By DON FIER
There are three images of the Church that the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) pays particular attention to in its catechesis on article 9 of the Creed: People of God, Body of Christ, and Temple of the Holy Spirit. As we’ve seen over the past few weeks, “one enters into the People of God by faith and Baptism” (CCC, n. 804) and is thus incorporated into the Church and becomes a member of the Mystical Body of Christ. As members of the Church we form the very body of Christ, who is her Head (cf. Col. 1:10).
The human body is animated by its soul, its life-giving principle, and so it is with the Church: “The Spirit is the soul, as it were, of the Mystical Body, the source of its life, of its unity in diversity, and of the riches of its gifts and charisms” (CCC, n. 809). It is for this reason that the Church is called the Temple of the Holy Spirit.
Pope St. John Paul II gives profound expression to the relationship that exists between the Holy Spirit and the Church: “The Holy Spirit dwells in the Church not as a guest who still remains an outsider, but as the soul that transforms the community into ‘God’s holy temple’ (1 Cor. 3:17; cf. 6:19; Eph. 2:21)” (general audience, July 8, 1998).
We also saw last week that the Holy Spirit assists the Mystical Body by giving her members special graces called charisms. These gifts “are bestowed on individuals for the good of others, the needs of the world, and in particular for the building up of the Church” (Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 160).
“Charisms are to be humbly accepted,” states Fr. John A. Hardon, SJ, “but are always subject to discernment by the shepherds of the Church” (The Faith, p. 88), for an unholy spirit is always lurking to mislead proud and unwise souls.
The Catechism now examines individually each of the four marks of the Church — unity, holiness, catholicity, and apostolicity — which constitute those essential properties that make her recognizable as the true Church founded by Jesus Christ. As the Second Vatican Council fathers pronounce: “This is the one Church of Christ which in the Creed is professed as one, holy, catholic, and apostolic” (Lumen Gentium, n. 8 § 2). Moreover, “each one of these marks so clings to the others that it cannot be separated from them” (Denzinger, Enchiridion Symbolorum, n. 2880).
But it is critically important to realize that “the Church does not possess them of herself; it is Christ who, through the Holy Spirit, makes his Church one, holy, catholic, and apostolic, and it is he who calls her to realize each of these qualities” (CCC, n. 811).
We are quickly reminded that although “only faith can recognize that the Church possesses these properties from her divine source” (CCC, n. 812), the genuineness of the fourfold marks does not oppose reason. In noteworthy support of the spiritual principle that “faith builds upon and perfects reason” (St. John Paul, Fides et Ratio, n. 43), historical evidence abounds which demonstrates the reality of these characteristics in the true Church founded by Christ.
Indeed, the enduring existence of the Roman Catholic Church under the continuous leadership of the Bishop of Rome for two thousand years speaks eloquently as testimony of the everlasting nature of these properties. As stated by the fathers of Vatican Council I: “The Church itself, by reason of its marvelous extension, its eminent holiness, and its inexhaustible fruitfulness in every good thing, its Catholic unity and its invincible stability, is a great and perpetual motive of credibility, and an irrefutable witness of its own divine mission” (Dei Filius, chapter 3, n. 4).
The Catechism begins its consideration of the first mark of the Catholic Church, unity, by turning to Vatican II’s Decree on Ecumenism, for “the restoration of unity among all Christians is one of the principal concerns of the Second Vatican Council” (Unitatis Redintegratio [UR], n. 1). The council fathers go on to say, “Christ the Lord founded one Church and one Church only.” And indeed, in the first community that gathered after Pentecost, deep unity prevailed (see Acts 2:42, 4:32). Yet, as we know all too well, the original unity intended by our Lord “has suffered deep lacerations in the course of history” (St. John Paul, general audience, July 12, 1995). As recorded in the New Testament writings, divisions among Christians began to occur even during the apostolic age (see 1 Cor. 1:10-12; 2 John 10; 3 John 9-10; etc.).
These separations have continued ever since. “Two divisions in particular have led to a breach that persists today: the separation between the Eastern and Western Church in the year 1054, which sealed a long-lasting mutual alienation; and the Western division of the Church in the sixteenth century in the wake of the Reformation, which in turn brought forth numerous divisions” (German Bishops Conference, The Church’s Confession of Faith, p. 232). What is the result? Vatican II clearly states: “Such division openly contradicts the will of Christ, scandalizes the world, and damages the holy cause of preaching the Gospel to every creature” (UR, n. 1).
Many verses from Sacred Scripture attest to Christ’s desire that His Church be one, that her members be united in doctrine, worship, and governance. In metaphorical language, Jesus proclaims during His public ministry that “there shall be one flock, one shepherd” (John 10:16). He also said, “If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand” (Mark 3:24). And when His hour had come, Jesus prayed for the oneness of His flock: “Holy Father, keep them in thy name, which thou hast given me, that they may be one, even as we are one” (John 17:11).
St. Paul says, “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of us all, who is above all and through all and in all” (Eph. 4:4-6). Likewise, the apostle proclaims, “We, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another” (Romans 12:5).
The Essence Of The Church
For what reasons, then, is the Catholic Church one? The Catechism lists three: “because of her source [the Most Holy Trinity], . . . because of her founder [Jesus Christ], . . . [and] because of her ‘soul’ [the Holy Spirit]” (CCC, n. 813).
Citing St. Cyprian of Carthage, a third-century bishop, martyr, and Church father, the Constitution on the Church states: “The Church has been seen as ‘a people made one with the unity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit’ (De Dom. orat. IV, 23)” (LG, n. 4; CCC, n. 810).
The Decree on Ecumenism adds that the unity of the Church “is a mystery that finds its highest exemplar and source in the unity of the Persons of the Trinity: the Father and the Son in the Holy Spirit, one God” (UR, n. 2 § 5).
Similarly, Jesus founded the Church as one by virtue of His Passion, death, and Resurrection for all of mankind. In the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, the Vatican II fathers state: “By the cross the incarnate Son, the prince of peace reconciled all men with God. By thus restoring all men to the unity of one people and one body, He slew hatred in His own flesh; and, after being lifted on high by His resurrection, He poured forth the spirit of love into the hearts of men” (Gaudium et Spes, n. 78 § 3).
Likewise, the council fathers teach that the Holy Spirit can be seen to vivify the members of the Mystical Body of Christ as the soul does the human body: “It is the Holy Spirit, dwelling in those who believe and pervading and ruling over the Church as a whole, who brings about that wonderful communion of the faithful. He brings them into intimate union with Christ, so that He is the principle of the Church’s unity” (UR, n. 2 § 2).
The Catechism states with conviction: “Unity is of the essence of the Church” (CCC, n. 813). Although her oneness also manifests itself in many visible ways (universal Creed and doctrinal teachings, celebration of the Mass and seven sacraments, hierarchical structure based on apostolic succession, etc.), the Church’s unity is not man-made, but comes from God Himself. That very point was made by Pope Francis in his general audience of May 29, 2013:
“She is not an organization established by an agreement between a few people, but — as Pope [Emeritus] Benedict XVI has so often reminded us — she is a work of God, born precisely from this loving design which is gradually brought about in history. The Church is born from God’s wish to call all people to communion with him, to friendship with him, indeed, to share in his own divine life as his sons and daughters.”
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(Don Fier serves on the board of directors for The Catholic Servant, a Minneapolis-based monthly publication. He and his wife are the parents of seven children. Fier is a 2009 graduate of Ave Maria University’s Institute for Pastoral Theology. He is doing research for writing a definitive biography of Fr. John A. Hardon, SJ.)
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