Catholic or Roman Catholic: Which is correct?
Actually Roman Catholic is a label hung on us by the English Church 400 yrs ago and being as America is a mostly Protestant country it was used by them as they felt the Pope was Evil so by saying Roman it was actually a insult. Yes Catholic would be the correct title. Also our complete name is THE ONE HOLY CATHOLIC AND APOSTOLIC CHURCH OF GOD. There are no documents that come out of the Vatican using the title Roman Catholic.
Originally, the Roman Catholic Church was a part of the Eastern Orthodox Churches. The word Roman is used to distinguish the Church of Rome from the Church of Antioch; St. Peter and St. James, the Church of Jerusalem; St. Andrew, the Church of Constantinope; St. Mark, the Church of Alexandria; St. Peter and St. Paul, the Church of Rome (now Roman Catholic). The schism occurred because the Church of Rome declared the pope to be infallible — a heresy for the other Orthodox churches. The word orthodox means correct practice, or correct path. http://www.stelizabeth.net/?q=node/59 http://www.stjohnmemphis.org/orthodoxy/s… .
Both are correct but I find that “Roman” frequently causes confusion. The Catholic Church has consistently referred to itself as the “Catholic Church” at least since 107 C.E., when the term appears in the writings of St. Ignatius of Antioch The term “Roman” Catholic is rather recent. The new Anglican Church in England started using the term “Roman” in the 1500s as one of many ways of demeaning and demonizing Catholics. Catholics accepted this late coming adjective without too much protest. Today “Catholic” and “Roman Catholic” are interchangeable terms. Both terms are even used in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. To add a little more confusion, some apply the term “Roman Catholic Church” only to the Latin Rite Catholic Church, excluding the Eastern Rite Catholic Churches that are in full communion with the Pope, and are part of the same Church, under the Pope. Eastern Rite Catholic Churches include: Alexandrian liturgical tradition • Coptic Catholic Church • Ethiopic Catholic Chur
