1.1 Christ's Faithful (Christifideles)
Who are the "faithful"?
The Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCCC no 177; cf Catechism of the Catholic Church, CCC, nos 871-872) teaches:
The Christian faithful are those who, inasmuch as they have been incorporated in Christ through Baptism, have been constituted as the people of God; for this reason, since they have become sharers in Christ’s priestly, prophetic and royal office in their own manner, they are called to exercise the mission which God has entrusted to the Church. There exists a true equality among them in their dignity as children of God.
Several points should be noted here.
1.2 Equality and Diversity
Are all the members exactly alike?
In the same way that a living being has different parts which contribute to the functioning of the whole organism, Church members have different ways of exercising the priestly, prophetic and kingly functions.
In the CCCC no 178 (cf CCC 873, 934), it says:
Among the faithful by divine institution there exist SACRED MINISTERS who have received the sacrament of Holy Orders and who form the hierarchy of the Church. The other members of the Church are called the LAITY. In both the hierarchy and the laity there are certain of the faithful who are CONSECRATED in a special manner to God by the profession of the evangelical counsels: chastity or celibacy, poverty, and obedience.
We have already seen in the Introductory Lesson 4 how Jesus Christ chose twelve apostles, and how he picked out Peter to be the head of this College of Apostles. Soon there arose the need for persons to assist the successors of the apostles--the bishops--in their task as shepherds.
2.1 Why did Christ institute an ecclesiastical hierarchy?
The CCCC (no 179; cf CCC 874-876,935) teaches:
Christ instituted an ecclesiastical hierarchy with the mission of feeding the people of God in his name and for this purpose gave it authority. The hierarchy is formed of sacred ministers: bishops, priests, and deacons. Thanks to the sacrament of Orders, bishops and priests act in the exercise of their ministry in the name and person of Christ the Head. Deacons minister to the people of God in the diakonia (service) of word, liturgy, and charity.
St Paul explains in a commonsensical way (Romans 10:14-15):
How are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without a preacher? And how can men preach unless they are sent?
It is worthwhile reading point 875 of the CCC:
No one can give himself the mandate and the mission to proclaim the Gospel. The one sent by the Lord does not speak and act on his own authority, but by virtue of Christ's authority; not as a member of the community, but speaking to it in the name of Christ. No one can bestow grace on himself; it must be given and offered. This fact presupposes ministers of grace, authorized and empowered by Christ. From him, bishops and priests receive the mission and faculty ('the sacred power') to act in persona Christi Capitis [in the person of Christ, the Head]; deacons receive the strength to serve the people of God in the diaconia of liturgy, word and charity, in communion with the bishop and his presbyterate. The ministry in which Christ's emissaries do and give by God's grace what they cannot do and give by their own powers, is called a 'sacrament' by the Church's tradition. Indeed, the ministry of the Church is conferred by a special sacrament.
2.2 Bishops, Priests, Deacons
2.2.1 Where do we find bishops in the Bible?
The word "bishop" comes from the Greek word EPISKOPOS (ἐπίσκοπος = ἐπί "over", "on" + σκοπός "seeing", "looking") which can be rendered as overseer, supervisor, or foreman.
The word episkopos is mentioned five times in the New Testament.
2.2.2 Where do we find priests in the Bible?
The English word "priest" has two sources in Greek. Both Greek words are found in the New Testament.
The third Pope after St Peter, Pope St Clement, wrote a letter in the late first-century (Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians) where he uses the terms ἐπίσκοπος (bishop) and πρεσβύτερος (presbyter) interchangeably for the clergy above the rank of deacon. But by the early years of the second century, however, the difference between bishops, deacons and presbyters were already clearly defined (see the Letter of Ignatius of Antioch to the Smyrneans).
2.2.3 Where do we find deacons in the Bible?
The term "deacon" comes from the Greek "DIAKONOS" which means minister or servant.
In the early Church, it acquires a new meaning. The origin of the diaconate can be found in Acts 6:1-8.
1 Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, the Hellenists murmured against the Hebrews because their widows were neglected in the daily distribution. 2 And the twelve summoned the body of the disciples and said, "It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. 3 Therefore, brethren, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint to this duty. 4 But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word." 5 And what they said pleased the whole multitude, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. 6 These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands upon them.
St Paul addresses deacons when he wrote to the Philippians (see quotation above from Philippians 1:1). When he writes Timothy (one of the first bishops) about the requirements for deacons, he says (I Tim 3:8-10,12-13):
8 Deacons likewise must be serious, not double-tongued, not addicted to much wine, not greedy for gain; 9 they must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. 10 And let them also be tested first; then if they prove themselves blameless let them serve as deacons. ... 12 Let deacons be the husband of one wife, and let them manage their children and their households well; 13 for those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and also great confidence in the faith which is in Christ Jesus.
2.3 Characteristics
2.3.1 Slaves of Christ
The purpose of their calling and sending is service, in the same way that the Master came to be a Servant (Mt 20:25-28; cf Mk 10:41-45).
25* But Jesus called them to him and said, "You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men exercise authority over them. 26* It shall not be so among you; but whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 27 and whoever would be first among you must be your slave; 28* even as the Son of man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."
CCC, no 876, stresses this point.
Intrinsically linked to the sacramental nature of ecclesial ministry is its character as service. Entirely dependent on Christ who gives mission and authority, ministers are truly "slaves of Christ" [cf Romans 1:1], in the image of him who freely took "the form of a slave" for us [Philippians 2:7]. Because the word and grace of which they are ministers are not their own, but are given to them by Christ for the sake of others, they must freely become the slaves of all [cf I Cor 9:19].
2.3.2 Collegial
What do we mean when we speak of collegiality? The CCCC, no 180 (cf CCC 876-877) explains:
After the example of the twelve Apostles who were chosen and sent out together by Christ, the unity of the Church’s hierarchy is at the service of the communion of all the faithful. Every bishop exercises his ministry as a member of the episcopal college in communion with the Pope and shares with him in the care of the universal Church. Priests exercise their ministry in the presbyterate of the local Church in communion with their own bishop and under his direction.
2.3.3 Personal
Point 181 of the CCCC (cf CCC 878-879) asks, "Why does ecclesial ministry also have a personal character?"
Ecclesial ministry also has a personal character in as much as each minister, in virtue of the sacrament of Holy Orders, is responsible before Christ who called him personally and conferred on him his mission.
2.4 Structure
2.4.1 Episcopal College and its Head, the Pope
What is the basis of the college of bishops headed by the Pope? The CCC, no 880, explains:
When Christ instituted the Twelve, "he constituted [them] in the form of a college or permanent assembly, at the head of which he placed Peter, chosen from among them" [Lumen Gentium 19; cf Luke 6:13; John 21:15-17] Just as "by the Lord's institution, St. Peter and the rest of the apostles constitute a single apostolic college, so in like fashion the Roman Pontiff, Peter's successor, and the bishops, the successors of the apostles, are related with and united to one another" [Lumen Gentium 22; cf Code of Canon Law, can 330]
2.4.2 The Pope
What is the mission of the Pope? In CCCC 182 (cf CCC 880-882,936-937), it says:
The Pope, Bishop of Rome and the Successor of Saint Peter, is the perpetual, visible source and foundation of the unity of the Church. He is the vicar of Christ, the head of the College of bishops and pastor of the universal Church over which he has by divine institution full, supreme, immediate, and universal power.
2.4.3 The College of Bishops
What is the competence of the college of bishops? CCCC (no 183; cf CCC 883-885) tells us:
The college of bishops in union with the Pope, and never without him, also exercises supreme and full authority over the Church.
2.5 How the Bishops Exercise the Prophetic, Priestly and Kingly Office
2.5.1 Prophetic or Teaching Office
CCCC 184 (cf CCC 888-890,939) says:
Since they are authentic witnesses of the apostolic faith and are invested with the authority of Christ, the bishops in union with the Pope have the duty of proclaiming the Gospel faithfully and authoritatively to all.
What is the gift of infallibility? Does it apply to everything that the Pope says?
The CCCC (no 185; cf CCC 890-891) teaches that there are two instances when the Church teaches infallibly.
All the faithful are obliged to accept these teachings with an obedience of faith.
2.5.2 Priestly or Sanctifying Office
CCCC 186 (cf CCC 893) teaches that:
Bishops sanctify the Church by dispensing the grace of Christ by their ministry of the word and the sacraments, especially the Holy Eucharist, and also by their prayers, their example and their work.
2.5.3 Governing Office
CCCC 187 (cf CCC 894-896) tells us:
Every bishop, insofar as he is a member of the college of bishops, bears collegially the care for all particular Churches and for the entire Church along with all the other bishops who are united to the Pope. A bishop to whom a particular Church has been entrusted governs that Church with the authority of his own sacred power which is ordinary and immediate and exercised in the name of Christ, the Good Shepherd, in communion with the entire Church and under the guidance of the Successor of Peter.
Who are the lay faithful? The CCC no 897 explains:
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" [Lumen Gentium 31]
3.1 What is the vocation of the lay faithful?
The CCCC (no 188; cf CCC 897-900,940) states:
The lay faithful have as their own vocation to seek the Kingdom of God by illuminating and ordering temporal affairs according to the plan of God. They carry out in this way their call to holiness and to the apostolate, a call given to all the baptized.
It is worthwhile quoting here the words of St Josemaría in his homily "Passionately Loving the World," where he reminded many ordinary faithful that they have the calling, the vocation, to make the world holy from within.
It is in the midst of the most material things of the earth that we must sanctify ourselves, serving God and all mankind.
... Don't doubt it, my children: any attempt to escape from the noble reality of daily life is, for you men and women of the world, something opposed to the will of God.
On the contrary, you must realise now, more clearly than ever, that God is calling you to serve him in and from the ordinary, secular and civil activities of human life. He waits for us everyday, in the laboratory, in the operating theatre, in the army barracks, in the university chair, in the factory, in the workshop, in the fields, in the home and in all the immense panorama of work. Understand this well: there is something holy, something divine hidden in the most ordinary situations, and it is up to each one of you to discover it.
...
There is no other way, my daughters and sons: either we learn to find our Lord in ordinary, everyday life, or we shall never find him. That is why I tell you that our age needs to give back to matter and to the apparently trivial events of life their noble, original meaning. It needs to place them at the service of the Kingdom of God; it needs to spiritualize them, turning them into a means and an occasion for a continuous meeting with Jesus Christ.
...
I assure you, my children, that when a Christian carries out with love the most insignificant everyday action, that action overflows with the transcendence of God. That is why I have told you so often, and hammered away at it, that the Christian vocation consists in making heroic verse out of the prose of each day. Heaven and earth seem to merge, my children, on the horizon. But where they really meet is in your hearts, when you sanctify your everyday lives...
Pope John Paul II echoed this teaching many times, so much so that when he passed away, the prayer that was composed to ask the Lord for his beatification included the following words:
Trusting fully in your infinite mercy and in the maternal intercession of Mary, he has given us a living image of Jesus the Good Shepherd, and has shown us that holiness is the necessary measure of ordinary Christian life and is the way of achieving eternal communion with you.
3.2 Lay People Participate in Christ's Priestly, Prophetic and Kingly Office
CCCC 155 (cf CCC 783-786) summarises how the people of God shares in the three functions of Christ as Priest, Prophet and King.
3.2.1 How do the lay faithful participate in the priestly office of Christ?
CCCC 189 (cf CCC 901-903) says:
They participate in it especially in the Eucharist by offering as a SPIRITUAL SACRIFICE "acceptable to God through Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 2:5) their own lives with all of their works, their prayers, their apostolic undertakings, their family life, their daily work and hardships borne with patience and even their consolations of spirit and body. In this way, even the laity, dedicated to Christ and consecrated by the Holy Spirit, offer to God the world itself.
3.2.2 How does the laity participate in the prophetic office?
CCCC 190 (cf CCC 904-907,942) teaches:
They participate in it by WELCOMING evermore in faith the Word of Christ and PROCLAIMING it to the world by the witness of their lives, their words, their evangelizing action, and by catechesis. This evangelizing action acquires a particular efficacy because it is accomplished in the ordinary circumstances of the world.
3.2.3 How do they participate in the kingly office?
CCCC 191 (cf CCC 908-913,943) declares:
The laity participate in the kingly function of Christ because they have received from him the power to in themselves and in the world by SELF-DENIAL and the holiness of their lives. They exercise various ministries at the SERVICE of the community and they IMBUE temporal activities and the institutions of SOCIETY with MORAL VALUES.
According to CCCC 192 (cf CCC 914-916,944)
The consecrated life is a state of life recognized by the Church. It is a free response to a special call from Christ by which those consecrated give themselves completely to God and strive for the perfection of charity moved by the Holy Spirit. This consecration is characterized by the practice of the EVANGELICAL COUNSELS.
There are many ways of living the consecrated life.
5.1 Communion in Holy Things
CCCC 194 (cf CCC 946-953,960) explains:
This expression indicates first of all the common sharing of all the members of the Church in holy things (SANCTA): the faith, the sacraments, especially the Eucharist, the charisms, and the other spiritual gifts. At the root of this communion is love which "does not seek its own interests" (1 Corinthians 13:5) but leads the faithful to "hold everything in common" (Acts 4:32), even to put one’s own material goods at the service of the most poor.
5.2 Communion between Holy Persons
CCCC 195 (cf CCC 954-959,961-962) affirms:
This expression also refers to the communion between holy persons (SANCTI); that is, between those who by grace are united to the dead and risen Christ. Some are pilgrims on the earth; others, having passed from this life, are undergoing purification and are helped also by our prayers. Others already enjoy the glory of God and intercede for us. All of these together form in Christ one family, the Church, to the praise and glory of the Trinity.
We Catholics believe that sins are actually forgiven. Martin Luther denied that possibility. He taught that God simply turns His eyes away from our sins--we are too CORRUPTED to be forgiven. We, on the other hand, say that we are WOUNDED, and therefore can be healed. All of us are in need of healing.
The CCCC 200 (cf CCC 976-980,984-985) teaches us that sins can be forgiven in two ways.
The first and chief sacrament for the forgiveness of sins is BAPTISM. For those sins committed after Baptism, Christ instituted the sacrament of RECONCILIATION or PENANCE through which a baptized person is reconciled with God and with the Church.
Where did the Church get the power to forgive sins?
The CCCC 201 (cf CCC 981-983,986-987) says that
The Church has the mission and the power to forgive sins because Christ himself has conferred it upon her: "Receive the Holy Spirit, if you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained" (John 20:22-23).