, you have
good reason to suspect it is not the Church of Our Lord--not the true
Church. Again, poverty and riches belong only to this world and make a
distinction only here. The one who is poorest in this world's goods may
be richest in God's grace. Indeed, if most Protestants studied the early
history of their religion they would not be proud, but ashamed of it.
How little they would think of their ancestors who gave up God for some
worldly gain, while the Catholic martyrs gave up everything, even their
lives, rather than forsake God and the true religion.

133 Q. In which church are these attributes and marks found?
A. These attributes and marks are found in the Holy Roman Catholic
Church alone.

We have seen that some religions may seem to have one or two of the
marks; but the Catholic Church alone has them all, and is consequently
the only true Church of Christ. The other religions are not one--that
is, united over the world; they give no proof of holiness, never having
had any great saints whom God acknowledged as such by performing
miracles for them. They are not catholic, because they have not taught
in all ages and nations. They are not apostolic, because established
hundreds of years after the Apostles. They are not infallible, for they
have now declared things to be false which they formerly declared to be
true; they are not indefectible--they are not as Our Lord founded them,
for He never founded them; and they are constantly making changes in
their beliefs and practices.

The marks of the Church are necessary also because the Church must be a
visible Church, that all men may be able to see and know it; for Our
Lord said, "He that will not hear the Church, let him be to thee as the
heathen and the publican." (Matt. 18:17). Heathens were those who
worshipped false gods. Publicans were men who gathered the taxes from
the Jews for the Romans; they were generally very cruel to the people,
and were much hated and despised by them. Therefore Our Lord meant: if
anyone will not obey the Church, you should avoid him as you avoid the
heathens and the publicans, whom you despise. Now no one can be blamed
for not obeying a church that is invisible and unknown. Therefore the
true Church must be a visible body and easily known to all who earnestly
seek it as the Church of Christ. But if some shut their eyes and refuse
to look at the light of truth, ignorance will not excuse them; they must
be blamed and fall under the