Portal:Catholic Church

Catholic Church Portal

Introduction

The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.28 to 1.39 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2024. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions and has played a prominent role in the history and development of Western civilization. The church consists of 24 sui iuris churches, including the Latin Church and 23 Eastern Catholic Churches, which comprise almost 3,500 dioceses and eparchies around the world. The pope, who is the bishop of Rome, is the chief pastor of the church. The Diocese of Rome, known as the Holy See, is the central governing authority of the church. The administrative body of the Holy See, the Roman Curia, has its principal offices in Vatican City, which is a small, independent city-state and enclave within the city of Rome, of which the pope is head of state.

The core beliefs of Catholicism are found in the Nicene Creed. The Catholic Church teaches that it is the one, holy, catholic and apostolic church founded by Jesus Christ in his Great Commission, that its bishops are the successors of Christ's apostles, and that the pope is the successor to Saint Peter, upon whom primacy was conferred by Jesus Christ. It maintains that it practises the original Christian faith taught by the apostles, preserving the faith infallibly through scripture and sacred tradition as authentically interpreted through the magisterium of the church. The Roman Rite and others of the Latin Church, the Eastern Catholic liturgies, and institutes such as mendicant orders, enclosed monastic orders and third orders reflect a variety of theological and spiritual emphases in the church.

Of its seven sacraments, the Eucharist is the principal one, celebrated liturgically in the Mass. The church teaches that through consecration by a priest, the sacrificial bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ. The Virgin Mary is venerated as the Perpetual Virgin, Mother of God, and Queen of Heaven; she is honoured in dogmas and devotions. Catholic social teaching emphasizes voluntary support for the sick, the poor, and the afflicted through the corporal and spiritual works of mercy. The Catholic Church operates tens of thousands of Catholic schools, universities and colleges, hospitals, and orphanages around the world, and is the largest non-government provider of education and health care in the world. Among its other social services are numerous charitable and humanitarian organizations. (Full article...)

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The Ursuline Convent Riots were riots that occurred on August 11 and August 12, 1834 in Charlestown, Massachusetts, near Boston in what is now Somerville, Massachusetts. During the riot, a convent of Roman Catholic Ursuline nuns was burned down by a Protestant mob. The event was triggered by reported abuse of a member of the order, and was fueled by the rebirth of extreme anti-Catholic sentiment in antebellum New England. In 1820, the Most Reverend Jean-Louis Lefebvre de Cheverus, bishop of the newly created diocese of Boston, granted permission for the establishment of a convent of Ursuline teaching nuns in a building next to the cathedral. A school for girls was set up in the convent, in which approximately 100 students were enrolled.By 1827, the school and convent had outgrown the building. In July of that year, the community moved to a larger building on Ploughed Hill (later Mount Benedict), in Charlestown. The school began to enroll primarily the daughters of the Protestant upper classes of Boston; by 1834 there were forty-seven students, only six of whom were Catholic.
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Credit: Diliff

St. Vitus Cathedral (Czech: Katedrála svatého Víta) is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Prague, Czech Republic, and the seat of the Archbishop of Prague. The full name of the cathedral is St. Vitus, St. Wenceslas and St. Adalbert Cathedral. Located within Prague Castle and containing the tombs of many Bohemian kings, this cathedral is an excellent example of Gothic architecture and is the biggest and most important church in the country.

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Pope Benedict XVI (Latin: Benedictus PP. XVI; German Benedikt XVI.; Italian: Benedetto XVI, born Joseph Alois Ratzinger on 16 April 1927) was the 265th Pope, the spiritual head of the Catholic Church, and as such, Sovereign of the Vatican City State, until his resignation was effective, on 28 February 2013. He was elected on 19 April 2005 in a papal conclave, celebrated his papal inauguration mass on 24 April 2005, and took possession of his cathedral, the Basilica of St. John Lateran, on 7 May 2005. Pope Benedict XVI has both German and Vatican citizenship. He succeeded Pope John Paul II, who died on 2 April 2005 (and with whom he had worked before the Sede vacante). Benedict XVI was also the Bishop of Rome. Benedict XVI is a well-known Catholic theologian and a prolific author, a defender of traditional Catholic doctrine and values.
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Did you know...

... that bishop Mauritius Ferber (pictured) of Warmia was treated for illness several times by the physician-astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus?
... that when Robert de Bethune was nominated Bishop of Hereford in 1130, King Henry I of England did so because he felt he needed one "godly bishop" around?
... that Toto's seizure of power in Rome in 767 is one of the first indications that the military aristocracy believed that supreme power in Rome rested with the papal office?

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Feast Day of November 22

Oil painting of Saint Cecilia holding violin and bow, 1606, by Guido Reni.

Saint Cecilia (Latin: Sancta Caecilia), also spelled Cecelia, was a Roman Christian virgin martyr, who is venerated in Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican, and some Lutheran churches, such as the Church of Sweden. She became the patroness of music and musicians, it being written that, as the musicians played at her wedding, Cecilia "sang in her heart to the Lord". Musical compositions are dedicated to her, and her feast, on 22 November, is the occasion of concerts and musical festivals. She is also known as Cecilia of Rome. (Full article...)
Prayer: Dear Saint Cecilia, one thing we know for certain about you is that you became a heroic martyr in fidelity to your divine Bridegroom. We do not know that you were a musician but we are told that you heard Angels sing. Inspire musicians to gladden the hearts of people by filling the air with God's gift of music and reminding them of the divine Musician who created all beauty. Amen.

Attributes: Flute, organ, roses, violin, harp, Baritone harpsichord, singing
Patronage: Hymns, musicians, poets; Albi, France; Archdiocese of Omaha, Nebraska; Mar del Plata, Argentina, Pipe organs

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“

We are compelled, our faith urging us, to believe and to hold—and we do firmly believe and simply confess—that there is one holy Catholic and Apostolic Church, outside of which there is neither salvation nor remission of sins.

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— Pope Boniface VIII

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