The Catholic Church - St Stephen's Cathedral

On the 15^th of February 2011, I visited St Stephen’s Cathedral in Brisbane city with all the history students of Citipointe Christian College.  Whilst it was just a Tuesday mass rather than a full church service, I learned a lot about Catholic worship and beliefs.  The style was very different to what I’m used to, however, it was a good experience and it is useful to know more about the history of the Catholic Church.

History

The Catholics believe that Jesus Christ founded the Catholic Church in 33 AD.  It is hard to say when the Catholic Church actually started, but after the conversion of Constantine, in 313, Christianity became the state religion.  Pope Leo I then claimed that the pope in Rome was ruler over the whole church. He said that Jesus appointed the apostle Peter as the first vicar or pope. He used Matthew 16: 18-19 to support this belief. "And I say unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock, I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the Kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shalt be loosed in heaven." (KJV)  In 445, the Emperor Valentinian III made Pope Leo I’s claim into a law. In 606, Pope Boniface III was given the title of the “universal bishop”. This marked the official beginning of the worldwide Roman Catholic Church.

Theology                               

The St Stephens Cathedral building is used instead of literature to tell the Christian story.  It was built in the shape of a cross, with beautiful stained glass windows signifying different parts of the Bible.  Most of the stained glass windows were of the Holy family and had Latin writing.  The Blessed Sacrament Chapel at the back of the Cathedral holds the tabernacle – the leftovers from the communion bread and wine.  Catholics believe in transubstantiation – that the bread and wine actually become the real body and blood of Christ.  They also believe in predestination – God chooses whether they go to heaven or not, but also that it is the free will of people that determines their salvation.  In other words there is human free will but God still plans everything.  Hanging in front of the pipe organ was one horizontal post of the cross with Jesus on it.  This was so that you could see Jesus’ pain and suffering.  One arm was slightly above the horizontal cross which the guide told us symbolises that he has risen/will rise again.  The Roman Catholic Church believes that people particularly receive the Holy Spirit through baptism.  For salvation, they must have faith in Jesus, be baptised and live a holy life. I thought that there were many things the same as what I believe, although not everything.   

Governance

The Pope is the father of the whole church and there are archbishops, bishops and priests under him.  The importance of the bishop and priests in St Stephen’s Church could be seen because the altar, pulpit and bishop’s chair were all made of marble.  During the mass, there were many prayers that we were required to say aloud with the priest.  It seemed that the priest had complete control of everything that happened.  Also, in the far left hand side of the Cathedral was a confessional which is a small curtained room where the priest listens to peoples’ sins and grants forgiveness on behalf of God.  This is very different to the Pentecostal understanding of the role of the pastor who is just a normal person like everyone else.

Liturgy

Everything about the liturgy of St Stephen’s Cathedral was completely different to what I’m used to.  When we first arrived, just inside the doorway was a person who would provide information on the Cathedral or the Catholic Church.  Just beside the doorway was the Shrine of Women which held two statues of Ruth and Mary; this is where women go to pray. On the other side, was another shrine containing a holy rock from Jerusalem.  One thing a definitely noticed was that the mass was extremely formal with a lot of sitting and standing at different times.  The congregation would also repeat set psalms and prayers after the priest in a very formal pattern.  Although Catholic masses used to be done only in Latin, in the 20^th century they were modernised and can now be said in English.

Music

There was no music at all during the whole mass which was surprising; only the priest sang one song during the incense procession. However, during a Sunday service two choirs sing accompanied by a Jubilee pipe organ. St Stephens Catholic Church is very proud of their music programme and they are glad that music is a gift of God that can be used to worship Him.

Conclusion

St Stephens Cathedral is a beautiful representation of the Christian story. The mass that I attended was much more formal than I’m used to, but many of the different points of view and the different Catholic beliefs studied were very interesting. This experience may be very valuable for future discipleship, as it will change the way Protestants approach discussions with Catholics.   

Bibliography:

2011. “History of the Catholic Church.” [Internet], http://www.allaboutreligion.org/history-of-the-catholic-church-faq.htm, 26 March 2011.

2011. “The History of the Catholic Church.” [Internet],

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Catholic_Church, 19 March 2011.

“Music at the Cathedral of St Stephens.” [Internet], http://www.cathedralofststephen.org.au/music.htm, 26 March 2011.

Observations at St Stephen’s Catholic Church, attended on 15 February 2011

Interview with a Reverend of St Stephen’s Catholic Church on 15 February 2011

Shelly, Bruce L.  Church History in Plain Language.  Dallas: Word Publishing, 1982.