Latin Christians
 Latin Church |
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|---|---|
| Latin: Ecclesia Latina | |
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| Type | Particular church (sui iuris) |
| Classification | Catholic |
| Orientation | Western Christianity |
| Polity | Episcopal |
| Head | Pope Francis |
| Language | Ecclesiastical Latin |
| Liturgy | Latin liturgical rites |
| Headquarters | Vatican City, Rome, Italy |
| Origin | 1st century, according to Catholic tradition |
| Branched from | Church of the East under Church of Assyria and Mosul (1552) Eastern Catholicism (Various) |
| Separations |
Protestantism (1517) 'Old' Catholicism (1870) |
| Members | 1.197 billion (December 2011) |
| Official website | Holy See |
The Latin Church, sometimes called the Western Church, is the largest part of the Catholic Church, governed directly by the Pope, tracing its history to the earliest days of Christianity. It represents the largest particular church sui iuris in full communion with the Catholic Church. Employing the Latin liturgical rites, with 1.197 billion members (2011), the Latin Church is considered to form the original and still major part of Western Christianity. It is headquartered in the Vatican City, enclaved in Rome, Italy.
Historically, the Latin Church is viewed as one of the five patriarchates - the Pentarchy - of early Christianity, along with the Patriarchs of Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem. Due to geographic and cultural considerations, the latter churches developed within the distinct Eastern Christian traditions. The majority of Eastern Christian churches broke full communion with the Latin Church, following various theological and leadership disputes, notably in the centuries following the Council of Chalcedon in 451 AD (Oriental Orthodoxy), and the East-West Schism of 1054 (Eastern Orthodoxy). Until 2005, the Pope claimed the title "Patriarch of the West", although retired this title for ecumenical purposes, while continuing to exercise a direct patriarchal role over the Latin Church.
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