[Destro]

Perhaps... but Columbanus' letter to Boniface does not suggest any unreserved subservience, either -- as just one important example of the Celtic's Church's essential independence of action. Is that not the Orthodox position of recognizing the Pope as first amongst equals? The Celtic Rite was such an autocephalous church rite in fact if not in theory (no way for Rome or Constantinople to get messengers there easy). The Anglo-Saxon Church was under the Latin Orthodox Rite (i.e. pre schisim Latins).

[OrthodoxPresbyterian]

Perhaps... but Columbanus' letter to Boniface does not suggest any unreserved subservience, either -- as just one important example of the Celtic's Church's essential independence of action. ~~ Is that not the Orthodox position of recognizing the Pope as first amongst equals? The Celtic Rite was such an autocephalous church rite in fact if not in theory (no way for Rome or Constantinople to get messengers there easy). The Anglo-Saxon Church was under the Latin Orthodox Rite (i.e. pre schisim Latins).

Well, yeah, since you put it that way, no debate here. I acknowledged from Post #26 that the Celtic Church's ecclesiology was Greek Orthodox in character; I've never claimed it was closer to Presbyterianism by any means. My discussion of the Celtic Fathers' published beliefs has focused on their salvific theology and sacramentology, not their ecclesiology -- which was demonstrably Greek-derived.

If you check out Wylie's "History of the Scottish Nation" at the ElectronicScotland links, you'll find that he goes into the Scottish Church's ecclesial structure in a lot of depth -- now, you'll find that their episcopal structure was "lower church" than modern Orthodoxy, bishops way down and the village level and some presbyterian-esque federal structures in organization...

But on a "High Church" scale of 1 to 10, where Roman Papal-Monarchical governance is at a 10, Eastern Orthodox Espiscopal-Conciliar government at a median 5, Presbyterian federal-synod government at a 2 and Baptist independency at a 1, based on Wylie's extensive analysis I'd put the Celtic Church right at a 4... slightly "lower church" than modern Orthodoxy but still Episcopal in structure and Greek in character.

My discussion of the Celtic Fathers' published Theology, as I said, has focused on their soteriology and sacramentology -- and on that I have simply argued, that "They Said exactly what They Said."