Catholic Replies

2 years ago

Editor’s Note: This final article on Apologetics comes from the book Catholicism & Reason. Please feel free to use the series for high schoolers or adults. We will continue to welcome your questions for the column as well. You can send them either to the postal mailing address or to the email address below, and we will interrupt this series to answer them

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Special Course On Catholicism And Reason (Chapter 23)

Having examined the claims of various churches, we can see why Catholics should be proud of what their Church has accomplished over two millennia. We must remember, however, that these accomplishments can only be attributed to the grace of Jesus Christ, not to our own efforts. If the Catholic Church were only a human institution, she would have disappeared from history a long time ago. That she has survived for two thousand years is due to her Founder’s promise to be with her “always, to the end of the age” (Matt. 28:20).

No institution has had a greater impact on the world than the Catholic Church. She has established schools and universities, and hospitals and homes for young and old. She has fostered the arts and sciences and preserved many classics of ancient literature, including the Bible. The Vatican Library is the largest in the world and libraries and museums around the world feature priceless treasures of paintings and statuary that were done by Catholic artists and sculptors. The Church has been the preserver of Western Civilization.

The most remarkable feature of the Catholic Church is that it had its origin in a remote corner of the Roman Empire with a group of uneducated men. One was a traitor, another a liar and a coward, and all of them but John deserted their Master.

They were persecuted and killed for speaking about Jesus, but despite overwhelming odds they converted the hostile Roman Empire in three hundred years and have continued to preach Christ crucified ever since. If the Church spread with the help of miracles, which it did, then it is clearly divine. If it spread without miracles, it still bears the stamp of the divine because its spread without miracles is the greatest miracle of all.

But what about those bad Catholics, dictators and sinners like Hitler, Stalin, and Castro, all of whom were baptized Catholics? Just as one would not judge a university by those who flunked out, so one should not judge the Church by those who failed to live up to her teachings. A Catholic should be judged on whether he or she follows Jesus Christ and lives as a faithful member of His Church. Calling oneself a Catholic is not enough; one must wholeheartedly embrace all that the Church teaches.

The Catholic Church is best exemplified by those courageous men, women, and children who gave their lives for the love of Christ. It has been said that “the blood of martyrs is the seed of Christians.” And so the Church has spread through the martyrdom of great saints like the apostles; heroes of the early Church, like Saints Polycarp, Ignatius of Antioch, Irenaeus, Agatha, Agnes, and many others; defenders of the Church in England in the sixteenth century, like Saints John Fisher, Thomas More, and David Lewis; and those brave men and women who shed their blood for Christ in the past century in Russia, China, Mexico, Cuba, Iraq, and Nigeria.

Jesus said that His true followers would be persecuted just as He was persecuted. So, if you are looking for the Church of Christ in the world, look for a Church that is being attacked and ridiculed, just as Christ was attacked and ridiculed. Look for a church that is mocked for teaching the truth, just as Christ was mocked for saying, “I am the truth” (John 14:6). Look for a Church that the world seeks to destroy, just as the religious and political leaders of His time tried to destroy Christ. “In the world you will have trouble,” said Jesus, “but take courage, I have conquered the world” (John 16:33).

The best way to deal with opposition and ridicule, said Pope St. John Paul II, is to invoke the “holy name of Jesus. The name of Jesus is your life and your salvation. It is your pride and joy, and the pride and joy of your families and your parishes. In this name you find strength for your weaknesses and energy for daily Christian living. In your struggle against evil and the Evil One, and in your striving for holiness, the name of Jesus is the source of your hope because in the name of Jesus you are invincible.”

List of Answers:

ALWAYS

CATHOLIC

COURAGE

GRACE

JESUS

JOHN PAUL II

MARTYRS

MIRACLES

PERSECUTED

ROMAN

TRUTH

WESTERN

Quiz:

The ____________ of Christ is responsible for the Church’s accomplishments.
Jesus promised to be with His Church “____________, to the end of the age.”
No institution has had greater influence on the world than the _________ Church.
The Church has been the preserver of _______________ Civilization.
The early Church converted the hostile ______________ Empire in 300 years.
The Church spread with the help of ___________________.
A Catholic should be judged on how closely he or she follows ____________.
“The blood of _________________ is the seed of Christians.”
Jesus said that His true followers would be _______________ just as He was.
Jesus said, “I am the _________________.”
“Take ___________,” said Jesus, “I have conquered the world.”
Pope St. ____________________ said that the best way to deal with opposition and ridicule is to invoke the holy name of Jesus.