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Fellowship Of Vocation

Fellowship Of Vocation

In the Church of Ireland, individuals who feel called to ministry in its widest sense are asked to meet together regularly in what is known as a "Fellowship of Vocation" in order to: 1. provide members with opportunities to meet together in worship and on social occasions. 2. enable them to discover their vocation for ministry. 3. help those who believe they are called to Ordination to prepare for the Bishops' Selection Conference.

Membership

A person becomes a member after consultation with their Rector who will recommend them to their Diocesan Director of Ordinands. However, membership implies no pledge to ordination either by the member of by the Bishop. After at least one year of regular participation in Fellowship events, members are able to apply to their Bishop for the next formal stage in their journey to Ordination, if that is how they feel called.

Rule Of Life

Members are asked to observe the following Rule of Life during their time as a member of the Fellowship: 1. to pray each morning and evening. 2. to regularly study and meditate upon the Holy Scriptures. 3. to be regular in attendance at public worship every Sunday. 4. to receive the Holy Communion at least once a month. 5. to giver personal service to Church, neighbours and the community. 6. to follow the example of Christ in home and daily life, and to bear personal witness to him.

Church of Ireland

The Church of Ireland is an autonomous province of the Anglican Communion, operating seamlessly across the border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. It is the largest Protestant Church on the island of Ireland and the second largest Protestant denomination in Northern Ireland. The church considers itself to be in direct succession to Ireland's ancient Celtic Christianity and the mediaeval Irish Catholic Church. When Henry VIII and the Church of England broke with the Pope, he took the Catholic Church in Ireland with him; and so the Church remains heir, in its cathedrals and churches, to much of the island's mediaeval heritage. Although the Catholic Church remained the church of the majority of the populace, the Church of Ireland was the established church until 1871.

History

The Church of Ireland claims that its origins go back to the ancient Celtic Church in Ireland, which was founded at Paris by disciples of St. Phillip c. AD 108 and expanded into Britain and Ireland shortly thereafter, however these claims are not left undisputed as the Catholic Church in Ireland has a longer history. Originally a form of Christianised Druidism, Saint Patrick was instrumental in the formal re-organisation of the Celtic Church two centuries later. A monastically-centred institution, the unique calendar and usages of the Celtic Church were slowly drifting in the direction of Catholic orthodoxy when they were forcibly abandoned in the twelfth century after the Anglo-Norman Conquest of Ireland. A parish- and diocese-centered model replaced the old monastic one. Hence it was the English (ironically, given their later policies) who brought the island firmly into the Roman fold, although the Celtic Church remained connected with the Holy See, she did have her own rites. In 1536 Henry VIII had the Irish Parliament declare him head of the Irish Church, so breaking with the Holy See. Later, in 1541, he had the same parliament declare him King of Ireland. When the Church of England travelled in a more Protestant direction under Edward VI so too did the Church of Ireland; unlike in England, however, Roman Catholicism remained the majority religion in Ireland. As before the Reformation, some clergymen of the Irish Church sat as Lords Spiritual in the Irish House of Lords; under the provisions of the Act of Union 1800, one archbishop and the three bishops chosen by rotation would be Lords Spiritual in the newly united United Kingdom House of Lords in Westminster, joining the two archbishops (Canterbury and York) and the twenty-four bishops from the Church of England. Though the religion of a minority of Irish people, it remained the official religion of Ireland, until its disestablishment by an 1869 Act of Parliament came into effect in 1871. Previously, it had been funded by tithes, taxes that all, whether Anglican or not, were obliged to pay to it. The representation of the Church in the House of Lords also ceased. To deal with its new situation, it made provision in 1870 for its own government (General Synod) and financial management (Representative Church Body). Like other Irish churches, it did not divide when Ireland was partitioned in 1920, and continues to be governed on an all-island basis, with twelve dioceses organized as two provinces (Armagh and Dublin).

The Church of Ireland today

The contemporary Church of Ireland, despite having a small number of High Church (often described as Anglo-Catholic) parishes, is on the moderately Protestant part of the spectrum of world Anglicanism. Historically, it had little of the difference in churchmanship between parishes characteristic of other Anglican Provinces, although a number of more markedly liberal, High Church or evangelical parishes have developed in recent decades. It was the second province of the Anglican Communion after the Anglican Church of New Zealand (1857) to adopt, on its 1871 disestablishment, synodical government, and was one of the first provinces to ordain women to the priesthood, in 1991. The Church is structured on a model inherited from pre-Reformation times. The Primate of All Ireland is the Archbishop of Armagh, whose seat is the medieval Saint Patrick's Anglican Cathedral, Armagh. (There is also a Roman Catholic Archbishop of Armagh and a Victorian Saint Patrick's Roman Catholic Cathedral, Armagh.) The Church is organised on diocesan or bishopric lines. Local parish clergy are usually, although not always, called rector. The Archbishop of Dublin, like his Catholic counterpart, is called the Primate of Ireland. The existence of two primates is quite unrelated to the political division of the island, predating this by several centuries; and the boundary between their provinces does not follow the political boundary. Canon law and Church policy are decided by its General Synod, and changes in policy must be passed by both the House of Bishops and the House of Representatives (Clergy and Laity). Important changes, e.g. the decision to ordain women priests, must be passed by two-thirds majorities. While the House of Representatives always votes publicly, often by orders, the House of Bishops has tended to vote in private, coming to a decision before matters reach the floor of the Synod. This practice has been broken only once, when in 1999 the House of Bishops voted unanimously in public to [http://www.ireland.anglican.org/archives/synods/synod99/synodnews/sectrepmot.html endorse the efforts] of the Archbishop of Armagh, the Diocese of Armagh and the Standing Committee of the General Synod of the Church of Ireland in their attempts to resolve the crisis at the Church of the Ascension at Drumcree, near Portadown. The current Archbishop of Armagh is His Grace Archbishop Robin Eames. (He is also called Lord Eames, having been appointed to the House of Lords as a life peer). The Archbishop of Dublin is His Grace Archbishop John Neill. The Church of Ireland experienced major decline during the 20th Century, both in Northern Ireland, where 75% of its members live, and in the Republic of Ireland. However, the 2002 Republic's census showed an unexpected increase of 30% in the Church of Ireland's membership, the first in almost a century. This is largely explained by the great number of Anglican immigrants who moved to Ireland, particularly from Africa; but some parishes, especially in middle-class areas of the larger cities, report a significant number of former Roman Catholics joining. The Church has two cathedrals in Dublin: within the walls of the old city is Christ Church Cathedral, the seat of the Archbishop, and just outside the old walls is St. Patrick's Cathedral, the Church's National Cathedral of Ireland. In recent decades the Church has closed many of its country churches and some historic churches in towns and cities, and has sold ancient buildings such as bishops' palaces.

Prominent Irish Anglicans

Prominent members of the Church of Ireland include or have included
- Samuel Beckett, playwright and Nobel Prize laureate
- Heidi Bedell, Irish Green Party councillor. Married to Trevor Sargent, and first cousin of U2 bassist, Adam Clayton
- William Bedell Stanford, former member of the Irish Senate (1948), Regius Professor of Greek in TCD from 1940-1980, and Chancellor of the University of Dublin from 1982-1984.
- George Berkeley, philosopher
- Jack Boothman, the first member of the Church of Ireland to have been elected president of the GAA
- Bono (real name Paul Hewson), lead singer with U2
- Phyllis Browne, author of "Thanks for the Tea, Mrs Browne", published by New Island Books. Married to the late Noel Browne, the Minister for Health famously remembered for the Mother and Child showdown of 1951
- Edmund Burke, statesman and philosopher
- Robert Burke, contested Dail elections in Galway for the Irish Labour Party from 1933-1948 when he was elected to the Upper House. Donated Toghermore House to the State, originally as a rehabilitation centre for TB patients.
- Ernest Blythe, Minister for Finance in W.T. Cosgrave's pro-Treaty government. Served as managing director of the Abbey Theatre 1941-67
- Edward Carson, Dublin-born Unionist - political leader and lawyer
- Roger Casement, humanitarian
- Erskine Hamilton Childers, fourth President of Ireland. His father was executed by a Free State firing squad in 1922
- Countess of Wicklow, Irish Labour Party Senator (1948-52) and member of the Irish delegation which helped to draft the statute of the Council of Europe. Although very critical about the partition of Ireland, she was one of the founders and first chairman of the Glencree Reconciliation Centre and she joined hands with the Peace Movement in NI in the mid-1970s.
- Susan Denham, the second most senior Supreme Court judge in Ireland (in terms of years served)
- Myles Dungan, RTE broadcaster, and convert to the Church of Ireland, after years of childhood abuse at the hands of the Christian Brothers.
- Robert Emmet, revolutionary
- George Fitzmaurice, writer
- Roy Foster, Professor of Irish history at Oxford University
- Johnny Fox, Former TD - father of Mildred Fox, currently an Independent TD for Wicklow
- Douglas Gageby, Former editor of the Irish Times and lifetime opponent of partition
- Alan Gillis, former president of the Irish Farmers' Association and former Fine Gael MEP. Among one of the very few MEPs to have spent time in prison, as a result of his involvement in the farmers' rights struggle of 1966.
- Henry Grattan, defender of Irish parliamentary independence
- TC Hammond, evangelist, later Principal Moore Theological College, Sydney
- Mary Henry, Senator (Trinity College)
- Rev Stephen Hilliard, Irish Times journalist and alleged IRA member, killed by an intruder in Rathdrum rectory
- Douglas Hyde, first President of Ireland
- Lady Valerie Goulding, Fianna Fail Senator and founder of the Dublin Remedial Clinic, which provided physiotherapy for children who had been disabled by polio. Converted to Catholicism in 1962
- Sean Lester, Director of Publicity at the Department of External Affairs (1924), Diplomat at the League of Nations, serving as its last secretary-general
- C. S. Lewis, scholar, author, Christian apologist
- Proinsias Mac Aonghusa, former vice-chairman of the Irish Labour Party. Broadcaster for Radio Eireann (1952), and for RTE, UTV and the BBC (1960s). Chairman of Bord na Gaeilge and was president of Conradh naGaeilge between 1989 and 1994
- Louis MacNeice, Poet
- Catherine McGuinness, a former Irish Labour Party senator who came to the Bar in middle age. Served as a judge of the Circuit Court (1994) and High Court (1996) before being appointed to the Supreme Court in 2000
- Sam Maguire Irish Republican and Gaelic Footballer
- Martin Mansergh, Fianna Fail Senator
- Van Morrison, Belfast born singer
- David Norris, Senator and gay rights campaigner
- Graham Norton, comedian
- Ivan Yates, Owner of Celtic Bookmakers and former Fine Gael cabinet member
- Sean O'Casey, playwright
- Jan O'Sullivan, Irish Labour Party TD and daughter of the late Ted Gale, (the well-known Limerick Leader journalist, and former treasurer of the National Union of Journalists)
- Charles Stewart Parnell, Home rule M.P.
- Howard Robinson, a successful businessman and banker, he created the City of Dublin Bank (commonly known today as the Anglo-Irish Bank), Father-in-law to Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland
- Trevor Sargent, leader of the Irish Green Party
- George Bernard Shaw, writer and Nobel Prize laureate
- William Sheldon, had the distinction of being the Independent TD on whom Eamon de Valera depended for an overall majority during the minority Fianna Fail government of 1951-1954.
- Richard Brinsley Sheridan, playwright
- Bram Stoker, creator of Dracula
- Jonathan Swift, writer (who served as Dean of Saint Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin)
- George Plant, Tipperary IRA man who was given a state execution in controversial circumstances, in 1942
- Theobald Wolfe Tone, eighteenth century revolutionary
- George Townsend, Church of Ireland clergyman who became the first Irish convert to the Bahá'í Faith in 1917
- Hilda Tweedy, founding member of the Irish Housewives' Association, an influential pressure group that spoke out about injustices and the needs of Irish women, inside and outside the home. Held high office in the IHA and the CSW (now the Women's National Council of Ireland). In 1975, International Women's Year, she led the Irish delegation to the UN meeting in Mexico and was a board member of the International Alliance of Women.
- James Ussher, scholar, Archbishop of Armagh
- Oscar Wilde, writer, but converted to Roman Catholicism on his deathbed.
- William Butler Yeats, poet and Nobel Prize laureate

External links

- [http://www.ireland.anglican.org Church of Ireland website]
- [http://www.irishangle.net IRISH ANGLE: Church of Ireland news] Ireland Category:Religion in Ireland Category:Religion in the United Kingdom ja:アイルランド聖公会

Ordination

:This article is about the clerical process. For other meanings, see ordination (disambiguation). Ordination is the process in which clergy become authorized by their religious denomination and/or seminary to perform religious rituals and ceremonies. While governed by the laws and procedures of the religious denomination, being ordained is often a requirement specified in state laws to officiate weddings. Other religious ceremonies that typically require ordination to perform include funerals and baptisms.

Bishop

A bishop is an ordained member of the Christian clergy who, in certain Christian churches, holds a position of authority.

Meaning of bishop

The etymology of the word bishop comes from the Greek word episkopos (επισκοπος), which can be generally translated as bishop, overseer, superintendent, supervisor, or foreman. From the word episkopos are derived the English words episcopacy, episcopate and episcopal.

Bishops in the New Testament

The New Testament uses the word episkopos five times.
- Acts of the Apostles 20:28
- Epistle to the Philippians 1:1
- First Epistle to Timothy 3:2
- Epistle to Titus 1:7
- First Epistle of Peter 2:25 Words related to episkopos are used in two other verses. Some English Bibles translate this word as bishop (KJV, RSV, NRSV, etc.), while others, attempting to distance themselves from certain types of church hierarchy, use a more neutral alternative, such as "overseers" (NIV, ESV, etc.). The ministry of these New Testament episkopoi was not directly commissioned by Jesus, but appears to be a natural, practical development of the church during the first and second centuries AD. The portions of the New Testament that mention episkopoi do not appear to be ordering a new type of ministry, but giving instructions for an already existent position within the early church. In places (particularly in the verses from the Epistle to Titus) it appears that the position of episkopos is similar or the same as that of presbyter (πρεσβυτερος), or elder, and, later, priest. The Epistle to Timothy mentions deacons (διακονοι) in a manner that suggests that the office of deacon differs from the office of the bishop, and is subordinate to it, though it carries similar qualifications. In the Acts of the Apostles, episkopoi are mentioned as being shepherds of the flock, imagery that is still in use today. The other passages from the New Testament describe them as stewards or administrators, and teachers. In 1 Timothy episkopoi are required to be 'the husband of but one wife'. It is unclear whether this forbids men who have married a second time in series, or polygamists. However, it is clear that the New Testament has no prohibition against bishops marrying and having children. It is interesting to note that in the second chapter of the 1 Peter, Jesus is described as 'the Shepherd and Episkopos of your souls' (τον ποιμενα και επισκοπον των ψυχων υμων).

Bishops in the Apostolic Fathers

At the turn of the first century AD, the church started to acquire a clear organisation. In the works of the Apostolic Fathers, and Ignatius of Antioch in particular, the role of the episkopos, or bishop, became more important.

"Plainly therefore we ought to regard the bishop as the Lord Himself" — Epistle of Ignatius to the Ephesians 6:1.
"your godly bishop" — Epistle of Ignatius to the Magnesians 2:1.
"the bishop presiding after the likeness of God and the presbyters after the likeness of the council of the Apostles, with the deacons also who are most dear to me, having been entrusted with the diaconate of Jesus Christ" — Epistle of Ignatius to the Magnesians 6:1.
"Therefore as the Lord did nothing without the Father, [being united with Him], either by Himself or by the Apostles, so neither do ye anything without the bishop and the presbyters." — Epistle of Ignatius to the Magnesians 7:1.
"Be obedient to the bishop and to one another, as Jesus Christ was to the Father [according to the flesh], and as the Apostles were to Christ and to the Father, that there may be union both of flesh and of spirit." — Epistle of Ignatius to the Magnesians 13:2.
"In like manner let all men respect the deacons as Jesus Christ, even as they should respect the bishop as being a type of the Father and the presbyters as the council of God and as the college of Apostles. Apart from these there is not even the name of a church." — Epistle of Ignatius to the Trallesians 3:1.
"follow your bishop, as Jesus Christ followed the Father, and the presbytery as the Apostles; and to the deacons pay respect, as to God's commandment" — Epistle of Ignatius to the Smyrnans 8:1.
"He that honoureth the bishop is honoured of God; he that doeth aught without the knowledge of the bishop rendereth service to the devil" — Epistle of Ignatius to the Smyrnans 9:1.

— Lightfoot translation.

It is clear that, by this period, a single bishop was expected to lead the church in each centre of Christian mission, supported by a council of presbyters (now a distinct and subordinate position) with a pool of deacons. As the church continued to expand, new churches in important cities gained their own bishop, but churches in the regions around an important city were served by presbyters and deacons from the bishop's city church. Thus, in time, the bishop changed from being the leader of a single church to being the leader of the churches of a given geographical area.

Bishops and civil government

The efficient infrastructure of the Roman Empire became the template for the organization of the church in the fourth century, particularly after the Edict of Milan. As the church moved from the shadows of privacy into the public forum it acquired land for churches, burials and clergy. In 391, Theodosius I decreed that any land that had been confiscated from the church by Roman authorities be returned. The most usual term for the geographical area of a bishop's authority and ministry, the diocese, began as part of the structure of the Roman Empire under Diocletian. As Roman authority began to fail in the western portion of the empire, the church took over much of the civil administration. This can be clearly seen in the ministry of two popes: Pope Leo I in the fifth century, and Pope Gregory I in the sixth century. Both of these men were statesmen and public administrators in addition to their role as Christian pastors, teachers and leaders. In the Eastern churches, latifundia entailed to a bishop's see were much less common, the state power did not collapse the way it did in the West, and thus the tendency of bishops acquiring secular power was much weaker than in the West. However, the role of Western bishops as civil authorities, often called prince bishops, continued throughout much of the Middle Ages.

Sovereign bishops

prince bishop The most important of these prince bishops was the Pope, who ruled as monarch of the Papal States by virtue of his title as Bishop of Rome. His claim to this fief rested on the forged Donation of Constantine, but in fact his authority over this kingdom in central Italy grew slowly after the collapse of Roman and Byzantine authority in the area. The Papal States were abolished when King Victor Emmanuel II took possession of Rome in 1870 and completed the reunification of Italy. This became a perennial source of tension between the Papacy and the government of Italy. In 1929, Pope Pius XI made a deal with the Fascist government of Benito Mussolini and became the independent sovereign of the Vatican, while giving up any rights to the rest of the former Papal States. He was recognised as an independent monarch by the Lateran Treaties, an authority the current Pope continues to hold. The only other bishop who is a head of state is the Bishop of Urgell, a Co-Prince of Andorra. Three senior bishops served as Electors in the Holy Roman Empire. By the terms of the Golden Bull of 1356, the Archbishops of Mainz, Trier, and Cologne were made permanent electors, who chose the next Holy Roman Emperor upon the death of his predecessor. The Archbishop of Mainz was President of the Electors and Archchancellor of Germany. Likewise, the Archbishop of Cologne was Archchancellor of Italy, and the Archbishop of Trier was Archchancellor of Burgundy. A number of other bishops within the Holy Roman Empire, although not being Electors, were sovereign prince-bishops in their own lands.

Bishops holding political office

As well as the Archchancellors of the Holy Roman Empire, bishops generally served as chancellors to mediaeval monarchs, serving as head of the justiciary and chief chaplain. The Lord Chancellor of England was almost always a bishop up until the dismissal of Thomas Cardinal Wolsey by Henry VIII. Likewise, the position of Kanclerz in the Polish kingdom was always a bishop until the sixteenth century. In France before the French Revolution, representatives of the clergy — in practice, bishops and abbots of the largest monasteries — comprised the First Estate of the Estates-General, until their role was abolished during the French Revolution. The more senior bishops of the Church of England continue to sit in the House of Lords of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, as representatives of the established church, and are known as Lords Spiritual. The Bishop of Sodor and Man, whose diocese lies outside of the United Kingdom, is ex officio a member of the Legislative Council of the Isle of Man. In the past, the Bishop of Durham, known as a prince bishop, had extensive viceregal powers within his northern diocese — the power to mint money, collect taxes and raise an army to defend against the Scots.

Episcopacy during the English Civil War

During the period of the English Civil War (or rather, Civil Wars), the role of bishops as wielders of political power and as upholders of the established church became a matter of heated political controversy. John Calvin formulated a doctrine of Presbyterianism, which held that in the New Testament the offices of presbyter and episkopos were identical; he rejected the doctrine of apostolic succession. Calvin's follower John Knox brought Presbyterianism to Scotland when the Scottish church was reformed in 1560. In practice, presbyterianism meant that committees of lay elders had a substantial voice in church government, as opposed to merely being subjects to a ruling hierarchy. This vision of at least partial democracy in ecclesiology paralleled the struggles between Parliament and the King. A body within the Puritan movement in the Church of England sought to abolish the office of bishop and remake the Church of England along Presbyterian lines. The Martin Marprelate tracts, applying the pejorative name of prelacy to the church hierarchy, attacked the office of bishop with satire that deeply offended Elizabeth I and her Archbishop of Canterbury John Whitgift. The vestments controversy also related to this movement, seeking further reductions in church ceremony, and labelling the use of elaborate vestments as "unedifying" and even idolatrous. King James I, reacting against the perceived contumacy of his Presbyterian Scottish subjects, adopted "No Bishop, no King" as a slogan; he tied the hierarchical authority of the bishop to the absolute authority he sought as king, and viewed attacks on the authority of the bishops as attacks on his own authority. Matters came to a head when King Charles I appointed William Laud as the Archbishop of Canterbury; Laud aggressively attacked the Presbyterian movement and sought to impose the full Anglican liturgy on each church. The controversy eventually lead to Laud's impeachment for treason by a bill of attainder in 1645, and subsequent execution. Charles also attempted to impose episcopacy on Scotland; the Scots' violent rejection of bishops and liturgical worship sparked the Bishops' Wars in 1639-1640. During the height of Puritan power in the Commonwealth and the Protectorate, episcopacy was abolished in the Church of England in 1649. The Church of England remained Presbyterian until the Restoration of Charles II in 1660.

Bishops in Catholic, Orthodox and Anglican churches

Although many Protestant churches have rejected the place of bishops in church leadership, churches rooted in tradition continue to ordain bishops to lead the church. Bishops form the leadership in the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, the Anglican Communion, and the Independent Catholic Churches. The traditional role of a bishop is as pastor of a diocese (also called a bishopric, eparchy or see). Dioceses vary considerably in their size of area and population. Some dioceses around the Mediterranean Sea which were Christianized early are rather compact; whereas dioceses in areas of rapid modern growth in Christian commitment, as in some parts of Sub-Saharan Africa, South America and the Far East, are much larger and more populous. Far East As well as traditional diocesan bishops, many churches have a well-developed structure of church leadership that involves a number of layers of authority and responsibility. ;Archbishop:An archbishop is the bishop of an archdiocese. This is usually a prestigious diocese with an important place in local church history. The title is purely honorific and carries no extra jurisdiction, though most archbishops are also metropolitan bishops. ;Metropolitan bishop:A metropolitan bishop is an archbishop in charge of an ecclesiastical province, or group of dioceses, and exercises some oversight over the other dioceses. Sometimes a metropolitan may also be the head of an autocephalous, sui juris, or autonomous church. ;Suffragan bishop:A suffragan bishop is a bishop subordinate to another. In the Roman Catholic Church this term is applied to all non-metropolitan bishops (diocesan and auxiliary bishops). In the Anglican Communion, the term applies to a bishop who is a full-time assistant to a diocesan bishop: the Bishop of Warwick is suffragan to the Bishop of Coventry (the diocesan), though both live in Coventry. Some Anglican suffragans are given the responsibility for a geographical area within the diocese (for example, the Bishop of Stepney is an area bishop within the Diocese of London). Diocese of London, Puerto Rico, is a Metropolitan Bishop. ]] ;Titular bishop:A titular bishop is a bishop without a diocese. Rather, the bishop is head of a titular see, which is usually an ancient city that used to have a bishop, but, for some reason or other, does not have one now. Titular bishops often serve as coadjutors or auxiliary bishops. In the Eastern Orthodox Church, bishops of modern diocese are often given a titular see alongside their modern one (for example, the Archbishop of Thyateira and Great Britain). ;Auxiliary bishop:An auxiliary bishop is a full-time assistant to a diocesan bishop (the Roman Catholic equivalent of an Anglican suffragan bishop). Auxiliaries are almost always titular bishops, and are often appointed as the vicar general of the diocese in which they serve. ;Coadjutor bishop:A coadjutor bishop is a bishop who is given automatic right to succeed the incumbent diocesan bishop. The appointment of coadjutors is often seen as a means of providing for continuity of church leadership. ;Honorary assistant bishop:This title is usually applied to retired bishops who are given a general license to minister as episcopal pastors under a diocesan's oversight. ;Primate:A primate is the bishop of the oldest church of a nation. Sometimes this carries jurisdiction over metropolitan bishops, but usually it is another honorific. An exarch is like a primate in the Eastern churches. The title Presiding or President Bishop is often used for the head of a national Anglican church, but this title is not usually associated with a particular episcopal see like a primate. The primate of the Scottish Episcopal Church is chosen from among the diocesan bishops, and, while retaining diocesan responsibility, is called Primus. ;Cardinal:A cardinal, although not until recently necessarily a bishop (e.g., Jesuit theologian Henri de Lubac), is usually a primate, patriarch or titular bishop within the Roman Catholic Church. Their primary duty is to elect the pope. ;Major archbishop:Major archbishops are the heads of some of the Eastern Rite churches in the Roman Catholic Church. Their authority within their sui juris church is equal to that of a patriarch, but they receive fewer ceremonial honors. ;Catholicos:Catholicoi are the heads of some of the Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches, roughly similar to a Catholic major archbishop. ;Patriarch:Patriarchs are the heads of certain ancient autocephalous or sui juris churches. Some of these churches call their leaders Catholicos; the patriarch of the Orthodox Church of Alexandria, Egypt, is called Pope. While most patriarchs in the Roman Catholic Church have jurisdiction, all Latin Rite patriarchs, except for the Pope, are honorary. Pope]]Bishops in all of these communions are ordained by other bishops. Depending on the church, there need to be two or three bishops for validity or legality. Apart from the ordination, which is always done by other bishops, there are different methods in different churches as to the actual choosing of a candidate for ordination as bishop. In the Roman Catholic Church today, the Congregation for Bishops oversees the selection of new bishops with the approval of the Pope. Most Eastern Orthodox churches allow varying amounts of more or less formalized laity and/or lower clergy influence on the choice of bishops. More information on this topic is needed. Only a bishop can ordain a bishop, priest, or deacon. In the Eastern Orthodox Church and in the Eastern Rite liturgical tradition, a priest may celebrate the Divine Liturgy only with the blessing of a bishop. An antimension signed by the bishop is kept on the altar partly as a reminder of whose altar it is and under whose omophorion the priest at a local parish is serving. The Pope of Rome, in addition to being the Bishop of Rome and head of the Roman Catholic Church, is the Patriarch of the Latin Catholic Church. Each bishop within the Latin Catholic Church is only answerable directly to the Pope and not any other bishop except to metropolitans in certain oversight instances. In the Roman Catholic and Orthodox Churches and the Anglican Communion, the cathedral of a diocese will have a special chair set aside for the exclusive use of the bishop. This is the bishop's cathedra, which is often called the bishop's throne. In some other Christian denominations, other churches besides the cathedral will maintain a chair for the use of a Bishop when he visits their parish. Catholic, Anglican, and Orthodox Christian bishops claim to be part of a continuous sequence of ordained bishops since the days of the apostles, the apostolic succession. However, since a bull of Pope Leo XIII issued in 1896, the Roman Catholic church has insisted that Anglican orders are invalid, because of that church's changes in the ordination rites. The Roman Catholic church does however recognize as valid (though illegal) ordinations done by breakaway Roman Catholic bishops, and groups descended from them, so long as the people receiving the ordination conform to other canonical requirements; this gives rise to the phenomenon of episcopi vagantes. Roman Catholics also recognize the validity of ordinations of bishops, priests, and deacons in the Orthodox churches. Some provinces of the Anglican Communion have begun ordaining women as bishops in recent decades. The first was Barbara Clementine Harris, who was ordained to the epsicopate in 1989.

Bishops in other churches

Some other churches, such as Lutherans, Methodists and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ("LDS Church"; see also Mormon), also have bishops, but their roles differ significantly from the Catholic, Orthodox, and Anglican ones.

Evangelical Lutheran Church in America

In the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, the largest Lutheran denomination in the United States, and based largely on the Church of Sweden and United Danish Church, bishops are elected by synod councils, consisting of both lay members and clergy, for a term of 6 years, which can be renewed, depending upon the local synod's "constitution" (which usually mirrors that of the national ELCA constitution). Currently, they are responsible for, since going into ecumenical communion with the Episcopal Church of the United States, with the ordaining of all pastors, consecrating all diaconal ministers, giving approvals to "roster" all current pastors (pastors are called by local congregations, like that of the Episcopal Church), and upholding the teachings of Luther, the ELCA and synod constitutions. The Presiding Bishop of the ELCA, the national bishop, is elected for a single 6-year term, and handles all episcopal consecrations, as well as presiding at the General Assembly, which is held every 2 years. A similar structure exists with the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Canada (ELCC).

United Methodist Bishops

Evangelical Lutheran Church of Canada In the United Methodist Church, bishops are administrative superintendents of the church; they are elected for life from among the clergy by vote of the delegates in regional (called Jurisdictional) conferences and, among their duties, are responsible for appointing clergy to serve local churches as pastor, for performing ordinations, and for safeguarding the doctrine and discipline of the Church. The Juridictional Conferences, meeting every four years, are comprised of an equal number of clergy and lay delegates. In each Annual Conference, United Methodist bishops serve for four year terms, and may serve up to three terms before either retirement or appointment to a new Conference. United Methodist bishops may be male or female. John Wesley made Thomas Coke and Francis Asbury superintendents for the United States of America in 1784, where Methodism first became a separate denomination apart from the Church of England. Coke soon returned to England, but Asbury was the primary builder of the new church. He did not call himself bishop, but eventually submitted to the usage by the people. Notable bishops in United Methodist history include Coke, Asbury, Richard Whatcoat, Philip William Otterbein, Martin Boehm, Jacob Albright, John Seybert, Matthew Simpson, John Stamm, Marjorie Matthews, Ntambo Nkulu Ntanda, William Willimon, and Thomas Bickerton. Methodists in Great Britain acquired their own bishops early in the nineteenth century, after the Methodist movement in Britain formally parted company with the Church of England. The position no longer exists, however, in British Methodism.

Christian Methodist Episcopal Church

nineteenth century In the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church, bishops are administrative superintendents of the church; they are elected by "delegate" votes for as many years deemed until the age of 74, then he/she must retire. Among their duties, are responsibility for appointing clergy to serve local churches as pastor, for performing ordinations, and for safeguarding the doctrine and discipline of the Church. The General Conference, a meeting every four years, are comprised of an equal number of clergy and lay delegates. In each Annual Conference, CME bishops serve for four year terms. CME Church bishops may be male or female.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Bishop is the leader of a local congregation, called a ward. As such, it is his duty to preside at sacrament meetings, assign local leaders, and participate in one-on-one interviews with his ward members for things such as temple recommends and confession. Bishop is an office of the Aaronic Priesthood; in addition to his ward responsibilities, it is a bishop's duty to preside over the priest's quorum. Responsible for the physical welfare of the ward, he collects tithing and fast offerings and distributes financial assistance where needed. A bishop is chosen from members of the local congregation by the stake presidency. After being called, he chooses his two counselors, and the three men together form a bishopric. Like almost all positions in the Church, bishops are not paid or reimbursed financially for their services and therefore have normal full-time jobs to provide for their families. A ward typically releases its bishop and calls a new one every five years or so; after being released, a bishop is usually still referred to by the title "Bishop" by the people he served.

New Apostolic Church

The New Apostolic Church (NAC) knows 3 classes of ministries: Diacons, Priests and Apostles. The Apostles, all conclused in the apostolate with the Chief Apostle as head, are the highest ministries. Of the several kinds of priest-ministries, the bishop is the highest one. Nearly all bishops are set in directly from the chief apostle. They support and help their superior apostle.

Others

In some smaller Protestant denominations and independent churches the term bishop is used in the same way as pastor, to refer to the leader of the local congregation who may be male or female. This usage is especially common in African American churches in the USA. In the Church of Scotland, which has a Presbyterian church structure, the word "bishop" refers to an ordained person, usually a normal parish minister, who has temporary oversight of a trainee minister.

References & Resources

Print

- Ignatius of Antioch, Epistles of to the Ephesians, Magnesians, Trallesians, and Smyrnans, Lightfoot, trans., Harmer, ed. (Kessinger, 1891/2003). ISBN 0766164985
- Mathews, James, Set Apart To Serve: The Role of the Episcopacy in the Wesleyan Tradition (Nashville: Abingdon, 1985).
- Moede, Gerald, The Office of Bishop in Methodism: Its History and Development (Nashville: Abingdon, 1965).

Online

- [http://biblestudytools.net/OnlineStudyBible/bible.cgi?word=1+Timothy+3%3A1-7§ion=0&version=nrs&new=1&oq=&NavBook=1ti&NavGo=3&NavCurrentChapter=3 1 Timothy 3:1-7] (NRSV)
- [http://biblestudytools.net/OnlineStudyBible/bible.cgi?word=Titus+1%3A7-9§ion=0&version=nrs&new=1&oq=&NavBook=tit&NavGo=1&NavCurrentChapter=1 Titus 1:7-9] (NRSV)
- [http://www.revneal.org/Writings/apostoli.htm Methodist/Anglican Thoughts On Apostolic Succession] by Gregory Neal
- [http://www.revneal.org/Writings/methepisc.htm Methodist Episcopacy: In Search of Holy Orders] by Gregory Neal
- Category:Christian group structuring Category:Roman Catholic Church offices Category:Methodism Category:Religious workers Category:Ecclesiastical titles ko:주교 ja:司教

Ordination

Holy Communion

The Eucharist is the rite that Christians perform in fulfillment of Jesus' instruction, recorded in the New Testament, to do in memory of him what he did at his Last Supper. Jesus gave his disciples bread, saying "This is my body", and wine, saying "This is my blood." Christians generally recognize a special presence of Christ in this rite, though they differ about exactly how, where, and when Christ is present. The word "Eucharist" is also applied to the bread and wine consecrated in the course of the rite. The word "Eucharist" comes from the ancient Greek language. It means "to give thanks" or "thanksgiving." The word "Eucharist" is found in the Greek text of the New Testament in such passages as Matthew 15:36, 16:27, Mark 8:6, 14:23, Luke 22:17,19, John 6:11,23, Acts 27:35, 1 Corinthians 11:24. In each of these passages Jesus Christ offered his followers the bread or the cup and "he gave thanks (Eucharist)." It may be noted that the same word is found in many other passages of the New Testament describing the giving of thanks completely separate from the occasion of rite of Communion, (John 11:41, Romans 1:8, 7:25, 1 Corinthians 1:4, Ephesians 1:16, etc.) Most Christians classify the Eucharist as a sacrament, but many Protestant traditions avoid the term sacrament, preferring ordinance. In these traditions, the ceremony is seen not as a specific channel of grace but as an expression of faith and obedience of the Christian community.

Names for the Eucharist

- Eucharist (from Greek eucharistia, "thanksgiving") is the term with the earliest established historical use. Ignatius, Bishop of Antioch, who was martyred in Rome in about 110, used the term "Eucharist", referring to both the rite and the consecrated elements, three times in his Letter to the Smyrnaeans [http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/srawley/smyrnaeans.html] and once in his Letter to the Philadelphians [http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/srawley/philadelphians.html]. Justin Martyr, writing around 150, gave a detailed description of the rite, and stated that "Eucharist" was the name that Christians used: "This food is called among us the Eucharist..." (Apology, 66 [http://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/justinmartyr-firstapology.html]). Today the term "Eucharist" is used by Catholics, the Eastern Orthodox, the Oriental Orthodox, Anglicans, and Lutherans. Most other Protestant traditions use this term rarely, but few reject it entirely.
- Communion (from Latin communio, "sharing in common") is a term used by Catholics, Orthodox Christians, Anglicans, and many Protestants; Holy Communion is also prevalent. Catholics and Orthodox typically apply it to the partaking of the consecrated bread and wine, and to these consecrated elements themselves, rather than to the Eucharistic rite as a whole. In their understanding, it is possible to participate in the celebration of the Eucharistic rite without "receiving Holy Communion" (partaking of the consecrated elements). On the other hand, groups that originated in the Protestant Reformation usually apply this term to the whole rite. Many, especially Anglicans, prefer the fuller term "Holy Communion" rather than just "Communion". The term Communion holds further ambiguity in that it also refers to the relationship of Christians, as individuals or as a Church, with God and with other Christians (see Communion (Christian)) and can also refer to the relationship between the Three Divine Persons within the Trinity, which relationships are considered the archetype of the other forms of communion.
- The Lord's Supper and the Breaking of Bread are terms that the New Testament (1 Corinthians 11:20; Acts 2:42, 46) applies to celebration of the Eucharist. The first of these terms tends to be preferred by "minimalist" traditions, especially those strongly influenced by Huldrych (or Ulrich) Zwingli and the Restoration Movement. The Lord's Supper is also a common term among Lutherans, as is the sacrament of the altar. Other Churches and denominations also use these terms, but generally not as their basic, routine term.
- Certain terms are limited to the Orthodox Christian and Catholic traditions, and are typically applied to the rite as a whole. The Divine Liturgy is used by Orthodox and the Eastern Catholic Churches, who also, especially for the consecrated elements, use the Divine Mysteries. Roman Catholics use many other terms, including the Mass, the Memorial of the Passion, Death and Resurrection of the Lord, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, and the Holy Mysteries. The Blessed Sacrament and the Blessed Sacrament of the Altar are also common terms for the consecrated elements, especially when reserved in the Church tabernacle.

Eucharist in the Bible

The three synoptic Gospels (Matthew [http://www.hti.umich.edu/cgi/r/rsv/rsv-idx?type=citation&book=Matthew&chapno=26&startverse=26&endverse=29], Mark [http://www.hti.umich.edu/cgi/r/rsv/rsv-idx?type=citation&book=Mark&chapno=14&startverse=22&endverse=24], and Luke [http://www.hti.umich.edu/cgi/r/rsv/rsv-idx?type=citation&book=Luke&chapno=22&startverse=19&endverse=20]) as well as Saint Paul's first Letter to the Corinthians [http://www.hti.umich.edu/cgi/r/rsv/rsv-idx?type=citation&book=1+Corinthians&chapno=11&startverse=23&endverse=26] contain versions of the Words of Institution spoken by Jesus at the Last Supper: "Take, eat, this is my body ... Take, drink, this is my blood ... Do this in remembrance of me." All subsequent celebration of the Eucharist is based on this injunction. John 6 is also interpreted in connection with the Eucharist: " For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him." (John 6:55-56) See also: Historical roots of Catholic Eucharistic theology

Christian Theology

The Eucharist has always been at the center of Christian worship, though theological interpretations vary. In general, the Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Orthodox traditions see the Eucharist as the fulfillment of God's plan for the salvation of humanity from sin (the "Divine Economy"), a commemoration and making present of Jesus' Crucifixion on Calvary and his Resurrection, the means for Christians to unite with God and with each other, and the giving of thanks for all these things. Differences in Eucharistic theology tend to be related to differences in understanding of these areas. Efforts at mutual understanding of the range of theologies led in the 1980s to consultations on [http://www.wcc-coe.org/wcc/what/faith/bem1.html Baptism, Eucharist and Ministry] (BEM) through the World Council of Churches, and included the Roman Catholic Church.

Roman Catholic: Sacrifice; Transubstantiation

In the teaching of the Roman Catholic Church, the Eucharist is one of the seven sacraments, but is also considered the "queen of the sacraments" and "the blessed sacrament." The Eucharist is a commemoration, or, in Greek, anamnesis of the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Christ, understood in the fullest sense given to it in Biblical tradition. In other words, it is a memorial which does not just bring to mind the event celebrated, but also makes it truly present. The Eucharist is therefore understood to be not simply a representation of Christ's presence, or a remembrance of his Passion and Death, but an actual participation in the Sacrifice of Christ, the manifestation, in the present, of an event that occurred once for all in time. The Eucharist makes present that one sacrifice, not a different sacrifice. The priest and victim of the sacrifice are one and the same; the only difference is in the manner in which it is offered—the Church teaches that the Mass is the sacrifice at Calvary made present in an unbloody manner. The only minister of the Eucharist, that is, one authorized to celebrate the rite and consecrate the Eucharist, is a validly ordained priest (either bishop or presbyter) acting in the person of Christ (in persona Christi). In other words the priest celebrant represents Christ, who is the Head of the Church, and acts before God in the name of the Church. The matter used must be wheaten bread and grape wine; this is essential for validity. According to the Roman Catholic Church, when the bread and wine are consecrated in the Eucharist, they cease to be bread and wine, and become instead the body and blood of Christ. The empirical appearances are not changed, but the reality is. The consecration of the bread (known as the host) and wine represents the separation of Jesus's body from his blood at Calvary. However, since he has risen, the Church teaches that his body and blood can no longer be truly separated. Where one is, the other must be. Therefore, although the priest (or minister) says, "The body of Christ", when administering the host, and, "The blood of Christ", when presenting the chalice, the communicant who receives either one receives Christ, whole and entire. The hosts are kept in a tabernacle after the celebration of the Mass, so that they can be brought to the sick and dying outside the time of Mass, and also so that the Eucharistic presence may be worshipped and adored. On occasions, the Eucharist is exposed in a monstrance, in order for it to be the focus of prayer and adoration. The mysterious change of the reality of the bread and wine used in the Eucharist, a change to which patristic writers had given other equivalent names, began to be called "transubstantiation" in the twelfth century. In the judgement of the Catholic Church, this term, with its accompanying unambiguous distinction between "substance" or underlying reality, and " accidents" or humanly perceptible appearances, still best safeguards against the opposite extremes of a cannibalistic or of a merely symbolic interpretation of the Eucharist. The Eucharist is given to Catholics who wish to receive either at Mass or outside of Mass. This is called the administration of Holy Communion. When it is given at Mass, it may be given under one kind (usually the host), or under both kinds (both the host and the consecrated wine, referred to by Catholics as the Precious Blood). Regular use of Communion under both kinds requires the permission of the bishop, but bishops in some countries have given blanket permission to administer Holy Communion in this way. The ordinary ministers of Holy Communion are Bishops, Priests and Deacons, the latter traditionally ministering the chalice. Members of the laity can also be commissioned as Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, where there is a necessity. This is, in a way, a return to a very early practice, whereby the ordinary faithful took Communion to the sick and to others unable to come to the Eucharistic celebration.

Eastern Christianity: Sacrifice and Objective Reality but Pious Silence on the Particulars

The Eastern Orthodox and the Oriental Orthodox Churches and the Assyrian Church of the East agree with the Roman Catholic Church that Christ is really, fully, and uniquely present in the Eucharistic elements, and that, in the Divine Liturgy, the one sacrifice of Christ is made present; however, beyond that, these traditions reject any further analysis. Instead, they hold that the exact means by which the bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ, through the work of the Holy Spirit, is a mystery. They are not particularly interested in the precise moment the change occurs, although this "change" or "fulfillment" of the bread and wine is usually identified with the Epiklesis. As in the Roman Church, the change is regarded as permanent, and any of the consecrated elements, or "gifts," that remain at the end of the Divine Liturgy are normally consumed by a priest or deacon. Gifts reserved for the communion of the sick are specially consecrated on Holy Thursday, or at other times as needed, and are not simply leftovers from the previous Divine Liturgy. Since the Eucharistic gifts are regarded primarily as food, Eucharistic adoration is unknown outside the Liturgy itself, except among those Orthodox Christians who worship according to a Western Rite.

Anglicans/Episcopalians: Real Presence with Opinion

The historical position of the Anglican Communion is found in the Thirty-Nine Articles of 1571, which state "the Bread which we break is a partaking of the Body of Christ"; and likewise that "the Cup of Blessing is a partaking of the Blood of Christ" (Articles of Religion, Article XXVIII: Of the Lord's Supper). The fact that the terms "Bread" and "Wine" and the corresponding words "Body" and "Blood" are all capitalized may reflect the wide range of theological beliefs regarding the Eucharist among Anglicans. However, these same articles also deny that adoration, or worship per se, of the consecrated elements is appropriate and state that those who receive unworthily do not, in fact, partake of the Body and Blood of Christ. Contemporary Anglicans almost all believe in the Real Presence, but the specifics of that belief range from Transubstantiation, possibly with Eucharistic adoration (mainly Anglo-Catholics), to a belief in a spiritual-only presence, which may or may not be tied to the eucharistic elements themselves (almost always Reformed, or "low church" Anglicans). The normal range of Anglican belief ranges from Objective Reality to Pious Silence, depending on how Traditional or Reformed the individual Anglican's theology is. A small minority reject the doctrine of the Real Presence altogether, in violation of Anglicanism's historic position on the matter.

Lutherans: presence as "in, with and under": the Sacramental Union

Lutherans believe that the body and blood of Christ are "truly and substantially present in, with and under" the bread and wine (the elements), so that communicants eat and drink both the elements and the true body and blood of Christ Himself (cf. Augsburg Confession, Article 10). The doctrine of the Real Presence is also known among some Lutherans as the "Sacramental Union." For Lutherans there is no sacrament unless the elements are used according to Christ's institution (consecration, distribution, and reception). As a result, only bread and wine remain after the distribution and reception of the Lord's Supper, and after the conclusion of the service. The elements are treated with respect, but are not "adored" or reserved as in Roman Catholic, Orthodox, or Anglican practice. Lutherans use the terms "in, with and under" and "Sacramental Union" to distinguish their understanding of the Lord's Supper from those of the Reformed and other traditions.

Methodism: presence as "mystery"

There is no definitive Methodist statement on how the Christ is present in Holy Communion. The followers of John Wesley have typically affirmed that the grace of Christ is experienced via his real presence in the sacrament, but have allowed the details to remain a mystery, rejecting the doctrine of transubstantiation (see "Article XVIII" of the Articles of Religion, Means of Grace). In 2004, the United Methodist Church more clearly defined its view of the sacrament and its belief in the Real Presence in an official document entitled [http://www.gbod.org/worship/thisholymystery/default.html This Holy Mystery].

Calvinist Reformed: spiritual feeding

Many Reformed Christians, particularly those following John Calvin, hold that Christ's body and blood do not come down to inhabit the elements, but that "the Spirit truly unites things separated in space" (Calvin). Following a phrase of Augustine, the Calvinist view is that "no one bears away from this Sacrament more than is gathered with the vessel of faith". "The flesh and blood of Christ are no less truly given to the unworthy than to God's elect believers", Calvin said, "but those who partake by faith receive benefit from Christ, and the unbelieving are condemned by partaking. By faith (not a mere mental apprehension), and in the Holy Spirit, the partaker beholds God incarnate, and in the same sense touches him with hands, so that by eating and drinking of bread and wine Christ's actual presence penetrates to the heart of the believer more nearly than food swallowed with the mouth can enter in." Calvin specifically rejected adoration of the Eucharistic bread and wine as "idolatry", however. The elements may be disposed of without ceremony; they are unchanged, and as such the meal directs attention toward Christ's bodily resurrection and return.

Reformed/Congregational: non-presence

Some Protestant groups see Communion (also called the Lord's Supper or the Lord's Table) as a symbolic meal, a memorial of the Last Supper and the Passion in which nothing miraculous occurs. This view is known as the Zwinglian view, after Huldrych Zwingli, a Swiss leader during the Reformation. It is commonly associated with Baptists and the Disciples of Christ. Many of the Reformed hold that Calvin actually held this view, and not the Spiritual feeding idea attributed to him by some; or that the two views are really the same.

Summary of views

Because Jesus Christ is a person, theologies regarding the Eucharist involve consideration of the way in which the communicant's personal relationship with God is fed through this mystical meal. However, debates over Eucharistic theology in the West have centered not on the personal aspects of Christ's presence but on the metaphysical. The opposing views are summarized below.
- Transubstantiation – the substance (fundamental reality) of the bread and wine is transformed in a way beyond human comprehension into that of the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Christ, but the accidents (physical traits, including chemical properties) of the bread and wine remain; this view is held by the Roman Catholic Church and many Anglicans, especially Anglo-Catholic Anglicans.
- "In, with and under" - the body and blood of Jesus Christ are substantially present in, with and under the substance of the bread and wine, which remain. This is the view held by most Lutherans, and some Anglicans. Some refer to this view as consubstantiation, but many Lutherans reject this term.
- Objective reality, but pious silence about technicalities - the view of all the ancient Churches of the East, including the Eastern Orthodox, the Oriental Orthodox, and the Assyrian Church of the East as well as perhaps most Anglicans. These, while agreeing with the Roman Catholic belief that the sacrament is not merely bread and wine but truly the body and blood of Christ, have not adopted the "substance" and "accidents" terminology, preferring not to scrutinize the technicalities of the transformation. Some Eastern Orthodox Christians speak of "tranessentiation" in this regard. Most Eastern Christians, as well as some Anglicans, would understand this view as being "incarnational," reflecting the analogy Justin Martyr drew between the incarnation of the eternal divine Logos and the presence of that incarnate Word, Jesus Christ, in the consecrated bread and wine.
- Real Spiritual presence - not only the spirit, but also the true body and blood of Jesus Christ (hence "real") are received by the sovereign, mysterious, and miraculous power of the Holy Spirit (hence "spiritual"), but only by those partakers who have faith. This view approaches the "pious silence" view in its unwillingness to specify how the Holy Spirit makes Christ present, but positively excludes not just symbolism but also trans- and con-substantiation. It is also known as "mystical presence," and is held by most Reformed Christians, such as Presbyterians, as well as Methodists and some Anglicans, particularly Reformed Anglicans. See [http://www.opc.org/documents/WCF.html Westminster Confession of Faith, ch. 19.] This understanding is often called "receptionism" and is exemplified by the "invocation" of the Anglican Rite as found in the American Book of Common Prayer, 1928 and earlier and in Rite I of the American BCP of 1979 as well as in other Anglican formularies: ::And we most humbly beseech thee, O merciful Father, to hear us, and of thy almighty goodness, vouchsafe to bless and sanctify, with thy Word and Holy Spirit, these gifts and creatures of bread and wine; that we, receiving them according to thy Son our Savior Jesus Christ's holy institution, in remembrance of his death and passion, may be partakers of his most blessed body and blood.
- Symbolism - the bread and wine are symbolic of the body and blood of Jesus Christ, and in partaking of the elements the believer commemorates the sacrificial death of Christ. This view is also known as "memorialism" and Zwinglianism after Ulrich Zwingli and is held by several Protestant denominations, including most Baptists.
- Suspension - the partaking of the bread and wine was not intended to be a perpetual ordinance, or was not to be taken as a religious rite or ceremony (also known as adeipnonism, meaning "no supper" or "no meal"). This is the view of Quakers and the Salvation Army, as well as the hyperdispensationalist positions of E. W. Bullinger, Cornelius R. Stam, and others.

Ritual and liturgy

The Agape feast

The Agape feast was the Eucharistic celebration of the early Christians. While centered on the ritual of the bread and wine, it also included various other ritual elements, including elements of the Passover seder and of Mediterranean funerary banquets, also termed Agape Feasts. Agape is one of the Greek words for love, particularly applied to selfless love. Such meals were widespread, though not universal, in the early Christian world. This service was apparently a full meal, with each participant bringing their own food, but eating in a common room. Perhaps predictably enough, it could at times deteriorate into merely an occasion for eating and drinking, or for ostentatious displays by the wealthier members of the community. This was criticized by St. Paul in the New Testament (cf. ). Because of such abuses, the Agape gradually fell into disfavor, and after being subjected to various regulations and restrictions, it was definitively dropped by the Church between the 6th and 8th centuries. Some contemporary Christians participate in Agape meals on rare occasions, to experience this historical form of the Eucharist. Many Christians, however, after celebrating the Eucharist, now routinely participate in a sharing of light refreshments and conversation in an informal ritual that is functionally an Agape. This post-Eucharistic gathering is often called "fellowship hour" or "coffee hour" and is regarded by many clergy as a particularly opportune time for engaging adults in Christian education.

Eastern Christianity

Among Eastern Christians, the Eucharistic service is called the Divine Liturgy. It comprises two main divisions: the first is the Liturgy of the Catechumens which consists of introductory litanies, antiphons and scripture readings, culminating in a reading from one of the Gospels and often, a sermon; the second is the Liturgy of the Faithful in which the Eucharist is offered, consecrated, and received as Holy Communion. Within the latter, the actual Eucharistic prayer is called the anaphora (Greek:, "offering" or "lifting up"). In the Byzantine Rite, two different anaphoras are currently used: one is attributed to St. John Chrysostom, and the other to St. Basil the Great. Among the Oriental Orthodox, a variety of anaphoras are used, but all are similar in structure to those of the Byzantine Rite. In the Byzantine Rite, the Anaphora of St. John Chrysostom is used most days of the year; St. Basil's is offered on the Sundays of Great Lent, the eves of Christmas and Theophany, Holy Thursday, Holy Saturday, and upon his feast day (January 1). At the conclusion of the Anaphora the bread and wine are held to be the Body and Blood of Christ. Conventionally this change in the elements is understood to occur at the Epiklesis (Greek: "invocation") by which the Holy Spirit is invoked and the consecration of the bread and wine as the Body and Blood of Christ is specifically requested, but since the anaphora as a whole is considered a unitary (albeit lengthy) prayer, no one moment within it can be readily singled out.

Roman Catholicism

See Mass and Divine Liturgy.

Protestantism

Anglican

See Book of Common Prayer.

Lutheran

The Lutheran Eucharistic service is similar in form to the Roman Catholic and "high" Anglican services. Administration of the bread and wine varies between congregations. The bread can be a thin wafer, or leavened or unleavened bread. The wine or grape juice may be administered via a common cup (the "chalice"), or through individual cups that may be either prefilled or filled from the chalice during the communion. Intinction is acceptable, but rarely used. Some congregations that use wine make grape juice available for those who are abstaining from alcohol, and some will accommodate those with an allergy to wheat or grapes.

Reformed/Presbyterian

Minimalist

The elements of the Lord's supper are most commonly unleavened bread and wine. In traditions in which temperance movements have had strong influence, grape juice is substituted for the wine. The term "grape juice" is usually not used in services; instead terms such as "unfermented wine," "wine," "the fruit of the vine," or simply "the cup" are used. Teachers from such movements often assert that oinon, the Greek word used in the original New Testament to mean wine, may mean either fermented or unfermented wine. This claim was unknown prior to the temperance movement, however. A few Holiness bodies, and the Mormons, substitute water for wine.

Open and closed communion

: Christian denominations differ in their understanding of whether they may receive the Eucharist together with those not in full communion with them. Closed communion was the universal practice of the early Church. The famed apologist St. Justin Martyr, ca. A.D. 150, wrote: "No one else is permitted to partake of it, except one who believes our teaching to be true...." For the first several hundred years of Church history, non-members were forbidden even to be present at the sacramental ritual; visitors and catechumens (those still undergoing instruction) were dismissed halfway through the liturgy, after the Bible readings and sermon but before the Eucharistic rite. The Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, used in the Byzantine Churches, still has a formula of dismissal of catechumens (not usually followed by any action) at this point. The ancient Churches, such as the Roman Catholic and the Eastern Orthodox exclude nonmembers from Communion under normal circumstances, though they may allow exceptions, e.g. for non-members in danger of death who share their faith in the reality of the Eucharist and who are unable to have access to a minister of their own religion. Many conservative Protestant communities also practice closed communion, including conservative Lutheran Churches like the Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod and the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod. The Mennonites and the Landmark Baptist Churches also practice closed communion, as a symbol of exclusive membership and loyalty to the distinctive doctrines of their fellowship. Most Protestant communities practice open communion, including some Anglican, Reformed, Evangelical, Methodist, and more-liberal Lutherans (such as the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and the Church of Sweden). Some open communion communities adhere to a symbolic or spiritual understanding of the Eucharist, so that they have no fear of sacrilege against the literal body and blood of Christ if someone receives inappropriately. Others feel that Christ calls all of his children to his table, regardless of their denominational affiliation. Many churches that practice open communion offer it only to baptized Christians (regardless of denomination), although this requirement is typically only enforced by the recipients' honesty.

Footnotes

- : Luke 22:19; 1 Corinthians 11:24-25
- as Anabaptist leader Pilgram Marpeck put it, "The true meaning of communion is mystified and obscured by the word sacrament." Nevertheless as far as his theology goes Marpeck was decidedly more incarnational than many of his Anabaptist peers, and thus closer to the Roman Catholic position than even Zwingli.
- : cf. , and ::[http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/p2s2c1a3.htm#1328]
- : See Article 9 of the Agreed Statement of Eucharist Doctrine.
- e.g., see

Resources

- Anderson, S. E. The First Communion
- Chemnitz, Martin. The Lord's Supper. J. A. O. Preus, trans. St. Louis: Concordia, 1979. ISBN 0-570-03275-X
- Elert, Werner. Eucharist and Church Fellowship in the First Four Centuries. N. E. Nagel, trans. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1966. ISBN 0-570-04270-4
- Felton, Gayle. This Holy Mystery. Nashville: Discipleship Resources, 2005. ISBN 088177457X
- Father Gabriel. Divine Intimacy. Rockford, IL: Tan Books and Publishers, Inc., 1996 reprint ed. ISBN 0895555042
- Grime, J. H. Close Communion and Baptists
- Jurgens, William A. The Faith of the Early Fathers. Collegeville, MN: The Liturgical Press, 1970. ISBN 0814604323
- Kolb, Robert and Timothy J. Wengert, eds. The Book of Concord: The Confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2000. (ISBN 0800627407)
- Lefebvre, Gaspar. The Saint Andrew Daily Missal. Reprint. Great Falls, MT: St. Bonaventure Publications, Inc., 1999.
- Macy, Gary. The Banquet’s Wisdom: A Short History of the Theologies of the Lord’s Supper. (2005, ISBN 1878009508)
- McBride, Alfred, O.Praem. Celebrating the Mass. Our Sunday Visitor, 1999.
- Nevin, John Williamson. The Mystical Presence: A Vindication of the Reformed or Calvinistic Doctrine of the Holy Eucharist. 1846; Wipf & Stock reprint, 2000. ISBN 1579103480.
- Oden, Thomas C. Corrective Love: The Power of Communion Discipline. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1995. ISBN 0-570-04803-6
- Sasse, Hermann. This Is My Body: Luther's Contention for the Real Presence in the Sacrament of the Altar. Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2001. ISBN 1579107664
- Schmemann, Alexander. The Eucharist. St Vladimir's Seminary Press, 1997. ISBN 0881410187
- Stoffer, Dale R. The Lord's Supper: Believers Church Perspectives
- Stookey, L.H. Eucharist: Christ's Feast with the Church. Nashville: Abingdon, 1993 ISBN 0687120179
- Tissot, The Very Rev. J. The Interior Life. 1916, pp. 347-9.
- Wright, N. T. The Meal Jesus Gave Us

External links

Liturgical texts & services

- [http://www.sacred-texts.com/chr/lmass/ord.htm The Ordinary of the Sacred Liturgy according to the Roman Rite, Missal of 1962]
- [http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/latinmass2.html The Ordinary...according to the Roman Rite, Missal of 1962] alternate source.
- [http://www.sspeterpaul.org/priest.html The Priest's Service Book] Orthodox Divine Liturgy.
- [http://www.saintgabriels.org/prayerbook.html The Book of Common Prayer], used by the US Episcopal Church. Contains the liturgy for Eucharist and other rites.
- [http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/d/t/dtrememe.htm Do This; Remember Me!], a 21st century hymn text telling the Upper Room story

History, theology, etc.

- [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05584a.htm Eucharist] in [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/ Catholic Encyclopedia]
- [http://www.catholic.com/library/Real_Presence.asp Patristic citations] concerning the Holy Eucharist.
- [http://www.fisheaters.com/mass.html The Catholic Understanding of the Eucharist]
- [http://www.oca.org/pages/orth_chri/Orthodox-Faith/Worship/Holy-Eucharist.html Holy Eucharist] from The Orthodox Faith by Fr Thomas Hopko, online essay from the website of the [http://www.oca.org Orthodox Church in America].
- [http://www.gbod.org/worship/thisholymystery/default.html This Holy Mystery: A United Methodist Understanding of Holy Communion]
- [http://gbgm-umc.org/Umhistory/Wesley/sermons/serm-101.stm The Duty of Constant Communion] by John Wesley
- [http://www.geocities.com/pastorkeith/do_this.html Do This!: The Eucharist as a Key to Pastoral Care & Church Renewal]
- [http://www.emersoncentral.com/lordsupper.htm The Lord's Supper] - by Ralph Waldo Emerson, rejecting the Lord's supper as a perpetual rite.
- [http://www.usccb.org/liturgy/celiasprue.shtml A Short Introduction to Holy Communion and Celiac Sprue Disease] from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
- [http://www.twinbrook.net/view/?pageID=8173 a Baptist viewpoint]
- [http://www.churches-of-christ.net/tracts/job003u.htm a Church of Christ viewpoint]
- [http://www.thirdway.com/menno/as/as7.asp a Mennonite viewpoint]
- [http://www.graceonlinelibrary.org/articles/full.asp?id=25|52|367 a Reformed (Presbyterian) viewpoint]
- [http://www.angelfire.com/fl2/truthleads2life/Guestteaching1.html The Lord's Supper: Four Views] by Joe Slowiaczek
- [http://capo.org/cpc/mat2626s.htm Four Views of the Lord's Supper] - discusses transubstantiation, consubstantiation, spiritual presence, and symbolism (from spiritual presence point of view)
- [http://www.anabaptistnetwork.com/book/print/226 Pilgram Marpeck's defense of continuing to practice Lord's Supper (1531)] Category:Sacraments Category:Christian liturgy, rites, and worship services Category:Catholic Eucharistic Theology Category:Methodism Category:Christian theology ja:聖餐

Christ

Christ is the English representation of the Greek word Χριστός (transliterated as Khristós), which means anointed. The Christian religion takes its name from Christ, as a title given to Jesus of Nazareth, always capitalized as a singularly descriptive title meaning literally The Anointed One. In English translations of the New Testament, the Greek Ιησούς Χριστός, and related phrases, are almost invariably translated Jesus Christ or Christ Jesus, leading to the common, though inaccurate, perception that 'Christ' was the last name of Jesus of Nazareth. The part of Christian theology focusing on the identity, life, teachings and works of Jesus, is known as Christology.

Full etymology

The spelling Christ in English dates from the 17th century, when, in the spirit of the enlightenment, spellings of certain words were changed to fit their Greek or Latin origins. Prior to this, in Old and Middle English, the word was spelt Crist, the i being pronounced either as a long e, preserved in the names of churches such as St Katherine Cree, or as a short i, preserved in the modern pronunciation of Christmas. The term appears in English and most European languages owing to the Greek usage of it in the New Testament as a description for Jesus. In the New Testament, it was used to translate Hebrew as Mashiach (Messiah) meaning "anointed". This term implied a match to the criteria of being anointed that Jewish tradition had given to their predicted future saviour. The Greek term is cognate with Chrism, meaning perfumed oil; in fact Christ in classical Greek usage could mean covered in oil, and is thus a literal and accurate translation of Messiah (anointed).

"The Anointed" in the Old Testament

In the Hebrew faith tradition, anointing (with oil) was a key element of religious ceremony by which specific people were explicitly marked or set aside for a specific role: priests, kings, and prophets. In some cases other materials were anointed with oil as well, to prepare them for religious ceremony. The importance of anointing is sometimes stressed by mentioning the need for it alongside reference to the person in question: e.g., "The priest that is anointed shall carry of the blood into the tabernacle of the testimony" (Lev [http://drbo.org/cgi-bin/d?b=drb&bk=03&ch=004&l=16 4:16]). The Jews came to expect a savior who would embody the elements of priest, king, and prophet, and whom they therefore termed "the Messias", which served as a title. The association with being anointed and being a savior makes these words in some senses equivalent. They expressed their hopes for this savior particularly in their prayers known as the Psalms, which often make reference to God and "his anointed", many of which references Christians interpret as prophetic.

History in the New Testament

In the New Testament it is indicated that the savior, long awaited, did come: however, there is no record of his being officially anointed with oil as Messiah, priest, or king in the gospels. Instead Luke says he "is inducted by His heavenly Father into His Messianic office" (Ott, Ludwig; see Lk [http://drbo.org/cgi-bin/d?b=drb&bk=49&ch=003&l=22 3:22]). However, He is anointed by a woman, reported in Mark 14: 3-9 as happening just before his death, and in a different context in Luke 7. As Jesus demonstrates, over time, to his disciples that he is the savior, they come to call him by that name, which again was a title, i.e. normal usage being "the Christ". After the Resurrection "Christ" became a proper name used to refer to Jesus.

Distinctions between "Jesus", "Christ", and "God"

The term "Christ" is often used synonymously with "Jesus". A difference in usage is sometimes for variety of speech, and sometimes a subtlety intended to emphasize the totality of His person and function in Salvation. For example, Ott refers to "Jesus" when emphasizing an event in the New Testament, while he refers to "Christ" in discussing the nature of God. There is a temporal distinction between "Jesus" and "Christ", not to mention "God". God, in the Christian belief system, exists outside of the time continuum and is not restricted by the confines of time (e.g., limitations, aging, development, evolution, etc.). "Jesus", on the other hand, is the temporal manifestation of the "Logos" -- the divine "Word" of God, and, in Christian Trinitarian parlance, the second person of the Holy Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit). "Jesus" was born, lived, suffered, and died. However, for the Christian believer, the story of "Jesus" does not end there. With the Resurrection, there is the fulness of recognition within the Christian community of the interconnectedness of the Logos and the person of "Jesus" -- the human person now intensely glorified and beyond the confines of the temporal sphere of events and effects. "Christ" is an appelation in Greek (Χριστός), corresponding to the Hebrew word "Messiah" -- the Savior or Anointed One. This term pertains more to the role to be performed by the "chosen one of God" (another possible translation of the term "Christ"). The problem with this word for the person of Jesus is that the term means different things to different people. Most especially, the term "Messiah" refers most often in Jewish beliefs of the Roman era to the hoped-for leader who would not only be a spiritual leader but a political one as well. Hence, we have grounds for why this term might cause consternation and skepticism -- if not downright hostility -- not only for Romans, but also for the Jewish leadership of the Temple at the time of Jesus.

Related uses of anointing

Anointing is used in the New Testament to heal the sick, to bless for ministry, to give thanks to Jesus, and to prepare for burial. According to Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic traditions, as Christ was the anointed one, so is apostolic succession, manifest in those priests who carry on the ministry of Christ, premised upon an anointing. Oil is used in a number of the sacraments of these traditions. Practices vary slightly from East to West. Every Christian in the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches is anointed with oil at least once, if they receive the sacraments according to each organization's plan. Protestant organizations' rites, however, do not always include anointing with oil.

Gnostic Christ

The