CLE Q4G9

Proclaiming the Good News

Mission of The Church

-started by the apostles

Two sources of our Faith:
>Sacred Scriptures
>Apostolic Tradition

Kerygma

to teach——-|

to proclaim—|-the good news = Jesus Christ

to preach—--|

Tradition

• is renewed

• never stagnant

• is changing

“The Blood of Martyrs is the seed of Christianity”

The History of The Church

1. The Birth of the Church

2. The Apostolic Church

3. The Early Church

4. The Roman Empire

5. The Medieval Church

6. The Church in the Modern Age

7. Post Vatican II

The Birth of the Church

-AD 33 Pentecost

-50 days after Jesus’ Crucifixion, on Pentecost, the apostles received the Holy Spirit

-considered the Birthday of the Church because it was on this day that the apostles were able to bravely go out and proclaim the Good News of Salvation in Jesus to all nations

>Acts of the Apostles

-the Pentecost event initiated the first great evangelization by the Apostolic Church

Evangelization=Baptism

Evangelizers=Gospel Writers

Evangelize=to be converted

Peter’s sermon contains the basic truth that the apostles would proclaim

• Jesus died and rose from the dead

• Jesus is our Lord and Savior forever

The Apostolic Church

The Acts of the Apostles records the first 30 years of history and progress of the church

-30-70 CE

-Paul was responsible for preaching to pagans or Gentiles

-Peter and Paul were the 2 most outstanding figures of the Apostolic Church

Saul was a pharisee and was a persecutor. He was converted otw to Damascus. was renamed to Paul

Antioch-first called Christians

The Early Church

-the persecutions lasted for centuries.

-It was during the rule of Emperor Nero AD 64-68 and Diocletian AD 303-305 that persecutions were most severe.

The Roman Empire

• Constantine, one of the greatest Roman emperors, was formerly devoted to the cult of the Unconquered Sun. This changed during his campaigns in Italy in 318 AD

• Before the battle, he saw a superimposed cross with the inscription “in hoc Signo, vinces” meaning In this sign, you shall win. It was painted on their shields and they won the battle.

• Roman Persecutions stopped because of the Edict of Milan in AD 315.

• Emperor Theodosius. In the year 380 AD, he eliminated Paganism and made Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire

many churches were built

liturgy was enriched

early councils of the church(nicaea, ephesus,constantinople, chalcedon)

writings of the church

Canon of Scriptures

-382 CE

-the official list of inspired books of the Bible

St. Jerome

• 342 AD

• It took him 40 years to translate the Hebrew and Greek into Latin

• Born in Dalmatia in 342 AD

• Vulgata

Councils

1. Nicaea(325) - artanism

2. Constantinople I(381)-Macedonianism

3. Ephesus- Nestorianism

4. Chalcedon(451)-monophyism

5. Constantinople II(553)-Nestorianism

6. Constantinople III(680)-Monotheism

7. Nicaea II(787)-Iconoclasts

Muslims

• Islam

• Arabia by Mohammed 622

• Wrote the Koran

5 Pillars

• the profession of faith in allah and Mohammed

• 5 daily prayers facing the Mecca

• Fasting during the Ramadan

• Almsgiving

• Pilgrimage to Mecca to kiss the black stone in the Kabal

• Mohammed preached the necessity of jihad or holy war. They conquered countries like Spain, south Africa, etc.

• Charles Martel, the french king, defeated the Muslims in the Battle of Poitiers in 732

• Muslims attacked Italy but failed

  
  

Medieval Church

• stands between the ancient and modern world

• In the 7th Century, the Roman Empire started to weaken and eventually collapsed

Events that happened because the Roman Empire collapsed:

it was replaced by smaller kingdoms led by a strong warrior

civilization in Europe halted due to the collapse of the Empire

The Church became the main influence and it was abused

Dark Ages

• corruption in its ranks

• struggles between the Church and states

• The Great Schism- separation between the Greek-speaking Eastern Church and Latin Speaking Western Church

• Crusades and the Inquisition

“The greater the darkness, the clearer the light” -St. Paul

Pope Gregory the VII

• initiated monastic life

St. Catherine of Siena’

• used her wisdom and natural charm to become the pope’s ambassador

St. Francis

• sent missionaries for the people

St. Thomas Aquinas

• a Dominican Priest

• harmonized pagan and Christian teachings

Alexander VI Borgia

• worst pope

• corrupt and materialistic

• made cardinal by Pope Calixtus III(his uncle)

• made his son, Cesare Borgia, a cardinal

• was elected pope

The Black Death

• bubonic plague

• 1347

• infected rats aboard a ship traveling from the Black Sea of Sicily

• 25 million people died(1/3 of the current population before)

Modern Age

Reformation and Counter-Reformation

• 1517-Vatican II

Reformation

• Martin Luther

Augustinian Monk

revolted against the catholic church

nailed his “95 theses” on the Wittenberg Castle Church

lead to Protestantism

Counter-Reformation

• The Response of the Catholic Church:

A general revival of religion

an effort to reconquer lost territories in Europe

Holding of the council for Trent

Church in Italy 17th-19th Century

• faced modern problems such as secularism, pluralism, totalitarianism liberalism, and different social issues

• The role of women was questioned

• tension between government

-Pope Leo XIII produced a formal church social document known as “Rerum Novarum” on the condition of the working classes in 1891

-Vatican I was convened by Pope Pius XI to address the rising influence of rationalism, materialism, and liberalism. These 3 could lead to corruption

Vatican II in the 20th Century

• the high point in the Christian faith during the 20th century was the 2nd vatican ecumenical council opened by Pope John XXIII on Oct 11 1962 and closed by Pope Paul VI on Dec 7 1965

COntent of the 2nd Vatican Council

1. pronouncements of the nature of the church

2. mission of the laity

3. religious freedom

4. revision of the liturgy

5. permitting the use of vernacular(native) language or Latin during mass and sacraments

Other important matters:

• improving church

• common ground on certain issues with:

protestant churches and discussed the possibility of unity with Eastern Orthodox Church

• the council produced 16 documents compiled in one book called Vatican II documents

Post Vatican II in the Philippines

• from January 20 to February 17, 1991, bishops, clergy, and laity gathered for the 2nd Plenary council of the Philippines or PCP II

• proposed ways on how we should move toward renewing our faith life

Macro Context

• the Church today continues to proclaim Jesus the same yesterday, today, and forever

Teachings of the Church of who Jesus is

• evangelists and early Christians used certain titles when they preached Jesus to others

The titles of Jesus

1. Lord

• was used during his public ministry. It means sir or master

• In the Old Testament, the Greek translation, Kyrios was used to translate the Hebrew name of God, YHWH. It was used by St. Paul

2. Son of God

• indicates Jesus’ divine-human identity and unique relationship with God

• was meant to address someone with extraordinary power or goodness. It was widely used by Jews and Gentiles

• To be a Christian is to believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God-made-man

3. Prophet

• underscores Jesus’ role as one who brings the truth.

• John the Baptist proclaimed that Jesus is the Word. We see God in him.

4. Priest

• mediator, bridge builder, or “pontifex”

• He is a priest in the sense that he gave himself up as the perfect sacrifice to atone for our sins. He brought mankind and God together

5. King

• King because he is divine. King of kings, Lord of lords.

• he revealed a different type of kingship. Where instead of being served, leaders are supposed to serve others.

6. Christ

• Greek title that means anointed one. Hebrew word: Messiah

• As baptized Christians, we carry Christ’s name, anointed to share in his mission.

Symbols of Jesus

1. Alpha and Omega

• α ALPHA Ω OMEGA

• Alpha is the first letter and Omega is the last letter in the Greek Alphabet.

• Jesus is the beginning and end of human history

2. Chi Rho

• ☧

• first 2 letters of the Greek word for Christ.

3. IHS

• Iesus Hominum Salvator which means “Jesus Savior of Mankind”

4. Fish

• Greek word for fish, ICHTUS. An anagram for the first letters of the Greek Phrases meaning “Jesus Christ Son of God, Savior”

Teachings of the Early Church Councils of Jesus

1. Apostles and convert believers

2. clarified misleading doctrines

3. The Magisterium

4. Vatican II ( church ministries)

5. Early Church council(heresies)

6. The church. the people of God

7. the apostle’s creed