Catholic (term)

See also: Catholic Church, Catholicity, and Roman Catholic (term)

The first use of the term "Catholic Church" (literally meaning "universal church") was by the church father Saint Ignatius of Antioch in his Letter to the Smyrnaeans (circa 110 AD).[1] Ignatius of Antioch is also attributed the earliest recorded use of the term "Christianity" (Greek: Χριστιανισμός) in 100 AD[2] He died in Rome, with his relics located in the Basilica of San Clemente al Laterano.
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The word catholic (derived via Late Latin catholicus, from the ancient Greek adjective καθολικός (katholikos) 'universal')[3][4] comes from the Greek phrase καθόλου (katholou) 'on the whole, according to the whole, in general', and is a combination of the Greek words κατά (kata) 'about' and ὅλος (holos) 'whole'.[5][6] The first known use of "Catholic" was by the church father Saint Ignatius of Antioch in his Letter to the Smyrnaeans (circa 110 AD).[7] In the context of Christian ecclesiology, it has a rich history and several usages.

The word in English can mean either "of the Catholic faith" or "relating to the historic doctrine and practice of the Western Church".[note 1][8] "Catholicos", the title used for the head of some churches in Eastern Christian traditions, is derived from the same linguistic origin.

In non-ecclesiastical use, it derives its English meaning directly from its root, and is currently used to mean the following:[9]

  • including a wide variety of things, or all-embracing;
  • universal or of general interest;
  • having broad interests, or wide sympathies;
  • inclusive, inviting.

The term has been incorporated into the name of the largest Christian communion, the Roman Catholic Church. All of the three main branches of Christianity in the East – Eastern Orthodox Church, Oriental Orthodox Church and Church of the East – had always identified themselves as Catholic in accordance with apostolic traditions and the Nicene Creed. Lutherans, Reformed, Anglicans and Methodists also believe that their churches are "Catholic" in the sense that they too are in continuity with the original universal church founded by the Apostles.[10][11][12][13][14] However, each church defines the scope of the "Catholic Church" differently. For instance, the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox churches, and Church of the East, each maintain that their own denomination is identical with the original universal church, from which all other denominations broke away.

An early definition for what is "catholic" was summarized in what is known as the Vincentian Canon in the 5th century Commonitory: "what has been believed everywhere, always, and by all."[15][16] Distinguishing beliefs of Catholicity, the beliefs of most Christians who call themselves "Catholic", include the episcopal polity, that bishops are considered the highest order of ministers within the Christian religion,[17][14] as well as the Nicene Creed of AD 381. In particular, along with unity, sanctity, and apostolicity, catholicity is considered one of Four Marks of the Church,[18] found in the line of the Nicene Creed: "I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church."[19]

During the medieval and modern times, additional distinctions arose regarding the use of the terms Western Catholic and Eastern Catholic. Before the East–West Schism of 1054, those terms had just the basic geographical meanings, since only one undivided Catholicity existed, uniting the Latin-speaking Christians of West and the Greek-speaking Christians of the East. After the Schism, terminology became much more complicated, resulting in the creation of parallel and conflicting terminological systems.[20]

  1. ^ John Meyendorff, Catholicity and the Church, St Vladimirs Seminary Press, 1997, ISBN 0-88141-006-3, p. 7
  2. ^ Elwell, Walter; Comfort, Philip Wesley (2001). Tyndale Bible Dictionary. Tyndale House Publishers. pp. 266, 828. ISBN 0-8423-7089-7.
  3. ^ "Catholic". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  4. ^ (cf. Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon)
  5. ^ "Online Etymology Dictionary". Etymonline.com. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
  6. ^ "On Being Catholic Archived 22 February 2011 at the Wayback Machine," by Claire Anderson M.Div.
  7. ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Catholic" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 5 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 532.
  8. ^ "catholic". Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 25 December 2014. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
  9. ^ American Heritage Dictionary (4th ed.).
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference Ludwig2016 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ Bush, John C.; Cooney, Patrick R. (1 January 2002). Interchurch Families: Resources for Ecumenical Hope: Catholic/Reformed Dialogue in the United States. Westminster John Knox Press. p. 38. ISBN 978-0-664-22562-9. With other Christians, the Reformed Churches confess faith in "one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church." Where is the sign of apostolicity found among Reformed Christians? ...The mark of apostolicity is manifested in the faithfullness to the apostolic witness to "the faith once delivered to the saints."
  12. ^ Yrigoyen, Charles Yrigoyen (25 September 2014). T&T Clark Companion to Methodism. A&C Black. p. 346. ISBN 978-0-567-29077-9. On the other hand, Methodists are said to 'form a family of churches' which 'claim and cherish [their] true place in the one holy, catholic and apostolic church.'
  13. ^ The Nature of the Church. 1952. p. 206. In the Deed of Union a continuity of Methodism with the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church is affirmed. First, it is implied, inasmuch as the Methodist Church claims and cherishes its place in the Holy Catholic Church which ...
  14. ^ a b Puglisi, J. F. (1999). Petrine Ministry and the Unity of the Church: "toward a Patient and Fraternal Dialogue". Liturgical Press. p. 81. ISBN 978-0-8146-5936-6. Methodist churches see the continuity of the apostolic tradition preserved by the faithfulness to the apostolic teaching. The teaching office which decides what is faithful and what is not lies in the hands of conciliar bodies, the Conferences. All Methodist churches recognize the necessity of a ministry of episkopē, "oversight," and in many Methodist churches this is expressed in the office of bishop.
  15. ^ Bettenson, Henry (1963). Documents of the Christian Church. Oxford University Press. p. 83-84. ISBN 978-0-19-501293-4.
  16. ^ Armentrout, Don S.; Slocum, Robert Boak (2000). An Episcopal Dictionary of the Church. Church Publishing.
  17. ^ F.L. Cross, Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, 1977:175.
  18. ^ Christliche Religion, Oskar Simmel Rudolf Stählin, 1960, 150
  19. ^ Scharper, Philip J. (1969). Meet the American Catholic. Broadman Press. p. 34. It is interesting to note, however, that the Nicene Creed, recited by Roman Catholics in their worship, is also accepted by millions of other Christians as a testimony of their faith—Episcopalians, Presbyterians, Methodists, Lutherans, and members of many of the Reformed Churches.
  20. ^ Inventing Latin Heretics: Byzantines and the Filioque in the Ninth Century at Google Books pp.


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