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Appreciation of the Foundation of the Church

    Today we continue with our new series in the search to uncover the great treasuries of the Church contained in the great Deposit of Faith. We return today to the Cornerstone which is Jesus Christ and the founding of His Church through His Foundation of the Church, the Ninth Article of the Apostles' Creed. For the thirty-second installment, click on APPRECIATING THE PRECIOUS GIFT OF OUR FAITH

THE FOUNDATION OF THE CHURCH

    The Foundation of the Church is the Ninth Article of the Apostles' Creed. From among His disciples Our Lord chose twelve Apostles, and gave them special training. He sent them forth to teach His doctrines, saying, “As the Father has sent me, I also send you.” The Apostles were the foundation of the True Church. Christ gave them all power and authority, saying, “He who hears you hears me: he who rejects you rejects me.”

    The Church is the congregation of all baptized persons united in the same true faith, the same sacrifice, and the same sacraments, under the authority of the Sovereign Pontiff and the Bishops in communion with him.

    Even considering it only as a visible society, the Church is a perfect religious body. All members are subject to the same religious authority, possess identical religious doctrines, live a common religious life, and make use of the same means of grace, the sacraments.

    The Bible refers to the Church as the Body of Christ, as a sheepfold, as the kingdom of God, as the kingdom of Heaven.

    A person becomes a member of the Chuch upon receiving Baptism. During life he belongs to either of the two divisions in the Church: the “teaching Church” or the “hearing Church.”

    The priests, with their bishops and the Pope, compose the “teaching Church,” the body of rulers termed the hierarchy and the Magisterium of the Church. The faithful, who believe and obey, compose the “hearing Church.” On each of these divisions are laid powers and duties.

    All history, religious and non-religious, including the Bible, clearly proves that Jesus Christ founded a Church. After teaching publicly what He required all to believe and practice, thereby announcing the main doctrines of His Church, Christ gathered a number of disciples. From them He chose twelve, to whom He gave special instruction and training. The term “a kingdom,” by which Our Lord used to refer to His Church, implies organized authority. And He said to the special men He had chosen, “You have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you” (John 15:16). He did not teach the disciples for themselves alone, but to be the foundation of His Church. God did not come to save only a few disciples, but all men.

    After training the disciples and Apostles to form the organization of His Church, Christ chose Simon Peter, and made him the Chief. Simon, whose name Christ changed to Peter, was the Head of the Church. On Simon Christ promised to build His Church, saying: “Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build My Church” (Matthew 16:18). After the Resurrection He said to Peter: “Feed my lambs…feed my sheep” (John 21: 15:17).

Tomorrow: The Foundation of the Church part two

    Today is the Twenty-eighth Thursday in Ordinary Time as well as the Feast of the martyred Pontiff Pope Saint Calixtus I while tomorrow we celebrate the Feast of Saint Teresa of Avila, Virgin, Religious and Doctor of the Church who did so much for the Lord in reforming the Carmelites. For the readings, liturgies, meditations, and vignettes on these feasts, click on DAILY LITURGY.

Thursday October 14:
Twenty-eighth Thursday in Ordinary Time and
Feast of Pope Saint Calixtus I, Martyr

Green or red vestments

First Reading: Romans 3: 21-30
Psalms: Psalm 130: 1-7
Gospel Reading: Luke 11: 47-54

      Born into slavery in Rome, Saint Callistus I or Saint Calixtus was placed in charge of a bank by his owner a Roman pagan by the name of Carpophorus. Because he was not educated he lost the bank's funds through manipulation by Jewish investors who were trying to filter the money out through devious means. Fearing he would be blamed, Callistus fled. He was captured at Porto and sentenced to the salt mines but not before he was subjected to the hand mill to join hardened slaves. Finally his creditors asked for his release so they could again use him as a ruse to pilfer more funds. Once they were successful, they again pointed the finger at Callistus who was arrested in the Synagogue trying to recover the money and prove his innocence. Again he was sentenced in 186 to the Sardinian mines, but in 199 the mistress of the Emperor Commodus, the young Marcia effected his release. Pope Saint Victor intervened on Callistus' behalf and sent him to Anzio in Italy where in 217 he was baptized and ordained by the current pope Saint Zephyriunus whom Callistus would succeed. Callistus was brought back to Rome with the Holy Father and became a friend and advisor of Zephyrinus. Back in Rome the Pope appointed Callistus procreator of the cemetery on the Appian Way which would become the Catacomb of the Popes and is today St. Callistus Cemetery where 46 Popes and over 200,000 Christians are buried. In 217 his beloved friend was martyred and Callistus became the 16th chosen in the line of Peter. However, his appointment was bitterly opposed by Saint Hippolytus who had also been a candidate for the papacy. Hippolytus set himself up as the pope, thus becoming the Church's first antipope. Callistus pronounced Latin as the official language and this further angered Hippolytus who had been born into nobility and favored Greek over Latin, considered the language of the commoners. Callistus had always clung to the needs of the poor. Those like him, who had been slaves, or non-Romans or who were poor were rejected and in turn they rejected the Greek either out of lack of formal education or their despise for what pagan Rome stood for. They, in turn, adopted Latin as a means of communication and it was quickly embraced by the Christians who were, for the most part, in and among the poor as Christ had directed. Yet insurrection was inevitable from the Greek camp. Fired up by Hippolytus, those who favored Greek objected vehemently to the abandonment of their language. It's interesting to not that only a few things of Greek such as the Kyrie Leison were retained. It was an all-out victory for Callistus and for Latin, but left scars that lasted for centuries and eventually led to a split between East and West. Though his successor St. Zephyrinus is considered the "Father of Ecclesiastical Latin", it was Callistus who decreed it the official language of the Church. As time passed, more and more Latin was incorporated into the liturgy of the Mass. It also became a possessive tongue where the Christians guarded and treasured this new speech. Callistus also reasoned that if the liturgy was conducted in Latin universally, Christians could more readily identify and participate wherever they went. From 220 to 1965 this was the rule rather than the exception. Unfortunately, today it's the exception rather than the rule. He served as pontiff for five years, eventually being driven to return to his roots of a poor slave by taking shelter in the poor and populous quarters of Rome to elude the terrible persecution of the Roman Emperor Septimus Severus who eventually caught up with him in 222. On October 14 Severus had Callistus severly beaten with clubs and his remains thrown into a well where today the church Santa Maria in Trastevere now stands.

Friday October 15:
Feast of Saint Teresa of Avila, Virgin, Religious and Doctor of the Church

White vestments

First Reading: Romans 4: 1-8
Psalms: Psalm 32: 1-2, 5, 7, 11
Gospel Reading: Luke 12: 1-7

      Probably no religious reformed the Church more than the great Saint Teresa of Avila who was born of Jewish descent in Avila, Spain on October 4, 1515 as Teresa de Cepeda y de Ahumada. Teresa was educated by the Augustinian nuns but at the age of 17 she was forced to leave the convent because of ill health. Regaining her strength she succumbed for a short time to the world and the wealth of Spain which was regaling in the golden age of riches garnered from the New World and the many superb spiritual treatises emanating from Spain. Teresa, like Saint Francis of Assisi and Saint Anthony, longed to become a missionary and receive the crown of martyrdom at the hands of the heathen Moors. But this faded from memory as she regained her strength and gave into vanity and the distractions of the world, the flesh and the devil. It was while reading the writings of Saint Jerome that she realized the error of her ways and sought to become a Carmelite nun at the Monastery of the Incarnation in Avila in 1535. Shortly after her profession in 1537, she again became ill and was dispatched for treatment in 1538. Two years later she returned but remained an invalid for several years. After nearly 20 years as a nun she was greatly touched by the Confessions of Saint Augustine, in particular his description of the image Ecce Homo and dedicated the rest of her life to prayer and reform of the Carmelites. During the two years of 1556 and 57 Teresa experienced mystic occurrences with visions and locutions. Because she thought this was satan mimicking Our Lord and Our Lady she was thrown into great anguish until she confided in her new spiritual advisor Saint Peter of Alcantara who convinced her they were authentic from all she had conveyed to him. The Messages from Heaven prompted her to found St. Joseph Convent in Avila despite fierce opposition and ridicule from those who derided her for founding a convent to live the strict Carmelite rule rather than the relaxed rule that was being taken advantage of and being lived in most every convent of that time. In 1567 the Prior General of the Carmelites Father Rubeo gave Teresa permission to establish other convents with the same strict rule as established at St. Joseph's. This gave rise to a bitter struggle from the calced Carmelites who feared their easy-going lifestyle was threatened by this ultra conservative upstart nun. At the General Chapter Convention at Piacenza in 1575, Fr. Rubeo was forced by the majority to place strict restrictions on Teresa's group. The bitter struggle continued for the next five years but Teresa was undaunted and prayed diligently that the Will of God would prevail in this struggle. Joining her in this tireless crusade to reform the Carmelites was a young priest John Yepes who is better known as Saint John of the Cross. With his help she founded the first monastery for men under the strict decalced rule and continued to travel throughout Spain establishing more monasteries as she continuously turned over to St. John the duties of each in the formation of the friars. This responsibility, not to mention the constant harassment and struggle for control, all contributed to the doubts and void John felt in which he wrote about in his now famous "Dark Night of the Soul". Yet, he and Teresa persevered and in 1580 Pope Gregory XIII through the encouragement of the King of Spain King Philip II officially recognized the two distinct branches of the Carmelites - Calced and Discalced and made the latter a separate province free from the influence of those who sought to discredit Teresa. During her travels and drawing from her mystical experiences, Teresa wrote her autobiography The Life in 1565, The Way of Perfection in 1573, and the work The Interior Castle in 1577 - all classics in spiritual literature. Teresa, considered one of the greatest mystics of all time, confounded many who met this saint for she was deeply spiritual and intelligent but could be as stubborn and bullheaded as they come. Add to this that she combined her highly active and political life with a love for deep contemplation which she passed on to all she met, founding 40 new foundations throughout her lifetime to totally reform the Carmelites and put the life of a religious back on the track God intended. Teresa, greatly worn by her travails, travels and trials died at Alba de Tormes in the Province of Salamanca, Spain on the evening of October 4, 1582 - the very same evening the new Gregorian calendar replaced the old Julian calendar and moved everything up ten days, thus the confusion of when Teresa died because the new calendar would have her called home to Heaven on October 14th. It was symbolic that the new had replaced the old for Teresa had replaced the stagnant, liberal lifestyle of the religious with a more dedicated and reverent contemplative way of life in keeping with the vocation they were called to; and she was canonized by Pope Gregory XV in 1622. In 1970 Pope Paul VI honored her as the first woman to be declared a Doctor of the Church.

    For the Feast of Pope Saint Calixtus I we present the Opening Prayer for the Mass commemorating his martyrdom:

God of Mercy, hear the prayers of Your people that we may be helped by St. Callistus, whose martyrdom we celebrate with joy.

It's official: Fatima visionaries Francisco and Jacinta to be beatified on April 9, 2000 in Rome

    The Bishop of the Diocese covering the jurisdiction of Fatima Bishop Serafim de de Sousa Ferreira e Silva chose the 82nd anniversary of the final apparition at Fatima to make the announcement that the Vatican has agreed on the date of Sunday, April 9 - which will be the fourth Sunday of Lent - for Pope John Paul II to beatify two of the three Fatima visionaries Francisco and Jacinta Marto who both died a few years after the apparitions ended. The third, Sister Lucia, now in her nineties is in a cloistered convent and there is no word yet whether she will attend the ceremonies of her two fellow seers of 1917. For more, click on Fatima beatification

    VATICAN (CWNews.com) -- Two of the three children to whom the Virgin Mary appeared at Fatima in 1917 will be beatified on April 9, 2000.

    Bishop Serafim de Sousa Ferreira e Silva of Leiria-Fatima, Portugal, made that announcement on October 13, the anniversary of the final apparition at Fatima and the famous "miracle of the sun." Francois and Jacinta Marto, who died in 1919 and 1920, respectively, will be beatified in Rome rather than at the Fatima shrine, the bishop announced. Vatican sources indicated that although Pope John Paul II had expressed his willingness to travel to Fatima for the ceremony, his busy schedule for the Jubilee Year made it difficult to arrange another trip.

Pope remembers Our Lady of Fatima during his Wednesday Papal Audience

    The Holy Father continued with his theme of the theological virtue of charity and how the love of God ties in with the love of neighbor in his regular Wednesday Papal Audience yesterday in St. Peter's Square. Over 16,000 gathered to hear the Pope pray to Our Lady of Fatima on the occasion of the 82nd anniversary of her final apparition in Portugal which is special to the heart of this 264th successor of Peter. Through Our Lady's intercession, his pontificate has been extended for eighteen years plus after he was shot in the same St. Peter's Square on the 64th anniversary of the first apparition of Fatima on May 13, 1981. This Saturday the Holy Father will celebrate the 21st year of his pontificate. For more, click on Wednesday Papal Audience.

    VATICAN CITY, OCT 13 (ZENIT).- During the general audience this morning in St. Peter's Square, which brought together 16,000 pilgrims from 18 European countries and other areas of the world, including Japan and Indonesia (the latter represented by a national Charismatic movement), John Paul II focused on the theological virtue of charity, and on the fundamental commandment to love God and one's neighbor.

    "At the root of this command to love God in a total way we find the love which God Himself bears for humanity," the Pope said, quoting the Bible several times. "He awaits a true and proper response of love from the people he loves with a preferential love. He is a jealous God, who cannot tolerate idolatry, to which his people are continually tempted. Hence the commandment: 'You shall have no other gods before me.' "

    Referring to the Old Testament, John Paul II highlighted two essential characteristics of this love: "The first is that man would never be worthy of this love, if God did not give him the strength, through 'circumcision of the heart,' to rid the heart of every attachment to sin. The other characteristic is that, far from being mere feeling, this love is a concrete 'walking in the ways' of God, and observing 'his commandments, decrees and ordinances.' "

    In the teaching and person of Jesus, the ancient Biblical precept comes into its fullness, united to love of neighbor. "From now on, to love God with all my heart, all my soul and all my strength means to love this God who is revealed in Christ, and to love him with Christ's love, infused in us 'through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us,' " continued the Holy Father.

    Christian charity comes from this source of love, who is Jesus, and the capacity to love the way God loves is given to each Christian as the fruit of the Paschal mystery of death and resurrection. "In the strength of the Holy Spirit, love inspires the moral action of the Christian, and directs and reinforces all the other virtues, which build in us the structure of the new man." Christians, therefore, are those always called to love.

    At the end of the catechesis, John Paul II mentioned the Virgin of Fatima, to whom he is especially devoted, because it is the anniversary of the last apparition in the little Portuguese town. ZE99101307

European Synod of Bishops mull over idea of unified Catholic television programing for the continent

    If the European Bishops Synod is truly serious about starting a Catholic Television Station for all of Europe, as Archbishop John Foley, President of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, has suggested in his proposal this week, the bishops would be wise to consult with Mother Angelica on how it's done. The American Bishops tried to launch a Catholic Station and it never got off the ground. Our question is why do some of the bishops of the US continue to be uncooperative with EWTN's efforts? After all, it's the only Catholic programming out there. The European bishops are mulling over the concept and possibilities and hope to learn from the mistakes of their counterparts in America. For more, click on European Synod.

    VATICAN CITY, OCT 13 (ZENIT).- Speaking to Vatican Radio, Archbishop John P. Foley, president of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, pointed out that the media has been a recurring topic in the present Synod of Bishops for Europe, which is being held in the Vatican from October 1-23.

    Archbishop Foley said that one of the most welcomed proposals was the creation of "a Continental television network for the Catholic public." This idea has already been implemented on a smaller scale by the Church in Italy with the establishment of the "Sat 2000" network.

    The possibility of a Europe-wide television network was mentioned by French Bishop Bellino Ghirard of Rodez during his address. "I propose the examination, with determination, of a project for a Catholic television on a European dimension: a type of permanent Eurovision to sustain the building of Europe, with respect for its founding values."

    Bishop José Sánchez, who is responsible for the Spanish Episcopal Commission for Social Communication said that the "Church in Europe must unite efforts and exchange experience regarding the organization of joint services in this important field, especially in television and the Internet"

    However, "as a Church, we are afraid of the media," Bishop Crispin Hollis said. Hollis is Bishop of Portsmouth, England, and president of the Commission for Social Communications of the European Episcopate. "We belong to a people which has become progressively secularized by a culture that is largely media-controlled and yet we often neglect those very media which could help us to evangelize our culture more widely and more effectively. The media challenge us but they do not have to be a threat."

    Cardinal Józef Glemp, president of the Polish Bishops' Conference, said that "as Christians, we are not present in a sufficient way in the mass media. Perhaps we are lacking the courage to introduce ourselves in cultural areas and to look for trustworthy friends there."

    Auxiliary Bishop Adam Lepa of Lodz, Poland, added: "Catholic media must become a place of evangelization and not only a means for evangelization (among other things, to witness faith). Journalists in the Catholic media should be persuaded themselves that action upon public opinion concerning things of the Church, doctrine, mission, and its true image in society, is the most important means of evangelization." ZE99101301

Pro-lifers celebrate life on "D6B Day" with emphasis that we need more lives, not fewer in exposing the sham perpetrated by the culture of death advocates

    Pro-lifers are taking the six billionth person born on this earth and running with him, rejoicing at the growth instead of the culture of death's outlook that the world is overpopulated. Pro-lifers want to expose the latter claim as a smokescreen to push contraception and abortion. The pro-life group want to prove how wrong Planned Parenthood and their agencies within the UN are, while urging more births for the world, claiming we should celebrate every life as a gift from God no matter how many are born as they look forward to the seventh and eighth billion child of God. For more, click on Celebrating more lives.

    WASHINGTON, DC (CWNews.com) - Pro-life groups celebrated the symbolic birth of Baby 6 Billion on Tuesday, the date selected by the United Nations to represent the moment when the world's population reached 6 billion.

    The Population Research Institute said in a statement that, rather marking the event, known as D6B, as a warning of impending catastrophe, humanity should rejoice at the news. "We ... celebrate the birth of Baby Six Billion. This little girl (or boy) has been born into a world that is more prosperous than our forbearers a few centuries ago could have imagined," said PRI's president Steve Mosher. "He (or she) will lead a longer and healthier life than even royalty once enjoyed."

    Mosher said in a press conference that the time had come for an end to international population control measures. By the year 2100, he said, world population will have stabilized around 7-8 billion people, but per capita income will have increased six-fold to around $30,000.

    Mary Ann Kreitzer, head of the women's group Les Femmes des Verite, also spoke at the conference, quoting Mother Teresa in saying that "while each child has a mouth, he or she also has two hands .... These children are the doctors, inventors, and producers of the future."

    UN and other international leaders have warned of the effect of increasing population. World population growth will result in "increasing pressure on the planet due to wasteful and unbalanced consumption patterns and growing numbers of people, raising demand for food and water [while] global warming [will] result in possible changes such as sea level rise [and] increased storms and floods [that] could affect billions of people," said Dr. Nafis Sadik, head of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), recently.

    Mosher disputed those claims, saying that "they never show you the population charts past 2040, when population growth begins a long decline .... Malthus was wrong in the 19th century, Ehrlich was wrong in the 1970s about The Population Bomb, and these people are wrong about the harmful effects of people."

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October 14, 1999 volume 10, no. 196  DAILY CATHOLIC