Replies

This is the doctrine of the Church because this is the doctrine of the Bible.

By the noun "Church", I believe you have previously explained you mean the Roman Catholic church only.

There are many church organizations, of which the Roman Catholic church is a large one but far far from the ONLY church, in spite of RCC members' repeated claims on this forum and elsewhere that the RCC is the one true church; a saying widely understood by Catholics and non-Catholics to mean none other is THE church of true Christians.

There is also the local congregation where I fellowship to worship God with other Christians in the Name of The Lord Jesus Christ; a congregation of believers which is legally incorporated as a "Church" and owns property, the same as many other organizations including the RCC based in the Vatican very near Rome, Italy.

Our church congregation believes your Roman Catholic Church is, as are certain other groups, in protracted and intractable error about many matters clearly understandable by reading or hearing the Gospel of Jesus Christ as recorded in the Holy Bible. The RCC shares its claims of Christian uniqueness with the Mormon Church and a multitude of other smaller local and larger worldwide cults that have their own special teachings which vary from the clear and unvarnished written Word of God as found in the Holy Bible.

The doctrines of the Holy Bible only take precedence over any other doctrines which your church or any church body teaches that are at variance with the written Word of God, the Holy Bible.

You and I can and do disagree over the interpretations of the doctrines of the Holy Bible that the Roman Catholic church incorrectly teaches its adherents.

By using the term "Church" --- unless I explain otherwise--- I usually mean what the Catholic Church means in her own documents: not just the "Roman" (which is to say, Latin or Western) Church, but all of the 22 churches in communion with the Bishop of Rome (Chaldean (Iraq), Maronite (Lebanon), Coptic Catholic (Egyptian) and so forth.).

If the reference is before the Great Schism (1054 AD) it would also include those Churches which are now known as Eastern Orthodox. Thus it would mean -- in the first millennium--- every Church in Christendom.

It can be pretty confusing, even if one is trying to be precise, because "church" is used in different senses by different people. For instance, in Catholicism, "local Church" = "Diocese."

In our own documents, we don't use the word "Church" for anyone outside of the above-described communion; and yet -- and yet --- St. Gregfory of Narek was just his year named a "Father of the Church" (Catholic Church, that is) although this 10th century pre-schism saint was neither (legally) Catholic NOR Orthodox, but a member of the Armenian (Oriental) Church.

That had a lot of people scratching their heads.

As I understand it, his theology and practice were "Catholic" --- he did not have any schismatic or heretical beliefs --- and thus he's de-facto Catholic, though not "juridically" (legalistically.)

Since Baptism is the sacrament by which one enters the Catholic Church, we regard you, R2Z, as being Catholic, too, if you are baptized. No matter who did the baptizing.

Sorry, that's just the way it is. :o)