Dear Catholic Exchange:
When and by whose authority did Christians begin to call themselves the “Catholic Church”?
Mrs. Fanning
Dear Mrs. Fanning,
Peace in Christ!
First, it is important to note that the concept of a “catholic” or universal Church is well-founded in Scripture, but the first recorded non-biblical use of the term was by St. Ignatius of Antioch in his Letter to the Smyrneans, written circa 110 A.D. (chapter 8, verse 2).
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