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What Christians Believe
The Articles of Faith
Church
The Apostles' Creed describes the church in two different phrases. First, the church is called the holy catholic church. Second, the church is described as the communion of saints. These phrases have been interpreted in many different ways, and we will deal with them greater detail in a future lesson.
For now, we will simply point out that the phrase the holy catholic church does not refer to the Roman Catholic Church but to the church in all its parts throughout the world.
Even so, it may seem strange to many Protestants to think about believing in the church in any form. So, it may help to explain that when the creed says "I believe in the … church," it does not mean that we place our faith in the church. Rather, it means that we affirm the belief that the church is both holy, or sanctified, and catholic, meaning universal.
And we affirm our belief that there is a communion of saints, that is, a fellowship of believers. It is in these senses that historic Christianity has insisted on the importance of the church.
In this lesson, we will focus on just two aspects of the church that were central to the articles of faith in the Apostles' Creed. On the one hand, we will look at participation in the church. And on the other hand, we will consider doctrinal preservation by the church. Let's begin with participation in the church.