The Holy Church

Set apart for God

In the Apostles’ Creed we say that we believe in the Holy Church.  ‘Holy’ is one of those words the meaning of which has grown during the years.  It began by meaning ‘set apart or separated for God’.  So the Jews of old had their holy days, like the Sabbath which was set apart from the other days of the week.

In the same way any place used for religious services was called a holy place.  The most famous holy place was the Temple at Jerusalem.  The innermost part of it was separated from the rest of the building by a curtain which was called the Holy of Holies.

Now just as places which were set apart for the worship of God were called holy, so also were the people.  Thus the people of Israel, whom God had chosen to work for him, were called a holy nation: “You shall be holy to me; for I the Lord am holy, and I have separated you from the other peoples to be mine” (NRSV, Leviticus 20:26).

So, when we say that the Church, or Society of God, is holy we mean that it has been set apart by Jesus himself as belonging to him in a special way.  Indeed, the Church is the only society which God himself has founded.

Separated from evil

When we call God holy we mean that he is separated from everything that is evil and wrong, and it is natural that those who belong to him should be holy in that way too.  That is why the word holy now means, not only belonging to God, but also separated as he is from everything that is bad.  Thus a holy person is one whose character is like God’s character. That brings us to the second reason why the Church is called holy, because it gives its members the power to become holy like God.