Seeking Divine Mercy
The
Catholic
Church Hierarchy
There is no basis for
disputing the establishment of the hierarchal organization of the Catholic
Church. As scripture attests, since its
inception Jesus began establishing the growth of His Church and the assignment
of not only the apostles, but others appointed to spread the gospel. It is
clearly stated that the positions of Bishops, Presbyters, deacons and so on
where established by the apostles since the beginning. Saint James was the
First Bishop of
“…After
this the Lord appointed seventy (-two) others whom he sent ahead of him in
pairs to every town and place he intended to visit. He said to them, "The
harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest
to send out laborers for his harvest. Go on your way; behold, I am sending you
like lambs among wolves. Carry no money bag, no sack, no
sandals; and greet no one along the way. Into whatever house you enter, first
say, 'Peace to this household.' If a
peaceful person lives there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will
return to you.” (Luke Ch 10. 01-06)
23 “They appointed presbyters 5
for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, commended them to the
Lord in whom they had put their faith.” (ACTS
CH 14: 23)
“For every high
priest taken from among men is ordained
for men in the things that appertain to God, that he may offer
up gifts and sacrifices for sins: Who can have compassion on them that are ignorant
and that err: because he himself also is compassed with infirmity. And
therefore he ought, as for the people, so also for himself, to offer
for sins. Neither doth any man take
the honour to himself, but he that is called by God, as Aaron was. So Christ
also did not glorify himself that he might be made a high priest: but he that
said unto him: Thou art my Son:
this day have I begotten thee. As he saith also in another place: Thou art a priest for ever,
according to the order of Melchisedech. Who in the days of his flesh, with a strong cry and tears, offering
up prayers and supplications to him that was able to save
him from death, was heard for his reverence.
And whereas indeed he was the Son of God, he
learned obedience by the things which he suffered. And being consummated, he became, to all that obey him, the cause
of eternal salvation: Called by God
a high priest, according to the order of Melchisedech.” (Hebrews CH5; 1-10)
“For this reason I left you in Crete so
that you might set right what remains to be done and appoint presbyters in
every town, as I directed you, on condition that a man be blameless, married
only once, with believing children who are not accused of licentiousness or
rebellious. For a bishop as God's steward must be blameless, not arrogant, not
irritable, not a drunkard, not aggressive, not greedy for sordid gain, but
hospitable, a lover of goodness, temperate, just, holy, and self-controlled, holding
fast to the true message as taught so that he will be able both to exhort with
sound doctrine and to refute opponents.” (TITUS CH 01: 5-9)
“Whereas our more presentable parts do not need this. But
God has so constructed the body as to give greater honor to a part that is
without it, so that there may be no division in the body, but that the parts
may have the same concern for one another. If (one) part suffers, all the parts suffer
with it; if one part is honored, all the parts share its joy. Now you are
Christ's body, and individually parts of it. Some people God has designated in
the church to be, first, apostles; second, prophets; third, teachers; then,
mighty deeds; then, gifts of healing, assistance, administration, and varieties
of tongues.” (1 Corinthians CH 12; 24-28)
Comparing
verses from the New Testament to Old Testament and Compare the symbol of the
keys with that in the following:
Old
Testament; “In that day I will call my servant Eli'akim
the son of Hilki'ah, and I will clothe him with your
robe, and will bind your girdle on him, and will commit your authority to his
hand; and he shall be a father to the inhabitants of
Note: the
power of `loosing and binding' in heaven and on earth...
New
Testament: Jesus said;
“……I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall
not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven.
Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on
earth shall be loosed in heaven.” (Mat. Ch 16. 15-19)
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After establishing
Churches in various places, Peter set up his See (or place of authority) in the
capital of the Empire,
"But
who do you say that I am?" Simon Peter said in reply, "You are the
Messiah, the Son of the living God."
Jesus answered, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has
not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are
Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the
netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the
kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and
whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” (Mat. Ch 16. 15-19)
“…. Many
false prophets will arise and deceive many; and because of the increase of
evildoing, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who perseveres to the
end will be saved.”
(Mat. Ch 24. 11-13)
“…Keep
watch over yourselves and over the whole flock of which the holy
Spirit has appointed you overseers, in which you tend the
” After
they had proclaimed the good news to that city and made a considerable number
of disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to
Church Fathers
Irenaeus' Against Heresies Book III (c. 180 A.D.)
Topics you can refer to for the truth. The Heretics Follow
neither Scripture nor Tradition. A Refutation of the
Heretics, from the Fact that, in the Various Churches, a Perpetual Succession
of Bishops Was Kept Up.
Primacy of the Roman Church
Succession of the First Bishops of
From St. Clement of
Our apostles also knew, through our Lord Jesus Christ, and there would be
strife on account of the office(1) of the episcopate.
For this reason, therefore, inasmuch as they had obtained a perfect
fore-knowledge of this, they appointed those [ministers] already mentioned, and
afterwards gave instructions,(2) that when these
should fall asleep, other approved men should succeed them in their ministry.
We are of opinion, therefore, that those appointed by them,(3) or afterwards by
other eminent men, with the consent of the whole Church, and who have
blamelessly served the flock of Christ in a humble, peaceable, and
disinterested spirit, and have for a long time possessed the good opinion of
all, cannot be justly dismissed from the ministry. For our sin will not be
small, if we eject from(1) the episcopate(4) those who
have blamelessly and holily fulfilled its duties.(5) Blessed are those
presbyters who, having finished their course before now, have obtained a
fruitful and perfect departure [from this world]; for they have no fear lest
any one deprive them of the place now appointed them. But we see that ye have
removed some men of excellent behaviour from the
ministry, which they fulfilled blamelessly and with honour.
Continued at;
http://www.columbia.edu/cu/augustine...html#scripture
