Portal:Catholic Church

Catholic Church Portal Main page   Pontifex Maximus   The town and the world Introduction The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.39 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2022. 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 located 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, a small independent city-state and enclave within the Italian capital 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...) Selected article King Henry VIII of England The English Reformation was the series of events in 16th century England by which the Church of England broke away from the authority of the Pope and the Roman Catholic Church.These events were part of a wider process, the European Protestant Reformation, a religious and political movement which affected the practice of Christianity across the whole of Europe during this period. Many factors contributed to the ferment: the decline of feudalism and the rise of nationalism, the rise of the common law, the invention of the printing press and increased circulation of the Bible texts, the transmission of new knowledge and ideas not only amongst scholars but amongst merchants and artisans also; but the story of why and how the different states of Europe adhered to different forms of Protestantism, or remained faithful to Rome or allowed different regions within states to come to different conclusions (as they did) is specific to each state and the causes are not agreed. Read more... Selected image Credit: Raffaello Sanzio The School of Athens or "Scuola di Atene" in Italian is one of the most famous paintings by the Italian Renaissance artist Raphael. It was painted between 1509 and 1510 as a part of Raphael's commission to decorate with frescoes the rooms that are now known as the Stanze di Raffaello, in the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican. Selected biography Ralph (died October 20, 1122), also known as Ralph d'Escures from the family estate Escures, near Séez in Normandy, was a medieval Abbot of Séez, Bishop of Rochester and then Archbishop of Canterbury. He studied at the school at the Abbey of Bec before he entered the abbey of St Martin at Séez in 1079 and became abbot of the house in 1091. He was a friend of both Saint Anselm and Gundulf, Bishop of Rochester, whose see, or diocese, he took over on the death of Gundulf. He was not chosen archbishop of Canterbury by the chapter of Canterbury alone. His election involved an assembly of the lords and bishops meeting with King Henry I of England. Ralph then received his pallium from Pope Paschal II, rather than travelling to Rome to retrieve it. As archbishop, Ralph was very assertive of the rights of the see of Canterbury and of the liberties of the English Church. He claimed authority in Wales and Scotland. Ralph also quarreled for a time with Pope Paschal II. Read more... Did you know... Barasoain Church ...that the Barasoain Church (pictured) , where three major events in Philippine history took place, became known as the Cradle of Democracy in the East? ...that the first act of Paul John Hallinan as Archbishop of Atlanta, an office he assumed in 1962, was to order the desegregation of all Catholic schools and institutions in the Archdiocese of Atlanta? ...that George Crichton's death in 1544 initiated a decade long quarrel over the position of Bishop of Dunkeld until the appointment of his nephew, Robert Crichton? Related portals Feast Day of June 9 Columba (/kəˈlʌmbəˌ ˈkɒlʌmbə/) or Colmcille (7 December 521 – 9 June 597 AD) was an Irish abbot and missionary evangelist credited with spreading Christianity in what is today Scotland at the start of the Hiberno-Scottish mission. He founded the important abbey on Iona, which became a dominant religious and political institution in the region for centuries. He is the patron saint of Derry. He was highly regarded by both the Gaels of Dál Riata and the Picts, and is remembered today as a Catholic saint and one of the Twelve Apostles of Ireland. (Full article...) Attributes: Monk's robes, Celtic tonsure and crosier Patronage: Derry, floods, bookbinders, poets, Ireland, and Scotland See also: Joseph of Anchieta, Ephrem the Syrian Selected quote Patrick, Archbishop of Armagh “ I cannot keep silent, nor would it be proper, so many favours and graces has the Lord deigned to bestow on me in the land of my captivity. ” — Saint Patrick News June "Sacred Heart of Jesus" Image of artwork, 2014. 23 May 2024 – Pope Francis and the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints approves the canonization of Carlo Acutis, who will become the first millennial saint. (Holy See) (BBC News) 12 May 2024 – Forty-nine Vatican Museums employees start an unprecedented labor dispute over unfair and poor working conditions against the Vatican's Pontifical Commission. (Reuters) 10 May 2024 – Demographics of Italy Amid record low birth rates and an aging population, Pope Francis urges Italians to have more children. The Italian government also expands a campaign to encourage at least 500,000 births annually by 2033. (AP) 21 March 2024 – Pope Francis laicizes Belgian bishop Roger Vangheluwe due to allegations of abuse. (NOS) Subcategories Catholic Church Catholic Church by city Catholic Church by continent Catholic Church by country Catholic Church-related lists Catholic particular churches sui iuris Latin Church Eastern Catholic Churches Catholic bibles Buildings and structures of the Catholic Church Catholics Catholic charities Catholic culture Catholic dioceses Ecclesiastical polity of the Catholic Church Catholic ecumenical and interfaith relations History of the Catholic Church Catholic hymns Catholic liturgy Catholic missions Catholic orders and societies Catholic Church organisation Catholic organizations Popes Catholic Church in popular culture Roman Catholic saints Catholic spirituality Catholic studies Catholic theology and doctrine Venerated Catholics Catholic Church portals Outlines of the Catholic Church Catholic Church stubs Topics God the Trinity: God the Father · God the Son · God the Holy Spirit The Holy Bible: Old Testament (including the Deuterocanonicals) · New Testament Particular Churches (grouped by liturgical rite): Latin Rite: Latin Church Alexandrian Rite: Coptic Catholic Church · Eritrean Catholic Church · Ethiopic Catholic Church Armenian Rite: Armenian Catholic Church East Syrian Rite: Chaldean Catholic Church · Syro-Malabar Catholic Church West Syrian Rite: Maronite Church · Syriac Catholic Church · Syro-Malankara Catholic Church Byzantine Rite: Albanian Greek Catholic Church · Belarusian Greek Catholic Church · Bulgarian Greek Catholic Church · Greek Byzantine Catholic Church · Greek Catholic Church of Croatia and Serbia · Hungarian Greek Catholic Church · Italo-Albanian Greek Catholic Church · Macedonian Byzantine-Catholic Church · Melkite Greek Catholic Church · Romanian Greek Catholic Church · Russian Greek Catholic Church · Ruthenian Catholic Church · Slovak Greek Catholic Church · Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church History: Jesus of Nazareth · The Apostles · Ecumenical Councils · East–West Schism · The Crusades · Reformation Christian Theology: Four Marks of the Church · Christian Worship · Divine Grace · Salvation · Sermon on the Mount · Ten Commandments Things you can do If you want to help, you can do the following things: Contribute to one or more of the following articles: Articles needing attention: Coptic Catholic Church • Salesians of Don Bosco • Caritas Internationalis • Teresa Janina Kierocińska • St. Joseph's Cathedral, Allahabad • Emiliano Tardif • More... Requested articles: Modern history of Roman Catholicism • Catholic education • More... Stub articles needing expansion: Catholic Church in Dominica • Fides ecclesiastica • 1191 papal election • Pontifical Committee for International Eucharistic Congresses • Antonio Da Valditaro • Second Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops (1971) • Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary (Fátima) • More... Join WikiProject Catholicism External resources Website of the Holy See Website of the Vatican City State WikiProjects WikiProject Catholicism WikiProject Bible Canon law Task Force WikiProject Christianity WikiProject Religion WikiProject Saints Associated Wikimedia The following Wikimedia Foundation sister projects provide more on this subject: Commons Free media repository Wikibooks Free textbooks and manuals Wikidata Free knowledge base Wikinews Free-content news Wikiquote Collection of quotations Wikisource Free-content library Wikiversity Free learning tools Wiktionary Dictionary and thesaurus Discover Wikipedia using portals List of all portals The arts portal Biography portal Current events portal Geography portal History portal Mathematics portal Science portal Society portal Technology portal Random portal WikiProject Portals