148 / 665
120 • Part I. The Creed: The Faith Professed
freedom is sometimes in tension with belonging to the Church as a com-
munity of believers.
When it comes to the Church, some claim that its institutional needs
take a toll on the values of community and relationships. Institutions
1. How did the Second Vatican Council relate Christ as the light
of humanity to the Church?
“Christ is the light of humanity. . . . By proclaiming his
Gospel to every creature, it may bring to all . . . that light
of Christ which shines out visibly from the Church.” . . . By
choosing this starting point the Council demonstrated
that the article of faith about the Church depends entirely
upon the articles concerning Jesus Christ. (CCC, no. 748,
citing LG, no. 1)
2. What do we learn from the scriptural images of the Church,
such as Body of Christ, sheepfold, cultivated field, and temple?
The images taken from the Old Testament are variations
of a profound theme: the People of God. In the New
Testament, all these images find a new center because
Christ has become the head of his people, which hence-
forth is his Body. Around this center are grouped images
taken “from the life of the shepherd or from cultivation of
the land, from the art of building or from family life and
marriage.” (CCC, no. 753, citing LG, no. 6)
3. How is the Church the Temple of the Holy Spirit?
“What the soul is to the human body, the Holy Spirit is to
the Body of Christ, which is the Church” (St. Augustine,
Sermon 267, 4). . . . The Holy Spirit is “the principle of every
vital and truly saving action in each part of the Body”
(Pope Pius XII,
The Mystical Body
[
Mystici Corporis
]: DS
3808). (CCC, nos. 797-798)
FROM THE CATECHISM