The Supreme Pontiff (the Pope) is a local ordinary for the whole Catholic Church. In Eastern Catholic Churches, Patriarchs, major archbishops, and metropolitans have ordinary power of governance for the whole territory of their respective autonomous particular churches.
Pope. The highest honour a member of the clergy can receive is to be elected as the leader of the Catholic Church. The Pope is elected by cardinals under the age of 8- following the death or resignation of a Pope.
Christian churches regard the question of authority — the divine right to preach, act in the name of God and direct the Lord’s church — in different ways. Some, like the Roman Catholic, Orthodox and Coptic churches, emphasize a continuous line of authority from the early apostles.
He called these three types traditional authority, rational-legal authority, and charismatic authority.
The Catholic Church teaches that there are three sources of authority:
- magisterium – the teaching authority of the Catholic Church formed of the Pope and Bishops of the Church.
- scripture – the Bible which is classed as the Word of God, including the teachings of Christ.
Is Monsignor higher than Bishop?
For a short while, both bishops and high-ranking priests were called “monsignor.” Although bishops are still referred to as “monsignor” in some European countries, most commonly in Italy, in the rest of the world, “monsignor” has come to refer only to priests who have been granted the title.
What is the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church?
‘Hierarchy of Order’ is the orderly arrangement of ranks and orders of the clergy in one apostolic body to carry out the sacramental and pastoral ministry of the Church. Comprises: His Holiness, the Pope, Supreme Pastor of the Roman Catholic Church; and the Patriarchs, Archbishops, bishops, priests and deacons.
Most Catholics accept the authority of the Bible because they believe its authors were inspired by the Holy Spirit to write the word of God. The Bible contains the Ten Commandments . These act as basic guidelines for Catholics, helping them to know what they should and shouldn’t do.