By John L. Allen
Roman Catholicism stands at a crossroads, a vintage ''best of instances, worst of times'' second. at the one hand, the Catholic Church is still through some distance the biggest department of the global Christian family members, and is growing to be at a outstanding clip. but the Church has additionally been rocked by way of a sequence of scandals concerning the sexual abuse of minors via clergy, and, much more devastating, the cover-up by means of the Church hierarchy. The decade-long hindrance has taken an enormous monetary toll, however the blow to either the interior morale and the exterior ethical status of the Church has been even steeper. this present day, the Church has huge, immense residual power and intriguing destiny clients, but in addition faces steep inner and exterior demanding situations. The query of ''whither Catholicism'' is of significant public relevance, for believers and non-believers alike. In The Catholic Church: What each person must Know®, John L. Allen, Jr., one of many world's best experts at the Vatican, bargains an authoritative and available advisor to the earlier, current, and way forward for the Church.
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The idea behind a sacrament is that some visible sign—say, the water of Baptism, or the bread and wine at Mass, or oil used in the Anointing of the Sick—demonstrates the operation of God’s grace in the here and now. It’s almost impossible to overstate how important the sacraments are to Catholic life. Arguably America’s most famous Catholic priest, novelist and sociologist Fr. Andrew Greeley, has even suggested that they leave a deep imprint on Catholic psychology. In his 1990 book The Catholic Myth, Greeley argued that there’s a distinctive “sacramental imagination” among Catholics which, in the United States, sets them apart from the majority culture shaped by America’s Protestant heritage.
For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy Spirit he was born of the Virgin Mary, and became man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered, died, and was buried. On the third day he rose again in fulfillment of 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. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son.
The Catholic Church 101 33 Who are the laity? Bascially, they’re everyone but the clergy. The term comes from the Greek word for “people,” and the easiest way to define the laity in the Catholic Church is by what they’re not. Anybody who has not received the sacrament of Holy Orders, and who is therefore not a cleric, is automatically a member of the laity. 95 percent of the overall population of the Catholic Church, so it’s remarkable how much more attention, in Catholic theology and spirituality, has been paid to the clergy.