By What Authority?

[Hey, Church fans! How do you know the faith you were taught was not made up by some guy named Ned in the Middle Ages? Your answer is below.

Don’t forget, you can always see the homily on our parish Facebook page by clicking here. ]

     When I am doing lectio divina, my meditations will often fall to the more obscure references in a particular scripture passage. For example, in today’s gospel, we are told that Jesus “taught with authority and not like their scribes.”         Which begs the question—how did the scribes teach? One gets the impression that they were a bit mealy-mouthed. They probably had lots of footnotes. 

       Jesus is different. He does not cite any sources. Rather, he comes preaching himself and the Kingdom. As the Incarnate Word of God, he IS the primary source of revelation. There is no higher authority.

       The expulsion of the demon, done by his own authority, further drives the point home. He appeals to no one. As the divine second person of the Holy Trinity Jesus teaches and preaches and heals and expels demons

       …on his own authority. 

       The people in the synagogue, including his disciples, don’t realize this yet of course. That will come later. In the meantime, they are left to wonder, “What is this all about?”

       To Mark’s mind, it is all about the authority of Christ over all things “in heaven, on earth, and under the earth.” (Phil 2:10)

       So here is a question for you.

       Did that authority of Christ end with his ascension into heaven? 

       The obvious answer is, “No.”

       At Pentecost, Christ passed on this same authority to St. Peter and the apostles and to their successors, the bishops. Thus, the Church teaches and sanctifies and governs with the same authority of Christ.

       Why is this so important?

       Well, let me ask you another question.  It’s one you may have even asked yourself at one time.  I know I did, when I was about 15.  The question is this:

       “How do you know?

       How do you know that the faith that you have been taught is authentic – that it is the same faith taught by the Apostle Peter, by the Apostle Paul? 

       How do you know it just wasn’t MADE UP in the middle ages by some guy named Ned Jones, or in the 19^th century by some fellow named Joe Smith?

       What is your guarantee?

       As a believing Christian, it is imperative that you know that your faith is authentic.

So how would you go about getting that certainty?

       If I were you, I would want to get as close to the source as possible. 

       I would try to find out if the very Church that Christ founded was still around,

       and once found them,

              and I would want to make sure that they had                                     some very good safeguards in place

              to make sure that what they taught today is                                  exactly what was taught then;

       Because if they did, they would be the only ones who would have the authority to authentically teach and tell their own story.

       These would be the present day witnesses to the Risen Christ.

       You deserve that kind of certainty…

And here you have it.

       My dear friends in Christ in St. Patrick’s Parish and those who are watching on the livestream or the recorded wherever you are.

       You are indeed sitting in the midst of or watching the local expression of the very community founded by Christ.

       For us in the Roman Catholic Church, we trace our faith in a direct line all the back to the Apostles Peter and Paul, authentic witnesses of the resurrection.

       Paul, whose life was changed forever when  encountered the Risen Christ on the road to Damascus and soon began to proclaim the very Faith he was persecuting,

       Who went to Arabia, back to Damascus, then to Jerusalem, where he his teaching was affirmed by the Apostles,

       then on four missionary journeys throughout the Mediterranean, and finally taken as a prisoner to Rome, where he witnessed to the faith, even under house arrest.

       And where, in the persecution of Nero, he was beheaded, outside the city at Tre Fontane, and where his grave is located under the high altar of the Basilica that bears his name.

       Peter, who was with Christ from the beginning, who recognized him as the Messiah, who walked out across the water to Christ in the raging storm, who denied him three times and was three times restored.

       Who at Pentecost received the Holy Spirit and proclaimed the risen Christ to the crowd with such conviction that 3000 were added that day.

       Who healed the crippled man on the steps of the Temple.

       Who led the Church in Antioch and then the Church in Rome for 25 years.

       Who in the persecution of 64 AD was cast into the Mamertine Prison and then crucified upside down on the spine of the Circus of Nero at the foot of the Vatican Hillside and was buried in a simple grave in the necropolis nearby.

       Where today, the Basilica that bears his name is built so that the high altar is directly over his simple grave.

       St. Peter, the Vicar of Christ, whose authority was passed to his successor Linus,

       and Linus to Cletus,

              and Cletus to Clement

and so on, in an unbroken line of apostolic succession,

       to a man named Francis, the 265th direct successor          to the Apostle Peter,

              whose first task is to hold and teach the Catholic Faith, whole and entire, without corruption

       who second task, in communion with the bishops

              the successors of the apostles,

       is to interpret and proclaim that Faith in the modern world.

       So what’s our guarantee here in 99504?

       Well, here in the Archdiocese of Anchorage-Juneau, we have an archbishop named Andrew Bellisario, who was appointed by the very same Francis, Bishop of Rome, Vicar of Christ,

       Before he came to us, he was subjected to a process of scrutiny that lasted almost a year and a half.

       In due time, the personal representative of the Holy Father, the Papal Nuncio, came to Anchorage for the installation.

       And before Archbishop Bellisario was installed, the question was asked of him, “Do you have the Papal Mandate?”

       What the heck is the papal mandate?

       Simply put, it is a letter from the Holy Father, to the people of the Archdiocese stating without question that the man who currently holds the office of Archbishop of Anchorage-Juneau holds and teaches the same faith the Church has held and taught and preserved since Christ founded it. 

       The Nuncio held up the letter from the Holy Father for all to see.

       If you would like, you can go to the Archbishop’s office and take a look at it. 

       This papal mandate is your guarantee that the faith you have received as a Catholic in 99504 in 2021 is the same faith as the apostle Paul, as the apostle Peter.

Jesus taught with authority. 

       The Church teaches with the same authority.

              The Apostolic Succession is our guarantee that                    the witness we have received is true. 

       May our lives reflect that truth.