Do Now What do you know about the Catholic Church, specifically? How are Catholics different from other Christians? Who is the main authority in the Catholic Church?
The Role of the Clergy In the Catholic church, the clergy play a large role in religious life Clergy: the men and women who are official employees of the church, who serve in roles such as priest, nun, monk, etc. Priests in the Catholic Church dedicate their lives to their religion They take a vow of celibacy and poverty they do not ever marry, have sex, and do not own anything that the church does not give to them Priests are viewed as a father figure over their congregation (worshippers who attend their particular church) and the title of Father is usually used when referring to a priest Their job is to lead the mass (church services), prepare and give sermons (speeches about religion during church services), listen to confessions of sin and give instructions on how to get rid of the sin, do charity work, etc.
Clergy Monks Monks, like priests, are men who choose to dedicate their entire lives to the church Monks take vows of celibacy and poverty, but might also take other vows as well (silence, etc.) Unlike priests, monks spend their time meditating, reading, studying religion, praying, and participating in rituals. They don t have any official church responsibilities
Clergy Nuns A Catholic woman s only option to be a member of the clergy is to become a nun A nun takes a vow of celibacy and poverty She goes through a ritual wedding to Jesus Christ, pledging her virginity to him and becoming his bride wearing a bride s veil for the rest of her life Nuns usually live a life dedicated to charity or religious work. They might teach at a Catholic school, or become a volunteer nurse. Their work varies greatly.
Clergy 1. Bishops/Archbishops Priests can move up within the church by being particularly hard-working, well-connected, or popular Bishops and archbishops are examples of roles that a priest might earn, where he oversees a larger geographic area than a single church A bishop s job is to oversee priests, and an archbishop oversees other bishops An archbishop is also eligible to become pope, though the chance of that happening are very low
Clergy The Pope The pope is very unique to the Catholic church, and sets it apart from other religions and branches of Christianity The pope is chosen from among high ranking bishops, and serves as pope for his entire life The pope is consider the mouthpiece for God on earth, meaning that he speaks directly to God, and therefore his words are considered church law The pope resides in Vatican City, in Italy. Vatican City is technically its own country, completely within the country of Italy, but run entirely by the Catholic Church It was a disagreement about the role of the pope that led, historically, to the split between Catholics and Orthodox Christians, as well as Catholics and Protestant Christians, who believed the pope and Catholic church to be corrupt
Rituals Baptism Christians share a common ritual practice referred to as baptism, which was believed to have been first done by Jesus Baptism is a ritual that signifies dedicated one s life to Christianity, as well as ritualistically cleansing one of sins Baptism always involves water, sometimes being fully submerged in water, sometimes being sprinkled with water. This water is believed to take away all of a person s sins. Catholics practice baptism shortly after birth on babies Holy water, that has been prayed over by a priest, is sprinkled onto a baby to get rid of the sins that Catholics believe that babies are born with (the sin that they inherited from Adam for eating the forbidden apple)
Rituals Communion or Eucharist Another very common ritual practiced by Christians, including Catholics, is the act of communion (also known as the eucharist) Communion is based on the last supper or last meal of Jesus before he was crucified, according to the bible At the last supper, Jesus passed around bread and wine, telling his followers that the bread represented his body (flesh), and that the wine represented his blood. He told them that they should eat it and drink it and remember his sacrifice Some Christians may substitute crackers for the bread, and juice or water for the wine Catholics use a thin type of cracker for the bread, and wine for the blood Catholics also believe that, when eaten by a believer, the wafer literally becomes the flesh of Jesus, and the wine literally becomes his blood in a process called transubstantiation
Rituals Death Rituals Important to Catholics during a person s last days or hours is the recitation of the last rites The last rites is a prayer and blessing by a priest that will help the soul of the dying person find peace in the afterlife, and free them of sins It is similar to the Jewish death prayer, the Kaddish Catholics will also often be offered a last opportunity for confession where they tell what all of their sins have been to a priest, and the priest tells them to make up for it by praying, and then takes that sin away from them It is important to Catholics that their dead be buried in consecrated or sacred ground This means that they must be buried in land blessed by a priest, usually attached to a church. This is why many old churches have graveyards connected to them Sinners and non-catholics cannot be buried in sacred ground, and their souls are trapped in purgatory
Afterlife Purgatory Purgatory is a place that people go to before they enter heaven or hell If you are exceptionally good in this life, you will go straight to heaven If you are average, you will be in purgatory for some amount of time, where you will make up for your sins on earth until you are ready for heaven Purgatory is very similar to the Jewish concept of Sheol All Jewish souls go to Sheol awaiting the return of the Messiah Most Catholic souls go to Purgatory, where some will have to await the return of Christ
Rituals Prayer Catholic prayer is unique in the Christian world, and also still has many influences from the times of polytheism When Catholics started to convert pagans (polytheists) to Christianity, they often incorporated pagan rituals and ideas to make Christianity more appealing to pagans Some of these ideas stuck and became part of the religion For example, many Catholic prayers are not directed at God himself, but at saints or the Virgin Mary Each saint has a specialty, very similar to the specialties of polytheist gods For example, there is a specific saint to pray to when you lose something, when you are travelling, or when you are hoping for luck in business, etc. Early Christians most likely used the saints to replace prayer to old polytheist gods
Rituals Prayer Most Catholic prayers are very formulaic, meaning they are precise words that you memorize and recite, sometimes multiple times in a row, to achieve help or forgiveness Some common examples are The Rosary Hail Mary The Lord s Prayer The Last Rites Special rosary beads are often used during prayer to help a Catholic focus, and as a ritual object
Sainthood Becoming a saint in the Catholic church requires that a number of things occur during your lifetime, and comes with some special privileges A saint is an especially holy person, who God chooses to allow to do miracles while they are living Historically, many saints were martyrs, or people who died for their religion Depending on their life and what they were known for, they will be prayed to in death for special favors, and to talk to God for the person praying A person only becomes a saint after death, and they have to have performed or caused at least two miracles Some times, a person praying and having their prayer answered can count as a miracle
Exit Ticket 1. Which of the following best characterizes the differences between a priest and a monk in the Catholic Church? a. Monks dedicate their lives to the church but interact with ordinary people on a regular basis, while priests dedicate their lives to the church but usually live completely apart from ordinary people. b. Priests dedicate their lives to the church, while monks only spend part of their daily lives dedicated to religious activities. c. Priests dedicate their lives to the church but interact with ordinary people on a regular basis, while monks dedicate their lives to the church but usually live completely apart from ordinary people. d. Monks dedicate their lives to the church, while priests only spend part of their daily lives dedicated to religious activities and usually have outside jobs too.
2. Which of the following best characterizes the Catholic teachings about communion? a. the bread and wine are symbols of Jesus' sacrifice b. the bread and wine literally become the flesh and blood of Jesus c. it's necessary to take communion every week in order to go to heaven d. taking communion makes it more likely for you to become a saint 3. How does a person become a saint in the Catholic Church? a. they must be responsible for at least 2 miracles b. they must be a monk for at least 50 years c. they must be responsible for at least 1 miracle d. they must take communion at least once a week for their entire lives