This page has three major sections. The first two review the Catholic and then the Protestant perspectives on the Church. The third section deals with the question of why there are so many churches.
The term "Church" is used by Christians in two different, but closely related, ways. It can refer to all of Jesus' followers, viewed as a community. It can also refer to specific institutions, either the local congregation or a national or international body. It can even be used to refer to the building in which they meet.
The Church is important, because God does not save people in isolation. An important part of what needs to be restored is our relationship with other people. That can only be done by the community as a whole.
God most often reaches us through other people. Mother Theresa's statements about seeing God in the poor are just one example of a more general Christian principle. Because a large part of our problem is self-centeredness, a large part of the remedy is to learn to depend upon other people, to represent Christ to them and allow Christ to speak to us through them.
The Church is also the group with which we worship. As such it has the responsibility to preach the Word of God, and to administrator the sacraments. (See the section on worship for a discussion of the sacraments.) These are critical elements in maintaining our fellowship with God and each other.
The Church also has a responsibility to encourage its members to make spiritual progress, and to show their faith by their behavior, both through their ethics and their good works. This responsibility includes administering brotherly correction when someone errs. Traditionally the Church has felt a responsibility to discipline, and if necessary exclude, members whose public lives are not in keeping with the message of Christianity. Not all churches are equally careful about carrying this out. It is in fact one of the more difficult responsibilities to get right. It is very, very easy for Church discipline to lead to self-righteousness and intolerance.
Jesus referred to the Christian community with several metaphors. In one he said that he was
the vine, and all of his followers are the branches. In another, he referred to the church as his body. All of these images emphasized that his followers are spiritually united with him and with each other. One of the major problems today is that this union is not completely reflected in the way Christians act.
In this page, I will normally be using the term "Church" to refer to the universal Church. However I will sometimes use it to refer to individual communions such as the Catholic Church.
I. THE CATHOLIC PERSPECTIVE
The Catholic and Orthodox traditions see the church as the successor to the "Apostles" (Jesus' original followers). Jesus gave the apostles authority to lead the community and make decisions for them. He also gave an assurance that the community would be guided by the Holy Spirit, and would be protected.
Organization
By the end of the 1st Century, authority in the Church centered on bishops. Bishops were seen as successors to the Apostles. Bishops are consecrated by other bishops (normally at least three). So in principle every bishop can trace their authority back through an unbroken line of consecrations to the Apostles, and then Christ. This is referred to as the "Apostolic succession".
Currently bishops are normally responsible for a city and the surrounding territory. Of course the exact area depends upon population density and other considerations.
Bishops have several different kinds of authority and responsibility. They have the responsibility for maintaining proper doctrine in the area for which they are responsible. They are responsible for the proper conduct of the sacraments. They normally conduct certain sacraments (e.g. confirmation) personally. In other cases they delegate the authority to priests.
During the first few centuries, certain bishops developed greater prestige than others. This was often because of the history or role of their cities. The bishops of these key cities have special leadership responsibilities. In the East, they are referred to as "patriarchs". In the West, the bishop of Rome is regarded as the preeminent bishop. He is normally referred to as the "Pope". (Note that "pope" is another word for patriarch. In principle any patriarch can be referred to as a pope. However currently this would be so confusing that the term pope is normally reserved for the bishop of Rome.)
The Pope has two conceptually separate roles: First, he is the patriarch of the Roman Catholic Church. As such, he is ultimately responsible for everything that happens in that communion. He makes key appointments and decisions, and can review any action.
In the Catholic tradition, the Pope is also seen as the spokesman for the Church as a whole. He has a special responsibility for maintaining proper doctrine and morals. As part of this responsibility, he or his representative chairs all ecumenical councils. He may also make authoritative doctrinal decisions on his own authority. Of course this authority comes from Christ. See the discussion below of Papal infallibility.
In principle the second role gives him leadership responsibilities over churches other than the Roman Catholic Church, i.e. churches of which he is not the patriarch. In such churches the Pope would not directly govern, but they would still be subject to his overall doctrinal leadership.
There are a few Eastern churches that accept this concept. (They are often referred to as "uniat" churches.) However the major Orthodox churches do not accept the Pope's idea of universal leadership. Many of them would accept him in some role of spokesman. But generally they do not accept papal infallibility, and they also believe that he has often attempted to make decisions for other churches that are properly the responsibility of their own leadership.
The Catholic and Orthodox traditions emphasize continuity in doctrine and in worship. Please see the latter parts of Why do Christians Believe This? for the role of tradition in developing and stabilizing doctrine. The bishops have a primary role as carriers of the tradition. They are expected to hold to the original faith as given to the Apostles, and also to work together and with the Pope (or all the patriarchs, for the Orthodox) to maintain common doctrine and practice throughout the Church.
The office of priest developed slightly later. Originally they were seen primarily as assistants to the bishop. Priests are typically responsible for an individual congregation or church. This isn't exact: Larger churches may have more than one, and sometimes a single priest may have more than one church. The priest is responsible for guiding the life of the congregation, and for conducting most normal sacraments. Priests are ordained by bishops.
Certain of the sacraments (e.g. communion) may only be performed by a priest or bishop. This is not just an issue of who has permission to do it. At ordination, a priest receives spiritual authority. Without that authority, the transformation of the bread and wine into Christ's body and blood in communion will not occur.
Authority
The term "Church" is used by Christians in two different, but closely related, ways. It can refer to all of Jesus' followers, viewed as a community. It can also refer to specific institutions, either the local congregation or a national or international body. It can even be used to refer to the building in which they meet.
The Church is important, because God does not save people in isolation. An important part of what needs to be restored is our relationship with other people. That can only be done by the community as a whole.
God most often reaches us through other people. Mother Theresa's statements about seeing God in the poor are just one example of a more general Christian principle. Because a large part of our problem is self-centeredness, a large part of the remedy is to learn to depend upon other people, to represent Christ to them and allow Christ to speak to us through them.
The Church is also the group with which we worship. As such it has the responsibility to preach the Word of God, and to administrator the sacraments. (See the section on worship for a discussion of the sacraments.) These are critical elements in maintaining our fellowship with God and each other.
The Church also has a responsibility to encourage its members to make spiritual progress, and to show their faith by their behavior, both through their ethics and their good works. This responsibility includes administering brotherly correction when someone errs. Traditionally the Church has felt a responsibility to discipline, and if necessary exclude, members whose public lives are not in keeping with the message of Christianity. Not all churches are equally careful about carrying this out. It is in fact one of the more difficult responsibilities to get right. It is very, very easy for Church discipline to lead to self-righteousness and intolerance.
Jesus referred to the Christian community with several metaphors. In one he said that he was
the vine, and all of his followers are the branches. In another, he referred to the church as his body. All of these images emphasized that his followers are spiritually united with him and with each other. One of the major problems today is that this union is not completely reflected in the way Christians act.In this page, I will normally be using the term "Church" to refer to the universal Church. However I will sometimes use it to refer to individual communions such as the Catholic Church.
I. THE CATHOLIC PERSPECTIVE
The Catholic and Orthodox traditions see the church as the successor to the "Apostles" (Jesus' original followers). Jesus gave the apostles authority to lead the community and make decisions for them. He also gave an assurance that the community would be guided by the Holy Spirit, and would be protected.
Organization
By the end of the 1st Century, authority in the Church centered on bishops. Bishops were seen as successors to the Apostles. Bishops are consecrated by other bishops (normally at least three). So in principle every bishop can trace their authority back through an unbroken line of consecrations to the Apostles, and then Christ. This is referred to as the "Apostolic succession".
Currently bishops are normally responsible for a city and the surrounding territory. Of course the exact area depends upon population density and other considerations.
Bishops have several different kinds of authority and responsibility. They have the responsibility for maintaining proper doctrine in the area for which they are responsible. They are responsible for the proper conduct of the sacraments. They normally conduct certain sacraments (e.g. confirmation) personally. In other cases they delegate the authority to priests.
During the first few centuries, certain bishops developed greater prestige than others. This was often because of the history or role of their cities. The bishops of these key cities have special leadership responsibilities. In the East, they are referred to as "patriarchs". In the West, the bishop of Rome is regarded as the preeminent bishop. He is normally referred to as the "Pope". (Note that "pope" is another word for patriarch. In principle any patriarch can be referred to as a pope. However currently this would be so confusing that the term pope is normally reserved for the bishop of Rome.)
The Pope has two conceptually separate roles: First, he is the patriarch of the Roman Catholic Church. As such, he is ultimately responsible for everything that happens in that communion. He makes key appointments and decisions, and can review any action.
In the Catholic tradition, the Pope is also seen as the spokesman for the Church as a whole. He has a special responsibility for maintaining proper doctrine and morals. As part of this responsibility, he or his representative chairs all ecumenical councils. He may also make authoritative doctrinal decisions on his own authority. Of course this authority comes from Christ. See the discussion below of Papal infallibility.
In principle the second role gives him leadership responsibilities over churches other than the Roman Catholic Church, i.e. churches of which he is not the patriarch. In such churches the Pope would not directly govern, but they would still be subject to his overall doctrinal leadership.
There are a few Eastern churches that accept this concept. (They are often referred to as "uniat" churches.) However the major Orthodox churches do not accept the Pope's idea of universal leadership. Many of them would accept him in some role of spokesman. But generally they do not accept papal infallibility, and they also believe that he has often attempted to make decisions for other churches that are properly the responsibility of their own leadership.The Catholic and Orthodox traditions emphasize continuity in doctrine and in worship. Please see the latter parts of Why do Christians Believe This? for the role of tradition in developing and stabilizing doctrine. The bishops have a primary role as carriers of the tradition. They are expected to hold to the original faith as given to the Apostles, and also to work together and with the Pope (or all the patriarchs, for the Orthodox) to maintain common doctrine and practice throughout the Church.
The office of priest developed slightly later. Originally they were seen primarily as assistants to the bishop. Priests are typically responsible for an individual congregation or church. This isn't exact: Larger churches may have more than one, and sometimes a single priest may have more than one church. The priest is responsible for guiding the life of the congregation, and for conducting most normal sacraments. Priests are ordained by bishops.
Certain of the sacraments (e.g. communion) may only be performed by a priest or bishop. This is not just an issue of who has permission to do it. At ordination, a priest receives spiritual authority. Without that authority, the transformation of the bread and wine into Christ's body and blood in communion will not occur.
Authority
0 comments:
Post a Comment