Eastern and Western Trinitarian Theology
The Three Levels of the Church: Militant, Penitent, and Triumphant
Photo by Stephanie LeBlanc on Unsplash
Many of us are familiar with the types of churches based on their functions and titles. Chapels, cathedrals, shrines, basilicas, these churches are already part of our vocabulary and we are already aware of these churches. But do you know that our church has three levels? If not, this article is for you.
The churches militant, penitent, and triumphant are not church buildings that we can see and touch. These churches symbolise the people of God, divided into three based on their state of life. These three divisions represent the three levels of our church, one that while we are living in this world, and two when we die.
The church militant; Latin: Ecclesia Militans , this will be the first church that we will be on in our journey towards eternal life. As soon as we are baptised, we become a part of this church. Any living Christian is part of the church militant. Also, this is the most complicated in the three as there will be the ones that lead the church such as the bishops that might occasionally come in conflict with each other. Furthermore, as the church militant is in the world, which sin is prevalent; it is also tasked to spread the gospel to nonbelievers and fight sin; hence, having its name as the church militant.
Moving on to the next, I am sure you are familiar with Purgatory. Purgatory is a state in which souls that are not in the state of grace are purified in order to reach the glory of heaven. Saint Catherine of Genoa describes the purgatory that there is as much pain as in hell. That is why the souls that are under this state are called the church penitent (also called suffering) Latin: Ecclesia Poenitens. We can avoid Purgatory by living in the state of grace and having no mortal-sin the moment of our passing, which will lead us to the third level:
After being purified and have no longer stains of sins, we will be moved to Heaven, where God, the Saints, and Angels are at. Souls who are in Heaven are the church triumphant; Latin Ecclesia Triumphans; since they are partakers of eternal life and glory. At the day of judgement, our mortal bodies will resurrect and will unite once again with our souls.
About the Author
I am a youth lector in the Archdiocese of San Fernando, Philippines, and an aspiring catechist. As I grow up, I noticed the lack of Christian formation and education among the majority my fellow youth and sadly even majority of the elders. This was the result the decades or even centuries-long lack of religious focus on formation and catechesis among Filipinos even though the Philippines is a Catholic nation. Until the present days, catechists are becoming less and less and have lack of formation of significant aspects of Church education such as doctrine, history, etc. I started writing short Catholic blogs that focuses on education and catechesis on my effort to fill this gap even with the expense of my own money and without compensation.
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