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Support for authority of church councils
Conciliarity
is the adherence of various
Christian
communities to the authority of
ecumenical councils
and to
synodal
church governance
. It is not to be confused with
conciliarism
, which is a particular historical movement within the
Catholic Church
. Different churches interpret conciliarity in different ways.
Catholic Church
[
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The government of the Catholic Church is essentially
monarchical
, both on a
papal
and
episcopal
level. Catholic doctrine does regard ecumenical councils as legitimate but extraordinary sources of authority. They can only be called by a pope. A pope can
prorogue
a council (as
Pius IX
prorogued the
First Vatican Council
in 1871). If a pope dies in the middle of a council the council immediately loses its source of authority. His successor must renew the council, as happened when
Pope Paul VI
succeeded
Pope John XXIII
in 1963, when the
Second Vatican Council
was sitting.
[1]
The decisions of an ecumenical council do not become authoritative until approved by the pope. Popes are not bound by the decisions of ecumenical councils, nor by the mandate to implement a council's decisions. However, since the decrees of an ecumenical council are regarded as expressing the mind of the Church and of Jesus Christ, a pope would not normally ignore a council. The decisions of ecumenical councils, approved by the pope, are binding upon all the
clergy
and
laity
, subject to papal regulation.
[1]
Lesser councils also play a part in the governance of the Catholic Church. The
Synod of Bishops
is an assembly of bishops which advise the pope in the government of the Church. On a national level, there is the
episcopal conference
, regulating national issues. These conferences do not, however, exercise authority over particular dioceses.
Eastern Orthodox churches
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]
Churches of the
Eastern Orthodox
communion
view ecumenical councils as the supreme norm of government.
[
citation needed
]
Protestant churches
[
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]
Protestant
communities tend to deny or downplay the authority of ecumenical councils, though many do adhere to synodal government.
This is not the case with
Anglicans
; the authority of the ecumenical councils is more firmly recognized by Anglo-Catholics (high-church Anglicans).
[2]
See also
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References
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Further reading
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]
- Fitzgerald, Thomas (1994). "Conciliarity, Primacy and the Episcopacy".
St. Vladimir's Theological Quarterly
.
38
(1): 17?43.