1.2. What does it mean to be a member of the Catholic Church?

1 - The Catholic Church — What It Is and Why It Matters
Written By Steve John

True membership in the Catholic Church requires:

  • Baptism (water baptism with the intention to do what the Church does),

  • Profession of the true Faith (the integral and unchanging Catholic Faith),

  • Submission to legitimate authority (a true pope or lawful Church hierarchy),

  • And union in the same visible society.

Pope Pius XII taught:

“Only those are to be included as members of the Church who have been baptized and profess the true faith, and who have not been so unfortunate as to separate themselves from the unity of the Body, or been excluded by legitimate authority for grave faults committed.”
— Pope Pius XII, Mystici Corporis Christi (1943)

Further reading:

  • Mystici Corporis (The Mystical Body of Christ, the Church) by Pope Pius XII - 1943

Steve John
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1.1. What is the Catholic Church and why should I be a member of it?
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1.3. Who leads, governs, and protects the Catholic Church?