Facts about Catholicism

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1. Origin of the name Catholic
The mention of the term “Catholic” was by Ignatius of Antioch around the year A.D.110. This term is drawn from the Greek word “Katholikos”, which connotes on the way to the whole. Ignatius was proposing that the Church is a gift offered by Christ to all people.

2. Catholic Church most traveled Pope
John Paul II is the most traveled Catholic Pope having traveled to more than 129 different countries, logging more than 750,000 successive flyer miles, which is about three times the distance to the moon. John Paul the II died in 2004.

3. Largest single denomination
The Catholic Church is largest single denomination in Christianity. The Catholic Church is also the oldest institution in the Western world. The Church traces its history back to almost 2,000 years and is the largest charitable organization in the U.S.

4. Catholicism Followers
In all five continents, there are more than 1 billion Catholics in the world. The concentration of the Catholics is particularly in southern Europe, the U.S., the Philippines, and the countries of Central and South America. Brazil has more Catholics compared to any other country on the globe with close to 127 million representing 11.7% of the world’s Catholic population. Over the past 100 years, the figure of Catholics around the world has increased thrice from 291 million in the year 1910 to 1.1 billion in the year 2010.

5. Sacraments in Catholic Church
The Catholic Church has seven sacraments which are baptism, penance, confirmation, holy orders, the Eucharist or Holy Communion, Matrimony, and lastly anointing of the sick. The name “sacrament” is from the Latin “Sacramentum”, or “solemn oath.” Sacraments are symbols that connect the visible and invisible dimensions. Catholics trust that anyone can get baptized in an emergency situation such as a fatal accident. They also believe that during the Eucharist the bread and water become the body and blood of Christ through transmogrification.

6. Rosary in Catholicism
The rosary is the main signature of Catholic devotion. The name “rosary” connotes garland of roses. The rose is among of the flowers used to represent the Virgin Mary, and the prayer of the rosary has a close relation to her. The cross is one of the earliest signs of Catholicism.

7. Execution for translation
The Roman Catholic Church executed William Tyndale for translating the Bible into English in the year 1536. Tyndale was not only executed but also tried for heresy, choked, impaled, and burned at the stake.

8. The first Christian denomination
The Roman Catholic Church was the single Christian church in existence for the first 1,000 years of Christian history. All other Christian churches that subsist today can trace their lineage from Roman Catholic Church. Most non-Catholic churches that exist today are less than a century or two old by comparison.

9. Crime in Catholic City
Vatican City has the highest crime evaluation in the world. Considering that there is one crime per day, the Vatican crime rate is above 100 percent, per capita with about 500 residents. Although the fact is appalling, the size of the Vatican is about one square mile, and has almost 20 million visitors yearly. Most of the crimes are pickpockets, purse snatching and other petty offenses done by visitors. However, The Catholic Church’s Vatican has diplomatic relations with almost every country in the world.

10. There are no female priests in Catholicism
Women are not permitted to become Roman Catholic priests. Pope John Paul II provided an Apostolic Letter in 1994 where he stated that the Catholic Church has no power to confer holy orders on women and that all Church faithful are to grasp this judgment.

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