1 - Catholic

Our mission statement begins by stating the obvious.
We are Catholic. This is a Catholic diocese. Its people and programs are Catholic, as well as the pages of its website.

The earliest use of the term Catholic (from Greek καθολικισμός, katholikos, "universal") is found in Ignatius of Antioch's Letter to the Smyrnaeans writtten in about 107 to Christians in Smyrna. Exhorting Christians to remain closely united with their bishop, Ignatius wrote: "Wherever the bishop shall appear, there let the multitude [of the people] also be; even as, wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church."

From the second half of the second century, the word began to be used to mean "orthodox" (non-heretical), "because Catholics claimed to teach the whole truth, and to represent the whole Church, while heresy arose out of the exaggeration of some one truth and was essentially partial and local" ( J.H. Srawley's commentary on the Letter to the Smyrnaeans).

In 380, Emperor Theodosius I limited use of the term "Catholic Christian" exclusively to those who followed the same faith as Pope Damasus I of Rome and Pope Peter of Alexandria. (Reference: Wikipedia)

Related Pages on this Website

• Becoming Catholic - RCIA
• What Makes Us Catholic?
• Pope Francis / Vatican News
• EWTN Nightly News

"I should not believe the Gospel except as moved by
the authority of the Catholic Church."

~ Saint Augustine (Patron Saint of diocese)

Knights of Columbus pledges $1.4 million to Special Olympics

The Knights of Columbus has pledged $1.4 million to help cover costs for next year’s Special Olympics World Games in Los Angeles. Continue Reading