Wikipedia

Noun

Singular Catholic Church

Plural countable and uncountable; plural Catholic Churches

Catholic Church (countable and uncountable; plural Catholic Churches)

1. Literally "universal church", the whole body of Christendom, especially before the division into Western and Eastern churches.
2. The Roman Catholic Church, which consists of 23 particular Churches in full communion with the Bishop of Rome.
3. Any of the independent Catholic Churches, such as the Old Catholic Church, the Polish National Catholic Church, or the Orthodox Catholic Church.
4. Any Christian denomination that identifies explicitly as "Catholic" based on its affirmation of the Nicene Creed, such as any of the Anglican Churches.

The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with more than a billion members. The Church's leader is the Pope who holds supreme authority in concert with the College of Bishops of which he is the head. A communion of the Western (Latin Rite) church and 22 autonomous Eastern Catholic churches (called particular churches) comprise a total of 2,795 dioceses in 2008. The Church defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity. It operates social programs and institutions throughout the world including schools, universities, hospitals, missions, shelters and charities.

The Catholic Church teaches that it is the original Church founded by Jesus upon the Apostles, among whom Simon Peter was chief. The Church teaches that its bishops, through apostolic succession, are consecrated successors of these apostles, and that the Bishop of Rome (the Pope) as the successor of Peter possesses a universal primacy of jurisdiction and pastoral care. Church doctrines have been defined through 21 ecumenical councils, following the example set by the first Apostles in the Council of Jerusalem. On the basis of reports in the Gospels of promises made by Jesus to his apostles, the Church maintains that it is guided by the Holy Spirit and so protected from falling into doctrinal error. Catholic beliefs are based on the deposit of Faith (containing both the Holy Bible and Sacred Tradition) handed down from the time of the Apostles, which are interpreted by the Church's teaching authority. Those beliefs are formally detailed in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Formal Catholic worship is called the liturgy. The Eucharist is the central component of Catholic worship.

With a history spanning almost two thousand years, the Church is the western world's oldest and largest institution, having played a prominent role in the politics and history of Western civilization since the 4th century. It maintains that it is the "One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church" founded by Jesus Christ, although it also believes that the Holy Spirit can make use of other Christian communities to bring people to salvation and that it is called to work for unity among Christians.