Day 267: The Church as Mother and Teacher

The Roman Pontiff and the bishops are "authentic teachers, that is, teachers endowed with the authority of Christ, who preach the faith to the people entrusted to them, the faith to be believed and put into practice." The ordinary and universal Magisterium of the Pope and the bishops in communion with him teach the faithful the truth to believe, the charity to practice, and the beatitude to hope for. CCC 2034

In today's reading, the Catechism discusses the Church as our Mother and Teacher. The Church is the "pillar and bulwark of the truth" (1 Tim 3:15). St. Peter is given unique authority (the keys) and is described as the rock on which the Church is built; he is the visible head on earth, or Vicar of Christ (Matt 16:18-19), with Jesus Christ being the ultimate Head (Col 1:18). The Pope is the Successor to St. Peter as the Bishop of Rome. Together with the bishops in communion with him, via the authority given through Apostolic Succession, they are elders and shepherds of the faithful in the Church (Acts 20:28). Therefore, guided by the Holy Spirit, they have a chief role in safeguarding the Deposit of Faith, including the moral teachings of the faith (Matt 28:19-20).

The Catechism Compendium summarizes how the Church nourishes the moral lives of Christians:

The Church is the community in which the Christian receives the Word of God, the teachings of the “Law of Christ” (Galatians 6:2), and the grace of the sacraments. Christians are united to the Eucharistic sacrifice of Christ in such a way that their moral life is an act of spiritual worship; and they learn the example of holiness from the Virgin Mary and the lives of the Saints. (#429)

The Catechism Companion Vol III has some good commentary on this:

If the Church is our mother and teacher - and she is - then we have to allow her to care for us and teach us. We are made to have a personal relationship with Jesus, but not a private one. Each of us is called to be part of the Body of Christ... The Church is not our teacher and mother to lord it over us but to feed us and lead us and help us become holy. From the Church, we receive the sacraments... When we do God's will, give him our obedience, and live mercy and love, that is an act of worship to the Father. (p. 50)

Pictured here is the First Vatican Council (1869-1870). Ecumenical councils are an exercise of the Church extraordinary Magisterium or teaching authority (CCC 2033). (p. 51)