Please note that the content of this book primarily consists of articles
available from Wikipedia or other free sources online. The invisible
church or church invisible is a theological concept of an "invisible"
body of the elect who are known only to God, in contrast to the "visible
church"-that is, the institutional body on earth which preaches the
gospel and administers the sacraments. Every member of the invisible
church is saved, while the visible church contains some individuals who
are saved and others who are unsaved. This concept has been attributed
to St Augustine of Hippo as part of his refutation of the Donatist sect.
He was strongly influenced by the Platonist belief that true reality is
invisible and that, if the visible reflects the invisible, it does so
only partially and imperfectly. Others question whether Augustine really
held to some form of an "invisible true Church" concept.
