The Holy Catholic Church

 

After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.” (Revelation 7:9-12 ESV).

 

As we near the end of our study of the Apostles’ Creed we come to a statement that has been misunderstood and maligned through the modern era. However, we must remember that the Christian faith is deeply personal, and, at the same time, it is also deeply communal. When we say, with the Apostles’ Creed, “I believe in … the holy catholic church,” we are declaring that the church, the body of Christ, includes all who belong to the people of God throughout history. It is not merely a reference to the Roman Catholic Church.

 

This statement does not single out or promote a particular church within the body of all who believe in Christ. The word “catholic” here means “universal,” indicating that the church of Christ includes all of God’s people from all times in history. The breathtaking vision in our reading today captures the scope of Christ’s church gathered “from every nation, tribe, people and language.” Can you imagine a more awe-inspiring sight?

 

And what unites this astonishing multitude of people from every time and place? Since the early centuries of the church, the teaching of statements like the Apostles’ Creed has played a central role in uniting Christians around the true faith anchored in Scripture and inspired by the triune God — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

 

This truth and witness of the universal church is meant to comfort, encourage, and challenge us to love and serve the God whom countless believers have served through the ages. It is a call to a wide community of believers.