Defending the Faith 4
Opening Prayer
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
Lord Jesus Christ,
You teach with authority,
You call us to follow You,
and You have not left Your Church without guidance.
Open our minds to Your truth,
free us from pride and confusion,
and help us to receive the faith with humility, trust, and joy.
Amen.
In our first teaching, we asked:
Why be Catholic?
And we said that Catholic faith begins with Jesus Christ. We are Catholic because Jesus is Lord, because He founded a Church, and because in that Church He gives us His truth, His mercy, and His Body and Blood.
In our second teaching, we asked:
Did Jesus really found the Church?
And we saw that the Church is not a human invention added on later. Jesus gathered disciples, chose the Twelve, gave authority, gave Peter the keys, commanded the Apostles to teach and baptise, gave the Eucharist, gave the power to forgive sins, promised to remain with His Church, and sent the Holy Spirit.
In our third teaching, we asked:
Is the Bible enough?
And we saw that Catholics love the Bible as the inspired Word of God. But we do not separate the Bible from the Church that received it, recognised it, preserved it, proclaimed it, and handed it on. Scripture and Tradition belong together in the apostolic faith of the Church.
Now we come to another important question:
Who has authority in the Church?
That question matters because many people today are suspicious of authority.
Sometimes for good reason.
They have seen authority misused.
They have seen leaders fail.
They have seen hypocrisy.
They have seen people use religion to control others.
They have seen confusion, weakness, or scandal.
So when Catholics speak about authority, people may react strongly.
They may say:
“I do not need anyone telling me what to believe.”
Or:
“Why should the Pope have authority?”
Or:
“Why should bishops or priests teach me?”
Or:
“Surely I can read the Bible and decide for myself.”
Or:
“Isn’t conscience enough?”
These are real questions.
And we must answer them calmly.
Because Catholic authority is not meant to be domination. It is not meant to be control. It is not meant to crush thought, conscience, or freedom.
Authority in the Church exists to serve the truth Christ has given.
It exists so that the Gospel is not lost, altered, watered down, or turned into private opinion.
The Church’s authority is not above Christ.
It comes from Christ.
It stands under Christ.
It serves Christ.
And that is what we need to understand tonight.
1. All authority in the Church belongs first to Christ
We must begin here.
The first authority in the Church is not the Pope.
It is not the bishops.
It is not the priest.
It is not the parish.
It is not a committee.
It is not public opinion.
It is Jesus Christ.
Christ is the Head of the Church.
Christ is the Lord.
Christ is the Teacher.
Christ is the Shepherd.
Christ is the Bridegroom.
Christ is the one who says, “Follow me.”
The Church does not possess authority as something independent of Him.
The Church receives authority from Him.
That is why Catholic authority is never absolute in the worldly sense.
The Pope cannot invent a new Gospel.
Bishops cannot change the faith into something else.
Priests cannot treat the sacraments as their private property.
The parish cannot vote the truth into existence.
The Church is not owner of the faith.
She is servant of the faith.
This matters very much.
When the Church teaches with authority, she is not saying:
“We are cleverer than everyone else.”
She is saying:
“We have received something from Christ and the Apostles, and we must hand it on faithfully.”
Authority in the Church is therefore always under obedience.
The Pope is under the Word of God.
The bishops are under the Word of God.
The priest is under the Word of God.
The whole Church is under the lordship of Jesus Christ.
So the first Catholic answer to authority is simple:
Christ has authority, and the Church’s authority comes only from Him.
2. Jesus taught with authority
The Gospels show that Jesus was not merely one teacher among many.
People noticed that He taught with authority.
He did not simply repeat opinions.
He did not merely offer suggestions.
He did not speak like someone uncertain of His mission.
He said:
“You have heard that it was said… but I say to you.”
He forgave sins.
He commanded demons.
He healed the sick.
He calmed the sea.
He called disciples to leave everything and follow Him.
He spoke as one who had authority because He is the Son of God.
This is very important.
Christianity is not built on private religious preference.
It is built on divine revelation.
God has spoken.
God has acted.
God has revealed Himself in Jesus Christ.
And if God has spoken, then faith is not simply a matter of taste.
We cannot say:
“I like this teaching, but not that one.”
Or:
“I will accept Christ when He comforts me, but reject Him when He corrects me.”
To call Jesus Lord means that He has the right to teach us.
A disciple is one who listens.
A disciple is not someone who stands above the Master and judges every word according to personal preference.
A disciple says:
“Lord, teach me.”
That is where Christian obedience begins.
Not with fear.
Not with servility.
But with trust.
Because the one who teaches us is the one who died for us.
3. Jesus gave real authority to the Apostles
Jesus did not keep His authority as a private possession. He shared His mission with the Apostles.
He chose the Twelve.
He formed them.
He sent them.
He gave them a mission to teach, sanctify, and govern His people.
He said:
“He who hears you hears me.”
He said:
“As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.”
He commanded them:
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them… teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”
After the Resurrection, He breathed on them and said:
“Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them.”
That is real authority.
Not authority to replace Christ.
Authority to serve Christ.
The Apostles are not owners of the Gospel.
They are witnesses and servants of the Gospel.
They are sent to teach what Christ commanded.
They are sent to baptise.
They are sent to forgive sins.
They are sent to celebrate the Eucharist.
They are sent to shepherd the Church.
This means Christianity is not simply a private relationship with Jesus detached from apostolic authority.
From the beginning, Christ gives His Church a visible apostolic structure.
Why?
Because the Gospel must be handed on.
The sacraments must be celebrated.
Sinners must be forgiven.
False teaching must be corrected.
The faithful must be gathered.
Unity must be preserved.
Christ knows our weakness. He knows that without authority, faith easily fragments into competing opinions.
So He gives shepherds.
Not because shepherds are always holy.
Not because shepherds never fail.
Not because shepherds are superior Christians.
But because His flock needs guidance.
4. Authority exists to guard what has been received
This is one of the most important points.
Authority in the Church does not exist to create new truth.
It exists to guard what has been received.
Saint Paul speaks of handing on what he himself received.
That is the pattern of Catholic faith:
Receive.
Guard.
Hand on.
The Church does not wake up in each generation and invent Christianity again.
She receives the apostolic faith and hands it on.
This is why authority matters.
Without authority, doctrine becomes unstable.
One generation says one thing.
The next generation says another.
One teacher says baptism matters.
Another says it does not.
One person says the Eucharist is truly Christ.
Another says it is only a symbol.
One person says marriage is permanent.
Another says it can be redefined.
One person says Christ is truly God.
Another says He is only a prophet or moral teacher.
Without an authority to guard the apostolic faith, Christianity becomes whatever the loudest or most persuasive voice says it is.
That is not what Christ gave.
The Church’s authority is conservative in the deepest sense: not politically conservative, but preserving what has been entrusted to her.
She must guard the deposit of faith.
She must say yes where Christ says yes.
She must say no where Christ says no.
She must explain more deeply when confusion arises.
She must defend the truth when error appears.
She must not betray what she has received.
That is why Catholic authority can sometimes feel demanding.
The Church cannot simply change the faith to make it easier.
She cannot say:
“This teaching is unpopular, so we will abandon it.”
Or:
“This commandment is difficult, so it no longer matters.”
Or:
“This doctrine is old, so it must be false.”
Truth is not created by popularity.
The Church serves the truth.
And that service is sometimes costly.
5. Peter and the keys
Among the Apostles, Peter has a particular role.
This does not mean Peter is the source of the Church.
Christ is the source.
It does not mean Peter is sinless.
He is not.
It does not mean Peter always understands immediately.
He does not.
It does not mean Peter is personally stronger than everyone else.
He denies the Lord.
And yet Christ gives Peter a particular mission.
At Caesarea Philippi, after Peter confesses Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the living God, Jesus says:
“You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church.”
And He gives him the keys of the kingdom.
Keys are a sign of authority.
Not ownership.
Stewardship.
The one who holds the keys serves the householder. He does not replace him.
Christ is the true King.
Peter is entrusted with a visible role in Christ’s household.
Elsewhere, Jesus says to Peter:
“Strengthen your brethren.”
And after the Resurrection, three times He says:
“Feed my lambs… tend my sheep… feed my sheep.”
This is the Catholic understanding of Peter.
Peter is given a role of strengthening, shepherding, and serving unity.
This matters because the Church is visible.
Visible unity needs a visible centre.
The role of Peter is not a prize given to Peter because he is impressive.
It is a mercy given to the Church because Christ knows we need unity.
And Catholics believe that this Petrine ministry continues in the Bishop of Rome, the successor of Peter.
That is why the Pope matters.
The Pope is not a second Christ.
He is not above Scripture.
He is not above Tradition.
He is not above the Gospel.
He is not free to invent a new faith.
His task is to strengthen his brethren and serve the unity of the Church in the apostolic faith.
A Pope may have personal weaknesses.
Some Popes have been saints.
Some have not.
Some have governed wisely.
Some have not.
But the office is not built on the personal brilliance of the man.
It is built on Christ’s promise to His Church.
That is why Catholics do not worship the Pope.
We do not treat every papal comment as revelation.
We do not pretend every prudential decision is perfect.
But we do receive the Petrine ministry as part of Christ’s provision for the visible unity of His Church.
6. Bishops and apostolic succession
The Apostles were not meant to be the end of the Church’s visible authority.
They were the beginning.
As the Church grew, the apostolic ministry continued through bishops.
This is what Catholics mean by apostolic succession.
Apostolic succession does not mean bishops are automatically holy or wise.
It means the Church remains visibly connected to the mission Christ gave the Apostles.
The bishops, in communion with the successor of Peter, are successors of the Apostles.
They are entrusted with teaching, sanctifying, and governing the Church.
They preach the faith.
They guard doctrine.
They ordain priests and deacons.
They oversee the sacraments.
They shepherd the local Churches.
Again, this is not about power in a worldly sense.
It is about continuity.
The Church is not reinvented from scratch in every generation.
The faith is handed on.
A bishop is not meant to be a manager, politician, celebrity, or business executive.
He is a successor of the Apostles.
He must guard what he has received.
And priests share in that ministry under the bishop.
A priest does not preach his own religion.
A priest does not invent his own sacraments.
A priest does not own the parish.
A priest is ordained to serve Christ and His Church.
This should humble every priest.
The authority of a priest is real, but it is received authority.
It exists for service.
It exists for preaching the Gospel, celebrating the sacraments, forgiving sins, shepherding souls, and leading people to Christ.
When authority forgets service, it becomes ugly.
When authority forgets Christ, it becomes dangerous.
But when authority is obedient to Christ, it becomes a gift.
7. What is the Magisterium?
Catholics often use the word Magisterium.
It sounds technical, but it simply means the teaching office of the Church.
It comes from the Latin word for teacher.
The Magisterium is the Church’s living teaching authority, exercised by the Pope and the bishops in communion with him.
Its task is not to create revelation.
Public revelation is complete in Christ and the apostolic faith.
The Magisterium does not add a new Gospel.
It guards, explains, defends, and faithfully hands on the Gospel already received.
Think of the Magisterium as a servant of the Word of God.
Scripture is the inspired written Word of God.
Sacred Tradition is the living handing on of the apostolic faith.
The Magisterium is the teaching office that serves Scripture and Tradition, guarding their true meaning.
These three belong together.
Scripture without the Church can be twisted into private interpretations.
Tradition without the Church’s teaching office can be confused with mere custom.
Authority without Scripture and Tradition would become arbitrary.
But together, Scripture, Tradition, and the Magisterium preserve the apostolic faith.
This is why Catholics do not say:
“I will decide the faith for myself.”
Nor do we say:
“The Church can teach whatever she likes.”
We say:
“The Church teaches with authority when she hands on what Christ gave through the Apostles.”
The Magisterium is not a burden designed to make life difficult.
It is a protection.
It protects us from reducing Christianity to opinion, fashion, politics, or personal preference.
It keeps the Church anchored in Christ.
8. What about conscience?
This is very important.
Some people hear the Church speak about authority and worry that conscience disappears.
But Catholic teaching does not destroy conscience.
It forms conscience.
Conscience is not merely a feeling.
It is not simply “what I personally think”.
It is not the same as preference.
Conscience is the judgement by which a person recognises what is morally right and wrong.
A person must never be forced to act against conscience.
But conscience must also be formed.
Why?
Because conscience can be mistaken.
We all know this.
People have sincerely believed wrong things.
People have justified selfishness, cruelty, dishonesty, impurity, injustice, and even violence while thinking they were right.
So conscience is sacred, but it is not infallible.
A Catholic must form conscience according to truth.
That means listening to Scripture.
Listening to the teaching of the Church.
Praying.
Examining oneself honestly.
Seeking wise counsel.
Being willing to repent.
The Church does not replace conscience.
She helps form it.
A good Catholic does not say:
“I obey blindly and never think.”
Nor does a good Catholic say:
“I decide everything for myself and ignore the Church.”
A mature Catholic says:
“I want my conscience to be formed by Christ, His Word, and His Church.”
That is real freedom.
Not the freedom to invent good and evil for myself.
The freedom to know and choose the good.
9. Authority and humility
Authority in the Church asks humility from everyone.
It asks humility from the faithful.
Because none of us is above the faith.
None of us can say:
“I accept Catholic teaching only when I already agree with it.”
That is not discipleship. That is self-confirmation.
But authority also asks humility from pastors.
A Pope must be humble before Christ.
Bishops must be humble before Christ.
Priests must be humble before Christ.
Catechists, theologians, parents, and parish leaders must be humble before Christ.
The Church’s authority is disfigured when it becomes proud, harsh, careless, or self-serving.
People are often not wounded by authority itself.
They are wounded by authority badly exercised.
So we must be clear.
Catholic authority is not permission to dominate.
It is a call to serve.
The Lord says that the greatest must become the servant.
So a priest who teaches does not stand above the people as an owner of truth.
He stands under the truth with them, charged with handing on what is not his own.
A bishop who governs is not meant to be a ruler in the worldly sense.
He is meant to be a shepherd.
A Pope who exercises authority is not meant to be a celebrity or monarch in the worldly sense.
He is the servant of the servants of God.
Authority becomes beautiful when it is cruciform.
When it looks like Christ.
When it serves, sacrifices, protects, teaches, corrects, forgives, and leads people to salvation.
10. Why authority is merciful
At first, authority may not sound merciful.
It can sound restrictive.
But in the Church, true authority is a mercy.
Imagine a world where every person has to invent Christianity alone.
Every person must decide alone what the Bible means.
Every person must decide alone what the sacraments are.
Every person must decide alone whether Christ is truly God.
Every person must decide alone what marriage is.
Every person must decide alone what sin is.
Every person must decide alone what worship should be.
That is not freedom.
That is exhaustion.
Christ does not leave us there.
He gives us a Church.
He gives us Apostles.
He gives us Scripture.
He gives us Tradition.
He gives us shepherds.
He gives us sacraments.
He gives us teaching.
He gives us a way to remain in the truth.
Authority is merciful because truth is merciful.
A doctor who will not diagnose because the diagnosis is difficult is not merciful.
A parent who refuses to guide a child because guidance may be unpopular is not merciful.
A shepherd who lets the sheep wander into danger because correction is awkward is not merciful.
True authority serves life.
It protects the weak.
It guards the truth.
It calls sinners back.
It helps the confused.
It keeps the Church united in Christ.
That is why authority, rightly understood, is not the enemy of love.
It is one of love’s forms.
11. How to answer this simply
So if someone asks:
“Why should the Church have authority?”
You might say:
“Because Jesus gave authority to the Apostles to teach, baptise, forgive sins, and shepherd His people. The Church’s authority comes from Christ and exists to serve His truth.”
Or:
“The Church does not invent the faith. She guards and hands on what she has received from Christ and the Apostles.”
Or:
“Without authority, Christianity becomes private opinion. Christ gave the Church shepherds so that His people would remain united in the truth.”
If someone asks:
“Do Catholics worship the Pope?”
You can say:
“No. The Pope is not above Christ, Scripture, or Tradition. He is the successor of Peter, called to serve the unity of the Church and strengthen his brethren in the apostolic faith.”
If someone says:
“I follow my conscience, not the Church.”
You can say:
“Conscience matters deeply, but conscience must be formed by truth. The Church helps us form conscience according to Christ, not merely according to personal preference.”
Simple answers are often best.
Do not overwhelm people.
Speak calmly.
Remember: the aim is not to win an argument.
The aim is to help someone see that Catholic authority is not a human power-grab.
It is Christ’s provision for His Church.
12. What this asks of us
If Christ has given authority to His Church, then we must receive it with humility.
That does not mean we stop thinking.
It means we think as disciples.
It does not mean we never ask questions.
It means we ask questions from within faith, not from above it.
It does not mean every pastoral decision is perfect.
It means we distinguish between the faith itself and the weakness of those who serve it.
It does not mean authority is never misused.
It means we call authority back to Christ when it is misused.
It does not mean blind obedience to sin.
No one has authority to command evil.
But it does mean that we should not treat the Church’s teaching as merely one opinion among many.
Catholic faith asks us to be teachable.
That is difficult in every age, but perhaps especially in ours.
We are trained to criticise before we listen.
We are trained to choose before we receive.
We are trained to suspect authority before we ask whether it may be a gift.
But the disciple says:
“Lord, teach me.”
The disciple says:
“Lord, form my conscience.”
The disciple says:
“Lord, keep me in the truth.”
The disciple says:
“Lord, do not let me turn my own opinion into my religion.”
That is the humility authority asks of us.
And that humility is not weakness.
It is the beginning of wisdom.
Conclusion
So who has authority in the Church?
First and always: Jesus Christ.
He is Lord.
He is Head of the Church.
He is the Teacher, Shepherd, and Bridegroom.
But Christ has not left His Church without visible guidance.
He chose the Apostles.
He gave them authority.
He gave Peter the keys.
He sent them to teach and baptise.
He gave them power to forgive sins.
He promised to remain with His Church.
He sent the Holy Spirit.
That apostolic authority continues in the bishops, in communion with the successor of Peter.
The Pope and bishops do not invent the faith.
They are called to guard, teach, defend, and hand on the faith received from the Apostles.
The Magisterium is not above the Word of God.
It serves the Word of God.
And conscience is not destroyed by Church teaching.
It is formed by truth.
So we do not say:
“I alone decide what Christianity means.”
We say:
“Lord, teach me through the Church You founded.”
We do not say:
“The Church can invent whatever she likes.”
We say:
“The Church must faithfully hand on what she has received.”
We do not say:
“Authority is about domination.”
We say:
“True authority is service in the truth.”
Before we move to questions, remember these three simple answers.
Who has authority in the Church?
Christ has authority first.
Christ gave authority to the Apostles.
The Church’s teaching authority exists to guard and hand on what Christ gave.
If you remember nothing else, remember this:
The Church’s authority is not above Christ. It comes from Christ, stands under Christ, and exists to keep us faithful to Christ.
And perhaps each of us should ask:
Do I allow Christ to teach me through His Church, especially when the teaching challenges me?
Because the Catholic faith is not only something to understand.
It is something to receive, trust, and live.
Amen.
Q&A after Session 4
- Why do Catholics believe the Church has authority?
- What authority did Jesus give to the Apostles?
- What does it mean that Peter received the keys?
- Do Catholics believe the Pope can invent new doctrine?
- What is the Magisterium?
- How should Catholics understand conscience?
- What is the difference between obedience and blind obedience?
- How can authority be exercised badly, and what should true authority look like?
Closing prayer
Lord Jesus Christ,
You are the Head and Shepherd of Your Church.
Keep us faithful to Your truth.
Give humility to Your people,
wisdom to Your pastors,
courage to Your bishops,
and holiness to the successor of Peter.
Form our consciences by Your Word,
protect us from pride and confusion,
and lead us deeper into the freedom of Your truth.
Amen.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
St. Mary's, St. John Bosco and St. Edward's 