137-600: In Catholic tradition , the Five Holy Wounds , also known as the Five Sacred Wounds or the Five Precious Wounds , are the five piercing wounds that Jesus Christ suffered during his crucifixion . The wounds have been the focus of particular devotions, especially in the late Middle Ages , and have often been reflected in church music and art. The five wounds comprised 1) the nail hole in his right hand, 2)
274-656: A Roman Catholic nun of the Monastery of the Order of the Visitation of Holy Mary in Chambéry , France. Françoise Chambon was born March 6, 1841, to a poor farming family in the village of Croix Rouge, near Chambéry, in Savoy. Her first reported vision occurred when she was nine years old. As she was attending Good Friday services with her godmother, in the parish church of Lémenc, Françoise saw
411-577: A " prisoner in the Vatican ". This stand-off, which was spoken of as the Roman Question , was resolved by the 1929 Lateran Treaties , whereby the Holy See acknowledged Italian sovereignty over the former Papal States in return for payment and Italy's recognition of papal sovereignty over Vatican City as a new sovereign and independent state. Catholic missionaries generally supported, and sought to facilitate,
548-552: A later pious tale attributed to Ildephonsus of Toledo ( fl. 7th century) the use of the first part, namely the angel's greeting to Mary, without that of Elizabeth, as a prayer. All the evidence suggests that it took its rise from certain versicles and responsories occurring in the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary , which just at that time was coming into favour among the monastic orders. Thomas Aquinas spoke of
685-565: A variety of historical circumstances. In the 16th century, the Reformation led to the formation of separate, Protestant groups. From the late 20th century, the Catholic Church has been criticized for its teachings on sexuality , its doctrine against ordaining women , and its handling of sexual abuse cases involving clergy. Catholic (from Greek : καθολικός , romanized : katholikos , lit. 'universal')
822-564: Is a treasure of graces ... even for those souls who pray without meditating, the simple act of taking the beads in hand to pray is already a remembrance of God – of the supernatural". Martin Luther believed that Mary should be held in highest reverence, advocating the use of the first half of the Hail Mary (that is, "Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women and blessed
959-499: Is composed of seven parts, each pertaining to one of the members of Christ's crucified body. Popular in the 17th-century, it was arranged as a cycle of seven cantatas in 1680 by Dieterich Buxtehude . His 1680 Membra Jesu Nostri is divided into seven parts, each addressed to a different member of Christ's crucified body: feet, knees, hands, side, breast, heart, and head framed by selected Old Testament verses containing prefigurements. The cantata has come down to us more widely known as
1096-578: Is due to Paul Aloysius, the sixth superior general of the Passionists. It was developed in Rome in 1821. A corona of the Five Wounds was approved by Pope Leo XII on August 11, 1823. It received a second approval in 1851. The devotion also honors the mystery of the risen Christ which has the marks of the Five Wounds. This chaplet has 25 beads, grouped into five sets. The Gloria Patri is said on each bead. At
1233-523: Is generally regarded as an institution that has its origin in the Medieval Christian setting. The massive Islamic invasions of the mid-7th century began a long struggle between Christianity and Islam throughout the Mediterranean Basin. The Byzantine Empire soon lost the lands of the eastern patriarchates of Jerusalem , Alexandria and Antioch and was reduced to that of Constantinople,
1370-455: Is most desirous to assist us by her prayers, no one can doubt without impiety and wickedness." Soon after, in 1568 Pope Pius V included the full form as now known in his revision of the Roman Breviary . The current Latin version is thus as follows, with accents added to indicate how the prayer is said in the current ecclesiastical pronunciation of Latin , as well as macrons to indicate
1507-809: Is similar to the first part of the Latin Church form, with the addition of a very brief opening phrase and a short concluding phrase. It is well known and often used, though not quite as frequently as in the Western Church. It appears in several canons of prayer. It is typically sung thrice at the end of Vespers during an All-Night Vigil , and occurs many times in the course of daily prayer. The Greek text, of which those in other languages are translations, is: Θεοτόκε Παρθένε, χαῖρε, κεχαριτωμένη Μαρία, ὁ Κύριος μετὰ σοῦ. εὐλογημένη σὺ ἐν γυναιξί, καὶ εὐλογημένος ὁ καρπὸς τῆς κοιλίας σου, ὅτι Σωτῆρα ἔτεκες τῶν ψυχῶν ἡμῶν. God-bearing Virgin, rejoice, grace-filled Mary,
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#17328478862841644-676: Is the bishop of Rome , known as the pope ( Latin : papa , lit. 'father'), whose jurisdiction is called the Holy See ( Sancta Sedes in Latin). In parallel to the diocesan structure are a variety of religious institutes that function autonomously, often subject only to the authority of the pope, though sometimes subject to the local bishop. Most religious institutes only have male or female members but some have both. Additionally, lay members aid many liturgical functions during worship services. The Catholic Church has been described as
1781-589: Is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.") as a sign of reverence for and devotion to the Virgin. The 1522 Betbüchlein (Prayer Book) retained the Hail Mary. The second part of the prayer used in Catholicism today ("Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death") was not in use in Germany at the time. Some Anglicans also employ the Hail Mary in devotional practice. Anglo-Catholic Anglicans use
1918-572: Is the fruit of thy womb." Taken together, these two passages are the two times Mary is greeted in chapter 1 of the Gospel of Luke . After considering the use of similar words in Syriac , Greek and Latin in the 6th century, Herbert Thurston , writing in the Catholic Encyclopedia concludes that "there is little or no trace of the Hail Mary as an accepted devotional formula before about 1050" – though
2055-482: Is the universal [katholike] Church." In the Catechetical Lectures ( c. 350 ) of Saint Cyril of Jerusalem , the name "Catholic Church" was used to distinguish it from other groups that also called themselves "the church". The "Catholic" notion was further stressed in the edict De fide Catolica issued 380 by Theodosius I , the last emperor to rule over both the eastern and the western halves of
2192-486: Is therefore an invitation to joy, deep joy. It announces an end to the sadness that exists in the world because of life’s limitations, suffering, death, wickedness, in all that seems to block out the light of the divine goodness. It is a greeting that marks the beginning of the Gospel, the Good News." The word κεχαριτωμένη ( kecharitōménē ), here translated as " graceful ", admits of various translations. Grammatically,
2329-477: Is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women, And blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, Pray for us sinners, Now and at the hour of our death. Amen. The prayer incorporates two greetings to Mary recorded in the Gospel of Luke : "Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee", and "Blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb". In mid-13th-century Western Europe,
2466-764: Is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, for thou hast borne the Saviour of our souls. The first is the older, and remains in use by the Old Believers as well as those who follow the Ruthenian recension (among them the Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church and the Ruthenian Catholic Church ). The second, corresponding more closely to the Greek, appeared in 1656 under
2603-771: The Last Judgement (where Bamberg Cathedral has an early example of about 1235), Christ in Majesty , the Man of Sorrows and Christ with the Arma Christi , and was used to emphasize Christ's suffering as well as the fact of his Resurrection. Devotional art focused on the side wound was also widespread; some books of prayers from late-medieval Germany, for instance, would display the side wound surrounded by text specifying its exact dimensions. Catholic Church God Schools Relations with: The Catholic Church , also known as
2740-639: The Pax Romana made travelling safe. The empire encouraged the spread of a common culture with Greek roots, which allowed ideas to be more easily expressed and understood. Unlike most religions in the Roman Empire, however, Christianity required its adherents to renounce all other gods, a practice adopted from Judaism (see Idolatry ). The Christians' refusal to join pagan celebrations meant they were unable to participate in much of public life, which caused non-Christians—including government authorities—to fear that
2877-783: The Byzantine–Seljuk Wars , which caused Urban to launch the First Crusade aimed at aiding the Byzantine Empire and returning the Holy Land to Christian control. In the 11th century , strained relations between the primarily Greek church and the Latin Church separated them in the East–West Schism, partially due to conflicts over papal authority. The Fourth Crusade and the sacking of Constantinople by renegade crusaders proved
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#17328478862843014-734: The Church of the East also shared in this communion, as did the Oriental Orthodox Churches before the Council of Chalcedon in AD 451; all separated primarily over differences in Christology . The Eastern Catholic Churches, who have a combined membership of approximately 18 million, represent a body of Eastern Christians who returned or remained in communion with the pope during or following these schisms for
3151-686: The Code of Canon Law (1983). "Catholic Church" is also used in the documents of the Second Vatican Council (1962–1965), the First Vatican Council (1869–1870), the Council of Trent (1545–1563), and numerous other official documents. The New Testament , in particular the Gospels , records Jesus' activities and teaching, his appointment of the Twelve Apostles and his Great Commission of
3288-648: The Council of Nicaea declared heretical . The resulting religious discord between Germanic rulers and Catholic subjects was avoided when, in 497, Clovis I , the Frankish ruler, converted to orthodox Catholicism, allying himself with the papacy and the monasteries. The Visigoths in Spain followed his lead in 589, and the Lombards in Italy in the course of the 7th century. Western Christianity , particularly through its monasteries ,
3425-710: The Edict of Thessalonica made Nicene Christianity the state church of the Roman Empire , a position that within the diminishing territory of the Byzantine Empire would persist until the empire itself ended in the fall of Constantinople in 1453, while elsewhere the church was independent of the empire, as became particularly clear with the East–West Schism . During the period of the Seven Ecumenical Councils , five primary sees emerged, an arrangement formalized in
3562-725: The English Reformation and the eventual development of Anglicanism . The Reformation contributed to clashes between the Protestant Schmalkaldic League and the Catholic Emperor Charles V and his allies. The first nine-year war ended in 1555 with the Peace of Augsburg but continued tensions produced a far graver conflict—the Thirty Years' War —which broke out in 1618. In France, a series of conflicts termed
3699-586: The French Wars of Religion was fought from 1562 to 1598 between the Huguenots (French Calvinists ) and the forces of the French Catholic League , which were backed and funded by a series of popes. This ended under Pope Clement VIII , who hesitantly accepted King Henry IV's 1598 Edict of Nantes granting civil and religious toleration to French Protestants. The Council of Trent (1545–1563) became
3836-525: The Immaculate Conception as a dogma in the Catholic Church . In 1870, the First Vatican Council affirmed the doctrine of papal infallibility when exercised in specifically defined pronouncements, striking a blow to the rival position of conciliarism . Controversy over this and other issues resulted in a breakaway movement called the Old Catholic Church , The Italian unification of
3973-682: The Italian Peninsula , imprisoning Pope Pius VI , who died in captivity. Napoleon later re-established the Catholic Church in France through the Concordat of 1801 . The end of the Napoleonic Wars brought Catholic revival and the return of the Papal States . In 1854, Pope Pius IX , with the support of the overwhelming majority of Catholic bishops, whom he had consulted from 1851 to 1853, proclaimed
4110-682: The Latin Church , the Hail Mary forms the basis of other prayers such as the Angelus and the Rosary . In the psalmody of the Oriental Orthodox Churches a daily Theotokion is devoted to ascribing praise to the Mother of God. In addition, the Eastern Orthodox Churches have a common private prayer quite similar to the Hail Mary, though without the explicit request for intercession. The Eastern Catholic Churches follow their respective traditions or adopt
4247-456: The Nicene Creed . The Catholic Church teaches that it is the one, holy, catholic and apostolic church founded by Jesus Christ in his Great Commission , that its bishops are the successors of Christ's apostles , and that the pope is the successor to Saint Peter , upon whom primacy was conferred by Jesus Christ. It maintains that it practises the original Christian faith taught by
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4384-541: The Polish People's Republic , became the first non-Italian pope in 455 years. His 26 1/2-year pontificate was one of the longest in history, and was credited with hastening the fall of communism in Europe. John Paul II sought to evangelize an increasingly secular world . He travelled more than any other pope, visiting 129 countries, and used television and radio as means of spreading the church's teachings. He also emphasized
4521-823: The Protestant Reformation of the 16th century, when those who ceased to be in communion became known as Protestants. While the Roman Church has been used to describe the pope's Diocese of Rome since the Fall of the Western Roman Empire and into the Early Middle Ages (6th–10th century), Roman Catholic Church has been applied to the whole church in the English language since the Protestant Reformation in
4658-417: The Redemptorist Fathers , listed among various pious exercises the Little Chaplet of the Five Wounds of Jesus Crucified . Liguori wrote the devotional as a meditation on the five piercing wounds that Christ suffered during his crucifixion. The "Chaplet of the Five Wounds" is a Passionist chaplet devoted to the Holy Wounds of Jesus, as a means to promote devotion to the Passion of Christ. The chaplet
4795-484: The Roman Catholic Church , is the largest Christian church , with 1.28 to 1.39 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2024. 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 . The church consists of 24 sui iuris churches , including the Latin Church and 23 Eastern Catholic Churches , which comprise almost 3,500 dioceses and eparchies around
4932-409: The Roman Empire , when establishing the state church of the Roman Empire . Since the East–West Schism of 1054, the Eastern Orthodox Church has taken the adjective Orthodox as its distinctive epithet; its official name continues to be the Orthodox Catholic Church. The Latin Church was described as Catholic , with that description also denominating those in communion with the Holy See after
5069-419: The Tridentine Mass as found in the Roman Missal of 1962, which he titled the "Extraordinary Form". Citing the frailties of advanced age, Benedict resigned in 2013, becoming the first pope to do so in nearly 600 years. Pope Francis, the current pope of the Catholic Church, became in 2013 the first pope from the Americas, the first from the Southern Hemisphere , and the first Pope from outside Europe since
5206-418: The University of Oxford , University of Paris , and University of Bologna . Higher education before then had been the domain of Christian cathedral schools or monastic schools, led by monks and nuns . Evidence of such schools dates back to the 6th century CE. These new universities expanded the curriculum to include academic programs for clerics, lawyers, civil servants, and physicians. The university
5343-444: The dignity of work and natural rights of labourers to have fair wages and safe conditions in Laborem exercens . He emphasized several church teachings, including moral exhortations against abortion, euthanasia , and against widespread use of the death penalty, in Evangelium Vitae . Pope Benedict XVI , elected in 2005, was known for upholding traditional Christian values against secularization , and for increasing use of
5480-422: The 14th century. To escape instability in Rome, Clement V in 1309 became the first of seven popes to reside in the fortified city of Avignon in southern France during a period known as the Avignon Papacy . The Avignon Papacy ended in 1376 when the pope returned to Rome, but was followed in 1378 by the 38-year-long Western schism , with claimants to the papacy in Rome, Avignon and (after 1409) Pisa. The matter
5617-414: The 1860s incorporated the Papal States, including Rome itself from 1870, into the Kingdom of Italy , thus ending the papacy's temporal power . In response, Pope Pius IX excommunicated King Victor Emmanuel II , refused payment for the land, and rejected the Italian Law of Guarantees , which granted him special privileges. To avoid placing himself in visible subjection to the Italian authorities, he remained
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5754-522: The 1960s, Pope John XXIII convened the Second Vatican Council , which ushered in radical change to church ritual and practice, and in the later 20th century, the long reign of Pope John Paul II contributed to the fall of communism in Europe, and a new public and international role for the papacy. From the late 20th century, the Catholic Church has been criticized for its doctrines on sexuality , its inability to ordain women , and its handling of sexual abuse cases . Pope Pius X (1903–1914) renewed
5891-408: The 21st century. Pope Gregory VII further initiated the Gregorian Reforms regarding the independence of the clergy from secular authority. This led to the Investiture Controversy between the church and the Holy Roman Emperors , over which had the authority to appoint bishops and popes. In 1095, Byzantine emperor Alexius I appealed to Pope Urban II for help against renewed Muslim invasions in
6028-416: The Americas, Asia and Oceania by explorers, conquistadors, and missionaries, as well as by the transformation of societies through the socio-political mechanisms of colonial rule. Pope Alexander VI had awarded colonial rights over most of the newly discovered lands to Spain and Portugal and the ensuing patronato system allowed state authorities, not the Vatican, to control all clerical appointments in
6165-402: The Byzantine Empire lost to the Lombards the city of Ravenna from which it governed the small fragments of Italy, including Rome, that acknowledged its sovereignty. The fall of Ravenna meant that confirmation by a no longer existent exarch was not asked for during the election in 752 of Pope Stephen II and that the papacy was forced to look elsewhere for a civil power to protect it. In 754, at
6302-405: The Catholic and Orthodox churches. Several eastern churches reunited, forming the majority of the Eastern Catholic Churches . The Age of Discovery beginning in the 15th century saw the expansion of Western Europe's political and cultural influence worldwide. Because of the prominent role the strongly Catholic nations of Spain and Portugal played in Western colonialism, Catholicism was spread to
6439-422: The Christians were angering the gods and thereby threatening the peace and prosperity of the Empire. The resulting persecutions were a defining feature of Christian self-understanding until Christianity was legalized in the 4th century. In 313, Emperor Constantine I 's Edict of Milan legalized Christianity, and in 330 Constantine moved the imperial capital to Constantinople , modern Istanbul, Turkey . In 380
6576-448: The Classical vowel lengths: Ávē Marī́a, grā́tiā plḗna, Dóminus tḗcum. Benedícta tū in muliéribus, et benedíctus frū́ctus véntris túī, Iḗsūs. Sā́ncta Marī́a, Mā́ter Déī, ṓrā prō nṓbīs peccātṓribus, nunc et in hṓrā mórtis nóstrae. Āmēn. Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at
6713-503: The Cross). In art the subject of Doubting Thomas , or the Incredulity of Saint Thomas , has been common since at least the early 6th century, when it appears in the mosaics at the Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo in Ravenna , and on the Monza ampullae . Among the most famous examples are the sculpted pair of Christ and St. Thomas by Andrea del Verrocchio (1467–1483) for the Orsanmichele in Florence and The Incredulity of Saint Thomas by Caravaggio , now in Potsdam . In
6850-457: The Edict of Nantes by King Louis XIV of France , which ended a century-long policy of religious toleration of Protestant Huguenots. As the papacy resisted pushes for Gallicanism , the French Revolution of 1789 shifted power to the state, caused the destruction of churches, the establishment of a Cult of Reason , and the martyrdom of nuns during the Reign of Terror . In 1798, Napoleon Bonaparte 's General Louis-Alexandre Berthier invaded
6987-401: The European imperial powers' conquest of Africa during the late nineteenth century. According to the historian of religion Adrian Hastings , Catholic missionaries were generally unwilling to defend African rights or encourage Africans to see themselves as equals to Europeans, in contrast to Protestant missionaries, who were more willing to oppose colonial injustices. During the 20th century,
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#17328478862847124-419: The Five Holy Wounds through its five crosses. The Holy Wounds have been used as a symbol of Christianity . Participants in the Crusades would often wear the Jerusalem cross , an emblem representing the Holy Wounds; a version is still in use today in the flag of Georgia . The "Five Wounds" was the emblem of the " Pilgrimage of Grace ", a northern English rebellion in response to Henry VIII 's Dissolution of
7261-400: The Five Holy Wounds, along with the alternate symbolism of Christ and the Four Evangelists . The medieval poem Salve mundi salutare (also known as the Rhythmica oratio ) was formerly ascribed to Bonaventure or Bernard of Clairvaux , but now is thought more likely to have been written by the Cistercian abbot Arnulf of Leuven (d. 1250). A lengthy meditation upon the Passion of Christ, it
7398-447: The Holy See, or the Apostolic See (meaning the see of the apostle Peter). Directly serving the pope is the Roman Curia, the central governing body that administers the day-to-day business of the Catholic Church. The pope is also sovereign of Vatican City, a small city-state entirely enclaved within the city of Rome, which is an entity distinct from the Holy See. It is as head of the Holy See, not as head of Vatican City State, that
7535-422: The Holy Wounds, for while the fifty small beads refer to Mary, the five large beads and the corresponding Pater Nosters are intended to honour the Five Wounds of Christ. In some places it was customary to ring a bell at noon on Fridays to remind the faithful to recite five Paters and Aves in honour of the Holy Wounds. In his 1761 book, The Passion and Death of Jesus Christ , Alphonsus Maria de Liguori , founder of
7672-443: The Holy Wounds, including some attributed to Clare of Assisi , have been preserved. Mechtilde and Gertrude of Helfta were devoted to the Holy Wounds, the latter reciting daily a prayer in honour of the 5466 wounds, which, according to a medieval tradition, were inflicted on Jesus during his Passion. In the fourteenth century it was customary in southern Germany to recite fifteen Pater Nosters each day (which thus amounted to 5,475 in
7809-559: The Latin Church version, which is also used by many other Western groups historically branching from the Catholic Church, such as Lutherans , Anglicans , Independent Catholics , and Old Catholics . The Latin version of the prayer is the most common in English-speaking and other Western countries. Ave Maria, gratia plena, Dominus tecum. Benedicta tu in mulieribus, et benedictus fructus ventris tui, Iesus. Sancta Maria, Mater Dei, ora pro nobis peccatoribus, nunc et in hora mortis nostrae. Amen. Hail Mary, full of grace, The Lord
7946-620: The Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, for thou hast borne Christ the Saviour, the Deliverer of our souls. Богородице дѣво, радѹйсѧ, Благодатнаѧ Марїе, Господь съ тобою: благословена Ты въ женахъ, и благословенъ плодъ чрева Твоегѡ; якѡ Спаса родила еси дѹшъ нашихъ. Bogorodice děvo, radujsę, Blagodatnaę Marie, Gospodǐ sǔ toboju: Blagoslovena ty vǔ ženaxǔ, I blagoslovenǔ plodǔ čreva tvoego, jako Spasa rodila esi dušǔ našixǔ. Theotokos Virgin, rejoice, (or: Rejoice, O Virgin Theotokos) Mary full of grace, The Lord
8083-453: The Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, for thou hast given birth to the Saviour of our souls. or: God-bearing (or: Theotokos) Virgin, rejoice, O Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women. Blessed is the fruit of thy womb, for thou hast brought forth the Savior of our souls. The Aramaic version has been reconstructed (probably from Arabic) by Afram Barsoum in
8220-439: The Lord is with thee; blessed art thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen." The petition was commonly added around the time of the Council of Trent . The Dutch Jesuit Petrus Canisius is credited with adding in 1555 in his Catechism the sentence Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners. Eleven years later,
8357-430: The Lord with thee. Praised thou among women, and praised the fruit of thy womb, because it was the Saviour of our souls that thou borest. To the Biblical texts this adds the opening invocation "Theotokos Virgin", the name "Mary", and the concluding phrase "because it was the Saviour of our souls that thou borest". Another English rendering of the same text reads: Mother of God and Virgin, rejoice, Mary full of grace,
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#17328478862848494-403: The Luminous Mysteries, is of comparatively recent origin, having been proposed by Pope John Paul II in 2002. Each decade of Ave Maria is preceded by the Our Father (Pater Noster or The Lord's Prayer ) and followed by the Glory Be (Gloria Patri) ( Doxology ). The repetition of the fixed-language prayers assists recitation from the heart rather than the head. Pope Paul V said that "the Rosary
8631-401: The Monasteries . Prior to its modern association with the occult , the pentagram was used as a symbol for the Holy Wounds. The pentagram plays an important symbolic role in the 14th-century English poem Sir Gawain and the Green Knight , in which the symbol decorates the shield of the hero, Gawain . The unnamed poet credits the symbol's origin to King Solomon , and explains that each of
8768-402: The Pope's insistence on public neutrality and diplomatic language has become a source of much criticism and debate. Nevertheless, in every country under German occupation, priests played a major part in rescuing Jews. Israeli historian Pinchas Lapide estimated that Catholic rescue of Jews amounted to somewhere between 700,000 and 860,000 people. The Nazi persecution of the Catholic Church
8905-410: The Reformation, which gave birth to the great majority of Protestant denominations and also crypto-Protestantism within the Catholic Church. Meanwhile, Henry VIII petitioned Pope Clement VII for a declaration of nullity concerning his marriage to Catherine of Aragon . When this was denied, he had the Acts of Supremacy passed to make himself Supreme Head of the Church of England , spurring
9042-401: The Saviour of our souls". To the greeting and praise of Mary of which the prayer thus consisted, a petition "Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death" was added later. The petition first appeared in print in 1495 in Girolamo Savonarola 's Esposizione sopra l'Ave Maria . The "Hail Mary" prayer in Savonarola's exposition reads: "Hail Mary, full of grace,
9179-499: The Second World War, also because they had powerful supporters from the Vatican. The judgment of Pius XII is made more difficult by the sources, because the church archives for his tenure as nuncio, cardinal secretary of state and pope are in part closed or not yet processed. The Second Vatican Council (1962–65) introduced the most significant changes to Catholic practices since the Council of Trent, four centuries before. Initiated by Pope John XXIII, this ecumenical council modernized
9316-484: The War, and established aid networks to help victims, but he secretly assisted the anti-Hitler resistance and shared intelligence with the Allies. His first encyclical Summi Pontificatus (1939) expressed dismay at the 1939 Invasion of Poland and reiterated Catholic teaching against racism. He expressed concern against race killings on Vatican Radio , and intervened diplomatically to attempt to block Nazi deportations of Jews in various countries from 1942 to 1944. But
9453-458: The apostles, instructing them to continue his work. The book Acts of Apostles , tells of the founding of the Christian church and the spread of its message to the Roman Empire. The Catholic Church teaches that its public ministry began on Pentecost , occurring fifty days following the date Christ is believed to have resurrected . At Pentecost, the apostles are believed to have received the Holy Spirit, preparing them for their mission in leading
9590-400: The apostles, preserving the faith infallibly through scripture and sacred tradition as authentically interpreted through the magisterium of the church. The Roman Rite and others of the Latin Church, the Eastern Catholic liturgies , and institutes such as mendicant orders , enclosed monastic orders and third orders reflect a variety of theological and spiritual emphases in
9727-410: The areas under his control definitively established a form of caesaropapism , in which "he had the right and duty of regulating by his laws the minutest details of worship and discipline, and also of dictating the theological opinions to be held in the Church", re-established imperial power over Rome and other parts of the West, initiating the period termed the Byzantine Papacy (537–752), during which
9864-609: The bishops of Rome, or popes, required approval from the emperor in Constantinople or from his representative in Ravenna for consecration, and most were selected by the emperor from his Greek-speaking subjects, resulting in a "melting pot" of Western and Eastern Christian traditions in art as well as liturgy. Most of the Germanic tribes who in the following centuries invaded the Roman Empire had adopted Christianity in its Arian form, which
10001-509: The cause for her beatification was introduced in 1937. Mary Martha Chambon began to report visions of Jesus in 1866, telling her to contemplate the Holy Wounds. The mother superior kept a chronicle of her life which was published in 1923 and sold widely. The next year the Vatican granted an indulgence to those who said the following prayer, based on her reported visions: "Eternal Father I offer
10138-496: The church's approach to ecumenism , and a call to improved relations with non-Christian religions, especially Judaism, in its document Nostra aetate . The council, however, generated significant controversy in implementing its reforms: proponents of the " Spirit of Vatican II " such as Swiss theologian Hans Küng said that Vatican II had "not gone far enough" to change church policies. Traditionalist Catholics , such as Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre , however, strongly criticized
10275-507: The church's global reach continued to grow, despite the rise of anti-Catholic authoritarian regimes and the collapse of European Empires, accompanied by a general decline in religious observance in the West. Under Popes Benedict XV , and Pius XII , the Holy See sought to maintain public neutrality through the World Wars, acting as peace broker and delivering aid to the victims of the conflicts. In
10412-666: The church. Of its seven sacraments , the Eucharist is the principal one, celebrated liturgically in the Mass . The church teaches that through consecration by a priest , the sacrificial bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ . The Virgin Mary is venerated as the Perpetual Virgin , Mother of God , and Queen of Heaven ; she is honoured in dogmas and devotions . Catholic social teaching emphasizes voluntary support for
10549-529: The church. The Catholic Church teaches that the college of bishops , led by the bishop of Rome are the successors to the Apostles. In the account of the Confession of Peter found in the Gospel of Matthew , Christ designates Peter as the "rock" upon which Christ's church will be built. The Catholic Church considers the bishop of Rome, the pope, to be the successor to Saint Peter . Some scholars state Peter
10686-422: The church. There are three levels of clergy: the episcopate, composed of bishops who hold jurisdiction over a geographic area called a diocese or eparchy ; the presbyterate, composed of priests ordained by bishops and who work in local dioceses or religious orders; and the diaconate, composed of deacons who assist bishops and priests in a variety of ministerial roles. Ultimately leading the entire Catholic Church
10823-543: The city of Rome, though enjoying extraterritorial privileges accredited to the Holy See. Hail Mary The Hail Mary ( Latin : Ave Maria ) or Angelical salutation is a traditional Catholic prayer addressing Mary, the mother of Jesus . The prayer is based on two biblical passages featured in the Gospel of Luke : the Angel Gabriel 's visit to Mary (the Annunciation ) and Mary's subsequent visit to Elisabeth ,
10960-842: The conflict. Catholic clergy played a leading role in the government of the fascist Slovak State , which collaborated with the Nazis, copied their anti-Semitic policies, and helped them carry out the Holocaust in Slovakia. Jozef Tiso , the President of the Slovak State and a Catholic priest, supported his government's deportation of Slovakian Jews to extermination camps. The Vatican protested against these Jewish deportations in Slovakia and in other Nazi puppet regimes including Vichy France , Croatia, Bulgaria , Italy and Hungary. Around 1943, Adolf Hitler planned
11097-511: The council, arguing that its liturgical reforms led "to the destruction of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and the sacraments", among other issues. The teaching on the morality of contraception also came under scrutiny; after a series of disagreements, Humanae vitae upheld the church's prohibition of all forms of contraception. In 1978, Pope John Paul II , formerly Archbishop of Kraków in
11234-461: The course of a year) in memory of the Holy Wounds. There was, in the medieval Missals, a special Mass in honour of Christ's wounds, known as the Golden Mass. During its celebration five candles were always lit and it was popularly held that if anyone should say or hear it on five consecutive days they would never suffer the pains of hellfire. The Dominican Rosary also helped to promote devotion to
11371-602: The crucified Jesus covered in wounds and blood. She said that later that year, when she received First Communion, she saw the baby Jesus, who told her, "Child, my favorite, so it will be every time you go to Holy Communion." She worked in the refectory at the boarding school. At the age of twenty-one, she joined the Monastery of the Visitation Order in Chambéry, France and was given her name Marie–Marthe. She died on March 21, 1907;
11508-489: The development of the role of the papacy in the subsequent church". These roles, Brown says, "contributed enormously to seeing the bishop of Rome, the bishop of the city where Peter died and where Paul witnessed the truth of Christ, as the successor of Peter in care for the church universal". Conditions in the Roman Empire facilitated the spread of new ideas. The empire's network of roads and waterways facilitated travel, and
11645-539: The driving force behind the Counter-Reformation in response to the Protestant movement. Doctrinally, it reaffirmed central Catholic teachings such as transubstantiation and the requirement for love and hope as well as faith to attain salvation. In subsequent centuries, Catholicism spread widely across the world, in part through missionaries and imperialism , although its hold on European populations declined due to
11782-699: The eighth-century Gregory III . Francis has made efforts to further close Catholicism's estrangement with the Eastern churches. His installation was attended by Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople of the Eastern Orthodox Church, the first time since the Great Schism of 1054 that the Eastern Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople has attended a papal installation, while he also met Patriarch Kirill of Moscow , head of
11919-668: The empire's capital. As a result of Islamic domination of the Mediterranean , the Frankish state, centred away from that sea, was able to evolve as the dominant power that shaped the Western Europe of the Middle Ages. The battles of Toulouse and Poitiers halted the Islamic advance in the West and the failed siege of Constantinople halted it in the East. Two or three decades later, in 751,
12056-420: The end of each section of beads, a Hail Mary in honor of the sorrows of Mary is said. At the end of the chaplet, three additional Hail Marys are said in honor of her tears. The blessing of the beads is reserved to the Passionists. The Chaplet of the Holy Wounds (or "Holy Wounds Rosary") was first introduced at the beginning of the 20th century by Sister Mary Martha Chambon (March 6, 1841 – March 21, 1907),
12193-507: The final breach. In this age great gothic cathedrals in France were an expression of popular pride in the Christian faith. In the early 13th century mendicant orders were founded by Francis of Assisi and Dominic de Guzmán . The studia conventualia and studia generalia of the mendicant orders played a large role in the transformation of church-sponsored cathedral schools and palace schools, such as that of Charlemagne at Aachen , into
12330-551: The five interconnected points represents a virtue tied to a group of five: Gawain is perfect in his five senses and five fingers, faithful to the Five Wounds of Christ, takes courage from the five joys that Mary had of Jesus, and exemplifies the five virtues of knighthood . When consecrating an altar a number of Christian churches anoint it in five places, indicative of the Five Holy Wounds. Eastern Orthodox churches will sometimes have five domes on them, symbolizing
12467-677: The following way: There exist two variant versions in Church Slavonic : Богородице дѣво радѹйсѧ ѡбрадованнаѧ Марїе Господь съ тобою благословена ты въ женахъ, и благословенъ плодъ чрева твоегѡ, Якѡ родила еси Христа Спаса, Избавителѧ дѹшамъ нашимъ. Bogorodice děvo, radujsę, obradovannaę Marie, Gospodǐ sǔ toboju. blagoslovena ty vǔ ženaxǔ, i blagoslovenǔ plodǔ čreva tvoego, Jako rodila esi Xrista Spasa, Izbavitelę dušamǔ našimǔ. Theotokos Virgin, rejoice, (or: Rejoice, O Virgin Theotokos) Mary full of grace,
12604-515: The growth of religious scepticism during and after the Enlightenment. From the 17th century onward, the Enlightenment questioned the power and influence of the Catholic Church over Western society. In the 18th century, writers such as Voltaire and the Encyclopédistes wrote biting critiques of both religion and the Catholic Church. One target of their criticism was the 1685 revocation of
12741-615: The hour of our death. Amen. Because recitation of the Angelus , a prayer within which the Hail Mary is recited three times, is usually accompanied by the ringing of the Angelus bell, words from the Ave Maria were often inscribed on bells. The Enchiridion Indulgentiarum (Indulgences Handbook) grants the partial indulgence for this prayer. The Hail Mary prayer of the Eastern Orthodox Church and Byzantine Rite Catholic Churches
12878-489: The hymn O Sacred Head Surrounded named for the closing stanza of a poem addressed to Christ's head which begins "Salve caput cruentatum." Translated by Lutheran hymnist Paul Gerhardt , Johann Sebastian Bach arranged the melody and used five stanzas of the hymn in his "St Matthew Passion". Franz Liszt included an arrangement of this hymn at the sixth station, Saint Veronica wipes the Holy Face, in his Via crucis (Stations of
13015-517: The independence of papal office by abolishing the veto of Catholic powers in papal elections, and his successors Benedict XV (1914–1922) and Pius XI (1922–1939) concluded the modern independence of the Vatican State within Italy. Benedict XV was elected at the outbreak of the First World War . He attempted to mediate between the powers and established a Vatican relief office, to assist victims of
13152-538: The kidnapping of the Pope and his internment in Germany. He gave SS General Wolff a corresponding order to prepare for the action. While Pope Pius XII has been credited with helping to save hundreds of thousands of Jews during the Holocaust , the church has also been accused of having encouraged centuries of antisemitism by its teachings and not doing enough to stop Nazi atrocities. Many Nazi criminals escaped overseas after
13289-577: The largest Eastern Orthodox church, in 2016; this was reported as the first such high-level meeting between the two churches since the Great Schism of 1054. In 2017 during a visit in Egypt , Pope Francis reestablished mutual recognition of baptism with the Coptic Orthodox Church . The Catholic Church follows an episcopal polity , led by bishops who have received the sacrament of Holy Orders who are given formal jurisdictions of governance within
13426-537: The late 16th century. Further, some will refer to the Latin Church as Roman Catholic in distinction from the Eastern Catholic churches. "Roman Catholic" has occasionally appeared also in documents produced both by the Holy See, and notably used by certain national episcopal conferences and local dioceses. The name Catholic Church for the whole church is used in the Catechism of the Catholic Church (1990) and
13563-490: The later Middle Ages Jesus with one side of his robe pulled back, displaying the wound in his side and his other four wounds (called the ostentatio vulnerum , "display of the wounds"), was taken from images with the Doubting Thomas and turned into a pose adopted by Jesus alone, who often places his own fingers into the wound in his side. This form became a common feature of single iconic figures of Jesus and subjects such as
13700-808: The liturgical reforms of Patriarch Nikon of Moscow, and is in use by the Russian Orthodox Church , the Serbian Orthodox Church , the Bulgarian Orthodox Church and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church . The Hail Mary is the last prayer in Appendix V of the Roman Missal , the last of seven prayers under the heading "Thanksgiving After Mass". There it appears with "with you" instead of the traditional "with thee", "are you" instead of
13837-505: The meaning "rejoice" or "be glad". This was the normal greeting in the language in which the Gospel of Luke is written and continues to be used in the same sense in Modern Greek . Accordingly, both "hail" and "rejoice" are valid English translations of the word ("hail" reflecting the Latin translation, and "rejoice" reflecting the original Greek). According to Pope Benedict XVI , "at first sight
13974-577: The mid-6th century by Emperor Justinian I as the pentarchy of Rome, Constantinople , Antioch , Jerusalem and Alexandria . In 451 the Council of Chalcedon , in a canon of disputed validity, elevated the see of Constantinople to a position "second in eminence and power to the bishop of Rome". From c. 350 – c. 500 , the bishops, or popes, of Rome, steadily increased in authority through their consistent intervening in support of orthodox leaders in theological disputes, which encouraged appeals to them. Emperor Justinian , who in
14111-825: The mother of John the Baptist (the Visitation ). It is also called the Angelical Salutation , as the prayer is based on the Archangel Gabriel's words to Mary. The Hail Mary is a prayer of praise for and of petition to Mary, regarded as the Theotokos (Mother of God). Since the 16th century, the version of the prayer used in the Catholic Church closes with an appeal for her intercession . The prayer takes different forms in various traditions and has often been set to music. In
14248-485: The nail hole in his left hand, 3) the nail hole in his right foot, 4) the nail hole in his left foot, 5) the wound to his torso from the piercing of the spear . The wounds around the head from the crown of thorns and the lash marks from the flagellation do not qualify as they did not occur on the cross. The examination of the wounds by " Doubting Thomas " the Apostle , reported only in the Gospel of John at John 20:24–29 ,
14385-613: The nail wounds on his hands and feet and the wound from the Holy Lance which pierced his side. The revival of religious life and the zealous activity of Bernard of Clairvaux and Francis of Assisi in the 12th and 13th centuries, together with the enthusiasm of the Crusaders returning from the Holy Land, gave a rise in devotion to the Passion of Jesus Christ. Many medieval prayers in honour of
14522-514: The name "Mary" as the only word added at his time to the Biblical text, to indicate the person who was "full of grace". But at about the same time the name "Jesus" was also added, to specify who was meant by the phrase "the fruit of thy womb". The Western version of the prayer is thus not derived from the Greek version: even the earliest Western forms have no trace of the Greek version's phrases: "Mother of God and Virgin" and "for thou hast given birth to
14659-760: The new colonies. In 1521 the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan made the first Catholic converts in the Philippines . Elsewhere, Portuguese missionaries under the Spanish Jesuit Francis Xavier evangelized in India, China, and Japan. The French colonization of the Americas beginning in the 16th century established a Catholic francophone population and forbade non-Catholics to settle in Quebec . In 1415, Jan Hus
14796-458: The numerous visual artists sponsored by the church. Historian Paul Legutko of Stanford University said the Catholic Church is "at the center of the development of the values, ideas, science, laws, and institutions which constitute what we call Western civilization ". In Western Christendom , the first universities in Europe were established by monks. Beginning in the 11th century, several older cathedral schools became universities, such as
14933-406: The oldest multinational organization in the world. The hierarchy of the Catholic Church is headed by the pope, currently Pope Francis , who was elected on 13 March 2013 by a papal conclave . The office of the pope is known as the papacy . The Catholic Church holds that Christ instituted the papacy upon giving the keys of Heaven to Saint Peter . His ecclesiastical jurisdiction is called
15070-660: The pope receives ambassadors of states and sends them his own diplomatic representatives. The Holy See also confers orders, decorations and medals , such as the orders of chivalry originating from the Middle Ages . While the famous Saint Peter's Basilica is located in Vatican City, above the traditional site of Saint Peter's tomb , the papal cathedral for the Diocese of Rome is the Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran , located within
15207-412: The practices of the Catholic Church, allowing the Mass to be said in the vernacular (local language) and encouraging "fully conscious, and active participation in liturgical celebrations". It intended to engage the church more closely with the present world ( aggiornamento ), which was described by its advocates as an "opening of the windows". In addition to changes in the liturgy, it led to changes to
15344-458: The prayer consisted only of these words with the single addition of the name "Mary" after the word "Hail", as is evident from Thomas Aquinas 's commentary on the prayer. The first of the two passages from the Gospel of Luke is the greeting of the Angel Gabriel to Mary, originally written in Koine Greek . The opening word of greeting, χαῖρε ( chaíre ), here translated "hail", literally has
15481-457: The prayer in much the same way as Roman Catholics , including use of the Rosary and the recitation of the Angelus . Many Anglican churches contain artistic depictions of the Virgin Mary , but only a minority use Marian devotional prayers such as the Hail Mary. That manifestation of veneration of Mary, decried by some Protestants as Mariolatry , was largely removed from Anglican churches during
15618-683: The preservation and transmission of ancient culture. During this period, monastic Ireland became a centre of learning and early Irish missionaries such as Columbanus and Columba spread Christianity and established monasteries across continental Europe. The Catholic Church was the dominant influence on Western civilization from Late Antiquity to the dawn of the modern age. It was the primary sponsor of Romanesque, Gothic, Renaissance, Mannerist and Baroque styles in art, architecture and music. Renaissance figures such as Raphael , Michelangelo , Leonardo da Vinci , Botticelli , Fra Angelico , Tintoretto , Titian , Bernini and Caravaggio are examples of
15755-457: The prominent universities of Europe. Scholastic theologians and philosophers such as the Dominican priest Thomas Aquinas studied and taught at these studia. Aquinas' Summa Theologica was an intellectual milestone in its synthesis of the legacy of ancient Greek philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle with the content of Christian revelation. A growing sense of church-state conflicts marked
15892-615: The rosary beads as follows: The First Thursdays Devotion , also called the Act of Reparation to the Wounds of Jesus and to the Holy Eucharist, had its origin in the apparitions of Christ at Balazar , Portugal , reported by Alexandrina Maria da Costa in the 20th century. As early as 1139 Afonso I of Portugal put the emblem of the Five Holy Wounds on his coat of arms as king of Portugal. The Cross of Jerusalem , or "Crusaders' Cross", remembers
16029-580: The schism was reconciled, unresolved issues would lead to further division. In the 11th century, the efforts of Hildebrand of Sovana led to the creation of the College of Cardinals to elect new popes, starting with Pope Alexander II in the papal election of 1061 . When Alexander II died, Hildebrand was elected to succeed him, as Pope Gregory VII . The basic election system of the College of Cardinals which Gregory VII helped establish has continued to function into
16166-652: The second half. The Hail Mary is an essential element of the Rosary , a prayer method in use especially among Roman Rite (Western) Catholics. The Eastern Catholic Churches say a similar version. The Rosary consists traditionally of three sets of five Mysteries, each Mystery being meditated on while reciting a decade (a set of ten) of Ave Maria. The 150 Ave Maria of the Rosary thus echo the 150 psalms . These Mysteries concern events of Jesus' life during his childhood (Joyful Mysteries), Passion (Sorrowful Mysteries), and from his Resurrection onwards (Glorious Mysteries). Another set,
16303-665: The sentence was included in the Catechism of the Council of Trent of 1566. The catechism says that to the first part of the Hail Mary, by which "we render to God the highest praise and return Him most gracious thanks, because He has bestowed all His heavenly gifts on the most holy Virgin ... the Church of God has wisely added prayers and an invocation addressed to the most holy Mother of God. ...We should earnestly implore her help and assistance; for that she possesses exalted merits with God, and that she
16440-569: The sick, the poor, and the afflicted through the corporal and spiritual works of mercy . The Catholic Church operates tens of thousands of Catholic schools, universities and colleges , hospitals , and orphanages around the world, and is the largest non-government provider of education and health care in the world. Among its other social services are numerous charitable and humanitarian organizations. The Catholic Church has profoundly influenced Western philosophy , culture , art , literature , music , law , and science . Catholics live all over
16577-521: The term "bishop of Rome" to the most prominent members of the clergy in the earlier period and also to Peter himself. On this basis protestant scholars Oscar Cullmann , Henry Chadwick , and Bart D. Ehrman question whether there was a formal link between Peter and the modern papacy. Raymond E. Brown also says that it is anachronistic to speak of Peter in terms of local bishop of Rome, but that Christians of that period would have looked on Peter as having "roles that would contribute in an essential way to
16714-519: The term chaire “rejoice”, seems an ordinary greeting, typical in the Greek world, but if this word is interpreted against the background of the biblical tradition it acquires a far deeper meaning. The same term occurs four times in the Greek version of the Old Testament and always as a proclamation of joy in the coming of the Messiah (cf. Zeph 3:14, Joel 2:21; Zech 9:9; Lam 4:21). The Angel’s greeting to Mary
16851-496: The traditional "art thou" and "your womb" in place of the traditional "thy womb": Hail, Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen. The Hail Mary is the central part of the Angelus , a devotion generally recited thrice daily by many Catholics, as well as broad and high church Anglicans, and Lutherans who usually omit
16988-443: The treasure of treasures for the souls in Purgatory ." The Chaplet of the Holy Wounds is prayed on a standard five decade rosary . This chaplet was approved for the Order of the Visitation of Holy Mary in 1912, and was authorized for all Catholic Church by Decree of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on March 23, 1999. One method of praying the chaplet consists of three prayers that are said on specific portions of
17125-427: The urgent request of Pope Stephen, the Frankish king Pepin the Short conquered the Lombards. He then gifted the lands of the former exarchate to the pope, thus initiating the Papal States . Rome and the Byzantine East would delve into further conflict during the Photian schism of the 860s, when Photius criticized the Latin west of adding of the filioque clause after being excommunicated by Nicholas I . Though
17262-423: The war and reunite families. The interwar Pope Pius XI modernized the papacy, appointing 40 indigenous bishops and concluding fifteen concordats, including the Lateran Treaty with Italy which founded the Vatican City State . His successor Pope Pius XII led the Catholic Church through the Second World War and early Cold War . Like his predecessors, Pius XII sought to publicly maintain Vatican neutrality in
17399-496: The word is the feminine perfect passive participle of the verb χαριτόω ( charitóō ), which means "to show, or bestow with, grace" and here, in the passive voice, "to have grace shown, or bestowed upon, one". The text also appears in the account of the annunciation contained in chapter 9 of the apocryphal Infancy Gospel of Matthew . The second part of the prayer is taken from Elizabeth 's greeting to Mary as recorded in Luke 1:42: "Blessed art thou among women, and blessed
17536-463: The world . The pope , who is the bishop of Rome, is the chief pastor of the church. The Diocese of Rome , known as the Holy See , is the central governing authority of the church. The administrative body of the Holy See, the Roman Curia , has its principal offices in Vatican City , which is a small, independent city-state and enclave within the city of Rome , of which the pope is head of state . The core beliefs of Catholicism are found in
17673-418: The world through missions , immigration , diaspora , and conversions . Since the 20th century, the majority have resided in the Global South , partially due to secularization in Europe and North America. The Catholic Church shared communion with the Eastern Orthodox Church until the East–West Schism in 1054, disputing particularly the authority of the pope . Before the Council of Ephesus in AD 431,
17810-433: The wounds of Our Lord Jesus Christ, to heal those of our souls." She reported that Jesus asked her to unite her sufferings with his in the Rosary of the Holy Wounds as an Act of Reparation for the sins of the world. She reported that Jesus told her that "[w]hen you offer My Holy Wounds for sinners, you must not forget to do so for the souls in Purgatory, as there are but few who think of their relief... The Holy Wounds are
17947-427: Was a major factor in preserving classical civilization , with its art (see Illuminated manuscript ) and literacy. Through his Rule , Benedict of Nursia ( c. 480 –543), one of the founders of Western monasticism , exerted an enormous influence on European culture through the appropriation of the monastic spiritual heritage of the early Catholic Church and, with the spread of the Benedictine tradition, through
18084-413: Was at its most intense in Poland , and Catholic resistance to Nazism took various forms. Some 2,579 Catholic clergy were sent to the Priest Barracks of Dachau Concentration Camp , including 400 Germans. Thousands of priests, nuns and brothers were imprisoned, taken to a concentration camp, tortured and murdered, including Saints Maximilian Kolbe and Edith Stein . Catholics fought on both sides in
18221-529: Was burned at the stake for heresy, but his reform efforts encouraged Martin Luther , an Augustinian friar in modern-day Germany, who sent his Ninety-five Theses to several bishops in 1517. His theses protested key points of Catholic doctrine as well as the sale of indulgences , and along with the Leipzig Debate this led to his excommunication in 1521. In Switzerland , Huldrych Zwingli , John Calvin and other Protestant Reformers further criticized Catholic teachings. These challenges developed into
18358-406: Was first used to describe the church in the early 2nd century. The first known use of the phrase "the catholic church" ( Greek : καθολικὴ ἐκκλησία , romanized : katholikḕ ekklēsía ) occurred in the letter written about 110 AD from Saint Ignatius of Antioch to the Smyrnaeans , which read: "Wheresoever the bishop shall appear, there let the people be, even as where Jesus may be, there
18495-410: Was largely resolved in 1415–17 at the Council of Constance , with the claimants in Rome and Pisa agreeing to resign and the third claimant excommunicated by the cardinals, who held a new election naming Martin V pope. In 1438, the Council of Florence convened, which featured a strong dialogue focussed on understanding the theological differences between the East and West, with the hope of reuniting
18632-416: Was the first bishop of Rome. Others say that the institution of the papacy is not dependent on the idea that Peter was bishop of Rome or even on his ever having been in Rome. Many scholars hold that a church structure of plural presbyters/bishops persisted in Rome until the mid-2nd century, when the structure of a single bishop and plural presbyters was adopted, and that later writers retrospectively applied
18769-443: Was the focus of much commentary and often depicted in art, where the subject has the formal name of the Incredulity of Thomas . According to the accounts of his crucifixion in the Christian gospels , in the course of his Passion , Jesus suffered various wounds, such as those from the crown of thorns and from the scourging at the pillar. Medieval popular piety focused upon the five wounds associated directly with Christ's crucifixion:
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