Catolic church

introduction
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the
world's largest Christian church, with 1.2 billion members.[note 1] The
Catholic hierarchy includes cardinals and bishops and is led by the Bishop of
Rome, known as the Pope.[note 2] The Church teaches that it is the one true
church divinely founded by Jesus Christ.[note 3] It also teaches that its
bishops are the successors of Christ's apostles and that the Bishop of Rome,
as the successor to the head of the apostles, Saint Peter, has supreme
authority over the Church.[note 4] The Church maintains that the doctrine
on faith and morals that it presents as definitive is infallible.[note 5] There are
a variety of doctrinal and theological emphases, including the Eastern
Catholic Churches, the personal ordinariates and religious communities.
Organisation and demographics
The Church's hierarchy is headed by the Bishop of Rome, known as the Pope
(Latin: papa; "father"), who is the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church
composed of the Latin Church and the Eastern Catholic Churches in full
communion with the see of Rome. The current Pope is Francis, elected on 13
March 2013 by papal conclave.[note 7]The office of the Pope is known as the
Papacy. The Church holds that Christ instituted the Papacy, upon giving the keys of
Heaven to Saint Peter. His ecclesiastical jurisdiction is called the "Holy See" (Sancta
Sedes in Latin), or the "Apostolic See" (meaning the see of the Apostle Saint
Peter).[14][15] Directly serving the Pope is the Roman Curia, the central governing
body that administers the day-to-day business of the Catholic Church. The Pope is
also Sovereign of Vatican City State,[16] a city-state entirely enclaved within the city
of Rome.
Dioceses, parishes and religious orders
Individual countries, regions, or major cities are served by local particular
Churches known as dioceses or eparchies, each overseen by a Catholic
bishop. Each diocese is united with one of the worldwide "sui iuris"
particular churches, such as the Latin Church, or one of the many Eastern
Catholic Churches. As of 2008, the Catholic Church altogether comprised
2,795 dioceses.[30] The bishops in a particular country or region are often
organised into an episcopal conference,[31] which aids in maintaining a
uniform style of worship and co-ordination of social justice programmes
within the areas served by member bishops.
Doctrine
The fundamental beliefs of the Christian religion are summarised in the
Nicene Creed. For Catholics, they are detailed in the Catechism of the
Catholic Church.[56][57] The Church Catholic holds that it is the One, Holy,
Catholic and Apostolic Church. Based on the promises of Christ in the
Gospels, the Church believes that it is continually guided by the Holy
Spiritwhich reveals God's truth through Sacred scripture, Sacred tradition
and the Magisterium.[58]and so protected infallibly from falling into
doctrinal error.[59][60][61][62]