I was recently made aware that there may be many of the Roman Catholic faith, that believe that the Catholic church is the "Church" as it was from the beginning. I was very curious where this viewpoint could have come from, as the bible does not give any indication that there was a Pope, or that anyone was told that they were to pray to saints and the Virgin Mary for intercession. In fact, in God's Holy Word, it says just the opposite. It states very clearly that Jesus is the only Mediator, (see 1 Timothy 2:5 and Romans 8:34, just for two such instances) and that we are to have no false idols.
Now, as you know, I like to play detective, so I just had to find out where this mindset could have come from, if not from the Bible itself. I found it. There are 3 (or 4, depending on who you ask) ancient creeds that the early church recognized as belief statements for the early church. One is the Apostles Creed, another is the Nicene Creed, the third is the Athanasian Creed, and the last is the Creed of Aquileia.
It is in these four Creeds that the word catholic is found in relation to the early church. Now, to clear up a misconception, for those that don't know: the word "catholic" means "universal". These creeds are NOT referencing the Roman Catholic faith. They are referencing the entire church, as God's universal Church body.
While I was looking into this, another question came up, that I just happened to be able to find the reason for, by looking in the same place- right back at these ancient Creeds. I was able to find the answer by looking in the Bible. The question was this: Is it true that Jesus descended into Hell for three days when He died? There is no biblical support for this. What there is support for is the fact that He descended into "Hadas" (this is the word that we get our English form of "Hades" from.) The only time that Hell itself is referenced in the bible, is when we are told that Hades and all that are damned for eternity will be cast into Hell and/ or the Lake of Fire. Jesus descended into Hadas, because prior to His sacrifice, this was the "holding place" of those that died. Because there was no sacrifice sufficient for them, before Jesus, they could not go to Heaven, regardless of their righteousness- none were righteous enough. In fact, the Apostles Creed (the one most agree is the earliest of the Creeds) did not originally have the phrase "decended into Hell" in the text, but was only later added after the the Creed of Aquileia came about in the 4th century.
So, there you have it. The Roman Catholic faith, was not what the early church was, and Jesus did not descend into Hell. Just thought I would clear that up, for those of you that may have been curious, as I was. Blessings to you.
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Excellent post! I'm a former Catholic and have had to overcome many of the misconceptions I was taught by that church. I'm glad you're playing detective and putting the truth out there. =)
ReplyDeleteThank you for your encouraging words, vioet rose. I was a little worried that I may not have been as gentle or loving as I should have been, but I just could not think of a gentler way to put it. Come back again soon. Blessings to you!
ReplyDeleteYes, I had wondered. Good information. Thank you Shalene.
ReplyDeleteGood post, Shalene! I remember years ago a Roman Catholic tried telling me that even the Apostles' Creed mentions the Roman Church with the word 'catholic'. I didn't believe him and a quick check with the dictionary convinced me that it just means 'universal'.
ReplyDeleteYou also made a good mention of the primary passage I don't agree with in the Apostles' Creed about Jesus descending into hell. That's why I usually don't utter the Creed in some churches that say it during their communion services.
God bless, and Shalom!
Kimberly, glad I could help your curiosity. Blessings to you!
ReplyDeleteIsaiah, the Apostles Creed, though it does have that phrase in it, should not have been translated as "descended into hell". It should have been translated "descended into Hadas" there are two Greek words that are used to describe the "netherworld" Hadas is the one used in the Bible, in reference to Jesus 3 days in the tomb, and His victory over death. I knew that I had heard this concept somewhere before, when I came across the "question." Then I remembered that when I was young, and my stepdad would tell me prayers and such to say with my rosaries (he was Catholic) the Apostles Creed was one of them. It's crazy some of the things that we're taught and will believe, if we don't look for the answers ourselves, huh?! Blessings to you!
Nice post babe.
ReplyDeleteIt’s hard for me to see how people can even think that hell existed at that time. It still doesn’t exist because “Hell” is a future realm, only put into effect after the Great White Throne Judgment (Revelation 20:11-15).
When Jesus ascended to Heaven, He took the occupants of Paradise (believers) with Him (Ephesians 4:8-10). The lost side of Sheol / Hades has remained unchanged. All unbelieving dead go there awaiting their final judgment in the future (Revelation 20:11-15).
I believe that Christ went to Sheol / Hades to gather his believers from the Paradise side of Sheol / Hades. Not to visit the lost side of that place. All the suffering He had to go through was complete on the cross.
Love you!!
I've never heard a serious and educated Catholic make anything like the claim you're referencing. I'm an Anglican, so I'm quite familiar with the creeds you're discussing, and pretty much everyone I know, knows that "catholic" means "universal". Is this really a problem you've encountered often? I'm surprised.
ReplyDeleteEmily, No, I've not encountered this often myself. However, it is not the first time I've heard it. The area that I live in, though is populated by a large majority of 1st and 2nd generation Mexican migrant farm workers. So, maybe education plays a role in my encounters of this sort. I don't really know. My step father was Catholic, and though he never told me this, he never explained to me that the word catholic meant anything other than the Roman Catholic Church (and he was highly educated, and serious about his faith.) I think that there could be others like me, that could come across something like this, and be confused as well, so I just wanted to share the knowledge. Thanks for stopping by. Blessings to you!
ReplyDeleteWonderful post!! It's awesome that when I seek God's word, I find answers:) This helps me understand Catholicism vs Christiany!
ReplyDeleteShalene, I need to say that I am highly offened by the comment that you made about 1st and 2nd generation migrant field workers not being educated, What does that have to do with what you are talking about? I am the off spring of a second Generation migrant field worker who went back to school got her high school deploma and went on to graduate from Fresno State with a degree in Nurcing and I was raised Catholic and I have never heard of the stuff that you are saying maybe you need a little more education before you start knocking the Catholic faith?
ReplyDeleteHello Gracie Lue, Thank you for stopping by, and let me say that I am sorry that you were offended by what you thought I said. I did not mean to imply that I thought all migrant farm workers were uneducated. However, I do know from being in close contact with many, that this is indeed a sad fact for many of them. I did not mean to imply in any way that I thought they were somehow uncapable of learning. I know that they are very smart, and that they contribute much to our American lifestyle. I have the utmost respect for what they do.
ReplyDeleteAs for the Roman Catholic faith, I grew up in a Catholic household, and know a good many Catholics. However, the information I shared is true. Though perhaps not all Roman Catholics believe that the Roman Catholic church was the Church as it was in the beginning, there ARE some that do believe it. Because of these Creeds. I did not share the information that I shared, in order to offend anyone, only to state something that I had been made aware of. Please accept my apologies if I offended you in any way. Though I do not agree with what the Roman Catholic Church teaches, in large part, so I cannot apologize for pointing out some fallacies that I know of from my own experience in Catholicism. Blessinsg to you. And again, I apologize for any offense.
Gracie Lue, and the reference about the education level of migrant farm workers had to do with the previous commenters statement that she had "never heard a serious and educated Catholic" make the claim that I stated. The fact of the matter, is that when I have heard these type of statements, it has come from those that do not have edcucations, and that is a large population here in the Central Valley, as you well know. I just wanted to address that real quickly so you did not think I was bashing migrant farm workers, based on information that I made up. As I said before, my intent was not to bash anyone. Again, blessings to you.
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