People often ask:
Are you Roman Catholic? Are you Christians? What do you believe, anyway?
We believe in our Statement of Faith, the Nicene Creed and our Baptismal Covanant, the Apostle's Creed. We don't really add to and never subtract from those Creeds.
Let's start with our beliefs.
We believe:
In the Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Three in One
That Jesus is Christ, the Messiah, and that he died for our sins
That He was born of the Virgin Mary after being conceived by the Holy Spirit
That He walked the world as a mortal for 33 years
In Christian Hope:
1.Christ will return to earth someday
2. The dead are born to new eternal life
3. Those who follow the path of Jesus will see the Kingdom of heaven
That Christ rose from the dead and walked among His followers before being lifted up into Heaven.
That God spoke with and through the prophets
That God has one universal (catholic) church
That our priests are in the direct line of consecration handed down from Jesus to the apostles and are part of the same divine institution built upon that foundation (Ephesians 2:20; John 20: 19-22)
That the Saints (living and righteous dead) are with us in community (they hold a special place in our hearts)
Our Baptismal Covanant gives us steps or processes to become disciples of Christ Jesus:
1. Belief in the creation of the world by the One, True, Triune God
2. Fellowship through prayers and the breaking of bread
3. Use of our time, talents and treasures to produce the work of God
4. Proclamation of the Good News to all persons
5. Repentance and return, perseverance in the battle against evil
6. Service to Christ through serving all people
7. Work toward justice and peace.
Now, let's answer the question, are you Roman Catholic?
We are often confused with the Roman Catholic Church because our worship services are similar and because the priests and deacons of both faith traditions wear special clothing, called vestments. We are both Christian religious traditions and we respect those of Roman Catholic faith. However, there are many differences between our beliefs. It is these differences that make us the Protestant Episcopal Church. Here are some examples:
1. The Roman faith maintains that the Bishop of Rome (the Pope or Holy Father) is the Head of all Christians and is infallible. The Pope has the authority to decide what the people believe that is not made clear in Scriptures (dogma).
We believe that the Church must restrict itself to that which is written in God's Word. We believe that the Bishop of Rome is the head of a great and ancient tradition and is to be respected by all Christians, but not blindly followed.
2. The Romans maintain that their specific beliefs, methods, and teachings (dogma) are the only means of Salvation. They maintain that the authority of their Church is absolute.
Episcopalians maintain that the Church is the authority on worship services and the ordination of priests and deacons as well as on controversies of faith. The Church is a witness to and keeper of the Word of God but does not enter into areas not covered by the Bible. We do not presume to judge other Christians, excluding them from Heaven because of Biblical interpretations or beliefs (such as the Assumption of Mary into Heaven)not found in the Bible.
3. Many Roman Catholics believe their prayers must have an intercessor, like the Blessed Virgin, a Saint or a priest, who in turn brings these prayers to God. They often use statues, pictures or icons as part of this worship.
While some of us use icons, pictures and/or statues of Saints, Martyrs and events to focus our thoughts and prayers, we do not pray to the Saints or venerate icons or other images. Neither do we ask Saints to intercede for us with God. We pray to God directly. We do not need to have our prayers go through a priest, being able to talk with God directly. We may ask the congregation to add their prayers to ours when we are in need. We also offer thanks to Saints for the example of their lives.
4. The Church of Rome includes many persons (such as Saint Sebastian) and events in its Calendar of Saints and Martyrs whose lives are not clearly documented.
Our Saints and Martyrs are individuals whose lives serve as of how to live and die in Christian faith as role models We do not include in our Calendar of Saints and Martyrs events that are not documented in some way. For example, there is Biblical evidence of Christ's bodily assumption into Heaven; there is none of the Holy Virgin Mary's.
5. The Roman Church maintains, as a matter of doctrine, that the Virgin Mary remained a virgin her entire life.
We make no such statement as it is unclear if the Gospels refer to Christ's full brothers and sisters or Joseph's children from another wife (Mark 3:31-35).
6. According to Roman Catholic dogma, certain prayer practices (e.g. receiving communion on the first Friday of the month for nine consecutive months; praying the Chaplet of Saint Michael or of the Divine Mercy
; Adoration of the Host) result in certain favors (indulgences) from Heaven.
We maintain that prayer is good and right and God hears our prayers but we have no contract stating that certain acts will reward us in any way.
7. The display and worship of the Host (called the Adoration of the Host) is a common practice in the Roman Catholic faith.
It is "abhorrent" according to the Articles of Faith, XXV(Book of Common Prayer, page 872).
8. Priests in the Roman Catholic church must be celibate males.
Our priests, male and female, can be married.
9. In the Roman church, sins can only be forgiven through personal confession to a priest followed by Acts of Contrition (typically reciting certain prayers) .
We have a Rite of Reconciliation available to those who wish for personal confession, but it is unusual for anyone to make use of it. Further, we do not believe that saying certain prayers will absolve us of our sins. Rather, we believe that ceasing to act in a sinful way, talking directly to God , repenting and asking His forgiveness are the way to His forgiveness.
10. According to Roman faith, almost all human souls enter a kind of holding area (like going through customs at the airport) after death so that they may be cleansed of their sinful nature. This is called Purgatory, the place of purging. Prayers of friends and loved ones are a large part of a soul's release from there and into the Kingdom of Heaven.
Episcopalians do not hold this belief as fact. The Articles of Religion state that this is "grounded upon no warranty of Scripture, but is rather repugnant to the Word of God" (Book of Common Prayer, Articles of Religion, XXII, page 872).
12.The Roman Catholics believe in transubstantiation, in which the Host literally becomes Christ's Body and the Wine becomes His Blood.
We believe in the "Real Presence of Christ" in the Sacraments: through Faith His essence enters the Host and Wine.
These are just a few of the many differences between our faith traditions. Talk to our priest if you would like more information about this intriguing topic.
Catholic means "proclaims the whole faith to all people, to the end of time" (Book of Common Prayer, page 854). This faith is applicable to all people in all places at all times (See Matthew 28:19). No denomination or "church" can claim it holds exclusive rights to the descriptive "catholic". We must recognize that any specific branch of Christianity is only a part of "the one holy, catholic church".
The Communion of Saints is the entire family of God, living and dead, who are part of the body of Christ. We are bound through belief, sacrament, prayer and praise (Book of Common Prayer, page 862). The term "Saints" indicates that these are people who are holy or set apart. It means that all Christians are different from others (Romans 1:7; 1 Corinthians 1:2) in that they have received the gift of the Holy Spirit. It means that, no matter how imperfect we are, we strive to become more like our Lord (Philippians 3:12-14). Through the Holy Spirit, all Christians are bound to and through Christ Jesus in a great community of the living and the dead. (Ephesians 2:19, 4: 15-16; 2 Corinthians 13:14).
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