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Bryan B. Albia, PhB, SThB, MAL(cand) THE FOUR MARKS OF THE CHURCH
“The Church of Christ subsists in the Catholic Church” • Christ established only one Church. From the moment he created it, it has existed continually and it will always exist. In this Church alone are found all the elements that Christ himself instituted. So there is only one Church, not many. The Church doesn’t come and go with the changes of history. “This one Church of Christ, which we confess in the Creed [is] one, holy, catholic and apostolic.… This Church, constituted and organized in this world as a society, subsists in the Catholic Church, governed by the successor of Peter and the Bishops in communion with him.” The true Church, then has these four “marks”. The true Church has this particular hierarchical structure.
“The Church of Christ subsists in the Catholic Church” • In Lumen Gentium, no. 8, “subsistence” means this perduring (enduring, never ending), historical continuity and the permanence of all the elements instituted by Christ in the Catholic Church, in which the Church of Christ is concretely found on this earth. It is possible, according to Catholic doctrine, to affirm correctly that the Church of Christ is present and operative in the churches and ecclesial communities not yet fully in communion with the Catholic Church, on account of the elements of sanctification and truth that are present in them. Nevertheless, the word “subsists” can be attributed to the Catholic Church alone precisely because it refers to the mark of unity that we profess in the symbols of the faith (I believe… in the “one” Church); and this One Church subsists in the Catholic Church.
“The Church of Christ subsists in the Catholic Church” What is an immediate, practical value of the four marks? They help distinguish the true Pilgrim Church on earth from any others that claim to be Christ’s Church. How do we know that the Catholic Church possesses the four marks of the Church? Through faith and the historical record. Where does the Church get these four marks, or characteristics? She receives them from God. Extension: Eyes of faith only can recognize that these marks are because of her divine origin, but the historical manifestations of these marks are signs that speak clearly to human reason.
2. The Second Mark: Holy • The Holy Spirit is the first to move in our lives; otherwise, if left up to our own accord, we probably would never choose to seek Him or holiness. • The gift of grace allows us to cooperate with the Spirit to grow closer to God and His holiness. • God made us to be in loving communion with Him, yet with grace comes freedom, and we either have the freedom to participate in His grace or deny it completely.
