The
episcopate is the collective body of all
bishopA bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
s of a church. In the
Roman CatholicThe Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church. With more than a billion members, over half of all Christians and more than one-sixth of the world's population, the Catholic Church is a communion of the Western, or Latin Rite Church, and...
,
AnglicanAnglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures...
, Eastern Orthodox, Eastern Rite Catholic,
Oriental OrthodoxOriental Orthodoxy is the communion of Eastern Christian Churches that recognize only three ecumenical councils — the First Council of Nicaea, the First Council of Constantinople and the Council of Ephesus. They rejected the dogmatic definitions of the Council of Chalcedon...
,
Old-CatholicThe Old Catholic Church is a Christian denomination originating with mainly German-speaking groups that split from the Holy See in the 1870s because they disagreed with the solemn declaration of the doctrine of papal infallibility promulgated by the First Vatican Council . The Old Catholic Church...
, Moravian Church, and
Independent CatholicIndependent Catholic churches are Catholic congregations that are not in communion with the Roman Catholic Church or any other churches whose sacraments are recognized by the Roman Catholic Church . Some groups in the Independent Catholic movement claim to have valid apostolic succession for their...
churches as well as in the
Assyrian Church of the Eaststyle="float: right;"|- |The Assyrian Church of the East known officially as the Holy Apostolic Catholic Assyrian Church of the East , in Persian القدس وابسته به پاپ کاتولیک آشوری...
, it is held that only a person in
Apostolic SuccessionApostolic succession is the doctrine in some of the more ancient Christian communions that the succession of bishops, in uninterrupted lines, is historically traceable back to the original Twelve Apostles. Apostolic succession is not the same as the Petrine supremacy . As a general rule,...
, a line of succession of bishops dating back to the
ApostleIn Christianity, apostles were missionaries among the leaders in the Early Church and, in the Epistle to the Hebrews, Jesus Christ himself. The term was also used, especially by the Gospel of Luke, for "the Twelve," Jesus' inner circle of disciples...
s, can be a
bishopA bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
, and only such a person can validly
ordainIn general religious use, ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart as clergy to perform various religious rites and ceremonies. The process and ceremonies of ordination itself varies by religion and denomination. One who is in preparation for, or who is...
Christian clergy. The succession must be transmitted from each bishop to a successor by the rite of
Holy OrdersThe term Holy Orders is used by many Christian churches to refer to ordination or to a group of individuals who are set apart for a special role or ministry....
.
The
episcopate is the collective body of all
bishopA bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
s of a church. In the
Roman CatholicThe Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church. With more than a billion members, over half of all Christians and more than one-sixth of the world's population, the Catholic Church is a communion of the Western, or Latin Rite Church, and...
,
AnglicanAnglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures...
, Eastern Orthodox, Eastern Rite Catholic,
Oriental OrthodoxOriental Orthodoxy is the communion of Eastern Christian Churches that recognize only three ecumenical councils — the First Council of Nicaea, the First Council of Constantinople and the Council of Ephesus. They rejected the dogmatic definitions of the Council of Chalcedon...
,
Old-CatholicThe Old Catholic Church is a Christian denomination originating with mainly German-speaking groups that split from the Holy See in the 1870s because they disagreed with the solemn declaration of the doctrine of papal infallibility promulgated by the First Vatican Council . The Old Catholic Church...
, Moravian Church, and
Independent CatholicIndependent Catholic churches are Catholic congregations that are not in communion with the Roman Catholic Church or any other churches whose sacraments are recognized by the Roman Catholic Church . Some groups in the Independent Catholic movement claim to have valid apostolic succession for their...
churches as well as in the
Assyrian Church of the Eaststyle="float: right;"|- |The Assyrian Church of the East known officially as the Holy Apostolic Catholic Assyrian Church of the East , in Persian القدس وابسته به پاپ کاتولیک آشوری...
, it is held that only a person in
Apostolic SuccessionApostolic succession is the doctrine in some of the more ancient Christian communions that the succession of bishops, in uninterrupted lines, is historically traceable back to the original Twelve Apostles. Apostolic succession is not the same as the Petrine supremacy . As a general rule,...
, a line of succession of bishops dating back to the
ApostleIn Christianity, apostles were missionaries among the leaders in the Early Church and, in the Epistle to the Hebrews, Jesus Christ himself. The term was also used, especially by the Gospel of Luke, for "the Twelve," Jesus' inner circle of disciples...
s, can be a
bishopA bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
, and only such a person can validly
ordainIn general religious use, ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart as clergy to perform various religious rites and ceremonies. The process and ceremonies of ordination itself varies by religion and denomination. One who is in preparation for, or who is...
Christian clergy. The succession must be transmitted from each bishop to a successor by the rite of
Holy OrdersThe term Holy Orders is used by many Christian churches to refer to ordination or to a group of individuals who are set apart for a special role or ministry....
. Bishops in valid
Apostolic SuccessionApostolic succession is the doctrine in some of the more ancient Christian communions that the succession of bishops, in uninterrupted lines, is historically traceable back to the original Twelve Apostles. Apostolic succession is not the same as the Petrine supremacy . As a general rule,...
compose the
historical episcopate. Bishops of the
Evangelical Lutheran Church in AmericaThe Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is a mainline Protestant denomination headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. The ELCA officially came into existence on January 1, 1988, by the merging of three churches and currently has about 4,633,887 baptized members...
are also ordained through the laying on of hands of bishops in the apostolic succession.
The
Roman Catholic ChurchThe Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church. With more than a billion members, over half of all Christians and more than one-sixth of the world's population, the Catholic Church is a communion of the Western, or Latin Rite Church, and...
holds that a bishop's consecration is valid if the
sacramentA sacrament, as defined in Hexam's Concise Dictionary of Religion is what Roman Catholics believe to be "a rite in which God is uniquely active." Augustine of Hippo defined a Christian sacrament as "a visible sign of an invisible reality." The Anglican Book of Common Prayer speaks of them as "an...
of Holy Orders is validly administered with the intention of doing what the Church does by ordination and according to a valid sacramental form, and if the consecrating bishop's orders are valid, regardless of whether the rite takes place within or outside of the Roman Catholic Church. Thus, Roman Catholics recognize the validity of the episcopacy of Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Assyrian Church of the East and Old Catholic bishops, but the situation is less clear regarding Anglican bishops and Independent Catholic bishops (see
Episcopi vagantesEpiscopi vagantes are persons who have been consecrated as Christian bishops outside the structures and canon law of the established churches and are in communion with no generally recognized diocese...
).
The
Eastern Orthodox ChurchThe Orthodox Church, also officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to in English speaking countries as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the world's second largest Christian communion, estimated to number 225 million members...
's view has been summarised as follows: "While accepting the canonical possibility of recognising the existence (υποστατόν) of sacraments performed outside herself, (the
Eastern Orthodox ChurchThe Orthodox Church, also officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to in English speaking countries as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the world's second largest Christian communion, estimated to number 225 million members...
) questions their validity (έγκυρον) and certainly rejects their efficacy (ενεργόν)"; and it sees "the canonical recognition (αναγνώρισις) of the validity of sacraments performed outside the Orthodox Church (as referring) to the validity of the sacraments only of those who join the Orthodox Church (individually or as a body)." This applies to the validity and efficacy of the ordination of bishops and the other sacraments, not only of the
Independent Catholic ChurchesIndependent Catholic churches are Catholic congregations that are not in communion with the Roman Catholic Church or any other churches whose sacraments are recognized by the Roman Catholic Church . Some groups in the Independent Catholic movement claim to have valid apostolic succession for their...
, but also of all other Christian Churches, including the Roman Catholic Church,
Oriental OrthodoxyOriental Orthodoxy is the communion of Eastern Christian Churches that recognize only three ecumenical councils — the First Council of Nicaea, the First Council of Constantinople and the Council of Ephesus. They rejected the dogmatic definitions of the Council of Chalcedon...
, and the
Assyrian Church of the Eaststyle="float: right;"|- |The Assyrian Church of the East known officially as the Holy Apostolic Catholic Assyrian Church of the East , in Persian القدس وابسته به پاپ کاتولیک آشوری...
.
The Eastern Orthodox position on Anglican orders (in the hypothesis of Anglican bishops joining the Orthodox Church individually or as a body) is a grey area, involving disagreements among national churches, theologians and bishops. Because of changes in the Ordinal (the rites of Holy Orders) under King Edward VI, the Roman Catholic Church does not fully recognize all Anglican Holy Orders as valid, but the latter are recognized (and participated in) by Old Catholics, whose Holy Orders are considered valid by Rome.
Lutheran and other episcopally ordered Protestant successions are not recognized by Roman Catholics. The Anglican Church does not recognise the orders of non-episcopal denominations.
More than 91% of the world's more than 5,000 Western bishops alive today trace their
episcopal lineageApostolic succession is the doctrine in some of the more ancient Christian communions that the succession of bishops, in uninterrupted lines, is historically traceable back to the original Twelve Apostles. Apostolic succession is not the same as the Petrine supremacy . As a general rule,...
back to a
15th CenturyAs a means of recording the passage of time, the 15th century was the century which lasted from 1401 to 1500.Spanish and Portuguese explorations led to discovery of the Americas and the sea passage along Cape of Good Hope to India for the European civilization...
bishop
Scipione Cardinal RebibaScipione Rebiba was an Italian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He was appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Chieti on 16 March 1541, created a Cardinal on 20 December 1555, appointed Archbishop of Pisa in 1566, Bishop of Albano in 1573 and Bishop of Sabina e Poggio Mirteto in 1574.Cardinal Rebiba...
. In the early 18th century,
Pope Benedict XIIIPope Benedict XIII , born Pietro Francesco Orsini, later Vincenzo Maria Orsini, was pope from 1724 until his death. He succeeded Pope Innocent XIII ....
, whose orders were descended from Rebiba, personally consecrated at least 139 bishops for various important European sees, including
GermanGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the north by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea; to the east by Poland and the Czech Republic; to the south by Austria and Switzerland; and to the west by France, Luxembourg, Belgium,...
,
FrenchFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
,
EnglishEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and
New WorldThe New World is one of the names used for the non-Afro-Eurasian parts of the Earth, specifically the Americas and possibly Australia. When the term originated in the late 15th century, the Americas were new to the Europeans, who previously thought of the world as consisting only of Europe, Asia,...
bishops. These bishops in turn consecrated bishops almost exclusively for their respective countries, effectively causing other episcopal lines to die out.
External links