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Discussion Topics 1 . Would you be willing to be a martyr for Christ/the Church ?

History of the Church #2 1. The word “Apostle” means, literally, “one who is sent”. The apostles were twelve men “sent” by Jesus Christ to proclaim the Good News of the coming of the Messiah and the redemption of the world.

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Discussion Topics 1 . Would you be willing to be a martyr for Christ/the Church ?

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  1. History of the Church #21. The word “Apostle” means, literally, “one who is sent”. The apostles were twelve men “sent” by Jesus Christ to proclaim the Good News of the coming of the Messiah and the redemption of the world.

  2. 2. The apostles were the first bishops of the Church and St. Peter was the first Pope. He resided in Rome. This is why we are called the “Roman Catholic Church”.

  3. 3. The mission of the apostles was to introduce to the world Jesus’ message of salvation through their teaching and through the witness of their love/service.

  4. 4. There were twelve apostles because their were twelve tribes of Israel (recall twelve sons of Jacob). St. Matthias was chosen to replace Judas Iscariot (the traitor).

  5. 5. St. Matthias and St. Paul of Tarsus were also given the title of “Apostle”, though they were not part of the original twelve apostles [St. Paul because of his zeal].

  6. 6. It is worth noting that in all of the Gospels St. Peter is always mentioned first in any listing of Apostles.

  7. St. Peter was the leader of the apostles and this is one reason why Christ chose him to be the “rock” upon which Christ would build His Church (cf. Matthew 16).

  8. 7. The apostles were the ultimate authority on the interpretation of Christ’s message because they had received instruction with respect to the meaning of the scriptures directly from Christ Himself.

  9. The Apostles passed on their authority to teach and preach in the name of Christ to the Bishops of the Catholic Church.

  10. 8. A Bishop is a successor of the Apostles who has received the fullness of Christ’s priesthood.

  11. 9. Acts 7:54 – 8:3 St. Stephen was the first martyr of the Church and his death marked the beginning of a period of severe persecution of the Church in Jerusalem.

  12. This persecution caused many Christians to flee from Jerusalem to all parts of the Middle East. The persecution actually helped Christianity to spread.

  13. 10. Martyrdom is the supreme witness given to the truth of the Faith. A martyr allows themselves to be killed as witness to their belief in the truth of the Faith.

  14. As Catholics, we believe that anyone who dies a martyr’s death for Christ has ALL of their sins forgiven and ALL of their “temporal punishment” taken away.

  15. Discussion Topics1. Would you be willing to be a martyr for Christ/the Church?

  16. What are the differences between martyrdom and suicide? Christ could have prevented His own death and He did not.

  17. Why not fight those who try to martyr us? Self-defense permissible in Christianity?

  18. Killing? What about killing animals? War? [sticker “Who would Jesus bomb?”]

  19. 2. Has it happened to you: God brings something good out of something evil that has happened [as persecution of the Church actually helped spread the Faith]?

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