One God, One Church

Then Jesus approached and said to them, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.  And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20)

     There are many myths about the Catholic faith running the gamut from the more current, "They worship statues and idols!", to the ancient, "They are cannibals! They eat human flesh and drink blood!", and the ever-popular but whispered intrigue, "They are a secret pagan society trying to control the world through cabals and geopolitical manipulation!"

     While these myths make for interesting discussions and fuel imaginations, they are all false. The root truths of the Catholic faith are found within two Professions of Faith, the eldest form called The Apostles Creed, and the later more detailed form derived from the Apostles Creed, called The Nicene Creed. It is this Nicene Creed (see below) which is recited and affirmed at every Catholic celebration of the Eucharist (Mass) in every Catholic church around the world.

So, what do Catholics really believe about the nature of God and their Church?

     First, there is only One God - period. The Catholic Church believes that the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, first revealed to humanity through the Jewish faith (Exodus 3:6) is the only one true God. All other so-called gods are false constructs of human imagination. This is true whether they be put forward as 'divine figures' representing the natural world, such as found in ancient polytheistic paganism, or its present-day forms of environmental 'Neopagan Gaiaism'; or as with the tenants of atheism and more popular ideologies of secular-humanism that deny any supernatural divinity and seek to put humanity, society, science, and philosophy on pedestals to be worshipped.

     God names himself as "I am who I am", (Exodus 3:14) and the Israelites call Him also by Adonai or Yahweh. Christians believe that He further revealed His essence to us as a Unity of Three Divine Persons within One God - The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. This mystery is known as the Trinitarian dogma (CCC Par. 253). You cannot be called a Christian without believing in this divine revelation.

     Catholics strictly adhere to the 1st Commandment (CCC Par. 2068) which states, "You shall not have other gods beside me." (Exodus 20:3). Catholics believe that the historical man, Jesus Christ of the Israelite House of King David, who was crucified, died, and was raised from the dead in Jerusalem, is God. He is The Son within the Holy Trinity. He is the Messiah who was prophesied; who came into the world not to condemn mankind, but that the world might be saved through Him. (John 3:16-18)

     Jesus Christ instituted His Church on earth upon the rock of His Apostle, Peter (Matthew 16:18). With this declaration Peter became the first leader (Pope) of the universal Christian Church (in Greek, universal is katholike, from which we get catholic ). Jesus is God, therefore the catholic Church was founded by God himself. This catholic church has faithfully served the People of God for the past two thousand years. It has always been the Latin-Rite Catholic Church and its brother Apostolic Churches.

The Nicene Creed

I believe in one God,
the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible.

I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the Only Begotten Son of God,
born of the Father before all ages.
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;
through him all things were made.
For us men and for our salvation
he came down from heaven,

and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary,
and became man.

For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate,
he suffered death and was buried,
and rose again on the third day
in accordance with the Scriptures.
He ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory
to judge the living and the dead
and his kingdom will have no end.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.

I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.
I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins
and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come. Amen