Roman Catholic Church
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Roman Empire
The Roman Catholic Church is the national Latin Rite church for Italy (i.e., what's left of the Roman empire).
During the first 300 following the execution of Jesus, Christian sects were hounded (sometimes because they were ill-behaved). The emperor Constantine I (27 February c. 272 – 22 May 337), however, made Christianity the official religion of the Roman empire. At that point, the lines separating the Roman Christians and the Roman Empire began to blur.
There were other national churches in both the East and the West. When the first church councils were called, each was called by a civil authority and not a civil leader[1] from one of the national churches. What's more, the local civil ruler was the one who called Ecumenical (Universal) Councils of the church, where church leaders gathered to discuss points of organization and theology. These early councils were universally accepted as being able to speak with authority on church matters, and nothing from any early council ever needed to be ratified by a national church.
There was no "separation of church and state." Christianity was the religion of the Roman Empire.
Fade of the Empire, Rise of the Protestants
As the empire's western sections began to weaken,[2] Rome's church tried to step in, exerting more and more power. It even led to papal armies, a concept that would have been repugnant to early Christians.
The Roman church's action lead to fights, especially between the Roman bishop and Germanic tribes and between the Roman bishop and the French.
Much of the farthest reaches of Christianity -- places such as the Netherlands -- maintained its traditional independence[3].
The eastern church wasn't so lucky. In 1054,[4] the Roman bishop sent representatives to Constantinople to tell church leaders that Rome would henceforth be in charge of everyone and everything. The Roman legates were sent back home with less than what they hoped to accomplish. It led to a split that continues today.
In the early 1500s, Europeans began to question the pope's exercise of power, inherited from the now-defunct Roman Empire.[5] These questions, from the likes of Martin Luther, John Calvin and others lead to the start of many new religious groups, usually grouped together as Protestant churches.[6]
The church in Rome responded to the Protestant Reformation with the Counter-Reformation, although some Roman apologists prefer to use the term "Catholic Revival." Rather than reviving anything, Rome mostly shored up its dogma and practice. Its synod in the city of Trento, Italy -- the so-called Council of Trent -- established Roman seminaries and tried to enforce a common liturgy. That synod also declared that only the church in Rome was capable of interpreting the Bible, and the tradition of celibacy for priests and bishops was put into church law. Trent also made it clear that Rome was not pleased with the growing Protestant denominations, saying that they were illicit, anathema or heretical.
The Protestant churches were strongest in Northern Europe and England.
Contemporary with the turmoil on the European continent was the spread of Christianity to the Americas. Explorers and conquerors took ministers and priests with them. In areas conquered by countries loyal to Rome, the Christian religion tended to be Roman Catholic.
Modern Times
The synod in Trento had kept many Roman clerics in place for 300 or so years, but the church began to stray from the sharp focus of the Counter-Reformation. There was a growing interest in moving toward restarting some of the liturgical practices of the ancient church. Some church leaders felt some clergy were too permissive or liberal and called on the pope to hold a council.
In 1864, plans for the first "Vatican Council" were begun. The council convened in 1868. Rome calls it an Ecumenical Council (Universal Council) but it included only the 744 bishops loyal to Rome. The results--
- For the first time, the idea that the bishop of Rome could speak without error on matters of faith was put into church law. Although some popes had previously claimed infallibility, it was never an official teaching of the Roman sect until the approach of the twentieth century. The vote on papal infallibility was far from unanimous: most of the bishops from Germany, Hungary and Austria, about half of the US bishops were against putting this innovation into church law. The measure passed by an initial vote of 451 to 150. The final vote was close to unanimous because most of the non-conforming bishops either fled the Vatican or were driven away from the council.
- The doctrine of the Immaculate Conception of Mary was put into the formal documents of the council. It was actually the cause of the council's vote on papal infallibility: 10 years prior to the council, the pope had declared the Immaculate Conception of Mary to be a teaching, and the bishops loyal to Rome felt they needed to give their pope some cover on the teaching because of the fury it caused:
- We declare, pronounce and define that the doctrine which holds that the Blessed Virgin Mary, at the first instant of her conception, by a singular privilege and grace of the Omnipotent God, in virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Saviour of mankind, was preserved immaculate from all stain of original sin, has been revealed by God, and therefore should firmly and constantly be believed by all the faithful.[7]
Immaculate Conception of Mary had been taught in some areas. It was so controversial that prior councils, such as the Council of Trent, had declared the church would not be taking a formal position on the matter. The pope, in 1854, may have been trying to settle the issue by overruling previous councils and tradition, but he created a firestorm of protest.
The impact of the Immaculate Conception ruling and its domino effect (papal infallibility) caused some bishops throughout Europe to join with the ancient and independant Catholic Church in Holland. The newly expanding independant church began calling itself the Old Catholic Church to stress its adherence to the older and more traditional teachings of Christ.
Tensions between Reform and Postmodern
Although the Liturgical Movement continued its influence in the public practices of the Roman sect, there has also been a significant growth in Postmodernism,[8] which seeks to restrict change or growth based on the return to older forms or practices. In the case of the Roman sect, the return is to the mores of the Counter-Reformation rather than to the ancient liturgies and teachings of the church.
The Roman church has struggled to claim a place in Western society. Many see Rome's return to medieval culture on birth control, gay rights, priestly cellibacy and other issues has seen society reject that sect's entire body of teaching. The term "recovering catholic" sums up the common belief among former adherents that the Roman church has made itself irrelevant.
References
- ↑ Wikipedia: The First Seven Councils
- ↑ Wikipedia: Rome: Fall of the West
- ↑ possibly because Rome had larger issues on its plate!
- ↑ Wikipedia: The East West Schism
- ↑ Catholic Wikipedia: Protestant Reformation
- ↑ NOTE: The Old Catholic Church was not part of the Protestant Reformation. It is a component of the Catholic Church and has never "split" from anyone.
- ↑ Pope Paul IX, Ineffabilis Deus, December 8, 1854
- ↑ Wikipedia:Postmodernism
