Lesson 11

The Church is One

  •                              Jesus said, “ I am the truevine, and my Father is thevinegrower, He removes everybranch in me that bears no fruit.Every branch that bears fruit heprunes to make it bear more fruit.You have already been cleansedby the word that I have spoken toyou. Abide in me as I abide in you.... Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do noting”(Jn. 15:1-5). Jesus wants thatthose who believe in him shall be close to him as branches to a vine. 

     

                                Jesus established theChurch on the foundation of theapostles. Jesus wants that allthose who are redeemed by his blood should remain one in this Church. Jesus who laid down his life to gather into one flock the scattered children ofGod, does not wish to sanctify and redeem people individually, cut off from others of the same faith.  He willed to make them into one people so that they might know him in truthand serve him in holiness. (LG. 9).In the priestly prayer he offered, he prayed to hisFather that just as he and his Father are one, those who believe in him should be one(Jn. 17:21). Jesus wants to unite us to his Father and the Holy Spirit. It is his wish that all people should join the fellowship. It is for this purpose that he established the Church. He says, “I have other sheep, that do not belong to this fold; I must bring them also, andthey will listen to my voice. So there shall be one flock, one shepherd.” (Jn. 10:16).

    Church, the Fellowship of the Believers

     

                                                                               Fellowship was the distinguishing mark of those who responded to the preaching of the apostles in the early Church. They participated joy fully, in the preaching of the apostles, fellowship, the breaking of bread and the prayers. They were also happy to share with others what they had  Fellowship is known in the Greek language as Koinonia.'

    Unity in Faith

     

                                Fundamentally, it is faith that makes the Church a fellowship Our faith is inTriune God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit as revealed by Jesus. It is the faith in the salvation, made real by the Son of God, who was sent by the Father, for there demption of the world and completed by the Holy Spirit. Thus all the believers are united in one Spirit through one Lord, one faith and one baptism.

    Unity in Sacraments

     

                                        Having been made into one body with Jesus through baptism, we are nourished by the Holy Eucharist and other sacraments  St. Paul says that the cup of blessing thatwe share is a participation in the blood of Christ and the bread that we break is a participation in the body of Christ (1 Cor. 10:16-17). The Church is the fellowship of those who participate in the one and the same life by participating on the same spiritual drinkand the same spiritual food. Thus the members of the Church are united through one baptism and one bread for all (1 Cor. 10:3-4).

    Unity in Apostleship

     

                                         Jesus formed the Church through the apostles whom he chose, anointed in theSpirit and sent to preach and baptize. He wanted the Church to be led, sanctified and instructed by the apostles and those who took their place after them, the Bishops Fellowship with the apostles and the Bishops is essential for maintaining the fellowship of the believers in the Church. This is called unity in apostleship. The believers who are united like this have one faith, one sacrament and one apostolic leadership.In this way all the believers are made into one body in the Holy Spirit

    Fellowship among the Churches

     

                                    The Church is the body of Christ.  In theChurch, the members live out their Christianlife in individual Churches under one commonauthority of the Pope. The Catholic Church is the fellowship or communion of these  Individual Churches. There exists a wonderfulunity among these Churches. Diversity doesnot affect the unity of the Church, rather it enhances it and reinforces it.

     

                                   There are twenty-four individual Churches in the Catholic Church which are different in liturgy, theology, spirituality and discipline  Each of these Churches has sprung up in its own particular historical context and is rooted in a particular culture. Each of them has its own life-style (CCEO 28:1). They, have all equal status in the Catholic Church.
     
     
                             These Individual Churches follow six liturgical traditions which are ancient. Of these, Byzantine ,Antiochian, Alexandrian, Assyrian and Armenian  are of Oriental liturgical traditions and Roman (Latin) tradition is Western .

    Syro-Malabar Church

     

                                  The Mar Thoma Christians of India received the light of faith from Thomas, theapostle and became Christians in the very first century itself. The Syro-Malabar Church has been following the Mar Thoma Tradition in an unbroken manner right from the start. The Syro-Malabar Church follows the Oriental Syrian Liturgical Tradition with certainadaptations to Indian culture. Both the Syro-Malabar Church and Chaldean Churchfollow the Oriental-Syrian liturgical tradition.Though those Churches sprang up and grew outside the Roman Empire, they have always maintained unity and fellowship with the See of Peter. The Syro-Malabar Church, having its own individuality and tradition, isunited in fellowship with the Catholic Church through Faith, Sacraments andv Jurisdiction.

     

    THE CHURCH

     

    The Western Church (Roman)

     

    The Eastern Churches

     

    Byzantine

     

    Albanian

    Belarusian

    Bulgarian

    Croatian&Serbian
     
    Greek
     
    Hungarian
     
    Italo - Albanian
     
    Macedonian
     
    Melkite
     
    Romanian
     
    Russian
     
    Ruthenian
     
    Slovak
     
    Ukrainian

     

    Antiochian

     

    Syrian

    Maronite
     
    Syro-Malankara

     

    Alexandrian

     

    Coptic

    Ethiopian
     
    Eritrean
     

    Assyrian

     

    Chaldean

    Syro- Malabar
     

    Armenian

     

    Let us be proud of being part of the Catholic Church, established by Jesus himself. Let us work together in fellowship with one another for the unity and growth of the Church.

     

     

                            

    Word of Godto Read and

    Meditate

     

    John : 17:20-26
     
     

    Word of God to Remember

     

    As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may
    they also be in us, so that the world may
    believe that you have sent me
    ( Jn. 17:21).
     

    Let us Pray

     

    Lord, let all those who believe in you
    become one in the Church.
     
     

    My Resolution

     

    I shall work and pray for unity
    in the Church
     
     

    To Think with the Church

     

    This is the sole Church of Christ which in the Creed we profess to be one,
    holy, catholic and apostolic,which our Saviour, after his resurrection,
    entrusted to Peter's pastoral care, commissioning him and the other
    apostles to extend and rule it, and which he raised up for all ages as
    "the pillar and mainstay of the truth" (Vat. II, The Church No. 8).
     

    To Know the Mother Church

     

    The difference of opinion among the Mar Thomma Nazranies after the 'Koonan
    Cross Oath' gradually led to division among them. One section joined themselves
    to the Antiochian Church and later came to be known as 'Puthenkoottukar'.
    Efforts for unifying the divided Church began in all earnestness. It was led by
    Kariyattil Ouseph Malpan and Paremmakal Thomma Kathanar. Infact these two
    leaders met the Pope and submitted to him a request for the unification of the
    divided groups. The Pope appointed Kariyattil Ouseph Malpan as the Metropolitan
    of the diocese of Kodungallur on 17th February 1783, but unfortunately he died in
    Goa on his return journey. 'Varthamana Pusthakam' by Paremmakal Thomma
    Kathanar is a travelogue on their visit to Rome. The body of the Metropolitian was
    buried in Goa, but later his mortal remains were transferred to St. Mary's Church,
    Al angad, and b ur i ed ther e .
     
     

    Find out Answers

    The Catholic Church is the fellowship of the individual Churches.Explain

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    What are the factors that constitute the basis of the Church's fellowship and unity?

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    Which are the main liturgical traditions in the Catholic Church?

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    To which liturgical tradition does the Syro-Malabar Church belong?

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    On what basis are the individual Churches formed?

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