On Matters of Revelation, Baptism, and Authority: Part 2
Continuing our conversation, we
see that Jesus also tells His Apostles to baptize all the nations. Why
is this the case? Well, as Catholics, we know that Baptism is one the
Sacraments of initiation into the Church, the family of God. Through
Baptism, the washing of regeneration, original sin is washed away and
God's grace, supernatural life, is infused into our souls. In fact, the
Apostle Paul notes in Colossians 2:11-12 that Baptism is the fulfillment
of the Old Testament rite of circumcision where the infant would be
entered into the covenant family. So, following Saint Paul's logic, we
see that Baptism is the rite of initiation into the New Covenant family
for "Baptism... now saves you" as 1st Peter 3:21 declares.
Some might object at this point, saying that Baptism doesn't save us (in direct opposition to the verse I just quoted). These people might say that Christ saves us and not any works that we do. However, as we have seen, the New Testament clearly says that Baptism saves us and therefore, Baptism is not a work that is unable to save us. Truly, Baptism is a Divine work, a Sacrament instituted by Christ Himself to accomplish what He promised it would, that is, the washing of regeneration. God works in and through the Sacrament of Baptism to accomplish this, much like He works in and through the free will of a medical doctor to accomplish the healing and treatment of a patient. Much more will be said about Baptism and the other Sacraments in this blog in future posts but the points I have brought up should suffice for now.
Now, let's get back to the subject of authority and the transmission of Divine Revelation. We know that the Church Christ established is not a mere human establishment dependent on human effort for its existence and preservation but truly is protected by the guidance of the Holy Ghost, overshadowing God's Church here on Earth and protecting Her from heresy and apostasy. Jesus Christ gave His Apostles the authority to teach the nations the Divine Revelation He had given to them. In the rest of the New Testament, we see them doing exactly this. In Acts 2, we see the Apostles, with Simon Peter at the forefront, proclaiming the truth of Christianity to the world and baptizing thousands of new converts. Also, in Acts 2:42, we read that the Christian people "devoted themselves to the teaching of the Apostles." This fact shows us that the Apostles were the Church authority in the institution established by Christ. All Christians had recourse to them for questions concerning matters of faith and morals.
In Acts 6:1-7, the Apostles, recognizing the need to appoint new men to the ministry of the Church, selected seven upright and holy men who came before the Apostles. The Apostles of Christ then prayed over these men and finally laid their hands on them, ordaining them as ministers of the New Covenant people. In this passage, we see most clearly the reality of Apostolic succession, the ordination of men by the Apostles themselves to the service of the Church. In turn, these men would one day ordain new men by the laying on of hands and thus the eternal mission of the Church would be promulgated and would endure throughout the ages. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church puts it:
"In order that the full and living Gospel might always be preserved in the Church the apostles left bishops as their successors. They gave them their own position of teaching authority. Indeed, the apostolic preaching, which is expressed in a special way in the inspired books, was to be preserved in a continuous line of succession until the end of time."
So, in the Church that Christ founded, the authority lies first and foremost in Jesus Christ Himself who is the Head of the whole Church. However, the story doesn't end here. We know that Christ, in His infinite wisdom and care, didn't leave us stranded here as orphans to wander about in the dark but gave us visible, concrete authorities to find and to hear the truths of God's Revelation. As Catholics, we believe that the visible head and steward of Christ here on Earth is the Bishop of Rome who we commonly call the Pope, the office held by Simon Peter and his successors leading up to this very day. Let's continue our investigation into the New Testament's exposition of authority in the Church.
In Acts 15, Paul and Barnabas confront the Judaizer heresy which taught that Christians were obligated to keep the old Mosaic law in order to be saved. Because of the intense debates and controversies that ensued because of this heretical teaching, Paul, Barnabas, and some other men determined to go to the Apostles themselves and the presbyters who were Jerusalem in order to receive teaching from the Church authorities established by Christ in regards to this heresy. We see that after much debating, Simon Peter stood up in the midst of all the men and began to speak. He says, "My brothers, you are well aware that from early days God made His choice among you that through my mouth the Gentiles would hear the word of the Gospel and believe." Peter then declares with authority that we are saved by the grace of Jesus Christ and not by the Old Covenant practices, thus ending the controversy that was occurring in the Church.
This instance calls to mind the dialogue between Christ and Peter that took place in John 21:15-17 where Our Lord tells Simon Peter to "Feed my lambs", to "Tend my sheep", and to "Feed my sheep." In these three statements, Peter's role as shepherd of the whole Church is quite clear. Christ, who is the Good Shepherd, delegates to Peter the role as shepherd here on Earth of the Church, to nourish with pure doctrine and practice the people of God. In fact, the primacy of Peter among the Apostles is very evident in Scripture and in the testimony of the early Church Fathers. Referring to the role of Peter as we see it in the Book of Acts, Anglican Historian and author J.N.D. Kelly writes:
"Peter was the undisputed leader of the youthful church. It was he who presided over the choice of a successor to Judas (Acts 1:15-26), who explained to the crowd the meaning of Pentecost (Acts 2:14-40), who healed the lame beggar at the Temple (Acts 3:1-10), who pronounced sentence on Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11), and who opened the church to Gentiles by having Cornelius baptized without undergoing circumcision (Acts 10:9-48). He was to the fore in preaching, defending the new movement, working miracles of healing, and visiting newly established Christian communities."
In our next post, we will complete this discussion, looking at some more details and then pulling our little discussion to a close.
Some might object at this point, saying that Baptism doesn't save us (in direct opposition to the verse I just quoted). These people might say that Christ saves us and not any works that we do. However, as we have seen, the New Testament clearly says that Baptism saves us and therefore, Baptism is not a work that is unable to save us. Truly, Baptism is a Divine work, a Sacrament instituted by Christ Himself to accomplish what He promised it would, that is, the washing of regeneration. God works in and through the Sacrament of Baptism to accomplish this, much like He works in and through the free will of a medical doctor to accomplish the healing and treatment of a patient. Much more will be said about Baptism and the other Sacraments in this blog in future posts but the points I have brought up should suffice for now.
Now, let's get back to the subject of authority and the transmission of Divine Revelation. We know that the Church Christ established is not a mere human establishment dependent on human effort for its existence and preservation but truly is protected by the guidance of the Holy Ghost, overshadowing God's Church here on Earth and protecting Her from heresy and apostasy. Jesus Christ gave His Apostles the authority to teach the nations the Divine Revelation He had given to them. In the rest of the New Testament, we see them doing exactly this. In Acts 2, we see the Apostles, with Simon Peter at the forefront, proclaiming the truth of Christianity to the world and baptizing thousands of new converts. Also, in Acts 2:42, we read that the Christian people "devoted themselves to the teaching of the Apostles." This fact shows us that the Apostles were the Church authority in the institution established by Christ. All Christians had recourse to them for questions concerning matters of faith and morals.
In Acts 6:1-7, the Apostles, recognizing the need to appoint new men to the ministry of the Church, selected seven upright and holy men who came before the Apostles. The Apostles of Christ then prayed over these men and finally laid their hands on them, ordaining them as ministers of the New Covenant people. In this passage, we see most clearly the reality of Apostolic succession, the ordination of men by the Apostles themselves to the service of the Church. In turn, these men would one day ordain new men by the laying on of hands and thus the eternal mission of the Church would be promulgated and would endure throughout the ages. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church puts it:
"In order that the full and living Gospel might always be preserved in the Church the apostles left bishops as their successors. They gave them their own position of teaching authority. Indeed, the apostolic preaching, which is expressed in a special way in the inspired books, was to be preserved in a continuous line of succession until the end of time."
So, in the Church that Christ founded, the authority lies first and foremost in Jesus Christ Himself who is the Head of the whole Church. However, the story doesn't end here. We know that Christ, in His infinite wisdom and care, didn't leave us stranded here as orphans to wander about in the dark but gave us visible, concrete authorities to find and to hear the truths of God's Revelation. As Catholics, we believe that the visible head and steward of Christ here on Earth is the Bishop of Rome who we commonly call the Pope, the office held by Simon Peter and his successors leading up to this very day. Let's continue our investigation into the New Testament's exposition of authority in the Church.
In Acts 15, Paul and Barnabas confront the Judaizer heresy which taught that Christians were obligated to keep the old Mosaic law in order to be saved. Because of the intense debates and controversies that ensued because of this heretical teaching, Paul, Barnabas, and some other men determined to go to the Apostles themselves and the presbyters who were Jerusalem in order to receive teaching from the Church authorities established by Christ in regards to this heresy. We see that after much debating, Simon Peter stood up in the midst of all the men and began to speak. He says, "My brothers, you are well aware that from early days God made His choice among you that through my mouth the Gentiles would hear the word of the Gospel and believe." Peter then declares with authority that we are saved by the grace of Jesus Christ and not by the Old Covenant practices, thus ending the controversy that was occurring in the Church.
This instance calls to mind the dialogue between Christ and Peter that took place in John 21:15-17 where Our Lord tells Simon Peter to "Feed my lambs", to "Tend my sheep", and to "Feed my sheep." In these three statements, Peter's role as shepherd of the whole Church is quite clear. Christ, who is the Good Shepherd, delegates to Peter the role as shepherd here on Earth of the Church, to nourish with pure doctrine and practice the people of God. In fact, the primacy of Peter among the Apostles is very evident in Scripture and in the testimony of the early Church Fathers. Referring to the role of Peter as we see it in the Book of Acts, Anglican Historian and author J.N.D. Kelly writes:
"Peter was the undisputed leader of the youthful church. It was he who presided over the choice of a successor to Judas (Acts 1:15-26), who explained to the crowd the meaning of Pentecost (Acts 2:14-40), who healed the lame beggar at the Temple (Acts 3:1-10), who pronounced sentence on Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11), and who opened the church to Gentiles by having Cornelius baptized without undergoing circumcision (Acts 10:9-48). He was to the fore in preaching, defending the new movement, working miracles of healing, and visiting newly established Christian communities."
In our next post, we will complete this discussion, looking at some more details and then pulling our little discussion to a close.
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