What is the difference between saying I am a Catholic or I am a Roman Catholic?

Question

And also...how do Catholics/Roman Catholics view Jews and Judaism?

Answer 1

+ Roman +

The Catholic Church has consistently referred to itself as the “Catholic Church” at least since 107 C.E., when the term appears in the writings of St. Ignatius of Antioch

The term "Roman" Catholic is rather recent.

The new Anglican Church in England started using the term “Roman” in the 1500s as one of many ways of demeaning and demonizing Catholics.

Catholics accepted this late coming adjective without too much protest. Today “Catholic” and “Roman Catholic” are interchangeable terms. Both terms are even used in the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

To add a little more confusion, some apply the term “Roman Catholic Church” only to the Latin Rite Catholic Church, excluding the Eastern Rite Catholic Churches that are in full communion with the Pope, and are part of the same Church, under the Pope.

Eastern Rite Catholic Churches include:

Alexandrian liturgical tradition
+ Coptic Catholic Church
+ Ethiopic Catholic Church

Antiochian (Antiochene or West-Syrian) liturgical tradition
+ Maronite Church
+ Syrian Catholic Church
+ Syro-Malankara Catholic Church

Armenian liturgical tradition:
+ Armenian Catholic Church

Chaldean or East Syrian liturgical tradition:
+ Chaldean Catholic Church
+ Syro-Malabar Church

Byzantine (Constantinopolitan) liturgical tradition:
+ Albanian Byzantine Catholic Church
+ Belarusian Greek Catholic Church
+ Bulgarian Greek Catholic Church
+ Byzantine Church of the Eparchy of Križevci
+ Greek Byzantine Catholic Church
+ Hungarian Greek Catholic Church
+ Italo-Albanian Catholic Church
+ Macedonian Greek Catholic Church
+ Melkite Greek Catholic Church
+ Romanian Church
+ Russian Byzantine Catholic Church
+ Ruthenian Catholic Church
+ Slovak Greek Catholic Church
+ Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church

The term “Roman” neither increases nor decreases the faith, hope and love of the Catholic Church.

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/13121a.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Catholic

+ Judaism +

The Catholic Church officially teaches:

When she delves into her own mystery, the Church, the People of God in the New Covenant, discovers her link with the Jewish People, "the first to hear the Word of God.

The Jewish faith, unlike other non-Christian religions, is already a response to God's revelation in the Old Covenant.

To the Jews "belong the sonship, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises; to them belong the patriarchs, and of their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ"; "for the gifts and the call of God are irrevocable."

Neither all Jews indiscriminately at that time, nor Jews today, can be charged with the crimes committed during the Passion of Jesus Christ. The Jews should not be spoken of as rejected or accursed as if this followed from Holy Scripture.

For more information, see the Catechism of the Catholic Church, sections 597 and 839:
http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt2art4p2.htm#597
http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt1sect2chpt3art9p3.htm#839

+ With love in Christ.

Answer 2

Are you sure you did not ask this in order to get a rant from Zena E.I just yesterday Read two different Greek Orthodox sites explaining there beliefs. After reading them there is no doubt and any one who reads there site and teachings would agree Zena E is a radical. The differences came about more over use of there respective languages and culture than real theological differences. But there are differences tho mostly minor and can be over come and if the two great Churches were to be one again there is no serious difference that would alter the truth of both. Here is one example they the Orthodox do not teach in a Purgatory as Catholics understand it but they do teach that one must pray for the dead even those in Hell to make there time more tolerable until the Last Judgment. Catholics teach Purgatory is where those still unworthy of Gods presence and still have the stains of sin to pay for do so in Purgatory which Paul describes as the fire of purification and we Catholics are to Pray to make there time there easier or able to leave it faster. This is called between the two as same differences.Another minor difference is a Orthodox Priest can become a married Priest if Married before joining the priest hood but once a Priest must remain Celibate and there Bishops must be Celibate,the Catholic Church discipline is what we all know in the western world as strictly a Celibate Priesthood except in special cases such as a Married Lutheran Pastor Joins the Catholic Church and is accepted into the Priesthood. Also in the Orthodox Church when a baby is Baptized they are immersed three times and are confirmed at the Baptism,the Catholic Church Baptism can be either by immersion or pouring and normally by pouring and confirmation comes at a later age after instructions in the Faith. Both have legitimate masses and Priesthood. We consider the Pope to be head of Christ Church they teach he is in primacy but only first among equals. So contrary to Zena E and her anti Catholic rants the Patriarch of the Greek Orthodox and the Pope have been working together for unification but taking it slowly so as to iron out there differences with honest understanding. I hope this helps you recognize how really little differences there are between the two.

Answer 3

There is no real difference. The Catholic Church is made up of 21 different Rites, the Latin (or Roman) Rite being the largest and most influential. Therefore, when someone identifies him/herself as a Roman Catholic, they are merely wishing to be identified not only with the Catholic Church but also the Rite to which they are a part of.

Answer 4

There isn't much difference. However there are two types of Catholicism. The Roman Catholic, and the Greek Orthodox Catholics. They are VERY similar, so much so that they are allowed to receive sacraments from each other. As for your question on how Judaism is viewed I'm not quite sure what you are wanting to know? Jesus was born a Jew, and the "Old Testament" is a translation of the Torah, the Jewish "Bible". Personally I see them as the beginning of my own faith, Jesus as the fulfillment of the Old Covenant and my Savior.

Answer 5

Lots of good answers. I agree with Pig I AM, Father K. is the man!

I'm a confessional Lutheran and am therefore Not Roman Catholic, nor do I consider myself a Protestant (although Rome does) I also then must be catholic too.

Certainly the Jews racially are God's chosen people, but his Holy Church is what God intended it to evolve into. The new covenant established by Christ, replaced the old.

Without faith in Christ, regardless of race, you are outside Gods Church, and therefore outside salvation. Scripture tells us not only that Christ died for all, but it also tells us that there is no other name under Heaven whereby we must be saved.

Sorry if this sounds hard, but if we are going to follow Scripture, we follow Scripture.

Mark

Answer 6

Well, there are different kinds of Catholic. I live in a very Ukrainian Catholic area (which is different from Ukrainian Orthodox).

I have no idea how they view Jews and Judaism, since I'm not Catholic. I have a big problem with many of the Catholic beliefs and practices, though.

Answer 7

I am a Catholic. I am NOT "Roman" Catholic. Catholic is a good Greek word first used by St. Ignatius of Antioch. It is a combination of two Greek words:

"KATH" = "according to" and "HOLOS" = "the whole". Thereby, any Church body that has kept Apostolic Succession (the historic Episcopate) is rightly "Catholic".

The Nicene Creed (which all Catholics believe) knows of only "ONE, Holy, Katholikos and Apostolic Church" One.

Of that one and only Church, I am certainly a member, by virtue of Holy Baptism.

As for Judaism, I feel I have more in common with the Orthodox Jew (prayer life, Rule, etc.) than I do with the modern American Fundamentalist Christian.

Answer 8

If you believe in the bible you have to believe in the Pope and the Catholic Church including tradition .Tradition was used to canonize the Bible by the Catholic Church .Christ gave authority to the Catholic Church under the Holy Spirit to canonized the Bible. What criteria was used, tradition oral teaching passed on and the Catholic Churches beliefs, under the guidance of the Holy spirit. The Catholic Church canonized the bible under Christ’s authority. So how can any books be put into the bible that go against Catholic beliefs and teachings (or removed) . So then if you believe the Catholic Church is false and not Christian, that its doctrine is false, then bible has no meaning and the Catholic Church had no authority to put the bible together in the first place. You would then have to throw out your bible. The Catholic Church teaches the same now as it did then nothing new has been added if so tell me but you cant because you know nothing of Church history or the history of your Protestant faith. The early Church Father’s all celebrated the Eucharist and the sacraments and all believed it to be the Body Blood Soul And Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ, as the Catholic Church does today. So who Gave the Authority to a , mentally unbalanced, diseased character Martin Luther hero of the Reformation. His intemperance, his persecution mania, his varying moods, were the origin of his permanent contradictions. Who gave him authority to add words to the Bible and remove 7 books and believe in his doctrine of Sola Scriptura which is found no place in the Bible. And all the made up doctrine that followed made up by men. Your either a Christian and believe the teachings of the Catholic Church or you are a hypocrite and heretic certainly not a Christian you see the word Christian was coined by a Catholic Bishop ordained By Peter himself and is a Catholic word.

Answer 9

Catholic means 'general' or 'universal' and is usually used by denominations that subscribe to the creed approved by the Council of Chalcedon in 451.
Roman Catholic is one of the most important denominations within the Christian Church and it's leader is the pope based in the Vatican.
By the way Billdo Oreilly ought to look at the mountain of evidence including what was written by non Christian Historians before he perpetuates the myth that Christianity began in 425. I can't think of a serious scholar who does not date it from the first century.
I accept that Christianity was originally Jewish Sect and I give thanks to God for Judaism and enjoy serious discussion with Jewish friends.

Answer 10

We Roman Catholics are part of the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church. There are other rites. We Jews and Judaism with the utmost respect.They are God's Chosen People and God could never forget the Covenant He made with them.