[PetroniusMaximus]

***a single authority - e.g., papal - inherited from St. Peter and his successors - is necessary for true preservation from error?***

Good question, but consider this...

Why did the Jewish Christian church in Jerusalem disappear, (the o­ne James headed as alluded to in Acts 15, Gal.1&2 and Eusebius)?

The HQ of the Church was in Jerusalem. But that changed. Probably for prophetic reasons (Jerusalem was to be destroyed), the Holy Spirit ended that geographic work and started a new thing (in Antioch and Alexandria).

The point is - a geographic church tradition can end, it may fade out into apathetic formalism or it may drift into error. The Lord may then decide to cut that church (used in the wide geographic sense) off. An example of Jesus threatening this very thing is in Rev 2: 4-6.

Paul also warns that such a thing can happen in Rom. 11:17-24

From my point of view, it is a mistake is to assume that o­ne can be preserved from error by holding allegiance to a bishop of a specific geographic location (bishop of Rome). As we have seen above, there were churches which were threatened with being "cut off" or having their candle removed from the heavenly menorah.

Jesus was speaking to a church. Paul was speaking to a church (Rome in it's infancy) So the Roman church was warned of the danger of being cut off. They wouldn't be warned of the danger of something if it was an impossibility.

And as a side point. The ECUSA is apostacising because they have rejected the authority of the Bible.

PS What is the RC position o­n the apostolic status of the Eastern Orthodox church?

[bethelgrad]

Yes! Much agreed with your assesment. It seems to me that the Holy Spirit has come full circle (literally) from Jerusalem 2000 years ago to China today. I don't think our light is out yet, but the future of the church definately lies in the East, as far as I can tell.

[ahadams2]

my appologies for the return shot I took at the geezer...it was meant only to give him a statement to contemplate that was at least as over the top as his own...

[TheGeezer]

PS What is the RC position o­n the apostolic status of the Eastern Orthodox church?

The RC Church regards the Eastern Orthodox as apostolic, having valid sacraments. RC canon law permits its faithful to celebrate Orthodox sacraments, but only in the case of dire necessity. However, many Orthodox bishops do not permit RC faithful to do so.

By the by, adherence to a specific geographic diocese is not why Roman Catholics see the bishop of Rome as their authoritative spiritual teacher. Rome became the see of Peter - after Peter left Antioch - and Peter's successors happened to stay in Rome. The succession simply started there (with good reason a the time). Since Christ bestowed a special teaching authority upon Peter (the keys of the Kingdom), and since Peter bestowed it upon his successor, that is how the RC Church remains free of theological error.

The Church at Jerusalem probably left, once it was forewarned of the destruction of Jerusalem by John's Apocrypha and perhaps other means.

All biblically based theology will soon become very unpopular, unfashionable (it already is, I think), and more hated than ever before by secular forces. Another post here yesterday reported what happened when a Baptist minister speaking at a Martin Luther King day service at the Atlanta MLK Memorial dared to say that MLK would be horrified by gay marriage. I believe she was condemned as bashing gays, when, of course, all she was doing was teaching some basic bible morality. The post provided better detail than this, but this was the gist of the story.

Anyway, let's pray for all to receive grace to withstand the coming persecutions.

Regards and God bless you.