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Have you ever wondered what happened to the early Christian
Church and Faith that Jesus Christ established with His Apostles?
Such a thing is difficult to find these days, as everyone you talk
to has a different idea of what Christianity is and should be. How
do you know which version to go with when the source of information
is the same but the explanation doesn’t match? In this article,
we’ll discuss “Apostolic Succession” because this is the primary way
we can link teachings and practices today back to what was taught
and practiced in the early Christian Churches.
What is Apostolic Succession and why is it important? It is the
direct, continuous, and unbroken line of succession transmitted to
the bishops of the Church by the Apostles. The bishops, who form a
collective body (that is the leadership of the Church), are
considered to be successors of the Apostles; and, consequently, the
duties and powers given to the Apostles by Christ are transmitted
through “the laying-on-of-hands” to the bishops and priests who
succeeded them by ordination to priesthood. Quite a mouthful, isn’t
it?
Not only that, but it is also a pretty tall order to expect
someone to be able to say (much less prove) that the person who
ordained them was ordained by somebody, who was ordained by somebody
else that traces all the way back to a particular Apostle. It is
much easier to say that a simple “laying-on-of-hands” was done and
prayers were said invoking the Holy Spirit to bless/ordain this or
that person as a Christian Spiritual Leader. The problem we run into
with the latter is any “Tom, Dick, or Harry” with a slight clue or
idea can do the same thing, and we usually don’t know if their
success or failure was the result of God or Satan in their lives and
ministry until late in the game.
Does following somebody without Apostolic Succession make it
impossible to find the way to salvation and eternal life? Absolutely
not, for the single reason that anything is possible with God. Is a
direct successor of the Apostles perfect? Again, no; no one lives
and does not sin. However, if you had to fix your car, would you
take it to the mechanic who just started his business or the
mechanic who comes from a long established and trusted line of
mechanics dating back to someone who helped to invent the first car?
It is the same way with Apostolic Succession and Christianity.
The Holy Spirit came upon the Apostles on the day of Pentecost
(Acts 1: 4-8), and the Apostles established a way to maintain
continuity in their inspired teachings to last through the ages. How
do you know what the Apostles and their successors say about things?
Great question and that is for future articles.
May the peace and love of our Lord, Jesus Christ, be with you now
and unto the endless ages. Amen.
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