ENGLAND

england, church of). a large section of her members, accordingly, laying stress on this side of her tradition, prefer to call themselves "catholics." but, though the invention of the terms "roman catholic" and "roman catholicism" early implied the retention by the english church of her catholic claim, her members were never, after the reformation, called catholics; even the caroline divines of the 17th century, for all their "popish practices," styled themselves protestants, though they would have professed their adherence to "the catholic faith" and their belief in "the holy catholic church." clearly, then, the exact meaning of the term varies according to those who use it and those to whom it is applied. to the romanist "catholic" means "roman catholic"; to the high anglican it means whatever is common to the three "historic" branches into which he conceives the church to be divided--roman, anglican and orthodox; to the protestant pure and simple it means either what it does to the romanist, or, in expansive moments, simply what is "universal" to all christians. in a yet broader sense it is used adjectivally of mere wideness or universality of view, as when we speak of a man as "of catholic sympathies" or "catholic in his tastes." the name of _catholic epistles_ is given to those letters (two of peter, three of john, one of james, one of jude) incorporated in the new testament which (except 2 and 3 john) are not, like those of st paul, addressed to particular individuals or churches, but to a larger and more indefinite circle of readers. (see bible: _new testament, canon_.) the title of _catholicus_ ([greek: katholikos]) seems to have been used under the roman empire, though rarely, as the greek equivalent of _consularis_ and _praefectus_. thus eusebius (_hist. eccl._ viii. 23) speaks of the catholicus of africa ([greek: katholikon tes aphrikes]). as an ecclesiastical title it was used to imply, not universal (ecumenical), but a great and widespread jurisdiction. thus the bishop of the important see of seleucia (bagdad), though subordinate to the patriarch of antioch, had the title of catholicus and power to consecrate even archbishops; and on the division of the see there were two _catholici_ under the patriarch of antioch. in ethiopia, too, there were _catholici_ with less extensive powers, subject to the patriarch of alexandria. the title now survives, however, only as that of the head of the armenian church (q.v.). a bishop's cathedral church is, however, in greek the _catholicon_. an isolated use of the word "catholic" as a secular legal term survives in scots law; a _catholic creditor_ is one whose debt is secured over several or over all of the subjects belonging to the debtor.