RE 03 : The Church

 INTRODUCTION

NOTA BENE:

 Salvation comes from God alone; but because we receive the life of faith through the Church, she
is our mother: "We believe the Church as the mother of our new birth, and not in the Church as if
she were the author of our salvation."
 Because she is our mother, she is also our teacher in faith.

 "Mater et Magistra" St. Pope John XXIII considered the Holy Church as the Mother and Teacher.
In His encyclical in 1961, with the same title, he profoundly described the very role of the Church as
Mother and Teacher.

 Like Mary, our of Mother, the Church is existing to care for her children throughout the world at
all times from generation to generation. She also bore in her womb the life of her children, a life
sacred and blessed. She showed the unconditional loved she received and experienced from her
bride-groom, Jesus Christ. She is a gentle and caring mother.

 The Church's role has long been to teach while guiding individuals and nations toward salvation.
Her main concern is to care and to WORK for souls and lead them to heaven, but the Church is
also concerned with the livelihood, education, and wellbeing of humanity.
 Just as Jesus' primary mission was humankind's eternal salvation, He too fed the hungry and was
concerned for worldly needs.

 "Mother and Teacher of all nations --such is the Catholic Church in the mind of her Founder,
Jesus Christ; to hold the world in an embrace of love, that men, in every age, should find in her
their own completeness in a higher order of living, and their ultimate salvation.
 She is 'the pillar and ground of the truth. To her was entrusted by her holy Founder the twofold
task of giving life to her children and of teaching them and guiding them--both as individuals and
as nations-with maternal care. Great is their dignity, a dignity which she has always guarded most
zealously and held in the highest esteem." (MM 1)

 This module deals with the Catholic Church both earthly and heavenly, human and divine.

LESSON 1: Brief History of the Catholic Church

LESSON 2: The Nature of the Church
LESSON 3: Essential Marks of the Church

 We, as Baptized, are one with Christ. We are the Church: Jesus is our head, and we are His Body,
people of God.

 LESSON 1: BRIEF HISTORY OF THE CHURCH

 PRE-BIRTH

 Christ and the Apostles lived as a community. He called many people to live His ways. He started
with twelve men which he called the Disciples, the ones who learn from the Master's feet.
(Matthew 10:1-4)
 They WATCH His public ministry, after He received His Baptism from St. John the Baptist in the
Jordan river, (Matthew 3:13-17) His public ministry begun.

 He chose Simon, Son of Jonah, as the foundation of His Church and entrusting him the keys of
the kingdom of heaven in Matthew 16: 18-19. After His earthly ministry, he was sentenced to
death on the cross as expiation to the sin of man. After Christ's death, the apostles feared for their
lives. Their hopes crumpled all around them. However, through Christ's resurrection, (Matthew
28:1ff) the apostles found new hope.
 The Resurrection of Christ is the starting point of Christian Faith.

 Before He ascended into heaven, Jesus commanded His disciples to make more disciples, baptize
them, and instruct them in the faith (Matthew 28:19-20). He also promised that he will be with
them until the end of time, and that he will be back. "And you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem
and in all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8)

 THE BIRTH

 As promised by Christ, the Holy Spirit descended on His Apostles, after His ascension into
Heaven. The Holy Spirit builds, animates, and sanctifies Christ's mystical body, the Church.
 As the Spirit descended on the Apostles (Acts 2), they went out from hiding and began to
undertake the evangelizing mission Christ left them with -- so was the Church birthed on
Pentecost Sunday.

 "The Church was made manifest to the world in the day of Pentecost by the outpouring of the
Holy Spirit. The gift of the Spirit ushers in a new era in the dispensation of mystery, the age of the
Church, during which Christ manifests, makes present and communicates.His work of salvation
through the liturgy of His Church." (CCC 1076)

 At the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, the Apostles were transformed from being fearful
disciples into courageous preachers of the Good News.
 Evangelization - the initial proclamation of the Gospel to non-believers for the purpose of
converting them to faith in the Lord Jesus.
 The Holy Spirit empowered the Apostles to carry out their mission of evangelization.

 The First Crisis of the Early Church

 Should the Gentiles be accepted into the Church? Must they (Gentiles) also become Jewish and
follow the law of Moses?

 Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15)

 Set the stage for opening Christianity's doors to those of any nationality or culture.
 Paul argued that Christian converts need not pass to circumcision and the strict obedience of the
Jewish law because it is Christ who is the essence of the church.

 "After much debate had taken place, Peter got up and said to them, "My brothers, you are well
aware that from early days God made his choice among you that through my mouth the Gentiles
would hear the word of the gospel and believe. And God, who knows the heart, bore witness by
granting them the holy Spirit just as he did us. He made no distinction between us and them, for
by faith he purified their hearts." (Acts 15:7-9)

 THE PERSECUTION

 The first follower of Christ to be recorded as martyr is in the Acts 6:54-60: St. Stephen.
 Stephen was a deacon, man filled with grace and power, who was working great wonders and
signs among the people (Acts 6: 8)
 His death was the signal for increased persecution against the Church at Jerusalem.

 From that day on, persecution of the followers of Christ became a custom to the pagan world.
Many of the early Christians suffered, tortured and died for the faith in the Risen Christ.
 These are the reasons of the Persecutions of the Christians by the Romans. First, because, the
beliefs and practices of the Christians were in conflict with the worldview of the pagan Rome:

a) They worship only one God and do not recognize the Roman gods and goddesses. They also
refuse to worship the emperor.
b) Christians are believed to be engaged in some form of cannibalism in their Eucharistic Rite
which is celebrated in secret.
 c) Public spectacles of bloody games, like gladiatorial contests, were condemned by the
Christians as inhuman.
d) Christians refused to serve in the army and protested against wars.
e) Christians showed disloyalty to the state by not paying the imposed temple tax.

 Years after years, the Early Christian were persecuted. From Nero, in the year 64 of which general
persecution of the early Church started.
 The persecuted were became torches in the garden of Nero. However despite being killed, their
number continue to grow.

 ATTITUDE OF THE EARLY CHRISTIANS TOWARDS PERSECUTION

 The early Christian would say “Crucify us; torture us; send us to death; wipe us out? Your
injustice is the proof of our innocence!”
 The cruel inventions of your fury serve as recommendations for the Church. Our numbers go on
increasing while you make blood harvests of our ranks."
 "The Blood of Christ is a seed"

 The final general persecution of the church was under the reign of Emperor Diocletian in the year
303 and lasted for 10 years. It is the worst persecution - extremely violent and added many to the
list of martyrs in the Church.

 THE END OF PERSECUTION

 Emperor Diocletian divided the Roman Empire into East and West in the year 292.
 Constantine succeeded Diocletian in the year 312 - an armed conflict broke out between
Constantine and Maxentius.

 Constantine beheld a vision of a cross in the sky, over which were emblazoned the Latin words
"In hoc signo vinces" (In this sign you shall conquer.)

 In the year 313 - Constantine, with his co- emperor Licinus, issued the Edict of Milan.
 Edict of Milan - freedom of Religion to Christians and even to all human beings ended the
persecution of the Christians.
 With Constantine's victory, the Eastern and the Western realms were unified.
 Constantine is the sole Emperor was converted to Christianity in the year 313.

 Constantine transferred the capital of the empire from Rome to Byzantium which he renamed
Constantinople.

 The Triumph of the Cross

 In the year 313, through the Edict of Milan, Christianity enjoyed the status of "religio licita". No
more crucifixions. Christians were given places for worship.
 In 391, Emperor Theodosius the Great declared Christianity as the state religion of Rome, the
only legitimate imperial religion.

 Rome and Constantinople were the 2 great centers of Christianity. They became more and more
separated by theology and politics.
 Eastern Empire - often resented the Romans claim to primacy.

 The Great Schism

 Western Church
 Rome is the seat of the church
 Pope, the bishop of Rome
-elected by the clergy
-the highest authority
-spiritual and temporal
 Christians in the West recognized the supreme authority of the pope
  Official language: Latin

 Pope Francis (Present Pope of the Catholic Church)

-True Church Leadership
- Pope Francis is a global leader who has the ability to connect with others by:
1) Being present
2) Deeply listening
3) Demonstrating empathy and compassion,
4) Sharing experiences and stories,
5) And taking incremental steps forward in pursuit of his mission and vision.
6) His leadership qualities are based on Charisma,
7) Closeness to others,
8) And simple but clear and understandable ideas that appeal to common sense and action.
9) He is known for his Humility
10) Good decision making,
11) and ability to overcome adversity.

 Eastern Church
 Constantinople is the seat of the church.
 Patriarch, head of the church
- appointed by the emperor.
 Emperor, the most influential Christians in the East recognized the Patriarch of
Constantinople
 Official language: Greek

 Ecumenical Patriarch Batholomew (Present Patriarch of Orthodox Church)

-Has shown the world that true Church leadership is the:

1) Spiritual leadership of service

2) Passionate advocacy of peace and justice and human rights
3) Concern for the environment, for all of God's creation and creatures, for the cosmos.

 The Dark Ages of the Church

 The total dominance of Christianity and the repression of all art, science and progress that was not
Christian in nature.
 The era became known as the Dark Ages because of the introduction of theocracy (a system of
government in which priests rule in the name of God or a god.)

 The Inquisition

 The last great innovation of the Age of Theocracy was the Inquisition which started out as a
measure designed to suppress all non-Christian thought. It was charged with seeking out, trying
and sentencing persons guilty of the broadly defined crime of "heresy".
 The Inquisition quite openly used torture to obtain evidence for a wide range of alleged charges,
including heresy, witchcraft, bigamy.
 Heresy: belief or opinion contrary to orthodox religious (Christian) doctrine.
 Witchcraft: the practice of magic, esp. black magic; the use of spells.
 Bigamy: the act of going through a marriage ceremony while already married to another person,

 The Protestantism

 A movement in Western Christianity whose adherents reject the notion that divine authority is
channeled through one particular human institution or person such as the Roman Catholic pope.
 Martin Luther (Founder of Protestantism)

 Protestants look elsewhere for the authority of their faith: Bible - the Hebrew Scriptures and the
New Testament - as the source and the norm of their teaching.
 Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Christians also stress the authority of the Bible, but they
also look to tradition, and, in the case of Catholics, to the pope as a source of authority.

 The Anglicans

 The separation of the church of England from the Roman Catholic Church was by King Henry
VIII.

 Although he was declared then by the church as "Defender of Faith," he wanted to push for a
separation between the church and the state so that he may have full control over England. This is
because he wanted to annul his marriage with Catherine of Aragon to marry Anne Boleyn.
 Although he sought first the permission of the pope but Pope Clement VII refused him. As
advised by Cromwell and Thomas Crammer, Henry VIII broke away from the Church then
proclaimed himself supreme governor of the church of England.

 COUNCIL OF TRENT (1545-1563)

 This council is called as Counter Reformation. It was convoked because of the situation created
by Protestantism. Since Luther revolted in 1517, things became bad to worse. But it took twenty
years for the church to convoke such a council.

 Pope Paul III (The Pope of the Catholic Church during the Council of Trent)

 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE COUNCIL

1. It gave the complete list of books of the Bible, and declared that Tradition and Scriptures are
both sacred.
2. It declared that God's grace and man's freedom had to cooperate in the process of salvation,
and that nobody is predestined to be eternally damned or saved. True faith must be expressed
in good works.
3. It decreed that the seven sacraments were instituted by Christ, Himself. The Eucharist is the
memorial of the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, not only the commemoration of the Last
Supper.
4. To fight the clergy's ignorance, the council decided to establish diocesan seminaries for their
spiritual and cultural formation. Preaching on Sundays and holidays was made obligatory.
5. It also removed all the abuses connected with the indulgences.
6. It exhorted Cardinals and Bishops to avoid luxury and to become models of holiness and
humility.
7. It confirmed the existence of purgatory, the legitimacy of the veneration of the saints, and the
validity of religious vows.

 Indulgences, a distinctive feature of the penitential system of both the western Medieval and the
Roman Catholic Church that granted full or partial remission of the punishment of sin.
 In the teaching of the Catholic Church, an "indulgence" is a way to reduce the amount of
punishment one has to undergo for sins.

 2ND VATICAN COUNCIL (1962-1965)

 The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, or Vatican II, was an Ecumenical Council of the
Roman Catholic Church opened under Pope John XXIII in 1962 and closed under Pope Paul VI in
1965.
 Pope John XXIII (1881-1963) and Pope Paul VI (1897-1978)

 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE COUNCIL

1. It brings about an updating, a renewal that would enable the church of the 20th century to
address the problems of the 20th century.
2. It gives greater recognition on the laity's role in the church.
3. It gives way to a greater participation of the local churches in decisions that would affect the
church universally.
 4. It effected most visibly the shift in the aspect of LITURGY. (The Faithful were given the
opportunity participate more fully actively and consciously in the liturgy.)

 2ND PLENARY COUNCIL OF THE PHILIPPINES

 Response to the call of Vatican Council II for the local churches to actively participate in the
renewal of the church, the local church in the Philippines convoked the Second Plenary Council
(PCPII), the first in Asia.' Its main goal is "To actualize the result of Vatican II at the local level."

 They envisioned a renewed church in the Philippines, focusing on Christ, with pastoral orientation
and evangelization, in the context of the Filipino culture.

 The Second Plenary Council of the Philippines, or PCP II, is a council that was held in Manila
from January 20, 1991 to February 17, 1991.
- PCP II aimed to change the ways of the Church in the Philippines from the Second Vatican
Council.
- PCP II was first planned in the 56th Plenary Assembly of the CBCP.

 The Local Church in the Philippines, gathered in its PCP II in 1991 declared itself as a "CHURCH
OF THE POOR" Which means," a local Church that will give preferential option for the poor' in
all its pastoral priorities, programs and "way of being Church."

 PCP II is a gathering of over 450 Church leaders (bishops, priests, religious, lay people) held in
January to February 1991.
 It was held 26 years after Vatican II and 5 years after Edsa uprising.
 This momentous gathering is intended to reflect on the IDENTITY and MISSION of the Church
in the context of new realities

 Assignment# 1 : Jesus’ 12 Disciples

1) St. Peter: (or Cephas - Rock) also known as Simon, Natural Leader

2) St. Andrew: Passionate Preacher, sons of John, were born in Bethsaida, were fishermen.
-Were early followers of St. John the Baptist, he was first to follow Jesus, he died a martyr's death
(he was crucified)

3) St. Simon the Zealot: Political Activist in his younger years. He was a man of fierce loyalties,
amazing passion, courage and zeal.
- He believed the truth and embraced Christ as his Lord. After preaching on the west coast of
Afrika, Simon went to England where he ended up being crucified in 74 AD.

4) St. James, the Son of Zebedee: Quiet Disciple, was the first disciple to be martyred (he was
beheaded) recorded in the Scripture (Acts 12:1-3)

5) St. John, the Son of Zebedee: Beloved Disciple (Disciple Jesus loved) - James and John were both
known for being men of intense passion and fervor. Because of this Jesus nicknamed them the
Sons of Thunder (Mark 3:17).
-He wrote the Book of John 1, 2, 3 and the Book of Revelation. He wrote more about love than
any other New Testament author.
-His close proximity to Jesus taught him much about love.

6) St. Philip. Heart of and for Evangelism. He was stoned and crucified in Hierapolis, Phrygia.

7) St. Thomas: Usually nicknamed " Doubting Thomas" He was also called Didymus, meaning The
Twin (although a twin brother of sister is never mentioned in the bible) The quality of courage
and loyalty to Christ, qualities attributed Thomas. He started the Christian Church in India.
Similar to Jesus he was pierced with the spear.

8) St. Matthew: Former Tax Collector. Levi, the son of Alphaeus. Matthew brought the gospel to
Ethiopia and Egypt. Hircanus the King had him killed with a spear.
9) St. James the Son of Alphaeus (James the Less) Obscure Apostle: He was somewhat in the
background , but he was chosen by Jesus to be one of the 12 disciples. He was trained and used by
Christ in a powerful way to further the kingdom of God. He was a valuable team member.

10) St. Thaddaeus (Judas, son of James). Also known as Jude, Thaddeus Inquisitive Disciple. He took
the gospel north to Edessa.

11) St. Bartholomew: also known as Nathanael. "an Israelite, in whom there is no deceit". He was
beaten, crucified, and beheaded. He died as a martyr while serving the people of Albinopolis,
Armenia.

12) Judas Iscariot, the one who betrayed Jesus (Matthew 10:2-4). He is the traitor. He betrayed Jesus
for 30 pieces of silver. (Matthew 26:15)

 Assignment #2 : Books of the Catholic Bible

I. The Old Testament (46 books)

A. Pentateuch (5 books)
1) Genesis
2) Exodus
3) Leviticus
4) Numbers
5) Deuteronomy

B. Historical (16 books)

1. Joshua
2. Judges
3. Ruth
4. I Samuel
5. 2 Samuel
6. 1 Kings
7. 2Kings
8. 1 Chronicles
9. 2 Chronicles.
10. Ezra
11. Nehemiah
12. Tobit
13. Judith
14. Esther
15. 15.1 Maccabees
16. 16.2 Maccabees

C. Wisdom Books/Poetry (7 books)

1. Job
2. Psalms
3. Proverbs
4. Ecclesiastes
5. Song of Songs
6. Wisdom
7. Sirach

D. Prophetic (18 books)

1. Isaiah
2. Jeremiah
3. Lamentations
4. Baruch
5. Ezekiel
6. Daniel
7. Hosea
8. Joel
9. Amos
10. Obadiah
11. Jonah
12. Micah
13. Nahum
14. Habakkuk
15. Zephaniah
16. Haggai
17. Zechariah
18. Malachi

II. New Testament (27 books)

A. The Gospels (4 books)

1. Matthew
2. Mark
3. Luke
4. John

B. Historical (1 book)
1.Acts of the Apostles

C. Pauline Epistles ( 14 books)

1. Hebrews
2. Romans
3. 1 Corinthians
4. 2 Corinthians
5. Galatians
6. Ephesians
7. Philippians
8. Colossians
9. 1 Thessalonians
10. 2 Thessalonians
11. 1 Timothy
12. 2Timothy
13. Titus
14. Philemon

D. General Epistles (7 books)

1. James
2. 1 Peter
3. 2 Peter
4. 1 John
5. 2 John
6. 3 John
7. 7.Jude

E. Prophecy (1 book)
1. Revelation

 Assignment # 3: Documents and Statements of the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council (16)

Part I. Four Constitutions

1. Sacrosanctum Concilium (Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy)
2. Lumen Gentium (Dogmatic Constitution of The Church)
3. Dei Verbum (Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation)
4. Gaudium et Spes (Pastoral Constitution in The Modern World)

Part II. Three Declarations

1. Gravissimum Educationis (Education)
2. Nostra Aetate (Non-Christian Religions)
3. Dignitatis Humanae (Religious Freedom)

Part III. Nine Decrees

1. Inter Mirifica (The Media)
2. Orientalium Ecclesiarum (The Eastern Rite)
3. Unitatis Redintegratia (Ecumenism)
4. Christus Dominus (Bishops in the Church)
5. Perfectae Caritas (Religious Life)
6. Optatam Totius (Priestly Training)
7. Apostolicam Actuositatem (Apostolate of the Laity)
8. Ad Gentes (Mission Activity)
9. Presbyterorum Ordinis (Priestly Ministry)

 LESSON 2: THE NATURE OF THE CHURCH

CFC 1355. Ekklesia. This "more" of the Church can be shown first of all from its long history. Our
Catholic Church traces its origin back to the Old Testament qahal and the New Testament ekklesia
(CCC751f). Both terms mean "the people of God called together," or an "assembly convoked by God."
Thus, they stress the action of God in calling the people together.
 The Church thus claims to be a faith-assembly whose root cause is God's free call to all to share
His divine goodness and love in Christ. The Church therefore is not just a social grouping of
people drawn together by cultural values and attitudes. This faith-conviction that God is the ever-
present source and ground for the Church is the reason for explaining the Church as "mystery"
and "sacrament."

 A. THE CHURCH AS MYSTERY

CFC1356. In the Christian Faith there are mysteries or divine truths proposed to our belief “that are
hidden in God and which can never be known unless they are revealed by God himself” (DS, 3015) and
which we will never be able to understand fully because of the limitation of our intelligence (cf. DS
3016). Such is the case of the mystery of the Blessed Trinity.

 There are also created salvific realities which can partly be known by our human intelligence, but
which have also a transcendent dimension which can be perceived only through faith.
 These salvific realities are also called "mysteries" because of their inexhaustible richness. It is in
this sense that we speak of the Church as "mystery."

 To affirm the Church is a mystery simply means,

 First, that it is "a reality imbued with the hidden presence of God... always open to new and
greater exploration" (Paul VI at the Opening of the Second Session of Vatican II).
 Second, it has a unique relation to God Himself, and therefore also with all of us who are called to
salvation precisely as a people. But what precisely is this "unique relationship with God?"

1357. The Church is related to each Person of the Blessed Trinity.

 First, to the eternal Father who “resolved to assemble all those who believe in Christ in the holy
Church.”
In the Father's plan, the Church was:
 prefigured from the beginning of the world:
 prepared wonderfully in the history of Israel,
 instituted finally in these last times,
 manifested in the outpouring of the Holy Spirit,
  to be brought to completion at the end of time (cf. LG 2; CCC 760-69).

1358. Second, to the Incarnate Son, Jesus Christ. "Christ, the one Mediator, established and ceaselessly
sustains here on earth his holy Church" (LG 8; cf. CCC 763-66).
 The Church originated and grew from Christ. "From the side of Christ as He slept the sleep of
death upon the Cross came forth the wondrous sacrament of the whole Church" (SC 5)

1359. Like the Incarnate Son, the Church is both visible and invisible, human and divine. As the Son of
God "became flesh" to save us from our sins, so the spiritual community of the Church takes on visible
social structure to serve its mission (cf. LG 8; CCC 771-73).

1360. Third, to the Holy Spirit who dwells in the Church and in the hearts of the faithful as in a temple
(cf. 1 Cor 3:16), and bears witness to their adoptive sonship (cf. Gal 4:6).
 The Spirit guides the Church into the fullness of truth (cf. Jn 16:13), gives her a unity of
fellowship and service, and constantly renews and leads her to perfect union with her Spouse,
Christ (cf. CCC 767).

CFC 1365. This Trinitarian view of the Church is actually quite close to the ordinary religious
experience of Catholic Filipinos. For it is in the Church, especially in communal worship at Mass when
we most often:
 experience God as “our Father” and feel ourselves as children divine hand
 come to know Christ as our personal Savior, and what it means to be His disciples in service of
others; and
 judge true, authentic experiences of the Holy Spirit, among our fellow disciples of Christ, and
under the guidance and leadership of Church authorities.

 B. THE CHURCH AS SACRAMENT

CFC 1366. The Church as mystery is further clarified and developed by the notion of sacrament. "By
her relationship with Christ, the Church is both a sacramental sign and an instrument of intimate union
with God, and of the unity of all mankind" (GS 42; cf. LG 1). Christ then has made the Church the
effective sign and symbol of :
1) our union with God;
2) the unity among men; and
3) of salvation.

 For the Risen Christ, continually active in the world, "sent his life-giving Spirit to establish his
Body, the Church as the universal sacrament of salvation” (LG 48; cf. CCC 774-76).

1367. The idea that the Church is Sacrament may sound strange at first to many Filipinos. We have
been used to thinking of "sacrament" solely as the "seven sacraments," individual liturgical rituals such
as Baptism, the Mass, Confession, etc.
 But if we focus on the essentials of "sacrament," we find both Christ himself as well as the
Church fulfill the notion perfectly. A sacrament is a material sign which gives grace, effecting
what it symbolizes; it causes grace by symbolizing grace.

1368. Thinking of the Church as "sacrament" has many advantages.

 First, it unites inseparably the visible and invisible dimensions of the Church. "Sacrament" by
definition is a visible sign making present an invisible reality. So the Church is a visible,
hierarchically structured society making present a spiritual community. The two aspects form
but one complex reality which comprises both a human and a divine element.

1369. Second, "sacrament" directly relates the Church to non-Catholics. Without neglecting the
necessity of the visible Church, it helps explain how the grace of Christ can be operative beyond the
limits of the institutional Church.
 The Church as sacrament is "used by Christ as an instrument for the redemption of all, and sent
forth into the whole world as the light of the world and the salt of the earth”(LG 9). The Church,
then, is the tangible sign of Christ's presence in the world, a beacon of light visible to all and
 drawing them in the power of the Spirit to communion with God and with one another in Christ.
(cf. Acts 13:47; Mt 5:14-16).

1370. Third, it unites the Church closely with the Eucharist. The many similarities are striking:
 As the Eucharist is composed of bread and wine "which earth has given and human hands have
made," so the Church is composed of men and women called together.

 As the Eucharist makes sacramentally present the body and blood of the Risen Christ so the
Church is the visible sign of the presence of the Risen Christ in His Spirit.
 As the Eucharist's bread and wine have no meaning outside of Christ's words, so the Church
cannot be understond except through Christ's promise "I am with you always until the end of
the world" (Mt 28:20).
 And as Christ's presence in the Eucharistic bread and wine is not effected by any human holiness
or fidelity, but by the Risen Christ's own saving activity in the Spirit, so too is his inseparable
union with the Church effected.

 The Nature of the Church:

A. The People of God
B. The Body of Christ
C. The Temple of the Holy Spirit

 When one desires to learn about the natures of the Church, the first place to turn to is the Bible.
 It doesn't take long to find out that nowhere in the Bible is there found to be a section which
specifically gives a definition of what the Church is, or what it is to be.
 “For the New Testament provides no theological definition of the Church. Ecclesiology in the
New Testament is shaped by images, not definitional statements. Nowhere we are told that the
Church is.... New Testament ecclesiology is metaphysical, not doctrinal."
 Thus, if one wants to learn about the nature of the Church, an examination of how the Church is
describe using biblical imagery is a necessity. And these images abound.

 "The Church is called

 the Body of Christ,
 the family of God,
 the people of God,
 the elect,
 the bride of Christ,
 the company of the redeemed,
 the communion of saints,
 the new Israel, among others."

 A. The People of God

 The people of God is one such term which can be found numerously throughout the Scriptures.
 In the New Testament alone it can be found to be used by six different writers in fourteen
different writings.
 One of the main things which this image does is to draw “our attention to the history of
redemption through the ages and to God's mighty works at the climax of that history at calvary at
Pentecost.”
 It also serves to give us a sense of continuity between the Old and New Testaments.

 In The Old Testament there are numerous places in which Israel is identified as being God's
chosen people (Exod 15:13, 16, Num 14:8, Deut 32:9-10; Isa 52:4) who were put into a
covenantal relationship with God.
 Although a new people is not specifically mentioned in the New Testament, a new covenant is,
which eludes to an envisaging of a new and eschatological people of God (Luke 22:20; 1 Cor.
11:25; 2 Cor. 3:6; Heb. 8:13; 9:15)

 A quick glimpse at the New Testament reveals that the Christians during that time clearly saw
themselves as being the people of God.
 Peter plainly states his view that the body of believers is a continuation of the Old Testament
people when he writes in
 1 Peter 2:9-10 that: "You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's own people...
Once you were no people but now you are God's people; once you had not received mercy but
now you have received mercy."

 Many places within the New Testament support this statement; Hebrews 8:10: "This is the
covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws
in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God and the will be my people."

 B. The Body of Christ

 First of all, It can be said that the "image of the church as the body of Christ emphasizes that the
Church is the focus of Christ's activity now, just as was his physical body during his earthly
ministry."

 There is an interconnectedness between all member who make up the body of Christ. Hence, the
"Christian faith is not to be defined merely in terms of individual relationship to the Lord. There
is no such thing as an isolated, solitary Christian life."

 The Body of Christ is: "not so much an organization as it is an organism. It is made up of living
parts. It is called the Body of Christ. Just as a human body is organized to function in unity by the
coworking and codependence of many parts, so the church as a body displays unity and diversity.
 Though ruled by one 'head' - Christ - the body has many members, each gifted and endowed by
God to contribute to the work of the whole body."

 C. Temple of the Holy Spirit

 In Paul's letter to the Ephesians he refers to them as being God's Holy Temple which is "built on
the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone."
Itah 2:20)
 There have been three different ways as to how this cornerstone may be viewed’
 First, it may be viewed as a cornerstone which lies at a lower front corner of a building.
 Since the rest of the structure seems to be supported by it, it has come to signify something of
fundamental importance.

 Secondly, some scholars believe that this word could be referring to the keystone of an arch.
 This stone occupies the highest place in the arch and provides support for the stones.

 Finally, this term could be understood to mean the capstone of a pyramid.

 "This stone occupies the highest place in the structure. It is the only stone of that size and shape.
And its angels and lines determine the shape of the whole pyramid."

 The Role/Function of the Church

What exactly is the Church to do?
What is the function or role of the Church?

Four Functions of the Church:

1. Evangelism
2. Edification
3. Worship
4. Social Concern

1) Evangelism
 Thus, evangelism is not just something we ought to do, but something that we must do in order to
survive.
 In order for evangelism to be effective, it must remain faithful to the teaching of Scripture while
adapting to the contemporary style of our present day culture.
 However, it is crucial that we never find our message in a current need in society, but rather it
must always come from the Bible.
 In the power of the Spirit, this message is the most effective when it comes through the medium
of personal witness. However, it needs to be noted that our actions always speak louder than
words. Hence, the "Christian has to mirror God's life, or what he says sound unreal...life and
Word must correspond. They've got to be in harmony.
 When sharing the gospel, it must not come across as being "mechanical" and rehearsed; rather is
must be a sincere outflow of love from lives which live in close communion with God.

2) Edification
 As Christians are involved in a Christian community "[they] can learn, [they] can grow and
change. [They] can be molded by what is there.
 The life of God within can be encouraged, strengthened, trained, disciplined, motivated, by
sharing the reality of that life with others."
 However, it should be noted that this community of believers does not necessarily mean a
"church" as we are accustomed to think about today, "But it does mean a church as marked out in
Scripture: an association of believers gathered together, and involved in the lives of one another,
to encourage, to love, to discipline, to strengthen, and to sustain the budding life of God and
character of God within each Christian."

 One other point to make about edification, is that it is the work of the entire body of Christ. Not
just those ordained or in places of leadership. God has given every member of the body a role to
play in the building up of the church. If people neglect to do their part, the whole body suffers and
growth will not occur as it is meant to.
 For it is from Jesus that the "whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament,
grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work" (Eph 4:16).

3) Worship
 Worship is central to the existence of the church, Paul eludes to this fact when he mentions in his
letter to the Ephesians that God has predestined us to be His children in Christ "to the praise of his
glorious grace" (Eph 1:6). This suggests that the ultimate purpose of the church is the worship of
the one who called it into being.
 Throughout the centuries the church has been faithful in the call to worship. This can be most
clearly seen in the continued observance of the Sabbath: Christians have been doing it for two
thousand years because they find the meaning of life in weekly worship of Jesus Christ, "the
firstborn of the dead... This longing within a Christian congregation sets it off from all other
human gatherings. Others meet for pleasure, or study, or to plot a course of action.
 The Church meets for worship."

 Although Sunday is most often referred to as the day of worship, the Bible suggests that we
should be involved in worship daily (Acts 2:46). Furthermore, in the book of Hebrews we are
exhorted to never stop in this practice: "Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the
habit of doing, but let us encourage one another - and all the more as you see the Day
approaching" (Heb 10:25).
 Looking toward the future, the book of Revelation depicts worship as it will be in heaven. Hence,
it can be concluded that worship is, and always will be, an essential part of the Christian life.

 So what actually constitutes worship? Worship may involve a large variety of things, such as:
enjoyment, plans for action, instruction and equipment- but the heart of the matter "is always the
fact of God, and the relationship of the worshipers to Him. The joy of the worshiper is in God. His
instruction is in the will of God. His plans for action are in the purposes of God. It is centrality of
God that makes worship what it is.”

 It must also be remembered that true worship is not done to gain God's favor, but rather it is a
thanksgiving for the favor and grace which we know God has already shown to us as well as for
the blessings that we know He will shower upon us in the future.
 Overshadowing all other blessings, we worship God for what He has done for us by sending His
Son to save us.

 The focus of our corporate worship, however, must always be the glory of God. In modern
worship services, too much attention is directed toward what happens to the worshipper.
 Churches resort to sound, lighting, symbolism, liturgy, and pageantry to produce emotional
feeling in the worshiper.
 Those who participate tend to evaluate the service in terms of how it lifted them up or gave them a
good feeling or inspired them... To evaluate worship by what happens to the worshiper is to make
men, not God, the center of worship.
 This is to use God for human ends. But it is not God's chief end to glorify man and to make him
happy forever. It is rather man's chief end to glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever. And this is
the primary purpose of all true worship.

 Although the worshiper will definitely be blessed in his/her time of worship, it must be
remembered that this is not the ultimate goal or purpose of such an occasion. Rather, giving praise
and honor to God must always be uppermost in our minds as we worship with our lips as well as
our lives.

4) Social Concern

 Although evangelium is at the heart of the Christian life, there is also a place for pure social
concern.
 These two aspects of outreach are very similar and yet differ in some ways. Whereas evangelism
is concerned with sharing the gospel with people, social concern covers the needs of the whole
person, regardless of their personal response to such help:
 Of course, relationship with God is crucial. But if we love, if we love truly, it is not in word only,
but in deed. And we don't say to a hungry man, 'Lord bless you, brother. I hope you get some food
and clothes.' We feed him. And we clothe him. Even if he doesn't listen to us. And we do all this
because it's right, because God makes His rain to fall on the just and unjust, and because as His
children we are also to bless all-with no strings attached.

 And when we give, we are not suppose to give just of our material goods, but of ourselves as well.
As can be seen in the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37), Christians are suppose to
love and take care of their neighbors. If we truly want to be faithful to the life that Christ calls us
to, we will always be involved in some type of ministry to those who are in need and suffering.

 Since Pentecost, the church has been established for all eternity. The church is more than an
organization, its a body of believers created by God in order to give Him praise and honor while
being a blessing to the people in this world as well. However, there is much more to the church
than that. No simple definition can ever truly reveal the nature of the church. The only way the
church can be defined is through the Interrelated biblical images which each shed some light as to
what, or who, the church really is.

 God has given the church many tasks which are suppose to be actively obeyed until the time of
Christ's return. Evangelism, edification, worship, and social concern are only four of these
functions/roles which the church has been charged with. Even though these roles are commanded
of the church, they are not suppose to be thought of negatively; but rather they are suppose to
bring joy to the lives of believers while helping them to grow in their walk with the Lord.
 They also have a positive effect on those who have not yet come to know Christ, and have often
been the means by which God has called many into a right relationship with Him. But most of all,
these functions of the church serve to bring glory and honor to our Almighty Father. That alone is
the greatest incentive that the church needs in order to be faithful to its calling.

 LESSON 3 : MARKS OF THE CHURCH

 In the year 325, AD, the first ecumerical council of the Christian church, meeting in ancient
Nicaea was held.
 The council condemned Arius (Arianism - an influential heresy denying the divinity of Christ,
originating with the Alexandrian priest ARIUS (250-336). Arianism maintained that the Son of
God was created by the Father and was therefore neither coeternal with the Father, nor
consubstantial, with reluctance on the part of some, incorporated the non scriptural word homo-
ousios ("of one substance") into a creed to signify the absolute equality of the Son with the Father.
In this council, the Niceo-Constantinoplian Creed was formed.
 The creed explicitly pointed out the marks/characteristics of the Church; "one, holy, catholic, and
apostolic" church.

 In the Nicene Creed, we profess, "I believe in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church."
 These are the four marks of the Church. They are inseparable and intrinsically linked to one
another. These characteristics reflect the Church's essential features and mission. Through the
continued guidance of the Holy Spirit, the Church fulfills these marks.

 THE CHURCH IS ONE

 The Catechism for Filipino Catholics (1391) states that "The Church is one, first from her very
source, the ONE LIVING GOD in THREE PERSONS. "The Church shines forth as 'a people
made with the unity of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit' (LG 4)"

 Second, the Church is one in her founder, Jesus Christ, who:

 came to redeem and unify the whole human race;
 prayed to his Father "that all may be one even as you, Father, are in me and I in you" (Jn 17:21);
 instituted the Eucharist which both signifies and effects the unity of the Church;
 united all by his new commandment of mutual love (cf. Jn 13:34); and
 poured forth his Spirit through whom he calls the people of the New Covenant into a unity of
faith, hope, and charity (cf. UR 2-3).

CFC 1392. The bonds of Church unity are clearly set forth in Scripture.
 Christians form “one body and one Spirit,” since “there is one Lord,one faith, one baptism;one
God and Father of all, who is overall and works through all and is in all.” (Eph 4:4-6).
 In brief, in the confession of one:
 In the confession of one faith received from the apostles;
 the common celebration of divine worship, especially the sacraments; and
 the fraternal harmony of God's family (cf. UR 2; CCC 815). As a visible sign of this unity,
Christ "put Peter at the head of the other apostles, and in him set up a lasting and visible
source and foundation of unity of faith and of communion" (LG 18).

 How is the Church One?

 united in charity
 one in the profession of faith
 one in the common celebration of worship and Sacraments
 one in the Apostolic Succession

 The Church is One because of:

 its source, the Holy Trinity, a perfect unity of three Divine Persons
 its founder, Jesus Christ, who came to reconcile all mankind
 its "soul," the Holy Spirit, who dwells in the souls of the faithful, unites all the faithful into
one communion of believers, and guides the Church.

 The "oneness" of the Church is also visible. As Catholics we are united in our Creed and our other
teachings, in the celebration of the Sacraments, and in the hierarchical structure based on the
Apostolic Succession preserved and handed on through the Sacrament of Holy Orders.
 There is "one body and one Spirit, as you were also called to the one hope of your call; one Lord,
one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all" (Ephesians 4:4-6). "Because the loaf of bread
is one, we, though many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf" (1 Corinthians 10:17).
Jesus had promised at the outset that there will be one flock, one shepherd (John 10:16).
 THE CHURCH IS HOLY

CFC 1397. In faith we believe the Church is holy in a way that can never fail (cf. CCC 823).
 First, because “Christ loved the Church as his Bride and gave himself up for her, to make
her holy. Uniting her to himself as his body, he endowed her with the gift of the Holy Spirit”
(LG 39).
 Second, because the Holy Spirit graces her with the fulless of the means of salvation and
offness. Such are the preaching of the Gospel, the sacraments, the moral virtues, self-
sacrificing service of neighbor, and charismatic gifts (cf. UR 3; LG 48).
 More concretely, the sanctity of the Church has shone out in the innumerable uncanonized saints
among the ordinary faithful and religious, who through the ages have led holy lives.

CFC 1399. But this means that all in the Church are called to holiness (cf. 1 Thes 4:3). This call
comes from Christ: "The Lord Jesus, divine Teacher and Model of perfection, who stands as the Author
and Finisher of all holiness, preached holiness of life to each and every one of his disciples, regardless
of their situations" (LG 40).
 From the beginning, the Church has been endowed with the sacramental means to help make holy
the sinners who are found in the Church. The Church has been given the Sacraments along with
the Word precisely in order to be able to make sinners holy.

 'Christ loved the Church and handed himself over for her to sanctify her, cleansing her by the
bath of water with the word, that he might present to himself the church in splendor, without spot
or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish" (Ephesians 5:25-27).

 Each of us as a member of the Church has been called to holiness. By God's grace we strive for
holiness, through the power of the Holy Spirit.
 Our Church has been marked by outstanding examples of holiness in the lives of the saints of
every age. No matter how dark the times may have been for our Church, there have always been
those great saints through whom the light of Christ has radiated. Even though members of the
Church fail and sin, the Church continues to be the sign and instrument of holiness.
 THE CHURCH IS CATHOLIC

CFC 1401. The term "Catholic" here means universal, complete, all- embracing. It applies to the
Church in two different ways.
 First, the Church is world-wide, sent to all peoples.
 Second, being endowed with the "fullness of the means for salvation," she announces the
whole, true faith (cf. AG 6; CCC 830).
 Hence catholicity is basically not a question of numbers. The Church was "Catholic" on the day of
Pentecost "when was foreshadowed the union of all peoples in the catholicity of the Faith
achieved by the Church of the New Covenant, a Church which speaks all languages, and lovingly
understands and accepts all tongues”(AG 4). It will still be Catholic even if, on the last day, she
may only be a "little flock" (cf. Lk 12:32:18:8).

1402. The Church is "Catholic" according to a Church Father because she:

 is spread throughout the world (cf. Acts 1:8).
 possesses all saving truth (cf. Jn 16:13).
 is sent to all peoples (cf. Mk 16:15).
 can heal all kinds of sins (cf. Jn 20:23)
 abounds in every kind of virtue and
 spiritual gift (Cyril of Jerusalem, Catechetical Lectures)

 The word catholic means "universal." At the very beginning, it was difficult to see how the "little
flock" (Luke 12:32) in the land of Israel could, by any stretch of the imagination, qualify as
universal. But, through the power of the Holy Spirit, it spread to the ends of the earth.
 The Holy Spirit came down upon the Church at Pentecost at a time when "there were devout
Jews from every nation under heaven staying in Jerusalem" (Acts of the Apostles 2:5).

 It was to them that the Holy Spirit temporarily enabled the Apostles to speak in the languages of
all these various nations - a powerful sign that the Church was destined for all people everywhere.
 Many accepted the faith then and there and began carrying "the Catholic Church" back to the four
corners of the earth. "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations" (Matthew 28:19). The
Church is Catholic because it exists for all people and is the means of salvation for all people.

 THE CHURCH IS APOSTOLIC

CFC 1407. The Church is "Apostolic" in three basic ways:

 first, because Jesus Christ grounded her permanently "on the foundation of the apostles" (Eph
2:20);
 second, because she guards and transmits their teaching and witness (cf. Mt 28:19- 20);
 third, she continues to be instructed, sanctified and guided by the apostles through their successors
(cf. CCC 857-60).

 The apostles were sent out by the Risen Lord: first to the children of Israel and then to all the
nations, so that as sharers in Christ's power they MIGHT MAKE ALL PEOPLES HIS
DISCIPLES and sanctify and govern them, and thus spread his Church and, by administering it
under the guidance of the Lord, shepherd it all days until the end of the world (LG 19).

 Through the power of the Holy Spirit who dwells within her, the Church guards the sound
teaching of the apostles, which forms the rich deposit of faith (cf. 2 Tim 1:13-14).

CFC 1408. These truths are brought out clearly and simply in the Prefaces for Apostles:
 "Father, you founded your Church on the apostles, to stand firm forever as the living Gospel for
all men to hear. Through the apostles you watch over us and protect us always. You made them
shepherds of the flock to share in the work of your Son, And from their place in heaven they guide
us still."

 APOSTOLIC SUCCESSION

CFC 1409. The principal way the apostles "guide us still" is through the apostolic succession of the
bishops, assisted by the Holy Spirit (cf. CCC 861f).
 “ Through those who were appointed bishops by the apostles, and through their successors down
to our own time, the apostolic tradition is manifested and preserved throughout the world" (LG
20). Christ had formed the apostles in the form of a college or permanent assembly, over which he
placed Peter, chosen from among them (cf. LG 19).

 St. John Paul II has affirmed that: the Church is now more united in fellowship of service and in
the awareness of the apostolate. This unity springs from the principle of collegiality... Christ
himself made this principle a living part of the apostolic College of the Twelve, with Peter at their
head.
 Christ is continuously renewing it in the College of Bishops, united with and under the guidance
of the Successor of St. Peter (RH 5).

 The Church is Apostolic because she is founded on the Apostles. The Gospel of John (6:70),
"Jesus answered them, 'Did I not choose you twelve?"
 Jesus chose, formed and sent his Apostles to continue his Father's mission, and he gave them
authority and power. The Church is also Apostolic in that the Deposit of Faith found in both
Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition was preserved, taught, and handed on by the Apostles.

 Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of truth, the Magisterium (the teaching authority
entrusted to the Apostles and their successors) has the duty to preserve, teach, defend, and hand
on this Deposit of Faith.
 The Pope and bishops in union with him form the Magisterium, the living, teaching office of the
Church.
 The Holy Spirit protects the Church from error in its teaching authority.

 Jesus Christ intended that the fullness of his grace should come to his People in a Church that,
from the beginning, was what the Creed still calls it today: "one, holy, catholic, and apostolic."
 Our Lord himself founded the Church and marked it with these characteristics, which reflect
its essential features and mission.
  Through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the Church fulfills these marks.

 The Four Marks of the Church

 It is Christ who, through the Holy Spirit, makes His Church ONE, HOLY, CATHOLIC and
APOSTOLIC And it is He who calls Her to realize each of these qualities: (CCC 811)

 ONE:
 FAITH (Eph. 4:5)
 SACRAMENTAL SYSTEM (1 Cor. 4:1)
 SACRIFICE (1 Cor. 5:7-8)
 HEAD (Jn. 10:16)

 HOLY:
 IN HER FOUNDER (Mt. 16:18)
 IN HER TEACHINGS (Eph. 4:11-12)
 IN HER MEANS OF GRACE (2 Peter 1:3-4)
 IN HER MEMBERS TO FOLLOW THE TEACHINGS AND USE THE MEANS OF
GRACE PROVIDED, TO PARTICIPATE IN THE DIVINE LIFE OF GOD NOW AND
FOREVER (1 Peter 2:9)

 CATHOLIC:
 SHE IS NOT CHURCH ON ONE NATION OR ONE RACE BUT THE MOTHER OF ALL
NATIONS AND ALL RACES (Gal. 4:26)
 TEACHING THE COMPLETE AND CORRECT FAITH FOR ALL TIMES, PLACES
AND PEOPLES (Mt. 28:18-20)

 APOSTOLIC:
 SHE CAN TRACE HER ORIGIN IN UNBROKEN LINEAGE BACK TO THE
APOSTLES UPON WHOM CHRIST FOUNDED THE CHURCH (Eph. 2:20)

 THE MARKS OF THE CHURCH FOUNDED BY CHRIST

 The NICENE CREED of AD 325 professes belief in ONE, HOLY, CATHOLIC and
APOSTOLIC Church.

 LESSON 4 THE PEOPLE OF GOD

 Characteristics of the People of God

CCC 782 The People of God is marked by characteristics that clearly distinguish it from all other
religious, ethnic, political, or cultural groups found in history:\

1) The People of God are not the property of any one people group
2) Membership comes from faith in Christ and Baptism not from physical birth
3) This People is messianic; Christ shares with them his anointing of the Spirit
4) Their dignity is to be children of God because God's Spirit dwells within
5) Their law is to love others as Christ loved them (Jn 13:34)
6) Their mission is to be the "light of the world”, a hope for the whole human race
7) Their destiny is the Kingdom of God, in time and eternity

 Three Divine Offices of Christ

 Through faith and baptism, we are able to be part of the people of God. With this sacrament we
also became sharer of the divine offices of Christ: priestly, prophetic, and royal people.

A. Priestly
CCC784 "Christ the Lord, high priest taken from among men, has made this new people 'a kingdom of
priests to God, his Father.' the baptized, by regeneration and the anointing of the Holy Spirit, are
consecrated to be a spiritual house and a holy priesthood." (LG10; Heb.5:1-5, Rev.1:6)

B. Prophetic

CCC 785 "The holy People of God shares also in Christ's prophetic office," above all in the
supernatural sense of faith that belongs to the whole People, lay and clergy, when it "unfailingly
adheres to this faith. once for all delivered to the saints," and when it deepens its understanding and
becomes Christ's witness in the midst of this world.

C. Kingly

CCC 786 Finally, the People of God shares in the royal office of Christ. He exercises his kingship by
drawing all men to himself through his death and Resurrection. Christ, King and Lord of the universe,
made himself the servant of all, for he came "not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a
ransom for many. For the Christian, "to reign is to serve him," particularly when serving "the poor and
the suffering, in whom the Church recognizes the image of her poor and suffering founder." The
People of God fulfills it’s royal dignity by a life in keeping with it’s vocation to serve with Christ.

 The Hierarchy of the Church

 "In order to shepherd the People of God and to increase its numbers without cease, Christ the
Lord set up in his Church a variety of offices which aim at the good of the whole body. The
holders of office, who are invested with a sacred power, are, in fact, dedicated to promoting the
interests of their brethren, so that all who belong to the People of God... may attain to salvation.
(LG 18)
 Christ himself is the source of the ministry in the Church. He instituted the Church and the
Church received the authority and mission and orientation to Him.
 Faith comes from hearing. No one can "hear without a preacher" and no preacher can give himself
a mandate.
 Only from Christ can ministers receive the mission and sacred power to "act in the person of
Christ." This ministry is called "a sacrament" and is conferred by a special sacrament Holy
Orders.

A. The Pope

CCC 882 The Pope, Bishop of Rome and Peter's successor, "is the perpetual and visible source and
foundation of the unity both of the bishops and of the whole company of the faithful."
 "For the Roman Pontiff, by reason of his office as Vicar of Christ, and as pastor of the entire
Church has full, supreme, and universal power over the whole Church, a power which he can
always exercise unhindered."

B. The Bishop

CCC 886 “The individual bishops are the visible source and foundation of unity in their own
particular Churches.” As such, they "exercise their pastoral office over the portion of the People of
God assigned to them," assisted by priests and deacons. But, as a member of the episcopal college,
each bishop shares in the concern for all the Churches.
 The bishops exercise this care first "by ruling well their own Churches as portions of the universal
Church," and so contributing to the welfare of the whole Mystical Body, which, from another
point of view, is a corporate body of Churches."
 They extend it especially to the poor, to those persecuted for the faith, as well as to missionaries
who are working throughout the world."

The bishops shares this authority or office to the priests and deacon for the to teach, to sanctify and to
govern the people of God.

 TEACHING OFFICE
The first task of the Bishop with the priest is to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus. This is in keeping the
Lord's command to "Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature." Mark 16:15

 SANCTIFYING OFFICE

CCC 893 The bishop is the steward of the grace of the supreme priesthood, especially in the Eucharist
which he offers personally or whose offering he assures through the priests, his co-workers.

 The bishop and priests sanctify the Church by their prayer and work, by their ministry of the word
and of the sacraments. They sanctify her by their example, "not as domineering over those in your
charge but being examples to the flock." Thus, "together with the flock entrusted to them, they
may attain to eternal life." Through the sacraments and through the bishop/priest's personal
relationship with Jesus the Head, the people of God received the grace.

 GOVERNING OFFICE

CCC 894 "The bishops, as vicars and legates of Christ, govern the particular Churches assigned to
them by their counsels, exhortations, and example, but over and above that also by the authority and
sacred power" which indeed they ought to exercise so as to edify, in the spirit of service which is that
of their Master.

 THE LAITY

CCC897 "The term laity' is here understood to mean all the faithful except those in Holy Orders and
those who belong to a religious state approved by the Church, That is, the faithful, who by Baptism are
incorporated into Christ and integrated into the People of God, are made sharers in their particular way
in the priestly, prophetic, and kingly office of Christ, and have their own part to play in the mission of
the whole Christian people in the Church and in the World.

"Lay Believers are at the front lime of Church life for them the Church is the animating principle of
human society” Therefore, they in particular ought to have an ever-clearer consciousness not only of
belonging to the Church, but of being the Church, that is to say, the community of the faithful on earth
under the leadership of the Pope, the common Head, and of the bishops in communion with him. They
are the Church" (Pope Pius XII)

 Participation of the Laity in the Church

 IN THE PRIESTLY OFFICE

CCC 901 "Hence the laity, dedicated as they are to Christ and anointed by the Holy Spirit, are
marvelously called and prepared so that even richer fruits of the Spirit maybe produced in them.
 For all their works, prayers, and apostolic undertakings, family and married life, daily work,
relaxation of mind and body, if they are accomplished in the Spirit - indeed even the hardships of
life if patiently born - all these become spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
In the celebration of the Eucharist these may most fittingly be offered to the Father along with the
body of the Lord. And so, worshipping everywhere by their holy actions, the laity consecrate the
world itself to God, everywhere offering worship by the holiness of their lives."

 IN THE PROPHETIC OFFICE

CCC 905 Lay people also fulfill their prophetic mission by evangelization, "that is, the proclamation
of Christ by word and the testimony of life." For lay people, "this evangelization... acquires a specific
property and peculiar efficacy because it is accomplished in the ordinary circumstances of the world."

 IN THE KINGLY OFFICE

CCC 910 "The laity can also feel called, or be in fact called, to cooperate with their pastors in the
service of the ecclesial community, for the sake of its growth and life. This can be done through the
exercise of different kinds of ministries according to the grace and charisms which the Lord has been
pleased to bestow on them."

 LESSON 5: CALL TO HOLINESS

 The Dogmatic Constitution the Church (Lumen Gentium) of the Second Vatican Council
given the faithful the lead to understand the call to holiness.

 "The Church, whose mystery is being set forth by this Sacred Synod, is believed to be indefectibly
holy. Indeed Christ, the Son of God, who with the Father and the Spirit is praised as "uniquely
holy," loved the Church as His bride, delivering Himself up for her. He did this that He might
sanctify her. He united her to Himself as His own body and brought it to perfection by the gift of
the Holy Spirit for God's glory. Therefore in the Church, everyone whether belonging to the
hierarchy, or being cared for by it, is called to holiness, according to the saying of the Apostle:
"For this is the will of God, your sanctification, " (LG 39)

 The document excepts no one in the baptized. Everyone is called to a life in likeness with Christ,
the Son of God. Jesus in His unity with the Father and Spirit possesses the Holiness, the faithful
aspire. The total self-giving love of Christ fashioned the perfection of the Holy Trinity of which
He gave to His bride, the Church. For this reason, the Church has the capacity to live a perfect and
holy life.

 JESUS: MODEL OF PERFECTION

CCC 520 In all of his life Jesus presents himself as our model. He is "the perfect man", who invites us
to become his disciples and follow him. In humbling himself, he has given us an example to imitate,
through his prayer he draws us to pray, and by his poverty he calls us to accept freely the privation and
persecutions that may come our way.

 We see the perfection of Jesus as our Saviour in the PERFECT EXAMPLE He sets us. He is an
example not of one point of character only, but of every point. And He is perfect in them all. He
never failed in any of them.
 Living, speaking and leading by example is natural to Jesus. He is not pretentious of anything and
as a result He became one of the best sought personality of His time. Many believed in Him and
eventually followed His ways to live as He did.

 Our present Supreme Pontiff, in his Encyclical Letter, "Gaudete et Exultate" has a good advice for
us.

 To be holy does not require being a bishop, a priest or a religious. We are frequently tempted to
think that holiness is only for those who can withdraw from ordinary affairs to spend much time
in prayer. That is not the case.
 We are all called to be holy by living our lives with love and by bearing witness in everything we
do, wherever we find ourselves. Are you called to the consecrated life? Be holy by living out your
commitment with joy. Are you married? Be holy by loving and d caring for your husband or wife,
as Christ does for the Church. Do you work for a living? Be holy by labouring with integrity and
skill in the service of your brothers and sisters. Are you ou a parent or grandparent? Be holy by
patiently teaching the little ones how to follow Jesus. Are you in a position of authority? Be holy
by working for the common good and renouncing personal gain,

 Pope Francis uses the practical way of reaching to us on how to live a life in imitation of Christ.
Our call to holiness requires only one thing that is to love. And this love has many facet like a
diamond.
 He uses the daily life experience of everyone to easily understand that in our ordinary life,
holiness is attainable. One does not need to be in Cossack or sutana just to be holy. A
professional, parent, what ever profession or work o one has, we can be holy, we can be saints by
living our lives with love and by bearing witness in everything we do, wherever we find
ourselves. Whatever your status in life you are now, whatever circumstance you are going
through, you can be holy.
 Making Spirituality a Partnership with Christ:

 Spirituality has been described in various ways. Traditionally, it is considered a HOLINESS OF

LIFE. Some modern authors describe it as a partnership with God.
 St. Augustine has beautifully put it: "God who created you WITHOUT YOU, will not sanctify you
WITHOUT YOU."

A. God's action in Spirituality:

 First, the initiative in the way of perfection comes from God.

 He is the One who calls.

 He is the one who invites us to enter into close and intimate relationship with him.
 Without the call of God, without His divine grace, we will not even be able to initiate that
beautiful and joy-filled contact with God

 Second, in the way of perfection, God shares with us His overpowering love.

 One who has truly experienced the love of God, will no longer look for any consolation from
human creatures or earthly things.
 This is the experience of the saints.
 The way of spirituality is a way to complete union with God.
 And God's overpowering love makes it easier for us to walk that way.

 Third, God shares with us His transforming grace.

 He refuses His grace to no one who undertakes the road of spirituality and perfection.
 The Apostle Paul experienced God's grace.
 In his struggles, he heard the voice of the Lord saying to him: "My grace is sufficient for you, for
power is made perfect in weakness."
 And so Paul resolved: “I will rather boast of my weakness in order that the power of Christ may
dwell in me” (2 Cor. 12:9)
 This should cause us joy and consolation in our efforts to reach the heights of perfection to which
God is calling us.

B. Man's effort in Spirituality:

 If God plays an important role in man's spiritual development, so man too has a great role to play.
What is expected of us?

 First, we must cooperate with God's grace inviting us to intimate relationship with Him.
 Second, we must always be open to the power of God that is in us through the Holy Spirit.
 Third, we must avail of the values that Christ preached in the Holy Gospels.

 If we truly want to help transform the world, we must first be able to transform ourselves. And it
is good for us to know as someone said: "There is no saint without a past, and there is no sinner
without a future."

 What is a saint? Thomas S. Kepler asked:

 He himself gives the answer: "His life is imbued with a deep love of the Christian religion as a
way of "feeling at home" in the universe.

 "He believes that the two great secrets for becoming a saint lie in :
1. "the imitation of Christ"
2. and the practice of the presence of God.

N.B. Try to look into your heart and see if these ideas are also your own."

 Call to Holiness 6 steps:

1. Encountering God in the events of one's life.

2. For the greater glory of God.
3. Mysticism of Service.
4. Dedication to the Church
5. Call to ongoing conversion
6. Prayer that permeates daily Life.

 LESSON 6: THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH

 "Having been divinely sent to the nations that she might be the universal sacrament of salvation,
the Church, in obedience to the command of her founder and because it is demanded by her own
essential universality, strives to preach the Gospel to all men": Go therefore and make disciples of
all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and Lo, I am with you always, until the
close of the age." (CCC 849)

 This is the missionary mandate to all Christians. That all men baptized in the Name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit had been sent to proclaim the Good News of salvation to all
peoples. Being part of the Church as universal or Catholic, the mission never wavered. It glows all
the more as the history unfolds; may the Church be under persecution, heretical approach, or be in
her most triumphant state, the mission continues with vibrancy. As Catholic, it is part of our self
as member of the Church founded upon the apostles.

 Every Christian, therefore, has the duty to bear witness to the Gospel by his own life. But God
walks a special path with each person depending grace and vocation we are called to. Some are
priests, some are laymen. Using the charism and grace God had given, man himself become
witness of the Gospel, handing on the faith to all he meets and talks. The mandate to evangelize
people in the Christian way of daily life is given to all baptize that needs to be realized at all times
and at all place.

1412. Christ founded his Church to continue his saving mission on earth. “The Church, endowed with
the gifts of her founder, receives the mission to proclaim and to establish among all peoples the
Kingdom of Christ and of God" (LG 5). This 'mission' is built into her very nature as originating from
the Blessed Trinity. The mission flows from the Church as "Sacrament of salvation," the sign and
instrument for achieving intimate union with God (cf. AG 5; LG 1).

 Briefly then, the Church has:

 a mission mandate (cf. Mt 228:191);

 whose origin and goal is the Blessed Trinity (cf. AG 2);
 motivated by God's love (cf. 2 Cor 5:14);
 and with the Holy Spirit as Principal Agent (cf. R Mi 21); CCC849-56).

 The mission of the Church is central to her actions in the world. As people of God, baptized and
confirmed as Sons and Daughters of God the Father in Christ through the Spirit, our mandate is
make real and make sure that the mission entrusted to the early Christian has been handed on to
younger generations.

 MISSION OF THE LAITY

 The apostolate of the laity is a sharing in the salvific mission of the Church. Through Baptism and
Confirmation all are appointed to this apostolate by the Lord himself.... The laity have this special
 vocation: to make the Church present and fruitful in those places and circumstances where it is
only through them that she can become the salt of the earth (LG 33; cf. CL 14; PCP II 402-11).

 PCP II (419-38) then develops the mission of the laity in terms of being called to:

1) A Community of Families
every one is part of a family. The family is the Domestic Church of which faith and morality had been
taught to the children. As Filipinos we are taught by our parents how to pray and to do good and
identify the good in every people and in every place.

2) Christian Presence in the World

all Christians particularly Filipinos are called to be salt of the earth and light of the world. Filipinos all
over the world as oversees workers are vessels of the faith. Wherever a Filipino is, a lively faith comes.

3) Service and Evangelization

as Catholics, we are selfless for our family and for the people we are working at. We give our all with
passion and love. This is the Gospel of love. The selfless act of loving the others. And lastly,

4) Social Transformation
We call in mission to transform the world. To set it on fire of faith, hope and love of God. We are
tasked to transform the society into a better one and bring heaven on earth where materialism, unjust
structures and apathy are prevailing.

 MISSION TO NON-CHRISTIANS

1416. The Church's mission toward non-Christians is based on two firm convictions.

 First, Christ is the one Savior of all, the one mediator between God and man, This holds true... for
all men of good will in whose hearts grace works in an unseen way. For since Christ died for all,
and since all men are in fact called to one and the same divine destiny, we must hold that the Holy
Spirit, in a way known only to God, offers to all the possibility of being made partners in Christ's
Paschal Mystery (GS 22).

 Second, God established the Church as "the universal sacrament of salvation, sent on mission to
the whole world as the light of the world and the salt of the earth" (LG, 9). Therefore, "it is
necessary to keep these two truths together, namely, the real possibility of salvation in Christ for
all mankind, and the necessity of the Church for salvation" (RMi 5, 9).

1417. The mission of every Filipino Catholic derives from both the Lord's mandate and the life of
God's grace within us. As Catholics we are privileged to receive the Lord's charge of bearing witness to
the Faith and to the Christian way of life as a service to our brothers and sisters, and as a fitting
response to God (RMi 11). As members of a missionary Church, we are called to confess the Faith in
full adherence to the Word of God, celebrated in the Sacraments, and lived in charity, the principle of
Christian moral existence" (CL 33).

 CHURCH OF THE POOR

1418. This mission involves a balance between the essential inculturation of the Faith in Filipino
culture and the mission to all peoples, or the Church's international outreach. PCP II described at length
how in the Philippines today, the Church must be a "Church of the Poor."

 This means a Church that:

 embraces and practices the spirit of evangelical poverty; combines detachment from possessions
with profound trust in the Lord;

 shows special love, a love of preference, for the poor;

 not only evangelizes the poor, but recognizes that the poor will themselves become true
evangelizers; and
  orients and tilts the center of gravity of the entire community in favor of the needy (cf. PCP II
125-36). But PCP II also emphasized the missionary efforts of Filipino religious, priests and lay
persons actively spreading the Faith in foreign lands as well as the missionary potential of Filipino
migrant workers abroad.

1419. A further balance must be maintained between the evangelizing mission of proclaiming the
Gospel and the thrust for justice and liberation. Evangelization and human liberation, while not
identical, are clearly intimately connected.

 PCP II speaks of a renewed evangelization which does not stop at the building of the Church. It
seeks to transform the whole fabric of society according to the values of the Kingdom and of
Christ. Thus, the Church promotes human development, integral liberation, justice and peace in
society and the integrity of creation. The need for such evangelization is shown by the fact that
while our churches are filled on Sundays, our society remains a sick society.

 5 Forms of Evangelization:
1) Proclamation
2) Convocation
3) Attraction
4) Radiation
5) Liberation

 This overall view is illustrated in the “Flow Chart” of the National Pastoral Plan (NPP):

 from the Call: to be Church of the Poor;

 through the Response: Renewed Integral Evangelization:
 to the Vision: to become a Community of Disciples.

 These are the visions of the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines in 1992: a Church that has
preferential option for the poor that is a Church always and forever for the poor. \

 A Church that is responding to the call: needs of the times in the society and the fruit of this is to
become Community of Disciples that is thinking and doing the way the Master, our Lord Jesus
Christ, think and do.

 LESSON 7: RELIGIOUS MEN AND WOMEN

 In this lesson, you will learn about the Religious Men and Women of Church. They are the people
Consecrated to God by the profession of the Evangelical Counsels of chastity, poverty and
obedience. Like you, they are also members of the Church, however they lived a more radical life
of obedience to God's call to holiness.

CFC 1426. The Religious. Besides the ordained and lay ministries, there are the "Religious Brothers
and Sisters” those faithful who bind themselves to Christ in a state of life consecrated to God by the
profession of the evangelical counsels of poverty, chastity and obedience (cf. LG 44; CCC 914-33).

 The Church recognizes various forms of consecrated life: monastic, eremitic, religious institutes,
secular institutes, etc., and different societies of apostolic life.

 PCP II offers an extended exposition of their nature, radical discipleship, witness value,
revitalizing their specific religious charisms, their essential missionary character with a "passion
for justice," within the local Church. It adds a description of their spiritualities: contemplative and
contemplatives in action (cf. PCP II 448-506).

CCC 915 Christ proposes the evangelical counsels, in their great variety, to every disciple. The
perfection of charity, to which all the faithful are called, entails for those who freely follow the call to
consecrated life the obligation of practicing chastity in celibacy for the sake of the Kingdom, poverty
and obedience. It is the profession of these counsels, within a permanent state of life recognized by the
Church, that characterizes the life consecrated to God.

 The Beginning of Living the Evangelical Counsel

LG,43. The evangelical counsels of chastity dedicated to God, poverty and obedience are based upon
the words and examples of the Lord. They were further commanded by the apostles and Fathers of the
Church, as well as by the doctors and pastors of souls.
 The counsels are a divine gift, which the Church received from its Lord and which it always
safeguards with the help of His grace.

 Church authority has the duty, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, of interpreting these
evangelical counsels, of regulating their practice and finally to build on them stable forms of
living. Thus it has come about, that, as if on a tree which has grown in the field of the Lord,
various forms of solidarity and community life, as well as various religious families have
branched out in a marvelous and multiple way from this divinely given seed. Such a multiple and
miraculous growth augments both the progress of the members of these various religious families
themselves and the welfare of the entire Body of Christ.

 These religious families give their members the support of a more firm stability in their way of
life and a proven doctrine of acquiring perfection. They further offer their members the support of
fraternal association in the militia of Christ and of liberty strengthened by obedience. Thus these
religious are able to tranquilly fulfill and faithfully observe their religious profession and so
spiritually rejoicing make progress on the road of charity.

 RELIGIOUS IN THE HIERARCHY

 One may think, if the hierarchy of the church, the priests are the ordained ministers and the laity
are the faithful who are not ordained, where does the religious men and women included? Are
they out of the hierarchy or do they have a separate class?

 Lumen Gentium provides an answer: "From the point of view of the divine and hierarchical
structure of the Church, the religious state of life is not an intermediate state between the clerical
and lay states. But, rather, the faithful of Christ are called by God from both these states of life so
that they might enjoy this particular gift in the life of the Church and thus each in one's own way,
may be of some advantage to the salvific mission of the Church."

 The religious men and women does not have a special place in the People of God or in the
Church. But rather the faithful, both ordained and lay people are called with the life that the
religious men and women are living, a life for the salvation of every one, a life that is holy living
out the evangelical counsels.

LM 44. The faithful of Christ bind themselves to the three aforesaid counsels either by vows, or by
other sacred bonds, which are like vows in their purpose. By such a bond, a person is totally dedicated
to God, loved beyond all things. In this way, that person is ordained to the honor and service of God
under a new and special title. Indeed through Baptism a person dies to sin and is consecrated to God.

THE TASK OF THE CHURCH

LG 45. It is the duty of the ecclesiastical hierarchy to regulate the practice of the evangelical counsels
by the law since it is the duty of the same hierarchy to care for the People of God and to lead them to
most fruitful pastures.

 Strange that the hierarchy is counseled in docility. But hold up: the pope can shepherd religious
orders form the oversight of a local bishop to himself. At any rate, members of orders should
show due respect to the hierarchy. Though not a sacrament, the liturgical expression of religious
profession is a vital part of the picture. In other words, such a commitment is made publicly,
presumably not just for the members of the particular community, but for the benefit of all .

RELIGIOUS CALLING
LM 47. Let each of the faithful called to the profession of the evangelical counsels, therefore, carefully
see to it that he persevere and ever grow in that vocation God has given him. Let him do this for the
increased holiness of the Church, for the greater glory of the one and undivided Trinity, which in and
through Christ is the fount and the source of all holiness.

 Like the ordained and the lay faithful, religious men and women or the consecrated persons are
called to the holiness of life for the glory of the Holy Trinity through Christ our Lord.

 5 Characteristics of a Godly man

STEP UP: lead. Initiate...

SPEAK OUT: Silence in the midst of sin is a sin. Be courageous.
STAND STRONG: Don't give in when you are challenged, attacked, or criticized...
STAY HUMBLE: Be vigilant against pride....
SERVE THE KING: Seek first His Kingdom, His glory, and His righteousness.

 What are the qualities of a person of God?

Personal attributes of God are:

 Life (fullness, beatitude, perfection)
 Thought Will and freedom,
 Love and friendship.

 The object of the thinking and will of God is God Himself, so to speak, His essence He is the
Highest good and the perfection of all perfections.

 What human qualities reflect God's character?

 As we follow as our teacher and become more like him, we begin to show evidence of God's
goodness in our lives, such as the fruits of the Spirit: Love, Joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23) - and a love for justice.

 What are the qualities of a good Christian?

 Christians should be God Fearing and humble

 They should display the fruits of the Spirit given in Galatians 6

 LOVE
 JOY
 PEACE
 PATIENCE
 KINDNESS
 GENTLENESS
 And SELF-CONTROL

 While no Christians possess these qualities perfectly, we must and will continually grow in them
as a result of the Spirit's work in us.

 10 Characteristics of a good Christian according to the Bible:

1. Reflects the love of God.

2. We forgive those who offend.
3. He has joy.
4. He has peace.
5. Patient is shown
 6. He is kind.
7. Trust fully in God.
8. He is humble
9. Has self-control
10. A Christian bears fruit

 LESSON 8 : THE PILGRIM CHURCH

 THE ESCHATOLOGICAL NATURE OF THE PILGRIM CHURCH AND ITS UNION

WITH THE CHURCH IN HEAVEN

LM 48 The Church, to which we are all called in Christ Jesus, and in which we acquire sanctity
through the grace of God, will attain its full perfection only in the glory of heaven, when there will
come the time of the restoration of all things.(Acts 3, 21.) At that time the human race as well as the
entire world, which is intimately related to (humankind) and attains to its end through him, will be
perfectly reestablished in Christ. (Cf Eph. 1, 10; Col. 1, 20; 2 3, 10-13.)

 ESCHATOLOGY

Is the study of "the Last Things" (death judgment, heaven and hell), especially the coming of the
Kingdom of God.

 Christ, having been lifted up from the earth has drawn all to Himself. (Cf. Jn. 12, 32.) Rising from
the dead (cf. Rom. 6, 9.), He sent His life-giving Spirit upon His disciples and through Him has
established His Body which is the Church as the universal sacrament of salvation. Sitting at the
right hand of the Father, He is continually active in the world that He might lead (people) to the
Church and through it join them to Himself and that He might make them partakers of His
glorious life by nourishing them with His own Body and Blood.

 Therefore the promised restoration which we are awaiting has already begun in Christ, is carried
forward in the mission of the Holy Spirit and through Him continues in the Church in which we
learn the meaning of our terrestrial life through our faith, while we perform with hope in the
future the work committed to us in this world by the Father, and thus work out our salvation.
(Phil. 2, 12.)

 We the people of God here on earth living, are anticipating the end of the world of which we
believed that it will also be the second coming of Jesus Christ (Parousia) of which He promised
on the day of His ascension.

 On the Role of and Relationship with the Dead

LM 49 Until the Lord shall come in His majesty, and all the angels with Him and death being
destroyed, all things are subject to Him, some of His disciples are exiles on earth, some having died are
purified, and others are in glory beholding "clearly God Himself Triune and One, as He is" but all in
various ways and degrees are in communion in the same charity of God and neighbor and all sing the
same hymn of glory to our God. For all who are in Christ, having His Spirit, form one Church and
cleave together in Him. Therefore the union of the wayfarers with the (believers) who have gone to
sleep in the peace of Christ is not in the least weakened or interrupted, but on the contrary, according to
the perpetual faith of the Church, is strengthened by communication of spiritual goods.

 The 3 States of the CHURCH:

1. The Church Triumphant
2. The Church Militant
3. The Church Penitent, Church Suffering

I. The Church Triumphant (Latin: Ecclesia triumphans),

which consists of those who have the Beaitific Vision and describes the Church in heaven. In the
kingdom of God the realm in which the holy Trinity, the angels and saints, and the abode of all those
who have reached the fullness of salvation in Christ the Church already exists.

 But it will have its fullest being at the end of time, when all of creation and (we hope) all human
beings will be conformed to Christ and all reality will be one of divine praise and glory.

 For by reason of the fact that those in heaven are more closely united with Christ, they establish
the whole Church more firmly in holiness, lend nobility to the worship which the Church offers to
God here on earth and in many ways contribute to its greater edification. For after they have been
received into their heavenly home and are present to the Lord, through Him and with Him and in
Him they do not cease to intercede with the Father for us, showing forth the merits which they
won on earth through the one Mediator between God and (humankind), serving God in all things
and filling up in their flesh those things which are lacking of the sufferings of Christ for His Body
which is the Church,

 The term "church triumphant" underlines the truth that in the glory of heaven all human sin will
have been transformed, death and suffering will be no more, and the glory of God will have
triumphed over all the imperfections of human history.

II. The Church Militant (Latin: Ecclesia militans)

refers to the Church on earth. It is also called the Church Pilgrim which consists of Christians on earth
who struggle as soldiers of Christ against sin and the devil. The term "militant" can suggest an
antagonistic relationship between the Church and the world.

 Nevertheless, it refers to an authentic reality: that the Church on earth works to overcome the
imperfect and sinful dimensions of human existence.

 The Church's mission is not to oppose the world and society, but to work for their transformation
by the convincing preaching of the Gospel and by the edifying power of the good works and
example of those who are baptized into Christ. The Church's best asset is the saintly activity and
example of those who have chosen the Christian way of life.

III. The Church Suffering (Penitent, Expectant) (Latin: Ecclesia poenitens)

refers to the church in purgatory. Purgatory is not a kind of temporary hell. It is rather the threshold, the
antechamber of heaven. In purgatory, all those whether Christian or not - who have reached the gates of
death without reaching the full perfection of life represented in Christ are cleansed in a kind of ongoing
baptism and are purified by the enlightening fire of the Holy Spirit

 The suffering of purgatory is not one of destruction, but the suffering that comes from leaving the
old self behind and taking on the new.

 "One cannot talk about the Church if Mary, the Mother of the Lord, is not present with His
brothers and sisters” Only Mary could make one heart and one mind of Jesus' Apostles, as
though Christ wanted to show us that He entrusted to His Mother's maternal care the mission of
making the Church a single family. Yes, in Mary we have the bond of communion of all of us
who, through faith and Baptism, are disciples and brothers of Jesus.”

 It would be fairly traditional for Catholics to say that we are all, by our baptism, pilgrims on a
journey, hoping to achieve our final destiny to be in eternal communion with God for all eternity.
That's always been a teaching of the Church and it remains true now.

 How is the Church considered a pilgrim Church?

 The Dogmatic Constitution on the Church - "LUMEN GENTIUM"

 Emphasizes that the Church is a pilgrim people that journeys towards her final destiny - the reign
of God.
 The image of pilgrimage and journeying together is important.
 We are constantly on the move. We journey together.

 LESSON 9 : MARY, MOTHER & MODEL OF THE CHURCH

CCC 963 Since the Virgin Mary's role in the mystery of Christ and the Spirit has been treated, it is
fitting now to consider her place in the mystery of the Church. “The Virgin Mary is acknowledged and
honored as being truly the Mother of God and of redeemer …… She is 'clearly the mother of the
members of Christ'... since she has by her charity joined in bringing about the birth of believers in the
Church, who are members of its head." "Mary, Mother of Christ, Mother of the Church.”

 Mary, as taught by the catechism, is not worshipped by the People of God or by the Church. She
is acknowledged and honored as the Mother of our Savior and the Bridegroom of the Church.
Biblically speaking, Jesus entrusted us through John His beloved apostle to Mary her Mother and
we are not abandoned by Jesus on His death, He also entrusted us to Her maternal care.

 "When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom he loved, he said to his mother,
'Woman, behold, your son’ Then he said to the disciple, Behold, your mother. And from that hour
the disciple took her into his home." (John 19: 26-27) To this therefore, we are also children of
Mary as Christ to her.

 At the beginning of the Third Session of the Second Vatican Council, Pope Paul VI announced
that Mary would be honored under the title "Mother of the Church."

 From the Christ's conception until his death, Mary was united to her Son in his work of salvation.
From the Cross, Jesus entrusted His beloved disciple to Mary, telling him to see her as his own
mother (John 19:27). When the apostles and disciples gathered to pray after the Ascension of
Jesus, Mary was with them praying for the coming of the Holy Spirit. Mary continues to pray
before God for the Church and all humility.

 Like Mary, the Church has a maternal role, giving birth to people in Christ. The Church can never
cease to look at Mary, who gave birth to Jesus Christ. The Church contemplates Mary's
motherhood in order to fulfill her own calling to be mother of the members of Christ's Mystical
Body, the Church. Also like Mary, the Church is virginal. The description of the Church as
Virginal is used here in the spiritual sense of the undivided heart and of fidelity in its most
luminous form. God calls all the members of the Church to fidelity to the union with Him begun
at Baptism and continued in the other sacraments.

 Mary's Motherhood with Regard to the Church Wholly united with her Son

CCC 964 Mary's role in the Church is inseparable from her union with Christ and flows directly from
it. This union of the mother with the Son in the work of salvation is made manifest from the time of
Christ's virginal conception up to his death"

 Thus the Blessed Virgin advanced in her pilgrimage of faith, and faithfully persevered in her
union with her Son unto the cross. There she stood, in keeping with the divine plan, enduring with
her only begotten Son the intensity of his suffering, joining herself with his sacrifice in her
mother's heart, and lovingly consenting to the immolation of this victim, born of her: to be given,
by the same Christ Jesus dying on the cross, as a mother to his disciple, with these words:
"Woman, behold your son."

 After her Son's Ascension, Mary "aided the beginnings of the Church by her prayers." In her
association with the apostles and several women, "we also see Mary by her prayers imploring the
gift of the Spirit, who had already overshadowed her in the Annunciation.

Mary's Assumption

CCC 966 "Finally the Immaculate Virgin, preserved free from all stain of original sin, when the
course of her earthly life was finished, was taken up body and soul into heavenly glory, and exalted by
the Lord as Queen over all things, so that she might be the more fully conformed to her Son, the Lord
of lords and conqueror of sin and death."

 The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin is a singular participation in her Son's Resurrection and an
anticipation of the resurrection of other Christians:

 In giving birth you kept your virginity; in your Dormition you did not leave the world, O Mother
of God, but were joined to the source of Life. You conceived the living God and, by your prayers,
will deliver our souls from death.

 She is our Mother in the order of Grace

CCC 967 By her complete adherence to the Father's will, to his Son's redemptive work, and to every
prompting of the Holy Spirit, the Virgin Mary is the Church's model of faith and charity. Thus she is a
"preeminent and... wholly unique member of the Church"; indeed, she is the "exemplary realization"
(typus) of the Church.

CCC 968 Her role in relation to the Church and to all humanity goes still further. "In a wholly
singular way she cooperated by her obedience, faith, hope, and burning charity in the Savior's work of
restoring supernatural life to souls. For this reason she is a mother to us in the order of grace."

CCC 969 "This motherhood of Mary in the order of grace continues uninterruptedly from the consent
which she loyally gave at the Annunciation and which she sustained without wavering beneath the
cross, until the eternal fulfilment of all the elect. Taken up to heaven she did not lay aside this saving
office but by her manifold intercession continues to bring us the gifts of eternal salvation.... Therefore
the Blessed Virgin do Invoked in the Church under the title of Advocate , Helper, Benefactress and
Mediatrix."

CCC 970 "Mary's function as mother of men in no way obscures or diminishes this unique mediation
of Christ, but rather shows its power.

 Devotion to the Blessed Virgin

CCC 971 "All generations will call me blessed": "The Church's devotion to the Blessed Virgin is
intrinsic to Christian worship." The Church rightly honors "the Blessed Virgin with special devotion.
From the most ancient times the Blessed Virgin has been honored with the title of 'Mother of God,' to
whose protection the faithful fly in all their dangers and needs.... This very special devotion... differs
essentially from the adoration which is given to the incarnate Word and equally to the Father and the
Holy Spirit, and greatly fosters this adoration." The liturgical feasts dedicated to the Mother of God and
Marian prayer, such as the rosary, an "epitome of the whole Gospel," express this devotion to the
Virgin Mary.

 Mary- Eschatological Icon of the Church

CCC 972 After speaking of the Church, her origin, mission, and destiny, we can find no better way to
conclude than by looking to Mary. In her we contemplate what the Church already is in her mystery on
her own "pilgrimage of faith," and what she will be in the homeland at the end of her journey. There,
"in the glory of the Most Holy and Undivided Trinity," "in the communion of all the saints," The
Church is awaited by the one she venerated as Mother of her Lord and as her own mother.

 In the meantime the Mother of Jesus, in the glory which she possesses in body and soul in heaven,
is the image and beginning of the Church as it is to be perfected in the world to come. Likewise
she shines forth on earth until the thy of the Lord shall come, a sign of sertain hope and comfort to
the pilgrim People of God.

 "We believe that the Holy Mother of God, the new Eve , Mother of in Church, continues in heaven
to exercise her maternal role on behalf of the members of Christ."
On Acronyms

1. Faith:

F-idelity

A-vailability

Intimacy

T-rust

H-Umility

2. Hope:

H-eroism on the part of the parents

O- peness to God's gift of life

P-rayer

E-vangelism

3. Love:

L-oyalty

O-bedience

V-eneration

E-verlasting love

4. Work:

W-illing to work

O-rganized as we work

R- eliable as we work

K-ind as we work

5. World:

W- isdom

O-bedience

R-eliance

L-ove

D-iligence
6. Will:

W-alk with the Lord

I-nvest in the Lord
L-earn from the Lord
L-ove as the Lord

7. Watch:

W-ords

A-actions

T-houghts

C-harcter

H-eart

8. Heart:

H- atred

E-nvy

A-nger

R-esentment

T-imidity/tepidity

09. Light:

L-oyalty

1- ntimacy

G-oodness

H- umility

T-rust

10. Death:

D-ivorce

E- uthansia

A-bortion

T-otal birth control

H-omesexual Union
11. Maria:

M- odelo sa pananampalataya

A-lagad

R- eyna ng puso

1- na

A-Postol

Faith:
Hope
Love
Work
World

Will
Watch
Heart
Light
Death

Maria