Magisterium
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Magisterium (from the Latin magister, "teacher") is a technical ecclesiastical term in Roman Catholic Church referring to the teaching office, ability and authority of the Pope and those Bishops who are in union with him. According to Catholic doctrine, the Magisterium is able to teach or interpret the truths of the Faith, and it does so infallibly within the Sacred Magisterium.
"The task of interpreting the Word of God authentically has been entrusted solely to the Magisterium of the Church, that is, to the Pope and to the bishops in communion with him." (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2nd ed. 1997, pt. 1, sect. 1, ch. 2, art. 2, III [#100]).
Roman Catholic theologians divide the functions of the magisterium into the sacred magisterium and the ordinary magisterium.
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[edit] Sacred Magisterium
The Catholic Church teaches that Jesus Christ, "the Word made Flesh" (John 1:14), is the source of divine revelation. The Catholic Church bases all of its infallible teachings on Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture. The Sacred Magisterium consists of only all the infallible teachings of the Church. "Wherefore, by divine and Catholic faith all those things are to be believed which are contained in the word of God as found in Scripture and tradition, and which are proposed by the Church as matters to be believed as divinely revealed, whether by her solemn judgment or in her ordinary and universal Magisterium." (First Vatican Council, Dei Filius 8.) However, the criteria for the infallibility of these two functions of the sacred magisterium are different. The sacred magisterium consist of both the infallible teachings of the Pope, the ecumenical councils, and the Ordinary and Universal Magisterium. (Despite its name, the "Ordinary and Universal Magisterium" is still part of the Sacred Magisterium.)
The Second Vatican Council states, "For this reason Jesus perfected revelation by fulfilling it through his whole work of making Himself present and manifesting Himself: through His words and deeds, His signs and wonders, but especially through His death and glorious resurrection from the dead and final sending of the Spirit of truth." (Dei Verbum, 4). The content of Christ's divine revelation, as faithfully passed on by the Apostles, is called the Deposit of Faith, and consists of both Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition (as John 21:25 states, "Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.").
The teachings of the Pope are infallible when he is speaking ex cathedra.
The infallible teachings of the ecumenical councils consist of the solemn dogmatic, theological, or moral definitions, as contained in declarations, decrees, doctrines, and condemnations (traditionally expressed in conciliar canons and decrees) of councils consisting of the Pope and the Bishops from all over the Church.
A teaching of ordinary and universal magisterium is a teaching of which all Bishops of the Church (including the Pope) universally agree on, and is also considered infallible.
[edit] Ordinary Magisterium
The ordinary magisterium includes fallible papal teachings, the teachings of individual bishops and groups of local bishops, and even concilar teachings which are not ratified by a solemn definition, even if these teachings take place within the context of an ecumenical council. (Catholic theologians and ecclesiastics generally agree that some councils made no such solemn judgments.)
The teachings of the ordinary magisterium are non-infallible. Such teachings are generally correct, as they are based on infallible Sacred Tradition, infallible Sacred Scripture, and the infallible teachings of the Sacred Magisterium. But some errors can be found within the ordinary teachings of the magisterium, and therefore, such teachings are reformable and revocable.
All magisterial teaching is derived from Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture (i.e., the Bible). The belief that God reveals his teachings to humanity via infallible Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture is one basis for infallibility; another basis is that the Holy Spirit guides the Magisterium. Catholics are obliged to believe all that is taught infallibly by the Magisterium with the assent of faith (fides divina), i.e. with the fullness of their faith. Catholics are, in general, also obliged to believe the non-infallible teachings of the Magisterium, but with a different type or degree of assent, called religious assent (obsequium religiosum).
When the bishops teach on matters of faith and morals in their capacity as bishops, they
“speak in the name of Christ and the faithful are to accept their teaching and adhere to it with a religious assent (obsequium religiosum) of soul. This religious submission of will and mind must be shown in a special way to the authentic teaching authority of the Roman Pontiff, even when he is not speaking ex cathedra. That is, it must be shown in such a way that his supreme teaching authority is acknowledged with reverence, the judgments made by him are sincerely adhered to, according to his manifest mind and will.” (from Lumen Gentium, paragrph 25)
[edit] See also
[edit] Further reading
- Boyle, John P. Church Teaching Authority: Historical and Theological Studies, University of Notre Dame Press, 1995, ISBN 0-268-00805-1.
