Dear Frank,

You are on the right track as to what Catholicism believes. It holds that God has given the means of salvation to all of humanity, which includes the truth about God and ourselves as well as the strength and power to live that truth in union with God. God has given supernatural truth and supernatural life to a fallen human race that needs it in order to attain salvation with Him.

The Catholic Church teaches that within her subsists the fullness of that Truth and Life that God offers the world. We see this most clearly in the infallible teachings of the Church and the grace God offers all through the seven Sacraments.

We believe this because we recognize the historical, unbroken line of succession of the power that Jesus has given His Apostles by His Spirit, which continues through the Pope and bishops today for the entire body of Christ. This doesn't mean that other ecclesiastical bodies or religions have no truth; but logic would dictate that, to the extent to which it has what is in common with Catholicism, is the degree to which it holds a portion of the truth.

Peace,

Paul

Hi, Frank —

To add to colleague Paul's explanation: St. Paul tells us in Ephesians that there is one Baptism and therefore one Body meaning there is one Church. (Ephesians 4:4-6)

The Catholic Church isn't just any other religion. It is the Church of Jesus Christ. It is the Mystical Body of Christ which can't be separated from Jesus Christ, Her Head. To join the Church, one must become a member of the Body. It's not like joining the Elks or the Rotary Club.

One becomes a Christian through the Sacrament of Baptism and through Baptism one receives the Holy Spirit by grace through faith and is justified. Just as important, they are now Catholic and part of the one Body of Christ.

Now there are others who are baptized who have remained in an imperfect union.  They belong to communities which are in schism or are denominations which don't understand the nature of the Church or the Sacraments. Nevertheless, St. Paul tells us there is only one Baptism and only one Church. So all Christians are somehow part of the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church;
the Church of Jesus Christ which fully subsists in the Catholic Church.

Those Christians that are not in full communion are called by God to continually seek the truth in love as the Holy Spirit leads them. Just as Catholics are called by the Holy Spirit to holiness and to reach out to their brothers who may not be in full communion with the Church.

Catholics are certainly no better that anyone else. In fact, because we are given the fullness of truth, we have a lot more to answer for. In the light of what we've been given, some of us should start taking an inventory of our actions. Simply put, the Catholic Church is the Church.

Our Orthodox brothers are the closest, we share the seven sacraments and Apostolic succession. There is very little that stands in the way of their full communion with us.

Our Protestant brothers, depending on where each one is, are all in some kind of imperfect union due to their Baptism, but they are all part of one Church because there is only one Church and we are it.

John