Ecclesiology
the sacred mysteries of the Catholic faith.
The church is catholic
“Wherefore
the most holy and blessed Leo, archbishop of the great and elder Rome, through
us,
and through this present most holy synod together with the thrice blessed
and all-glorious Peter the
Apostle, who is the rock and foundation of the
Catholic Church, and the foundation of the
orthodox faith, hath stripped him of
the episcopate, and hath alienated from him all hieratic
worthiness. Therefore
let this most holy and great synod sentence the before mentioned
Dioscorus to
the canonical penalties.”
Council of Chalcedon, Session III
(A.D. 451)
“See
that ye all follow the bishop, even as Christ Jesus does the Father, and the
presbytery as ye
would the apostles. Do ye also reverence the deacons, as those
that carry out the appointment of
God. Let no man do anything connected with
the Church without the bishop. Let that be deemed
a proper Eucharist, which is
[administered] either by the bishop, or by one to whom he has
entrusted it.
Wherever the bishop shall appear, there let the multitude also be; by the
bishop, or by
one to whom he has entrusted it. Wherever the bishop shall
appear, there let the multitude also be;
even as, wherever Jesus Christ is,
there is the Catholic Church.”
St. Ignatius of Antioch,
Epistle to the Smyrneans, 8:2
(c. A.D. 110)
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“But
[it has, on the other hand, been shown], that the preaching of the Church is
everywhere
consistent, and continues in an even course, and receives testimony
from the prophets, the apostles,
and all the disciples…For in the Church,” it
is said, “God hath set apostles, prophets, teachers,’ and
all the other means
through which the Spirit works; of which all those are not partakers who do not
join themselves to the Church, but defraud themselves of life through their
perverse opinions and
infamous behaviour. For where the Church is, there is the
Spirit of God; and where the Spirit of
God is, there is the Church, and every
kind of grace; but the Spirit is truth.”
St. Irenaeus,
Against Heresies, 3:24
(A.D. 180)
“The
spouse of Christ cannot be adulterous; she is uncorrupted and pure. She knows
one home;
she guards with chaste modesty the sanctity of one couch. She keeps
us for God. She appoints
the sons whom she has born for the kingdom. Whoever is
separated from the Church and is joined
to an adulteress, is separated from the
promises of the Church; nor can he who forsakes the
Church of Christ attain to
the rewards of Christ. He is a stranger; he is profane; he is an enemy.
He can
no longer have God for his Father, who has not the Church for his mother. If
anyone could
escape who was outside the ark of Noah, then he also may escape
who shall be outside of the
Church. The Lord warns, saying, ‘He who is not with
me is against me, and he who gathereth not
with me scattereth.’
St. Cyprian of Carthage, On Unity, 6
(A.D. 251)
“But
in learning the Faith and in professing it, acquire and keep that only, which
is now delivered to
thee by the Church, and which has been built up strongly
out of all the Scriptures….Take heed
then, brethren, and hold fast the
traditions which ye now receive, and write them and the table of
your heart.”
St. Cyril of Jerusalem,
Catechetical Lectures, 5:12
(A.D. 350)
“But
beyond these [Scriptural] sayings, let us look at the very tradition,
teaching and faith of the Catholic Church from the beginning,
which the Lord
gave, the Apostles preached, and the Fathers kept.”
St. Athanasius,
Four Letters to Serapion of Thmuis, 1:28
(A.D. 360)
“Inasmuch,
I repeat, as this is the case, we believe also in the Holy Church, [intending
thereby]
assuredly the Catholic. For both heretics and schismatics style their
congregations churches. But
heretics, in holding false opinions regarding God,
do injury to the faith itself; while schismatics, on
the other hand, in wicked
separations break off from brotherly charity, although they may believe
just
what we believe. Wherefore neither do the heretics belong to the Church
catholic, which loves
God; nor do the schismatics form a part of the same.”
St. Augustine, On Faith and Creed, 10:21
(A.D. 393)
“Philip
the presbyter and legate of the Apostolic See said: There is no doubt, and in
fact it has
been known in all ages, that the holy and most blessed Peter,
prince and head of the Apostles, pillar
of the faith, and foundation of the
Catholic Church, received the keys of the kingdom from our
Lord Jesus Christ,
the Saviour and Redeemer of the human race, and that to him was given the
power
of loosing and binding sins: who down even to to-day and forever both lives and
judges in his
successors.”
Council of Ephesus, Session III (A.D. 431)
But
what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?" Simon Peter
answered, "You
are the Messiah, the Son of the living God." Jesus
replied, "Blessed are you, Simon
son of Jonah, for this was not revealed
to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in
heaven. And I tell you that you
are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the
gates of Hades will
not overcome it."
Matthew 16, 15-18
Pax vobiscum