What is the Voice of the Church According to the Early Church?
In the first of several posts on the infallibility of the Church, I'd like to consider the Patristic notion of the knowledge possessed by the Church in her 'voice,' 'faith,' and 'mind.' In the same vein, I'd like to consider the expression of that knowledge in her 'confession,' 'preaching,' and the 'teaching.' Let's look at some quotes from the Fathers:
"Now then let me finish what still remains to be said for the Article, 'In one Holy Catholic Church', on which, though one might say many things, we will speak but briefly. It is called Catholic then because it extends over all the world, from one end of the earth to the other; and because it teaches universally and completely one and all the doctrines which ought to come to men's knowledge, concerning things both visible and invisible, heavenly and earthly," etc. (Cyril of Jerusalem, Catechetical Lectures, Lecture 18, Chapter 23)
"Having, as we have said, received this message and this faith, the Church, though dispersed over all the world, guards them as carefully as though it lived in one house, believes them as with one soul and the same heart, and preaches, teaches and transmits them in unison, as with one mouth." (Epiphanius, Panarion, Heresy 31, Chapter 31)
"And although it would be right to denounce and expose in full the folly of those who have had such ideas, yet it would be a good thing to close my letter here and write no more. For what is so manifestly shewn to be evil, it is not necessary to waste time in exposing further, lest contentious persons think the matter doubtful. It is enough merely to answer such things as follows: we are content with the fact that this is not the teaching of the Catholic Church, nor did the fathers hold this." (Athanasius, Epistle 59, Chapter 3)
"Nevertheless, Peter, upon whom by the same Lord the Church had been built, speaking one for all, and answering with the voice of the Church, says, 'Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life; we believe, and are sure that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God,' signifying, doubtless, and showing that those who departed from Christ perished by their own fault, yet that the Church which believes on Christ, and holds that which it has once learned, never departs from Him at all, and that those are the Church who remain in the house of God," etc. (Cyprian of Carthage, Epistle 54, Chapter 7)
"And undoubtedly the preaching of the Church is true and steadfast, in which one and the same way of salvation is shown throughout the whole world...For the Church preaches the truth everywhere, and she is the seven-branched candlestick which bears the light of Christ." (Irenaeus, Against Heresies, Book V, Chapter 20)
"Those who embrace orthodoxy and join the number of those who are being saved from the heretics, we receive in the following regular and customary manner: Arians, Macedonians, Sabbatians, Novatians, those who call themselves Cathars and Aristae, Quartodeciman or Tetradites, Apollinarians -- these we receive when they hand in statements and anathematise every heresy which is not of the same mind as the holy, catholic and apostolic church of God." (First Council of Constantinople, Canon 7)
"If, then, there are any here, too, who falsify the holy faith, either by attributing to the divinity as its own what belongs to the humanity — progressions, and passions, and a glory coming with accession — or by separating from the divinity the progressive and passible body, as if subsisted of itself apart — these persons also are outside the confession of the Church and of salvation." (Gregory Thaumaturgus, A Sectional Confession of the Faith, Chapter 3)
"For he cannot quote a decisive passage on the subject from the Book of God; nor can he prove his opinion to be right by the unanimous voice of the universal Church, wherever spread abroad; nor can he demonstrate that they act contrary to the faith, and he according to it, or that they are doing what is prejudicial to sound morality, and he is defending its interests." (Augustine, Epistle 54, Chapter 4)
"An exposition of the faith of the Church made at the Council held on the occasion of the Dedication of the church at Antioch by ninety-seven bishops there present, because of suspicions felt as to the orthodoxy of a certain bishop." (Hilary of Poitiers, On the Councils, Chapter 12)
"Which being the case, is there any one either so audacious as to preach any other doctrine than that which the Church preaches, or so inconstant as to receive any other doctrine than that which he has received from the Church?" (Vincent of Lerins, Commonitory, Chapter 9)
When we examine these citations, we see that the Church is always in the singular. When the Fathers speak of the preaching or the voice of the Church, they speak of one Church. This Church is universal, as Irenaeus, Augustine, Epiphanius, and Cyril teach. It is spread throughout the word, but it still constitutes one entity. The next thing clearly evident is that the one voice of the Church is always in the singular. The Fathers never speak of diverse voices or many minds. There is a singular voice, a singular mind, a singular mouth. We also read of a singular faith, a singular preaching, and a singular confession.
How does this inform our ecclesiology? Well, it becomes immediately evident that the authoritative voice of the Church cannot be attributed to local congregations. There must be some sort of universal Church which has some recognizable faith and preaching. From this, it seems evident that the universal Church is visible. After all, if the universal Church is not visible, how can it have any sort of voice or preaching? Individual people within the Church are (almost) always liable to err. Perhaps one could take the opinion of all Christians together and say that it represents the Church. I would grant that it does, but such a thing is impossible if we cannot take a true census of who is inside the Church and who is outside the Church. Perhaps one could also say that the faith of the Church is nothing more than the preaching of Sacred Scripture, and so no visible, universal Church is necessary to understand these Fathers. In that case, we must look at places such as Augustine or Constantinople I. Augustine contrasts the "Book of God" (Sacred Scripture) with "the unanimous voice of the universal Church." Constantinople I requires the Quartodecimans to recant their heresy "which is not of the same mind as the holy, catholic and apostolic church of God." Yet, the Quartodecimans, as Hippolytus says, aside from their date of Easter celebration (which in truth is nowhere in Scripture), "consent to all the traditions delivered to the Church by the Apostles." So how can they be opposed to the mind of the Church, if the mind of the Church is nothing more than what Scripture says, which tells us nothing about the date of Easter? Regardless of these issues, it will be made clear when we read the Fathers concerning the location of the voice of the Church.
I would like to go a step further and argue that, based on the doctrine of the voice of the Church, we can confidently assert that the Early Church did not merely hold to a visible Church, but even an institutional one. Consider what the Fathers say concerning the location of the voice of the Church:
"As to the Nicene Council, it was not a common meeting, but convened upon a pressing necessity, and for a reasonable object. The Syrians, Cilicians, and Mesopotamians, were out of order in celebrating the Feast, and kept Easter with the Jews ; on the other hand, the Arian heresy had risen up against the Catholic Church...they wrote concerning Easter, 'It seemed good as follows,' for it did then seem good that there should be a general compliance; but about the faith they wrote not, 'It seemed good,' but, 'The Catholic Church believes thus;' and thereupon they confessed how they believed, in order to show that their own sentiments were not novel, but Apostolical; and what they wrote down was no discovery of theirs, but is the same as was taught by the Apostles." (Athanasius, On the Councils at Ariminum and Seleucia, Part I, Chapter 5)
"For when the parts of the Eastern Church began to totter, as is known from past experience, they rightly sought assistance from here: so that what had been ordered by the decrees of the Nicene Synod and those of the holy Council of Chalcedon, confirmed by the ministry of our predecessor Leo, might be preserved by your pious care in full integrity. For the unity of the universal Church cannot stand without agreement in the one faith. Let no one try to tear away what has once been confirmed by solemn decrees. Let no one dare to falsify the mystery of the Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ by the presumptions of perverse doctrine...Let your majesty, we pray, give heed to this—let those who are separated from the unity of the Church be brought back to the Catholic communion. Let them confess what the universal Church confesses; let them condemn what the universal Church condemns, so that the Body of Christ may remain one and undivided throughout the world, bound together in the unity of faith, hope, and charity." (Simplicius, Epistle 4)
"Besides, since with the heart man believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation, I confess that I receive and revere, as the four books of the Gospel so also the four Councils: to wit, the Nicene, in which the perverse doctrine of Arius is overthrown; the Constantinopolitan also, in which the error of Eunomius and Macedonius is refuted; further, the first Ephesine, in which the impiety of Nestorius is condemned; and the Chalcedonian, in which the pravity of Eutyches and Dioscorus is reprobated. These with full devotion I embrace, and adhere to with most entire approval; since on them, as on a four-square stone, rises the structure of the holy faith; and whosoever, of whatever life and behaviour he may be, holds not fast to their solidity, even though he is seen to be a stone, yet he lies outside the building. The fifth council also I equally venerate, in which the epistle which is called that of Ibas, full of error, is reprobated; Theodorus, who divides the Mediator between God and men into two subsistences, is convicted of having fallen into the perfidy of impiety; and the writings of Theodoritus, in which the faith of the blessed Cyril is impugned, are refuted as having been published with the daring of madness. But all persons whom the aforesaid venerable Councils repudiate I repudiate; those whom they venerate I embrace; since, they having been constituted by universal consent, he overthrows not them but himself, whosoever presumes either to loose those whom they bind, or to bind those whom they loose. Whosoever, therefore, thinks otherwise, let him be anathema. But whosoever holds the faith of the aforesaid synods, peace be to him from God the Father, through Jesus Christ His Son, Who lives and reigns consubstantially God with Him in the Unity of the Holy Spirit for ever and ever." (Gregory the Great, Registry of Epistles, Book I, n. 25)
"We said likewise, that in the Church itself regard must be had to the consentient voice of universality equally with that of antiquity, lest we either be torn from the integrity of unity and carried away to schism, or be precipitated from the religion of antiquity into heretical novelties. We said, further, that in this same ecclesiastical antiquity two points are very carefully and earnestly to be held in view by those who would keep clear of heresy: first, they should ascertain whether any decision has been given in ancient times as to the matter in question by the whole priesthood of the Catholic Church, with the authority of a General Council: and, secondly, if some new question should arise on which no such decision has been given, they should then have recourse to the opinions of the holy Fathers, of those at least, who, each in his own time and place, remaining in the unity of communion and of the faith, were accepted as approved masters; and whatsoever these may be found to have held, with one mind and with one consent, this ought to be accounted the true and Catholic doctrine of the Church, without any doubt or scruple." (Vincent of Lerins, Commonitory, Chapter 29)
"But it is now time to bring forward the exemplification which we promised, where and how the sentences of the holy Fathers have been collected together, so that in accordance with them, by the decree and authority of a council, the rule of the Church's faith may be settled." (ibid., Chapter 28)
"Are you going to say that he, too, savors of Manichaeism or spreads poison? You hear how all [the Fathers] with one heart, one mouth, one faith, say the same thing, and that this is the Catholic faith, established without a dissenting witness." (Augustine, Against Julian, Book I, Chapter 5)
"Or does it seem to you that there is too little authority in Gregory alone of all the Eastern bishops? He is a personage of such importance that he could not say this unless it were well known to all from the Christian faith, and they would not consider him so brilliant and venerable unless they recognized these statements of his to be in accordance with the rule of the well-known truth." (ibid., Chapter 6)
"Come in, St. John, come in, and sit down with your brothers, from whom no argument and no temptation have separated you. We need your opinion, also, and yours especially, since in your writings this young man thinks he has found the means to overthrow and make void the opinions of so many of your great fellow bishops. But, if he had really found something of the sort, and it became clear that you think what he thinks, we could never prefer you alone pardon me for saying so to so many men of such great importance in this case, about which Christian belief and the Catholic Church have never varied." (ibid.)
"With such planters, waterers, shepherds, fosterers, the holy Church grew after the time of the Apostles. This is why she feared the profane voices of your novelty, and, being cautious and sober as a result of the Apostle's warning, lest, as the Serpent seduced Eve by his cunning, her mind be seduced from the chastity which is in Christ; she shuddered at the toils of your doctrine creeping toward the virginity of the Catholic faith like the head of a serpent; she trod upon it, crushed it, cast it away. Therefore, by the statements and the great authority of holy men you will either be cured God's mercy granting it, and He who may accomplish it knows how much I desire it for you or, what I deprecate, if you persevere in this your wisdom which is really great folly, you will no longer merely seek judges before whom you may justify your cause, but before whom you may accuse so many famous and brilliant holy teachers of the Catholic truth: Irenaeus, Cyprian, Reticius, Olympius, Hilary, Gregory, Basil, Ambrose, John, Innocent, Jerome, and the others, their comrades and colleagues, and, in addition the whole Church of Christ, to which divine family they faithfully ministered the food of the Lord and thus grew famous in the glory of the Lord." (ibid., Chapter 10)
"...so, seeing there are many who think they hold the opinions of Christ, and yet some of these think differently from their predecessors, yet as the teaching of the Church, transmitted in orderly succession from the apostles, and remaining in the churches to the present day, is still preserved, that alone is to be accepted as truth which differs in no respect from ecclesiastical and apostolic tradition." (Origen, On First Principles, Preface)
"They [i.e. the Apostles] then in like manner founded churches in every city, from which all the other churches, one after another, derived the tradition of the faith, and the seeds of doctrine, and are every day deriving them, that they may become churches. Indeed, it is on this account only that they will be able to deem themselves apostolic, as being the offspring of apostolic churches. Every sort of thing must necessarily revert to its original for its classification. Therefore the churches, although they are so many and so great, comprise but the one primitive church, (founded) by the apostles, from which they all (spring). In this way all are primitive, and all are apostolic, while they are all proved to be one, in unbroken unity, by their peaceful communion, and title of brotherhood, and bond of hospitality — privileges which no other rule directs than the one tradition of the selfsame mystery. From this, therefore, do we draw up our rule...Now, what that was which they preached — in other words, what it was which Christ revealed to them — can, as I must here likewise prescribe, properly be proved in no other way than by those very churches which the apostles founded in person, by declaring the gospel to them directly themselves, both vivâ voce, as the phrase is, and subsequently by their epistles. If, then, these things are so, it is in the same degree manifest that all doctrine which agrees with the apostolic churches— those moulds and original sources of the faith must be reckoned for truth, as undoubtedly containing that which the (said) churches received from the apostles, the apostles from Christ, Christ from God." (Tertullian, The Prescription against Heretics, Chapters 20 and 21)
From this investigation of the places where the voice of the Church may be found, we spot two locations primarily. These are not the only two locations within Roman Catholic theology, but they will be the first two we consider. The first are those ecumenical councils, "constituted by universal consent," which form what "the Catholic Church believes." He who denies what the ecumenical councils declare "lies outside the building" of the Church. Obviously, the opinion of the Catholic Church may be found at the ecumenical councils. That is clear enough. The second place is in the universal opinion of the teachers of the Church altogether agreeing. As Vincent says, we must have regard for universality of teaching. They ought hold their position with "one mind and with one consent" in order to be reckoned as bearing the belief of the Church. Augustine emphasizes this point by showing that, against the doctrines of Julian, not a single Father was in support, but rather they were all universal disagreement with Julian. From these Fathers, we can see clearly where the Church speaks. We know the conditions and the reasoning necessary to discern whether a doctrine is believed and confessed by the Church.
In the next posts, we shall cover the remaining places where the voice of the Church may be heard and see their conditions for infallibility.
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