Church is Our Home

Objectives

1. Realize the importance of the Catholic Church.

2. Appreciate the beauty of the Catholic Faith in one’s life. 

3. Commit to grow in their conviction to know, love and defend the faith.

Expanded Outline

I. Introduction

“Home is where your heart is.” This is a beautiful proverb that talks about a place close to our hearts. Home is a place of relationships and a place where love is learned and cultivated.

The Catholic Church is our home. In this home, our relationship with God is deepened and strengthened. In the Catholic Church we learn and experience about God, who is love. We need to appreciate and understand the value of our faith so that we can truly say that our hearts belong to the Catholic Church.

II. The Church as our Mother and Teacher

Note to speaker: This part of the session must be discussed briefly.

In every home there is a mother who takes care of the family. She is a mother because of her relationship to us. We are spiritually reborn in her, through the sacrament of baptism, and we receive ongoing nourishment through the rest of her sacraments. It is important for us to understand how the Church takes care of us. 

A. Mother (Sacraments)

The sacraments are efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us. The visible rites by which the sacraments are celebrated signify and make present the graces proper to each sacrament. They bear fruit in those who receive them with the required dispositions. (CCC 1131)

The Church is a mother because she’s there at the very beginning of life, even before her child is conscious of her (Baptism). She feeds her children, again and again (Eucharist). She listens to them, forgives them, and tries to help them (Confession). Mom is usually the best person to have around when you’re sick (Anointing). She guides her children to the vocation God has called us (Holy Orders and Matrimony) and she teaches us to share our gifts to others (Confirmation). 

The Church as our mother provides us with the grace of sacraments which Jesus himself instituted for our benefit. It is in the availability of the sacraments that we are given the opportunity to encounter Christ as our restorer and bridegroom. To receive the sacraments, the Church guides us to have the right disposition so that it may truly bear fruit in our lives. Every stage of your life the Church journeys with you and sustains you. 

B. Teacher (Magisterium)

This came from the Latin word “magistra,” which means teacher. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states, The Church, the "pillar and bulwark of the truth,"has received this solemn command of Christ from the apostles to announce the saving truth. To the Church belongs the right always and everywhere to announce moral principles, including those pertaining to the social order, and to make judgments on any human affairs to the extent that they are required by the fundamental rights of the human person or the salvation of souls." (CCC 2032)

This means that the Church, through its authority, guides the way we are to know and live out the truth of being followers of Jesus. As a mother she teaches the truth to us and helps us to embrace it for our good. Her goal is for us to be saved through her announcements of moral truths.

The challenge for us is to be actively involved in the life and mission of the Catholic Church. This is our home and it is our mother. We Catholics need to live out our identity as Catholics and disciples of Christ.

III. The Church as our Home 

Every house has its corners where foundations will be laid upon so that the structure will be strong and sturdy. In the Catholic Church the cornerstone of our faith is Christ. We need to understand and learn the qualities of the one true Church Christ built. The Letter to the Ephesians describes each of the four marks clearly.

1. The Church is One.

“one body and one Spirit, as you were also called to the one hope of your call; one Lord, one faith, one baptism.” (Ephesians 4:4-5)

The Church is one because her members are united in the faith and doctrine, under the pope. The founder is Jesus who brought us back to God through His sacrifice on the cross. The Church is one because Christ built only one true Church. The oneness of the church is seen in the creed because we profess the same faith. One faith, one sacrifice, one sacramental system. 

2. The Church is Holy.

“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 5:27)

The Church is holy because she is sanctified by Christ, the means of sanctifying the world, and the Church has the Holy Spirit dwelling in it. Jesus Christ is the source of her holiness. Through the ministry of the Church and the power of the Holy Spirit, our Lord pours forth abundant graces, especially through the sacraments. The church is made holy, by virtue of its call and mission. The Church is made up of sinners who, by the grace of God, are continuously being transformed. 

3. The Church is Catholic.

“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have become near by the blood of Christ.” (Ephesians 2:13)

Catholic means “universal,” meaning that the Church is intended for all people in all places of the world, and she contains the fullness of the means of salvation. She is also universal because the Church she has been sent to proclaim Christ to the entire human race.

4. The Church is Apostolic.

“built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone.” (Ephesians 2:20)

The Church traces its tradition directly from the unbroken line of the apostles to the bishops whose teaching authority, the Magisterium, holds fast to the apostolic faith. With the Holy Spirit, the Church preserves and continues the teaching of the apostles. The pope and bishops are the successors of the apostles.

In the Nicene Creed, we profess, "We believe in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church.” They are inseparable and intrinsically linked to each other. Jesus Himself in founding the Church marked it with these characteristics, which reflect its essential features and mission. 

IV. Realities Within the Church

“There are not one hundred people in the United States who hate The Catholic Church, but there are millions who hate what they wrongly perceive the Catholic Church to be.”  -Venerable Archbishop Fulton Sheen

These words of the great Archbishop speak of the state of the Church and most of its people becoming nominal. It is worth nothing that it is not only in the West but in the whole world that the church is misunderstood by non-Catholics and even Catholics. It is of great importance that the people understand the Church and grow in their love for it as an integral part of their faith. Unfortunately, most of the people have failed to embark on this journey of discipleship. This has caused a crisis in the church and of its people, here are the realities of God’s people.

A.    Ignorant

Many Catholics lack the formation and the desire to know what the teachings of the church are. Many Catholics are not catechized, making them susceptible to a change of religion once confronted with false accusations about the faith. Even the evangelized are not catechized enough that when asked, they tend to step back or even agree with the wrong information and accusations. 

As a result, Catholics are misinformed. They receive false and inaccurate information about our faith and the Church and sometimes share it with others either with the intention of spreading wrong information or just unaware of what is true. 

B.    Critical

Some Catholics lack appreciation and understanding of the real essence of the Church’s teachings, many have been so critical of the Church. Topics such as sexuality and gender are some of the teachings that are hard for people to accept. This is perhaps due to the culture that has become relative that the church needs to double up its effort in making people know and understand the teachings of Christ.

As a result, our faith becomes irrelevant. Many have thought of the Church’s teaching as passe because it doesn’t go with the contemporary mindset that is dominated by secular views. But we are not supposed to change the teachings just because others are sensitive about it.

C.    Uninvolved

Most Catholics have been used to just being recipients of the sacraments and other church services. Very few are involved in the life and mission of the Church. Others attend only to what is convenient to them.

As a result, they become Nominal or Lapsed Catholics. They don’t truly know the teaching of the Church and are unable to live it out as well. Worst is that when they are confronted by other religions, they are unable to provide an explanation and easily give in to the concepts against the Catholic Church. 

As baptized Catholics, we are called to discover the richness of our faith by diving into the teachings that Jesus has passed on to us through the disciples. Let us not allow ourselves to be ignorant, critical and uninvolved. May we not slip away from our faith because of the things we do not know. Instead, may we strive to know more about Jesus and the church he has built for us. 

V. Enriching our Home

God, infinitely perfect and blessed in himself, in a plan of sheer goodness, freely created man to make him share in his own blessed life. For this reason, at every time and in every place, God draws close to man. He calls man to seek him, to know him, to love him with all his strength. He calls together all men, scattered and divided by sin, into the unity of his family, the Church. To accomplish this, when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son as Redeemer and Savior. In his Son and through him, he invites men to become, in the Holy Spirit, his adopted children and thus heirs of his blessed life. (CCC 1)

The first paragraph of the Catechism of the Catholic Church outlines for us what we are to do as God’s beloved and created beings. We are invited to seek him, know and love him. How are we to do this? 

1. Know the Faith

Faith seeking understanding. (Saint Anselm)

We can know God through a consistent time in prayer and study of the Bible. But it will also be of great benefit to study the teaching of the Church and be an authentic disciple of the Lord by getting guidance through the Magisterium of the Church. Do not be content as an evangelized Catholic, strive to be a catechized Catholic. Know and understand the teachings of the Church and put it into heart and deeds. Share the beauty of our faith with others and speak about it when there is a chance.

2. Love the Faith

“We become what we love and who we love shapes what we become.” (Saint Claire of Assisi)

We are called to love God with all our heart, mind, strength and soul. As we grow in our understanding of the Church’s teaching, we are called to offer ourselves that we may contribute in building up the Church. We are to offer who we are to Christ by taking part in the life of the Church. We cannot be Catholics who are just recipients of grace but as baptized we ought to fulfill our call to be partakers of the Church’s mission. We are invited to participate in the life and mission of the Church. Serve the church and its people, reach the least, lost and last, offer our whole selves in charity as we love and share our faith with our brethren.

3. Defend the Faith

"The truth is like a lion; you don't have to defend it. Let it choose; it will defend itself." (Saint Augustine of Hippo)

We all know that nothing can prevail against the Church that Jesus established. However, we are to defend our faith and the Church for it is our commitment to Christ as his bride. To defend the faith means to be able to provide a reason for our hope and our belief. Practically, it is also being prepared to explain the details of our faith. We are called to be an apologist, one who gives defense. In any situation where our faith is being mocked, questioned, or challenged, be ready to defend it with the truth in love. 

VI. Conclusion

The Church is the home of God’s people. It is also the place where they are called to adhere and live out their identity as Catholics. The Catholic Church is for every living person, and all are invited to go home to the Kingdom of God here on earth. Let us therefore commit to fully participate in the life of the Church by Knowing, Loving and Defending our Faith. 

Discussion Questions:

What is the Catholic Church for you?

Personally, what can you do to make the Church your home?