the Church.

Christian humanism, a rejoicing in man's achievements and capabilities reflecting the greater glory of

God, had perhaps its beginning with the Divine Comedy, published in 1320 by Dante Alighieri. The

fifteenth and sixteenth centuries generated the Renaissance or rebirth in art, architecture, literature,

and sculpture. Michelangelo, Raphael, Leonardo da Vinci, and Botticelli led the way in art. Brunelleschi

revived the ancient Roman style of architecture and introduced linear perspective. The great sculptors

were Donatello and Michelangelo. St. Thomas More and Erasmus were the leading Christian humanists

in literature. St. Thomas More of England wrote Utopia on an ideal society in 1516, and Erasmus called

for reform of the Church and a return to spiritual values, but was left without response.

The unity of Tradition and Scripture went unchallenged through the Patristic Age and thirteenth centuryscholasticists such as St. Bonaventure (1221-1274) and St. Thomas Aquinas. But the unity of Scripture

and Tradition began to be questioned with the decline of the Church. The Belgian Henry of Ghent (1217-

1293) believed that one should first have the duty to follow Scripture rather than a Church that became

one in name only. The English Franciscan William of Ockham (or Occam) was known for the principle of

Occam's Razor, that one needs to reduce everything to its simplest cause. Ockham (1288-1348)

theorized on three possibilities of the relation of Scripture and the Church. First there was sola Scriptura,



that one could obtain salvation by following Scripture alone; second, that God does reveal truths to the

universal Church, an ecclesiastical revelation supplemental to apostolic revelation; and third, the

concept of orally transmitted apostolic revelation parallel to written Scripture. Ockham believed that

one could reach God only through faith and not by reason. He wrote that universals, such as truth,

beauty, and goodness, were concepts of the mind and did not exist, a philosophy known as Nominalism.

Thus began the division of the realm of faith from the secular world of reason.

The rise of Nationalism led to the end of Christendom, for countries resented any effort to support

Rome, especially in its dismal state. The lack of Church funds led to even further corruption, including

simony and the selling of indulgences.

For example, Archbishop Albrecht of Mainz had to pay Rome ten thousand ducats for the right to hold

three dioceses at once, and agreed to a three-way split with the Roman Curia and the Fugger Banking

firm from the proceeds of the selling of indulgences.

The invention of the movable type printing press by Johannes Gutenberg in Mainz, Germany saw the

first printing of the Latin Vulgate Bible in 1456.

The stage was set for the reform-minded Martin Luther (1483-1546), the Augustinian monk of

Wittenberg, Germany. He received his doctorate in theology in 1512, and then taught biblical studies at

the University of Wittenberg. His study of Scripture, particularly St. Paul in his Letter to the Romans, led

him to believe that salvation was obtained through justification by faith alone. At first, his only interest

was one of reform when he posted his 95 theses on the door of the Wittenberg Church October 31,

1517.

But the intransigence of the Church and poor handling of the situation by the Pope and Curia only

worsened matters, such that a break was inevitable. In a July 1519 debate with the Catholic theologian

Johann Eck, Luther stated that Sola Scriptura - Scripture alone - was the supreme authority in religion.

He could no longer accept the authority of the Pope or the Councils, such as Constance.

In 1520 Luther utilized the printing press and published 3 documents which laid down the fundamental

principles of the Reformation. In To the Christian Nobility of the German Nation, Luther attacked the

corruptions of the Church and the abuses of its authority, and asserted the right of the layman to

spiritual independence. In the Babylonian Captivity of the Church, he criticized the sacramental system,

and set up the Scriptures as the supreme authority in religion. In On the Freedom of the Christian Man,

he expounded the doctrine of justification by faith alone, and gave a complete presentation of histheological position. The Augsburg Confession of 1530, written by Philip Melanchthon and approved by

Martin Luther, was the most widely accepted Lutheran confession of faith.

Once Sola Scriptura became the norm, it became a matter of personal interpretation.



Huldrich Zwingli of Zurich, Switzerland was next, and he broke with Luther over the Eucharist, but his

sect died out. The Anabaptists separated from Zwingli as they denied the validity of infant baptism; they

survived as the Mennonites.

Jean Calvin published his Institutes of the Christian Religion in 1536, and had an international impact on

John Knox and the Presbyterians of Scotland; the French Huguenots; the Dutch Reformed; and thePilgrims and Puritans. While he agreed with Luther on the basic Protestant tenets of sola scriptura,

salvation by faith alone, and the priesthood of all believers, he went even further on such issues as

predestination and the sacraments. George Fox, the son of Puritan parents, founded the Quakers in

England in 1647.

King Henry Vlll wrote a defense of the seven sacraments, but when refused an annulment from

Catherine of Aragon, he had himself declared Supreme Head of the Church of England. Thomas Cranmer

became the new Archbishop of Canterbury in 1533, and the Anglican Church of England was established.

Archbishop Cranmer married Henry Vlll and Anne Boleyn that same year. Thomas More refused to

attend the wedding, and was imprisoned in the Tower of London and later beheaded in 1535. Two

major sects that split off from the Anglicans were the Baptists, founded by John Smyth in 1607, and later

the Methodists, founded by John Wesley and his brother Charles. 1, 4, 5, 7, 8, 28-30

OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE

Then God's temple in heaven was opened,

and the ark of his covenant could be seen in the temple.

There were flashes of lightning, rumblings, and peals of thunder,

an earthquake, and a violent hailstorm.

A great sign appeared in the sky,

a woman clothed with the sun,

with the moon under her feet,

and on her head a crown of twelve stars.

Revelation 11:19-12:1

The four appearances of Our Lady of Guadalupe to the Aztec Indian Juan Diego December 9-12 of 1531generated the conversion of Mexico, Central and South America to Catholicism.

On December 12, 1531, Juan Diego was obedient to the Blessed Virgin Mary's instruction to gather

beautiful roses in his tilma and take them to the Franciscan Bishop Don Fray Juan de Zumarraga, his

third visit to request the building of a Church as requested by Our Lady. Juan Diego explained to the

Bishop all that had passed. Then he put up both hands and untied the corners of crude cloth behind his



neck. The looped-up fold of the tilma fell; the flowers he thought were the precious sign tumbled out on

the floor.

The Bishop fell on his knees in adoration before the tilma, as well as everyone else in the room. For on

the tilma was the image of the Blessed Virgin Mary, just as described by Juan Diego, and still preserved

today in original condition in Tepeyac, the outskirts of Mexico City.

The Spanish conquistadors may have conquered the Aztecs in 1521, but their ruthlesss behavior

antagonized the people, and conversions were few.

Our Lady of Guadalupe conveyed the beautiful message of Christianity: the true God sacrificed himself

for mankind, instead of the horrendous life they had endured sacrificing humans to appease the frightful

gods! It is no wonder that over the next seven years, from 1531 to 1538, eight million natives of Mexico

converted to Catholicism!

Indeed, the Blessed Virgin Mary entered the very soul of Central America and became an inextricable

part of Mexican life and a central figure to the history of Mexico itself. To this date a major religious

celebration in Mexico and Central America is December 12, the feast-day of Our Lady of Guadalupe. A

harbinger of things to come, Christianity would thrive in the Americas. Her appearance in the center of

the American continents has contributed to the Virgin of Guadalupe being given the title "Mother of

America." 1, 7, 31-33

THE CATHOLIC REFORMATION AND MISSIONARY MOVEMENT

"You should know how to behave in the household of God,

which is the church of the living God,

the pillar and foundation of truth."

1 Timothy 3:15

The Catholic Church reformed itself both through the positive work of renewal and through the impetus

of the Protestant Reformation. Efforts at reform had already begun with the Oratory of Divine Love in

Genoa in 1497. The strict order of the Theatines was founded in 1524 and made significant efforts at the

reform of the parish clergy. The Capuchins were founded in Italy in 1528 to restore the Franciscan Order

to its original ideals. St. Ignatius of Loyola began the Jesuit Order in 1534.

But the major thrust at reform was the Council of Trent. Pope Paul lll surmounted incredible obstacles to

convene the first of three sessions on December 13, 1545, which continued until 1547. The second

session was held 1551-1552. The third session was convened by Pius IV, co-founder of the Theatines,

and held 1562-1563. Pope Pius IV confirmed the Decrees of the Council of Trent in January 1564.



The Council addressed three areas: doctrine, discipline, and devotion. Seven major areas were included

in doctrine: that our justification was not just by faith alone, but also by hope and charity expressed in

good works in cooperation with God's grace. Both Tradition and Scripture were essential to the faith.

The Latin Vulgate was promoted as the only canonical Scripture. There was a clear definition of the

seven sacraments. The Mass as a sacrificial memorial of the Sacrifice of Christ was confirmed, and the

Council reaffirmed Transubstantiation. The Mass, known as the Tridentine Mass, was given strict form

and was celebrated only in Latin. The Latin Tridentine Mass provided unity for the universal Church, for

it was the same Mass in every place and time.

What does it profit, my brethren, if a man says he has faith but has not works?

Can his faith save him?

If a brother or sister is ill-clad and in lack of daily food,

and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be warmed and filled,"

without giving them the things needed for the body, what does it profit?

So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.

Epistle of St. James 2:14-17

Discipline involved strict reform and the establishment of the seminary system for the proper and

uniform training of priests. The office of indulgence seller was abolished, and doctrine on indulgences

was clarified. The Bishops were given only one diocese and residence was required, begun by the

reformer St. Charles Borromeo of Milan.

Devotion became more interior, as in Marian devotion. The age of renewal was marked by a time of

mystics and activist saints. Noteworthy were the Spanish mysticism of St. Teresa of Avila and St. John of

the Cross. St. Francis de Sales, Bishop of Geneva from 1602-1622, converted many souls to Catholicism;

he helped St. Jane de Chantal found the Order of the Visitation Nuns in 1610. St. Vincent de Paul was

noted for his efforts with the poor, and founded the Congregation of the Mission Order in 1625; he

helped St. Louise de Marillac form the Sisters of Charity in 1633.

The Council of Trent marked an important turning point for the Catholic Church, for it provided clarity

on the beliefs of the Church, and ecclesiastical discipline was restored. The doctrines established at

Trent persist to this day.

The Catholic Reformation coincided with the wave of exploration to the New World and the Far East.

Catholic missionaries accompanied the explorers on their journeys, such as Christopher Columbus to the

Americas in 1492, the Portuguese Vasco da Gama to Goa, India in 1498, and Ferdinand Magellan to the

Philippines in 1521.

St. Francis Xavier (1506-1552) exemplifies the missionary movement, and has been recognized as

second only to the Apostle Paul in his evangelical efforts. The patron saint of missionaries, Francis Xavier



sailed from Lisbon, Portugal and landed in Goa in 1542. His humble way had great impact on the local

people, and he trained the young in the Ten Commandments and the Lord's Prayer. He was soon

reported to have baptized 10,000 a month. He then headed to Cape Comorin, the southern tip of India,

where he made many conversions of the fishermen there. Further travels took Francis Xavier to Malacca

in Malaysia in 1545 and then to Japan in 1549.

Fr. Andres de Urdaneta and the Augustinian monks sailed to Cebu, Philippines in 1565. Upon discovery

of Santo Nino (the Image of the Infant Jesus left by Magellan), they began the conversion of the

Philippines to Catholicism.

The Missionary Franciscan Toribio de Benavente arrived in Mexico in 1524. He was a self-sacrificing man

dedicated to protecting the natives, and received the name Motolinia for his life of poverty. He recorded

in his book History of the Indians of New Spain the dramatic conversions following the appearances of

Our Lady of Guadalupe. The Dominican Bartholomew de Las Casas first went to the West Indies in 1502

as a soldier, but on viewing the horrendous enslavement of the native Indians through the Spanish

encomienda system, was ordained as a Dominican priest in 1523, the first ordination in America. In his

role as human rights advocate for the Indians, he is considered an early pioneer of social justice.

The Jesuits were especially noted for missionary efforts to North America, such as Father Andrew White,

who accompanied the Calverts to Maryland in 1634, Isaac Jogues to Quebec in 1636, and Jacques

Marquette to Michigan in 1668. Missionary efforts would continue to the New World for years to come.

1, 4, 7, 16, 34

THE KING JAMES BIBLE OF 1611

The history of the English Bible is intimately intertwined with the history of the Reformation. Following

the death of Queen Elizabeth, James VI of Scotland became King James I of England in 1603. His claim to

the throne of England derived from his great-grandmother, Margaret Tudor, a daughter of Henry VII

who married James IV of Scotland. He served until his death in 1625, when he was succeeded by his son,

Charles I. It was a time when the English language reached its greatest expression in the works of

William Shakespeare (1558-1616) and the King James Bible.

King James as head of the Church of England commissioned a group of bishops and scholars to establish

an authoritative translation of the Bible from the original languages into English in 1604. There were

several English versions available, either as translations of the Latin Vulgate or from the 1516 Greek-

Latin parallel New Testament of Erasmus; the ones that follow influenced the King James scholars. JohnWycliffe produced a hand-written English translation of the Latin Vulgate in 1384. William Tyndale, an

English Lutheran, brought the first printed version of the New Testament into England in 1526. His

colleague, Miles Coverdale, completed Tyndale's work, which formed the basis for the Great Bible

(1539), the first authorized Bible in English, which was placed in every church in England. When the

Catholic Queen Mary came to the throne in 1553, further work had to be done on the European

continent, and the Geneva Bible, the first to have numbered verses, was published in 1557. Beginning



with the Protestant Elizabethan era in 1558, the English Catholic Douay-Rheims Bible, a translation of

the Vulgate, had to be produced on the European continent as well, the Old Testament completed at

Rheims, France in 1582, and the New Testament completed at Douay, France in 1609.

The Authorized King James Version of the Holy Bible was published in 1611. The King James Bible

originally included the Apocrypha but in a separate section. A literary masterpiece of the Englishlanguage, the King James Bible is still in use today. 5, 28, 35

CHRISTIANITY IN NORTH AMERICA

Following the discovery of Florida by Ponce de Leon in 1513, St. Augustine, Florida became the first

permanent European settlement in North America in 1565, from which missionaries spread Christianity

to the native American Indians. The first Mass of Thanksgiving on North American soil was actually

celebrated by the Spanish with the Timucuan Indians from Seloy village in attendance on September 8,

1565 in St. Augustine, Florida.

Christianity continued to thrive in the New World as our young Nation developed. Four of the original 13

English colonies were specifically chartered for religious freedom, as a refuge from religious persecution

in England at the time - William Bradford and the Pilgrim Congregationalists at Cape Cod in 1620 and the

Calvinist John Winthrop and the Puritan Protestants in 1629 in Massachusetts; Lord Baltimore George

Calvert and his son Cecil Calvert for the Catholics in Maryland in 1632; Roger Williams and the Baptists in

Providence, Rhode Island in 1644; and William Penn and the Quakers in 1682 in Pennsylvania. The

Mennonites also moved to Pennsylvania in 1683 at the invitation of William Penn, for Pennsylvania was

established for universal religious toleration for Protestants.

Early American Writings, as well as the principles of the Declaration of Independence, reflect the

Christian heritage of our nation, the United States of America. 1, 5, 7, 36-44

THE GREAT AWAKENING DURING THE ENLIGHTENMENT ERA



The period from 1650 through the eighteenth century was known as the Age of Enlightenment in

Europe. The time had come when men would set aside religious views and look to reason and social

experience to guide society.

It was the loss of Christian unity that led to the secularization of Western culture.

Whereas Christendom provided one message to European society, the pluralism of religions provided

different answers to questions about life and led to skepticism and conflict rather than unanimous

thought. Nations and men turned to their own desires. Nations waged war in a quest for more land and

power, and the peasantry suffered at the hands of nobility.

Discoveries in science had much to do with the Age of Enlightenment. Copernicus (1473-1543) proposed

the sun is the center of the solar system and the earth revolved around the sun, and published his work

shortly before his death. Galileo Galilei (1564-1642), the first to use a telescope, confirmed that

Copernicus was right, and was condemned by the Catholic Church. Scientists such as Isaac Newton

(1642-1727) in physics and Robert Boyle (1642-1727) in chemistry were pioneers and gave birth to

technology, the application of science to practical problems, which led to the Industrial Revolution.

Progress based on science and technology became a major goal of Western Society.

Mankind was left without its mooring, and philosophers set out in different directions to provide

meaning for humanity. The critical Rationalism of Rene Descartes (1596-1650) applied to philosophy the

mathematical method so effective in science, that everything was questionable until it could be proved

beyond all doubt. Blaise Pascal (1623-1662) took a different stance and presented Pascal's Wager: it is

better to live a good life, for if there is a God, you will end up with Him in Heaven; but if you have lived a

bad life and there is a God, you are doomed! John Locke (1632-1704) applied reason to confirm

revelation. The political philosopher Baron de Montesquieu of France (1689-1755) proposed that the

best form of government would incorporate a separation of powers into executive, legislative, and judicial branches and would be based on the natural law. David Hume (1711- 1776) proposed a science

of man, and is considered a pioneer in the social sciences. But Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778),

considered the father of Romanticism, took an opposite approach and spoke of the noble savage, that

man was happy only in his original native state, before government, laws, and politics chained mankind.

It was the German philosopher Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) that defined the era: "Have courage to use

your own reason - that is the motto of Enlightenment."

The Age of Enlightenment proposed that reason and science would bring an "enlightened" world.

Unfortunately, the Age of Enlightenment ignored love, emotion, spirituality and concern for one's fellow

man. It forgot that man is wounded by original and personal sin, and his reason is colored by desire andselfishness. In fact, the Age of Enlightenment brought the French Revolution and the Reign of Terror

(1789), Naziism, Communism, and the twentieth century, with its two World Wars, the bloodiest

century in history.

John Wesley (1703-1791) and his brother Charles (1707-1788) provided light for Christianity during this

Enlightenment era. John Wesley, noted for his moving sermons, and his brother Charles, a poetic genius



and hymn writer, began the Methodist movement in England, and set forth an evangelical revival

throughout the British Isles, North America, and the world.

The two brothers were raised in the Anglican Church. While at Oxford they formed a group, joined by

George Whitefield and others, called the Holy Club in November 1729 and read the Greek New

Testament. Because of their strict method of living, they were soon called the Methodists.

In 1735 the brothers sailed to Savannah, Georgia for a missionary trip to native Americans. The mission

proved futile and they returned home to England. However, John Wesley experienced a heartwarming

conversion experience at Aldersgate Street in London in 1738. He preached in the English countryside to

the poor, and sparked a religious revival throughout England. He assured the people that all could be

saved by experiencing God and opening their hearts to his grace.

George Whitefield made seven trips to America beginning in 1738 and was one of the most powerful

evangelists ever; he could be heard by up to 30,000 at one time. He, along with others, kindled a

spiritual revival throughout the thirteen colonies known as the Great Awakening. Evangelism became

part of the Christian experience in the USA, as seen in subsequent revivals with Charles Finney in the

pre-Civil War era and Billy Graham in the modern era.

The Methodist movement proved most successful in North America. In 1784 John Wesley appointed one

hundred preachers through the Deed of Declaration, and appointed Francis Asbury and Thomas Coke as

superintendents of the Methodist Church in America. Methodist circuit-riders were effective

missionaries in spreading the Christian faith from the South to settlers in the mid-West. By the beginning

of the American Civil War, Methodism was the largest Christian denomination in North America.

Methodism was the key Christian revival during the Enlightenment and proved the human need for

spiritual experience through Jesus Christ. 4, 5, 7, 28, 37, 38, 41

THE RELIGIOUS CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT

We must obey God rather than men.

Acts 5:29

The American Declaration of Independence of July 4, 1776 read all men are created equal, but slavery

persisted. How could the Revolutionary War be fought for freedom without granting freedom to all? The

1861-1865 American Civil War reflected the Christian heritage of our Nation, for the moral issue of

slavery troubled the hearts of Americans from our very beginning. The Civil War ended slavery, but left

the USA with separate but equal segregation.

The non-violent religious movement of the 1950s and 1960s emerged as the civil rights movement in the

USA, which finally afforded racial equality for African-Americans, one hundred years after the

Emancipation Proclamation! The crusade arose within Negro Churches, the center of their life. African-

Americans had begun to receive recognition in the fields of art, music, and sports. The arrest in

Montgomery, Alabama of Rosa Parks, who was detained on December 1, 1955 for refusing to move to



the back of the bus for a white person, sparked the drive for civil rights. The young and eloquent pastor

of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church, Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., was elected President of the

Montgomery Improvement Association, which had begun the Montgomery Bus boycott. The boycott

lasted 381 days until a Supreme Court decision ended segregation on city buses. Reverend King then

organized 60 pastors into the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, which fostered the civil rights

movement.

St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas distinguished between just and unjust laws. Non-violent civil

disobedience, advocated by John Locke, Henry David Thoreau, and Mahatma Gandhi, was employed by

civil rights leaders against oppressive and unjust civil laws. In general, one is obligated to obey civil laws

that are just (Matthew 22:21, Romans 13:1-7), but first one must obey God rather than man (Acts 5:29)

in the event of unjust laws, such as Pharaoh's daughter v. the Pharaoh (Exodus 1:15-2:10); Rahab v. the

King of Jericho (Joshua 2:1-21); Shadrach, Meshach, and Abegnego v. King Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 3:19-

30); the Maji v. King Herod (Matthew 2:1-23); and Peter and the Apostles v. the Sanhedrin (Acts 4:5-22

and 5:17-42). Law itself is not meant for the righteous (l Timothy 1:9). The early Christians refused to

obey the Romans and suffered martyrdom rather than worship the Emperor.

President John F. Kennedy announced on a nationwide televised speech on June 11, 1963 that he would

submit Civil Rights legislation the following week. Reverend King quoted Scripture in his speeches and

his powerful Letter from a Birmingham Jail, and urged non-violent protest to turn the tide in favor of

racial equality, a movement that crystallized in his famous I Have A Dream speech on the Washington, D.

C. National Mall on August 28, 1963. 37-44

THE SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL (1962-1965)

"Holy Father,

keep them in your name that you have given me,

so that they may be one, just as we are."

Gospel of John 17:11

The surprise announcement of a Second Vatican Council by Pope John XXIII was welcomed with open

arms by all of Christianity, for the Pope called not only for an intense spiritual cultivation of the modern

world, but also sought Christian unity.

His opening speech convening the Second Vatican Council on October 11, 1962 referred to Jesus in the

Gospel of John (17:11): "The Catholic Church, therefore, considers it her duty to work actively so that

there may be fulfilled the great mystery of that unity, which Jesus Christ invoked with fervent prayer

from His heavenly Father on the eve of His sacrifice."

The Pope then stressed the need for unity in three areas: namely, the unity of Catholics among

themselves; the unity with those Christians separated from our Church, and unity in dignity for those

who follow non-Christian religions. This effort towards unity accelerated the original call for Christian



unity by the Protestant World Missionary Conference of Edinburgh in 1906, who recognized the lack of

Christian unity proved to be a grave impediment to bringing non-Christians into the Church.

The Second Vatican Council literally "reset the course" for the Catholic Church, a Church which had been

described by some as a fortress Church embattled during the Enlightenment and the Modernist era. The

reforms of the Council of Trent begun in 1545 were necessary following the Protestant Reformation. Tocoin the expression of Hans Urs von Balthazar in 1952, the time had come to raze the bastions of the

Church. It was time for the aggiornamento of Pope John XXIII, the "opening of the window" of the

Church to the outside world, "a translation of the Christian message into an intellectual language

understandable by the modern world."

Sixteen documents were published throughout the Council. There were four principal Constitutions: the

Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy; the Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation; the Dogmatic

Constitution on the Church; and the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World. There

were also nine Decrees - the Decrees on Ecumenism and the Eastern Catholic Churches; on the Missions

and the Media, and five on the Clergy, Religious and Laity. There were three Declarations - the

Declaration on Religious Liberty; Relations with non-Christian religions; and the necessity of Christian

Education. The important contributions of Vatican ll include:

1) The liturgy of the Mass may be said in the native (or vernacular) language, which allows the liturgy to

be intelligible to the layman and helps secure their participation in the fullest.

2) Lumen Gentium shifted the emphasis of the Church away from its pyramidal structure to the vision of

the whole People of God. The role of the hierarchy is seen as primarily one of service. The affirmation of

the collegial relationship of the Pope and bishops was stressed at Vatican ll. The roles of Bishop, Priest,and Deacon were reaffirmed. The vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience are ever more important for

the religious orders, to serve as examples for the modern world. The role of the laity to order temporal

affairs to the plan of God was emphasized.

3) The spirit of ecumenism and the change of heart towards all Christian brethren was truly a gift of the

Holy Spirit. Lumen Gentium declared "the one Church of Jesus Christ subsists in the Catholic Church,

although many elements of sanctification and truth exist outside its visible structure, elements which

impel toward catholic unity." In the Declaration on Religious Liberty, the Vatican declared that the

human person has a right to religious freedom.

4) The Decree on Eastern Catholic Churches and the Second Vatican Council have had a dramatic impacton the growth and viability of the Eastern Catholic Churches.

5) The call for dialogue with the modern secular world was a landmark step for the Church, as described

in Gaudium et Spes. Dr. Alan Schreck of Franciscan University offers 3 keys to Gaudium et Spes: (a) the

root of the world's problems is found in the human heart. (b) God has created each person in his image

and likeness and therefore each person has his own value and dignity. Pope John Paul ll, who was



involved in its writing, calls Gaudium et Spes the "magna carta of human activity, to be safeguarded and

promoted." (c) The need for the Church to be a prophetic witness of the truth and to proclaim Jesus

Christ.

6) Implementation of the Second Vatican Council led to the decision to create the Catechism of the

Catholic Church, first published in 1992.

7)The greatest fruit of the Second Vatican Council was the exceptional Papacy of John Paul ll (1978-

2005), who integrated the vision of Vatican ll into the life of his Papacy. Vatican ll was the lens, the

perspective of his view of the Church and the world. In fact, the Pope, in his 1994 book Crossing The

Threshold of Hope, called the Second Vatican Council "the Seminary of the Holy Spirit." 1, 4, 7, 44-47

THE PAPACY OF POPE JOHN PAUL ll (1978-2005)

Karol Wojtyla (1920-2005) will be remembered as Pope John Paul ll of the Catholic Church. A playwright,

actor, and poet, he was born May 18, 1920 in Wadowice, Poland. In 1938 he enrolled in the school of

drama at Jagiellonian University in Krakow, where he played goalie on the college soccer team. Heentered an underground seminary in 1942 during the Nazi Regime, and was ordained a priest in 1946

after Poland fell under Communism. Oppression by the Nazis and Communists forged his dedication to

freedom and human rights. He earned a doctorate in theology in 1948 and a doctorate in philosopy in

1954. His first book was Love and Responsibility, on love and sexual morality, published in 1960. His

highly successful play on love, The Jeweler's Shop, was published in 1960 and subsequently translated

into 22 languages, and was made into a movie in 1988.

Karol Wojtyla became Bishop of Krakow, Poland in 1958. He attended the Second Vatican Council and

helped to draft the documents on Religious Liberty and the Church in the Modern World. He then

became Archbishop of Krakow in 1964 and Cardinal in 1967. Following the 33-day papacy of John Paul l,the Conclave of Cardinals elected the bright, personable, and vigorous Wojtyla the 264th Pope on

October 16, 1978.

Pope John Paul ll was one of the most dynamic Popes in the history of the Catholic Church. The man

lived his philosophy, that man is a relational being. The world was his parish, as the loving and outgoing

Pope made an unprecedented 104 papal trips abroad. During his three pilgrimages to Poland, his

repeated call for freedom and spiritual renewal was the turning-point that ultimately led to the non-

violent collapse of Communism, symbolized by the fall of the Berlin Wall on November 9, 1989.

The world was moved when he forgave and visited the man who seriously wounded him in St. Peter's

Square on May 13, 1981. He became a symbol of hope to the young with his inauguration of

International World Youth Day in 1987. As expressed in his 1994 book Crossing the Threshold of Hope,

his belief in Jesus Christ as the hope for man in the Third Millennium was an inspiration for all. He urged

all of us to hear the words (Matthew 28:10) of the Risen Christ - "Be Not Afraid!" In his 2000 visit to



Jerusalem, referring to the Crusades, the Inquisition, the Galileo episode and other events, the Pope as

representative of Peter asked God forgiveness for the sins of the Catholic Church.

A persistent theme in his fourteen encyclicals was the dignity of the human person in the light of Christ,

and the goal for humanity to become a civilization of love. His first encyclical, The Redeemer of Man

(1979), spoke of Jesus Christ, "the center of the universe and of history." He completed his Trinitarianencyclicals with The Mercy of God the Father (1980), and On the Holy Spirit (1986). His respect for the

Blessed Virgin Mary was reflected in Mother of the Redeemer (1987). He commemorated Saints Cyril

and Methodius in The Apostles to the Slavs in 1985 to encourage his fellow countryman during

communist oppression. The Pope called for social justice in three encyclicals, On Human Work (1981),

On Social Concerns (1987), and On the One Hundredth Year (1991) of Rerum Novarum, in which he

emphasized the dignity of the individual, in the face of man being unjustly treated as a unit of

production in a socialistic utilitarian world. He renewed commitment to the missionary role of the

Church in Mission of the Redeemer in 1990. He appreciated man's thirst for truth, as noted in his

encyclical The Splendor of Truth , published in 1993. One of his favorite Scriptural quotes was John 8:32:

You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. Perhaps his most important was the widely readencyclical The Gospel of Life, published in 1995, in which he defended the sanctity of life and described

the culture of death - the evil of abortion and euthanasia. He pursued Vatican II's goal in turning the

Church's direction towards Christian unity, as addressed in his 1995 encyclical That All May Be One . In

addition to pointing out those areas of study necessary for a true consensus of faith, he addressed the

common bonds of unity in faith among all Christians: Jesus Christ our Savior, Son of God the Father, who

sent the Holy Spirit; Baptism; the New Testament of the Bible; and prayer, especially the Lord's Prayer.

He emphasized the relation of Faith and Reason in an encyclical of the same name in 1998. His

fourteenth and final encyclical on The Church of the Eucharist was released in 2003.

His weekly general audiences in St. Peter's Square led to his book on the Theology of the Body in 1997.Pope John Paul ll led a profound life of prayer, and in 2002 added the Mysteries of Light, also called the

Luminous Mysteries, to the Joyful, Sorrowful, and Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary. He established

Divine Mercy Sunday, which recognized the devotion of St. Faustina and the Chaplet of Divine Mercy to

our Merciful Saviour.

Pope John Paul ll was truly the moral and spiritual leader of the entire world, as one can appreciate by

the worldwide outpouring of love on his death April 2, 2005. John Paul ll will be remembered for his

emphasis on Christ and man, that the Gospel provides direction and supports the dignity of the human

person. For "the truth is that only in the mystery of Christ the Incarnate Word does the mystery of man

take on light." He is only the third Pope to be called the Great, a title that is already being used for this

holy and loving man. 1, 4, 7, 48-54



- LMH

http://biblescripture.net/Jerusalem.html

Documents

Pope in Rome the Vicar of Christ the History of the Church of Jesus Christ