Jesus knew He could not stay in the world forever, so He needed a way to preserve His message and spread it throughout the world. He established the Catholic Church and entrusted Peter to serve as its first Pope. The word Catholic means universal, and one Church for everyone is exactly what Jesus wanted. However, we live in a flawed world, and the Church did not remain united. Many different denominations split from the Catholic Church, and today we see countless interpretations of the Christian faith.
We tend not to like being told what to do. The world tells us to do what we want and not let anyone tell us otherwise. It teaches us that being ourselves matters more than becoming the person God calls us to be. If someone disagrees with a particular belief, they can simply find a denomination that better matches their own beliefs. Having so many denominations may make a person happier in this life, but it can hinder spiritual growth and development.
When the Founding Fathers of the United States wrote the Constitution, they could not foresee every circumstance that future generations would face. Therefore, the Constitution allows amendments through Congress and the states. In a similar way, Jesus gave the Church the authority to bind and loose. Whatever the Church binds on Earth will be bound in Heaven, and whatever it looses on Earth will be loosed in Heaven. Despite this authority, the major beliefs of the Catholic Church have remained consistent. Even during periods when bad popes led the Church, its fundamental doctrines remained unchanged.
The Catholic Church also helps us interpret Scripture. The knowledge and traditions that Church leaders have passed down through the generations guide us toward the truth. Protestant denominations often interpret Scripture differently, and sometimes even churches within the same denomination disagree about what a particular passage means. One pastor may say a Bible verse means one thing, while another pastor interprets it differently.
One thing I love about the Catholic Church is that I can walk into a Catholic church anywhere in the world and know what is happening during Mass. Even when I attend Mass in another language, I can still understand what is taking place. A Protestant church in Kansas, however, may look and worship very differently from a Protestant church in Kentucky.
The Catholic Church gives us grace through the sacraments. Baptism cleanses our souls from sin and removes the punishment due to sin. Reconciliation assures us that God has forgiven our sins and gives us additional grace to resist sin. Confirmation strengthens us through the Holy Spirit and gives us spiritual gifts. We also have the vocational sacraments of Holy Orders and Matrimony, along with the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick, which provides spiritual and, when God wills, physical healing.
You may have noticed that I left out one sacrament. The Sacrament of the Eucharist provides the greatest reason to attend a Catholic church. Protestant churches feel empty without the true presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. Nothing in this life brings us closer to Jesus than receiving Him in the Eucharist. The old saying goes, “You are what you eat.” When we receive Jesus in the Eucharist, we become more like Him.
All Christian denominations possess some measure of truth, but the Catholic Church contains the fullness of Christian truth. While God can save people who are outside the Catholic Church, those who faithfully follow the teachings of the Catholic Church have been given the fullness of the means Christ established for our salvation. Always seek the truth, and you will find the way, the truth, and the life.
