Rites of the Catholic Church

The Church, since her earliest days has continued growing and spreading to the ends of the earth. With her growth, came expressions of worship specific to the various regions the Church occupied, which are referred to as "rites." There are twenty-one rites of the Catholic Church, all of which are in communion with the Catholic Church and share in the same apostolic origin and Sacraments. The rites are different forms of worship unique to the individual cultures that separate them. A few examples of rites would be the Alexandrian, Antiochene, Armenian, Byzantine, and Chaldean rites.

It is great that the Catholic Church has different forms of worship within her. This allows us to not just be constrained to the traditional liturgy, but rather, be able to experience several modes of worship that have been touched by cultural presence in the Church. Through the rites, we can each have a special form of worship specific to a culture, and yet be in communion with the Catholic Church and share in the same body and blood of Jesus Christ.

The Fourth Mark: Apostolic

Since her founding at the time of Christ, the Church has continued to grow. But how has the Church remained intact all these years?

The answer lies within the Deposit of Faith - specifically, Sacred Tradition. The Eucharist, the Gospel, Sacred Scripture...all have been passed from generation to generation. How fascinating is it that the Eucharist we celebrate at Sunday Mass today has been handed down for over 2,000 years? 

The original twelve continued ordaining members as Bishops, as seen with the election of St. Matthias, and deacons, as seen with St. Stephen. Why is this important? Well think, could twelve bishops each succeed in governing a diocese the size of a continent? Probably not. This is why the authority in which Christ ordained his Apostles is passed down to each bishop. However, the term "Apostle" is still reserved specifically for the original twelve. Bishops and cardinals today possess the same authority to "bind and loose" as the twelve Apostles, which can be seen in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, which a bishop or priest forgives us of our sins, essentially "freeing" us.

How can we participate in the Apostolic mark of the Church? As humans, we are continually called by God in the universal call to holiness. Christ gave us the beatitudes, which outlined how to follow in a life of Christ. However, not everyone can just leave everything, and this is why we are only asked to give what we can. But for those few who are able to drop everything to follow God, they participate directly in the Apostolic mark of the Church by joining the clergy or in Holy Orders. There are also members of the faithful who go above and beyond, yet are not ordained as a member of the clergy or a member of Holy Orders. This special group is referred to as the laity, and their job is to "sanctify from within," or help to sanctify in their day to day life. 

The Third Mark: Catholic

Catholic. Translated into "universal." How does the Church live up to that title today?

In Matthew 28:19, Christ commissions the Apostles to "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." Today, the Church continues her mission, having spread to many of the earth's countries, and continually welcoming members into the family of God. As you can see in the map, Catholics are predominately in South America and Europe. Other countries have little or no population of Catholics. However, it is probably safe to say that wherever people are, the Church will follow.

Today, it can be especially hard to follow the Catholic Church. Within the Church herself, there are tens of thousands of schismatic beliefs branching from her, and that does not include non-Christian beliefs, of which there are many more. However, it is important that we stand by our faith in the Catholic Church, and do our best to draw people into her, as Christ's mission is not complete until the world believes in Him.

Source: Wikipedia.org

The Second Mark: Holy

How is the Church Holy? The Holiness of the Church is attributed to three reasons:

1. The Church is Holy because of her origin.
2. The Church is Holy because of her mission. 
3. The Church is Holy because of her destination. 

The Catholic Church was instituted by Christ and carried on from the twelve Apostles. Jesus Christ is God, and since God is all-good and can only allow goodness to come into being, His Church must share in His goodness. Christ commissioned His Apostles to teach, sanctify, and govern. The Church continues her mission today throughout the world, shepherding her flock until Christ's return at the end of time. 

The First Mark: One

What does it mean to say the Church is One? What about Holy? Catholic? Apostolic? We say these in the Nicene Creed over and over again, but exactly what do they mean to us? Are they simply words we utter from our mouths, or do they have a deeper, theological and historical purpose?

The Church is One through her teachings, leadership, and faith.

Unity in faith originates in the people of the Church. Their faith comes from the time of Baptism, in which the theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity are infused within them. Faith allows for the belief in the Holiness of the Church, her message, and her mission.

Unity in leadership is found in the hierarchy of the Church. There are priests and bishops all around the world fulfilling Christ’s mission to teach, sanctify, and govern. Bishops represent their people when communicating with the

Vatican. The Pope is the head of the entity of the Church on Earth, and represents her as such. The people of God are united under the Pope and his bishops.

Unity in teaching can be seen when a doctrine declaring a truth is issued. For example, if the Pope issued a doctrine on the Immaculate Conception, the bishops are responsible for teaching the doctrine to their people. In turn, it is the responsibility of the people of the Church to accept the doctrine as truth and include it in their belief of the Catholic faith. The Church is also united in teaching in that the same Eucharist is celebrated throughout the world, and has been for the last two thousand years. The Church teaches the same Sacred Scripture everywhere, and delivers it in the native tongue of each region.

Throughout the centuries, heresy, schism, and apostasy have ruptured the unity of the Church. Ecumenism, the belief of uniting the various Churches into one single Church, is stressed by the leaders of the Catholic Church. Christian’s are encouraged to pray for unity, as Christ intended to have one flock.