Extended Church Family

“I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church…”, starts the third paragraph of the Apostles’ Creed. Catholic in this sense has nothing to do with today’s Roman Catholic Church. In today’s Reading 1 Peter 5:1-14 Rome is referred to as “Babylon” and the parish there cannot claim authority over others but individuals send encouraging letters to “sister churches”. “Catholic” is just another word for “Ecumenical”. So the catholic church we are looking at here is the body of Christ in its entirety, not limited to a specific branch of Christianity.
Here is the good news: Christians are never alone: “Be firm in your faith and resist him, because you know that other believers in all the world are going through the same kind of sufferings.”
Your extended church family has your back – not matter what.