Portal:Catholic Church

Catholic Church Portal

Introduction

The Catholic Church (Latin: Ecclesia Catholica), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.28 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2024. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions and has played a prominent role in the history and development of Western civilization. The church consists of 24 sui iuris (autonomous) churches, including the Latin Church and 23 Eastern Catholic Churches, which comprise almost 3,500 dioceses and eparchies around the world, each overseen by one or more bishops. The pope, who is the bishop of Rome, is the chief pastor of the church.

The core beliefs of Catholicism are found in the Nicene Creed. The Catholic Church teaches that it is the one, holy, catholic and apostolic church founded by Jesus Christ in his Great Commission, that its bishops are the successors of Christ's apostles, and that the pope is the successor to Saint Peter, upon whom primacy was conferred by Jesus Christ. It maintains that it practises the original Christian faith taught by the apostles, preserving the faith infallibly through scripture and sacred tradition as authentically interpreted through the magisterium of the church. The Roman Rite and others of the Latin Church, the Eastern Catholic liturgies, and communities and societies such as mendicant orders, enclosed monastic orders, third orders and voluntary charitable lay associations reflect a variety of theological and spiritual emphases in the church.

Of its seven sacraments, the Eucharist is the principal one, celebrated liturgically in the Mass. The church teaches that through consecration by a priest, the sacrificial bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ. The Virgin Mary is venerated as the Perpetual Virgin, Mother of God, and Queen of Heaven; she is honoured in dogmas and devotions. Catholic social teaching emphasizes voluntary support for the sick, the poor, and the afflicted through the corporal and spiritual works of mercy. The Catholic Church operates tens of thousands of Catholic schools, universities and colleges, hospitals, and orphanages around the world, and is the largest non-government provider of education and health care in the world. Among its other social services are numerous charitable and humanitarian organizations. (Full article...)

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The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Miami is a particular church of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States. Its ecclesiastic territory includes Broward, Miami-Dade and Monroe counties in Florida. The archdiocese is the metropolitan see for the Roman Catholic Church in the State of Florida. The current archbishop is John Favalora. As archbishop, Favalora also serves as pastor of the Cathedral of Saint Mary, the mother church of the archdiocese. Also serving are 428 priests, 160 Permanent Deacons, 50 Religious Brothers and 300 Religious Sisters who are members of various Roman Catholic religious orders. These priests, deacons and religious serve a Catholic population in South Florida of 1,300,000 in 118 parishes and missions.Because of the vast number of immigrants, Catholic Mass is offered in at least a dozen languages in parishes throughout the archdiocese.Educational institutions consist of two schools for the disabled, 60 elementary/middle schools, 13 high schools, two universities, and two seminaries.
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Credit: Anne de Felbrigge

The Felbrigge Psalter is an illuminated manuscript Psalter from mid-thirteenth century England that has an embroidered bookbinding which probably dates to the early fourteenth century.The embroidery is worked in fine linen with an illustration of the Annunciation on the front cover and an illustration of the Crucifixion on the back.

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Saint William of York, (d. 1154) also known as William FitzHerbert, William I FitzHerbert and William of Thwayt, was an English priest and Archbishop of York. FitzHerbert is unusual in having been Archbishop of York twice, both before and after his rival Henry Murdac. He was a relative of King Stephen of England, and the king helped secure FitzHerbert's election to York after a number of candidates had failed to secure papal confirmation. FitzHerbert faced opposition from the Cistercians who, after the election of the Cistercian Pope Eugenius III, managed to have the archbishop deposed in favor of the Cistercian Murdac. From 1147 until 1153, FitzHerbert worked to secure his restoration to York, which he finally achieved after the deaths of both Murdac and Eugenius. He did not retain the see long, as he died shortly after returning to York, allegedly having been poisoned. After his death miracles were reported at his tomb, and in 1227 he was declared a saint.
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Did you know...

... that the 75-metre (246 ft) tall towers of St. Florian's Cathedral (pictured) in Warsaw's eastern district of Praga highlight its role as a form of protest against the Russian domination of Poland?
... that Mammotrectus super Bibliam, a guide book to understanding the Bible, was popular in the 15th century, but was criticized in the 16th century?
... that the Franciscan Missions in the Sierra Gorda in Querétaro, Mexico, have been classified as "mestizo architecture" because of the mixture of European and indigenous influences?

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Feast Day of April 19

Emma of Lesum or Emma of Stiepel (also known as Hemma and Imma) (c. 975-980 – 3 December 1038) was a countess popularly venerated as a saint for her good works. She was married to Liudger of Saxony. She is also the first female inhabitant of Bremen to be known by name. (Full article...)

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“

If you’re going to do a thing, you should do it thoroughly. If you’re going to be a Christian, you may as well be a Catholic.

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— Muriel Spark

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News

3 March 2025 –: The Holy See reports that Pope Francis has been diagnosed with "acute respiratory distress" as a result of bronchospasms and a build-up of bronchial mucus, after recovering from pneumonia and bronchitis several days ago. (VOA) (NPR)
1 March 2025 –: Italian nun Raffaella Petrini is sworn is as President of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State and President of the Governorate of Vatican City State, becoming the first woman to assume one of the highest political offices in the Vatican. She succeeds Spanish cardinal Fernando Vérgez Alzaga. (RTVE)
23 February 2025 –: The Vatican announces that Pope Francis remains in critical condition, with a new diagnosis of mild kidney failure, along with pre-existing conditions pneumonia and other unidentified respiratory diseases. (AP)
22 February 2025 –: The Vatican City issues a statement informing of the worsening health of Pope Francis after more than a week in hospital due to respiratory problems. Vatican officials say Pope Francis is now in critical condition and that the prognosis "remains guarded". (Reuters)