Roman Catholic Church
Catholic means "universal" and the phrase Catholic Church refers to the single universal Christian church founded by Peter.
The term "The Catholic Church" refers to any one of several Rites, but in the United States is often used synonymously for the largest Rite, the Roman Catholic Church. Other Rites include the Byzantine, Alexandrian, Syriac, Armenian, Maronite, and Chaldean Rites. The Eastern rites have significant differences in liturgy, history, discipline and hierarchy from the Roman Catholic Church, but still recognize the primacy of the Bishop of Rome (the Pope) and are in communion with Rome.
These Eastern Rite churches are Catholic and do not belong to the Eastern Orthodox Church that split from the Catholic Church during the Great Schism of 1054.
"Catholic" can be opposed to "Protestant." Protestants regard themselves as Christians, but Catholics do not regard Protestants as authentically within the church established by Peter, and do not regard Protestant ministers as being validly ordained. Protestants would of course challenge this, but nevertheless agree that there is a wide separation between Protestant denominations and the churches that refer to themselves as "Catholic."
The Anglican Church (Episcopalian in the United States) occupies an odd situation, because it encompasses within it factions ("Low Church") that emphasize its Protestant aspects and factions ("High Church") that emphasize its Catholic aspects. Anglo-Catholics regard the Anglican church as part of the Catholic Church, and in the unbroken line of the Apostolic Succession. The Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern branches take a position that could be described as saying that the Anglican Church is almost but not quite Catholic. There have long been unification overtures, and Anglican priests who wish to adopt Catholic Holy Orders are often provided with an abbreviated path to that goal.
Controversy
There has been much controversy in recent years about Catholic priests in relation to the abuse of children in their care. Cases of pedophilia and ephebophilia have both been discovered in many churches across the world[1]. Many instances of abuse occurred over long periods of time, with little or no repercussion for priests involved. In some cases, bishops were aware of the abuse but did not effectively deal with it, allowing the abusive priest to continue to remain in contact with minors.
This issue is troubling to all Catholics, but not solely because some priests, about two percent, are taking advantage of their position of authority to entice children under the age of 18 into having sex. The problem is not strictly due to celibacy. There are scattered incidents on the other side of the Reformation divide. The married pastor of a large Protestant Megachurch in Bellevue, Washington recently resigned after similar allegations. What makes the Catholic ones so controversial is that some bishops are moving these priests around, pawning them off on unsuspecting parishes instead of taking them out of the ministry altogether. This has resulted in lawsuits that threaten to bankrupt entire archdioceses, bringing great discouragement to the faithful Catholic giver.
