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Article: Inflated papacy is stumbling block to unity. (part 6)(Upon This Rock)
- Article from:
- National Catholic Reporter
- Article date:
- November 14, 1997
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1997 National Catholic Reporter. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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The papal role has grown over time, concentrating ever more power in one man and his "court"--the curia.
The sole gospel text to use the word church is Matthew 16:18. For many scripture scholars, this text means that Peter's primacy is one of service, not of jurisdiction. And nothing in the New Testament indicates that Peter was to have a successor. The early church was a loose federation of episcopal churches. Rome, together with Antioch, Alexandria and Jerusalem, gradually became a reference in matters of faith.
Polycarp, second century bishop of Smyrna, and his disciple Irenaeus, bishop of Lyons, attest to the growing role of the Petrine church as ...