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Although the Catholic Church operates numerous social ministries throughout the world, individual Catholics are also required to practice spiritual and corporal works of mercy. Corporal works of mercy include feeding the hungry, welcoming strangers, immigrants or refugees, clothing the naked, taking care of the sick and visiting those in prison.
Catholic spirituality includes the various ways in which Catholics live out their Baptismal promise through prayer and action. The primary prayer of all Catholics is the Eucharistic liturgy in which they celebrate and share their faith together, in accord with Jesus' instruction: "Do this in memory of me."
The Roman Catholic Church sees baptism as the first and basic sacrament of Christian initiation. [27] In the Western or Latin Church , baptism is usually conferred today by pouring water three times on the recipient's head, while reciting the baptismal formula: "I baptize you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit " (cf ...
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.28 to 1.39 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2024. [ 4 ] [ 5 ] [ 9 ] It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions and has played a prominent role in the history and development of Western civilization .
Catholicity (from Ancient Greek: καθολικός, romanized: katholikós, lit. 'general', 'universal', via Latin: catholicus) [1] is a concept pertaining to beliefs and practices that are widely accepted by numerous Christian denominations, most notably by those Christian denominations that describe themselves as catholic in accordance with the Four Marks of the Church, as expressed in the ...
The most recent Catechism of the Catholic Church, the official summary of Church beliefs, devotes a large section to the Commandments, [7] which serve as the basis for Catholic social teaching. [4] According to the Catechism, the Church has given them a predominant place in teaching the faith since the fifth century. [7]
In the Catholic Church, authority rests chiefly with bishops, [4] while priests and deacons serve as their assistants, co-workers or helpers. [5] Accordingly, "hierarchy of the Catholic Church" is also used to refer to the bishops alone. [6] The term "pope" was still used loosely until the sixth century, being at times assumed by other bishops. [7]
Eucharist (Koinē Greek: εὐχαριστία, romanized: eucharistía, lit. 'thanksgiving') [1] is the name that Catholic Christians give to the sacrament by which, according to their belief, the body and blood of Christ are present in the bread and wine consecrated during the Catholic eucharistic liturgy, generally known as the Mass. [2]