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CRITICAL NOTICE: Regarding the Infallibility of the Church
M. Rev. Prof. Mar Melchizedek
Eparch of Nebraska
The question of the Church's infallibility cannot addressed
within the parameters of natural law alone which is limited
to human reasoning. Divine law, which is largely supported by
faith, must be taken into consideration as well, in order to
come to a balanced conclusion. By "faith", we refer to the
Greek meaning "trust", i.e. trusting that both Holy
Scriptures and the Holy Church are inerrant, because of their
divine origin. One could cite numerous references in Holy
Scripture to support that Jesus Christ founded His church
upon a rock that even has the power to bind and loose here on
earth already (cf. Matthew 18). The Holy Church is referred
to in the New Testament as "The Kingdom of God", founded by
our Lord Jesus Christ, who empowered the holy apostles to
bring the Church into the entire world, led by the Holy
Spirit, the Comforter whom He sent "to guide you into all
truth (John 16:13)".
From a logical point of view, what is truth excludes becoming
non-truth at any given time, unless is had been a priori non-
truth. Since we believe that Christ proclaimed the truth and
handed it down to His Apostles, it cannot - at any given time
in history - become non-truth. To argue that the Church is
not infallible when it comes to her dogmatic and moral
teaching would thus be a contradictory if not ludicrous waste
of time.
As far as Holy Orthodoxy is concerned, as understood by the
Holy Church from the very beginning, it is rooted in two
basic meanings which are closely related. The first
definition is true belief. We maintain and teach the faith of
the Oecumenical Councils as accepted by the Universal Church.
We reject the additions made later that have occurred in both
East and West, as well as the distortions of separatists who
seek to interpret the Holy Scriptures or the Holy Canons
without reference to Living Faith and Tradition of the
Universal Church. - The second definition is true worship.
Holy Scripture tells us that the three thousand who were
added to the Church on the day of Pentecost "continued
steadfastly in the Apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in
breaking of bread, and in prayers" (Acts 2:42). Worship is
the life of the Church, and her central act of worship is the
Divine Liturgy as first instituted at the Last Supper by our
Christ himself.
We believe in the essential unity of all Christians, and the
Sacramental unity of all Orthodox jurisdictions that hold to
the Faith of Holy Orthodox Catholic tradition, i. e. Holy
Scriptures and the teaching of the Seven Oecumenical
Councils. Our Lord Jesus Christ prayed: "That they all may be
one; as Thou, Father, art in me, and I in Thee, that they
also may be one in us: that the world may believe that Thou
hast sent me (John 17:21)". Because the Holy Church believes
that Christ is God incarnate, His words must be regarded as
the revealed will of God. We follow then, that anything
contrary is heretical and of sinful nature.
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| Infallibility of the church: an unorthodox perspective - Nick Trakakis
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