# Who started the Catholic Church?

> The Catechism says Jesus inaugurated the Church and made Peter its rock. Westminster says Christ is the only head and the pope cannot be head. The fetched texts do not say Constantine founded it.

- Canonical: https://apologetics.wiki/christianity/who-started-the-catholic-church
- Religions: Christianity
- Denominations: Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Lutheran, Reformed, Anglican
- Beliefs: none
- Tags: church, papacy, peter, constantine
- Updated: 2026-10-09
- Author: [Paul Ambrose](https://apologetics.wiki/author/hi-its-paul) ([GitHub](https://github.com/hi-its-paul))


The [Catechism of the Catholic Church, 763](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P27.HTM) [(1)](#ref-1) says the Lord Jesus “inaugurated his Church by preaching the Good News,” and [Catechism 881](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2A.HTM) [(2)](#ref-2) says he “made Simon alone, whom he named Peter, the rock of his Church.” The [Westminster Confession, 25.6](https://opc.org/wcf.html) [(6)](#ref-6) says, “There is no other head of the church but the Lord Jesus Christ. Nor can the pope of Rome, in any sense, be head thereof.” The texts fetched for this page do not say Constantine founded the church. The page quotes the claims. It does not decide the papacy.

## Key points

- [Catechism 766](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P27.HTM) [(1)](#ref-1) says, “The Church is born primarily of Christ's total self-giving for our salvation, anticipated in the institution of the Eucharist and fulfilled on the cross.”
- [Catechism 881](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2A.HTM) [(2)](#ref-2) says the Lord gave Peter “the keys of his Church and instituted him shepherd of the whole flock.” [Catechism 882](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2A.HTM) [(2)](#ref-2) says the pope, “Bishop of Rome and Peter's successor,” is “the perpetual and visible source and foundation of the unity both of the bishops and of the whole company of the faithful.”
- [Matthew 16:18](/bible/matthew/16/18) [(9)](#ref-9): “thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church.”
- [Catechism 830](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P29.HTM) [(3)](#ref-3) quotes, “Where there is Christ Jesus, there is the Catholic Church.” Its footnote names Ignatius of Antioch, To the Smyrnaeans 8.2. The longer English sentence is on New Advent, not on a church domain.
- The [Orthodox Church in America](https://www.oca.org/orthodoxy/the-orthodox-faith/doctrine-scripture/the-symbol-of-faith/nicene-creed) [(5)](#ref-5) says the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed was “formally drawn up” at Nicea in 325 and at Constantinople in 381. That sentence dates the creed. It does not say Constantine founded the church.
- [Westminster 25.6](https://opc.org/wcf.html) [(6)](#ref-6) denies that the pope can be head. [Augsburg VII](https://bookofconcord.cph.org/en/augsburg-confession/chief_articles/article_vii/) [(7)](#ref-7) says the Church is “the congregation of saints in which the Gospel is purely taught and the Sacraments are correctly administered.”
- [Ephesians 2:20](/bible/ephesians/2/20) [(10)](#ref-10), [Colossians 1:18](/bible/colossians/1/18) [(11)](#ref-11), and [1 Corinthians 3:11](/bible/1-corinthians/3/11) [(12)](#ref-12) are the verses readers set beside Matthew 16 when they deny that Peter is the only foundation.

## What the Catechism says Jesus did

[Catechism 763](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P27.HTM) [(1)](#ref-1):

> The Lord Jesus inaugurated his Church by preaching the Good News, that is, the coming of the Reign of God, promised over the ages in the scriptures.

[Catechism 766](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P27.HTM) [(1)](#ref-1):

> The Church is born primarily of Christ's total self-giving for our salvation, anticipated in the institution of the Eucharist and fulfilled on the cross.

[Catechism 767](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P27.HTM) [(1)](#ref-1): “When the work which the Father gave the Son to do on earth was accomplished, the Holy Spirit was sent on the day of Pentecost in order that he might continually sanctify the Church.”

[Matthew 16:18–19](/bible/matthew/16), King James Version:

> And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

[Catechism 881](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2A.HTM) [(2)](#ref-2):

> The Lord made Simon alone, whom he named Peter, the "rock" of his Church. He gave him the keys of his Church and instituted him shepherd of the whole flock.

[Catechism 882](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2A.HTM) [(2)](#ref-2) says the pope “is the perpetual and visible source and foundation of the unity both of the bishops and of the whole company of the faithful,” and then: “For the Roman Pontiff, by reason of his office as Vicar of Christ, and as pastor of the entire Church has full, supreme, and universal power over the whole Church, a power which he can always exercise unhindered.”

That last clause is the Catechism’s sentence. [Catholic vs Protestant](/christianity/catholic-vs-protestant) sets it beside the Protestant articles. This page does not decide it.

## The word catholic in Ignatius

[Catechism 830](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P29.HTM) [(3)](#ref-3) says the Church is catholic because Christ is present in her, and quotes: “Where there is Christ Jesus, there is the Catholic Church.” Footnote 307 on that page names St. Ignatius of Antioch, Ad Smyrn. 8, 2. [Catechism 496](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P1K.HTM) places “St. Ignatius of Antioch at the beginning of the second century” in a different quotation, about the virgin birth. That is the date the Catechism gives. This page did not fetch a year from Ignatius’s own letter.

The Ante-Nicene Fathers English on [New Advent](https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0109.htm) [(4)](#ref-4), a third-party host, prints the longer sentence. The brackets are the translator’s:

> Wherever the bishop shall appear, there let the multitude [of the people] also be; even as, wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church.

The Catechism uses that sentence for the Church’s catholicity, Christ’s presence in her. It is not, on that page, a paragraph about the bishop of Rome.

## Nicea, Constantinople, and Constantine

The [Orthodox Church in America](https://www.oca.org/orthodoxy/the-orthodox-faith/doctrine-scripture/the-symbol-of-faith/nicene-creed) [(5)](#ref-5):

> The Nicene Creed should be called the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed since it was formally drawn up at the first ecumenical council in Nicea (325) and at the second ecumenical council in Constantinople (381).

The page spells the city Nicea. The sentence dates the creed. It does not say Constantine started the church. [Catechism 763](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P27.HTM) [(1)](#ref-1) and [Westminster 25.6](https://opc.org/wcf.html) [(6)](#ref-6) attribute the Church’s beginning and the Church’s head to Christ. Neither sentence names Constantine. This page did not fetch an Orthodox synod’s paragraph on the bishop of Rome. The OCA creed page is what was fetched.

The creed those councils drew up is the confession this site means by Christianity. [The Trinity](/christianity/the-trinity) quotes it. [What do Catholics believe?](/christianity/what-do-catholics-believe) and [What do Protestants believe?](/christianity/what-do-protestants-believe) quote the same Nicene sentences from the Catechism and from Westminster.

## What Protestant confessions say the church is

[Westminster 25.6](https://opc.org/wcf.html) [(6)](#ref-6):

> There is no other head of the church but the Lord Jesus Christ. Nor can the pope of Rome, in any sense, be head thereof.

[Westminster 25.1](https://opc.org/wcf.html) [(6)](#ref-6) calls the catholic or universal church invisible, “under Christ the Head thereof.” The confession uses “catholic” for the whole church. It refuses the pope as head.

[Augsburg VII](https://bookofconcord.cph.org/en/augsburg-confession/chief_articles/article_vii/) [(7)](#ref-7):

> Our churches teach that one holy Church is to remain forever. The Church is the congregation of saints in which the Gospel is purely taught and the Sacraments are correctly administered.

The same article: “For the true unity of the Church it is enough to agree about the doctrine of the Gospel and the administration of the Sacraments. It is not necessary that human traditions, that is, rites or ceremonies instituted by men, should be the same everywhere.”

[Article XIX](https://www.churchofengland.org/prayer-and-worship/worship-texts-and-resources/book-common-prayer/articles-religion) [(8)](#ref-8) says the visible Church of Christ is “a congregation of faithful men, in the which the pure Word of God is preached, and the Sacraments be duly ministered,” and then: “As the Church of Jerusalem, Alexandria, and Antioch, have erred; so also the Church of Rome hath erred, not only in their living and manner of Ceremonies, but also in matters of Faith.”

The verses readers set beside [Matthew 16:18](/bible/matthew/16/18) [(9)](#ref-9):

[Ephesians 2:20](/bible/ephesians/2/20) [(10)](#ref-10): “And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone.”

[Colossians 1:18](/bible/colossians/1/18) [(11)](#ref-11): “And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.”

[1 Corinthians 3:11](/bible/1-corinthians/3/11) [(12)](#ref-12): “For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”

[Matthew 16:16](/bible/matthew/16/16) is Peter’s confession in the same chapter: “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” The Catechism reads the rock as Peter and the office continued by the pope. These Protestant articles read Christ as the only head and the preaching of the gospel as the mark of the church. The page leaves both readings on the table.

## Frequently asked questions

### Did Constantine start the Catholic Church?

The Catechism says Jesus inaugurated the Church, that the Church is born from his self-giving on the cross, and that the Spirit was sent at Pentecost to sanctify it. Westminster says Christ is the only head. The OCA page dates the creed to the councils of 325 and 381. None of those fetched sentences says Constantine founded the church.

### Did Jesus found it on Peter?

[Catechism 881](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2A.HTM) [(2)](#ref-2) says the Lord made Simon alone the rock and gave him the keys. [Matthew 16:18–19](/bible/matthew/16) is the passage. [Westminster 25.6](https://opc.org/wcf.html) [(6)](#ref-6) says the pope cannot be head. [Ephesians 2:20](/bible/ephesians/2/20) [(10)](#ref-10) and [1 Corinthians 3:11](/bible/1-corinthians/3/11) [(12)](#ref-12) are the other texts readers cite.

### What does “catholic” mean in these texts?

[Catechism 830](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P29.HTM) [(3)](#ref-3) says the Church is catholic because Christ is present in her, and quotes Ignatius: “Where there is Christ Jesus, there is the Catholic Church.” Westminster 25.1 uses “catholic or universal” for the church under Christ and denies the pope that headship.

### Is the Orthodox Church the same claim?

The OCA page fetched here dates the creed. It does not contain a synod’s sentence on Roman primacy. This page did not fetch one. [What do Christians believe about Mary?](/christianity/what-do-christians-believe-about-mary) and [Is purgatory biblical?](/christianity/is-purgatory-biblical) quote an OCA clergy answer, and they name it as a clergy answer.

## The churches on this site

- [Catholic](/catholic)
- [Eastern Orthodox](/eastern-orthodox)
- [Lutheran](/lutheran)
- [Reformed](/reformed)
- [Anglican](/anglican)
- [Christianity](/christianity)
- [Catholic vs Protestant](/christianity/catholic-vs-protestant)
- [The Trinity](/christianity/the-trinity)
- [Common arguments](/common-arguments#christianity)

## Passages quoted on this page

### Ephesians 2:20

King James Version.

> And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;

### Matthew 16:16

King James Version.

> And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.

## Sources
Numbered to match the HTML References list. Item 1 is `#ref-1` under `#references`. Scripture links to the King James Version on this site.

1. [Catechism of the Catholic Church, 763](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P27.HTM) (English text on the Holy See’s website. Paragraphs 766 and 767 are on this same page.)
2. [Catechism of the Catholic Church, 881](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2A.HTM) (Paragraph 882 is on this same page.)
3. [Catechism of the Catholic Church, 830](https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P29.HTM) (The footnote on this page names Ignatius of Antioch, To the Smyrnaeans 8.2. Paragraph 496, which dates Ignatius to the beginning of the second century, is at https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P1K.HTM.)
4. [The Epistle of Ignatius to the Smyrnaeans, Chapter 8](https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0109.htm) (Ante-Nicene Fathers English, hosted by New Advent. The square brackets are the translator’s. The page is not a church domain. The Catechism’s shorter sentence is source 3.)
5. [The Nicene Creed](https://www.oca.org/orthodoxy/the-orthodox-faith/doctrine-scripture/the-symbol-of-faith/nicene-creed) (The Orthodox Church in America. The page spells the city Nicea.)
6. [Westminster Confession of Faith, 25.6](https://opc.org/wcf.html) (Published by the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. Paragraph 25.1 is on this same page.)
7. [Augsburg Confession, Article VII](https://bookofconcord.cph.org/en/augsburg-confession/chief_articles/article_vii/) (Concordia Publishing House English of the Book of Concord. Bracketed paragraph markers omitted.)
8. [Articles of Religion, Article XIX](https://www.churchofengland.org/prayer-and-worship/worship-texts-and-resources/book-common-prayer/articles-religion) (Church of England.)
9. [Gospel of Matthew, 16:18](https://apologetics.wiki/bible/matthew/16/18). King James Version
10. [Letter to the Ephesians, 2:20](https://apologetics.wiki/bible/ephesians/2/20). King James Version
11. [Letter to the Colossians, 1:18](https://apologetics.wiki/bible/colossians/1/18). King James Version
12. [First Letter to the Corinthians, 3:11](https://apologetics.wiki/bible/1-corinthians/3/11). King James Version

## See also
- [What do Catholics believe?](https://apologetics.wiki/christianity/what-do-catholics-believe) — Catholics confess the Nicene Creed, and the Catechism’s teaching on Scripture and Tradition, seven sacraments, the pope, Mary, and life after death.
- [Can you lose your salvation? What each church teaches about "once saved, always saved"](https://apologetics.wiki/christianity/once-saved-always-saved) — Can a Christian lose salvation? Official teaching from Catholic, Orthodox, Lutheran, Reformed, Baptist, Methodist, Pentecostal, and other churches, with the King James verses each side cites.
- [Catholic vs Protestant: what's the difference?](https://apologetics.wiki/christianity/catholic-vs-protestant) — Catholics are Christians. The difference is authority, justification, the sacraments, Mary and the saints, purgatory, and the pope, in each church’s own words.
- [How was the Bible canon decided, and what is the Apocrypha?](https://apologetics.wiki/christianity/what-is-the-apocrypha) — Trent receives the longer Old Testament and anathematizes refusal. Westminster says the books called Apocrypha are no part of the canon. The Catechism says the Church discerned the list by Tradition.
- [Is purgatory biblical?](https://apologetics.wiki/christianity/is-purgatory-biblical) — The Catechism teaches a purification after death for those who die in God’s grace but are still imperfectly purified. Westminster says Scripture acknowledges no third place for souls. Article XXII rejects the Romish doctrine of purgatory. An Orthodox clergy answer rejects purgatory and still prays for the dead.

## History
[View history on GitHub](https://github.com/Apologetics-Wiki/apologetics-wiki/commits/main/src/content/articles/who-started-the-catholic-church.md)