Four Marks

When we recite the Nicene Creed at Mass (after the homily), we profess that the Church is four things: “I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.” We call these the Four Marks of the Church, but what do they mean exactly? 

• The Church is one in that she is one body, one bride of Jesus Christ. She is a unity of persons, brought together through the unifying power of the Holy Spirit. Just as the Spirit is the unifying power uniting Father and Son in the Trinity, so too does the Holy Spirit unite all the members of the Church into a single body united to Christ her Head.

• The Church is holy in that she is forever protected and kept unstained by sin. The individual members of the Church can (and certainly do) still sin, but the Church as a single whole does not. When we look at the sins of Christians in history, we must always remember this distinction between the individual member and the whole Church. The Church is an infallible body made up of very fallible human beings.

• The Church is catholic in that she is universal. “Catholic” has largely become a denominational name today, but it actually means “universal.” She is the same throughout the world and throughout history. She is open and accessible to all peoples everywhere, regardless of race or language or culture. As we hear recounted in our first reading today: “I have made you a light to the Gentiles, that you may be an instrument of salvation to the ends of the earth.” 

• The Church is apostolic in that she is the same Church now as was founded by Jesus Christ and entrusted to the Apostles. The Church was entrusted to the Twelve, who then appointed successors (the bishops) and entrusted her to them and so on. The role of the bishops is to protect and hand on the teachings of the Church. While these teachings have been unpacked and developed over the Centuries, the core Gospel remains the same and must always remain the same if it is truly to be the Gospel of Jesus Christ (rather than ourselves).