INTRODUCTION.
Today marks one month since we started the Sunday School posts; time sure flies. Looking back at previous Sunday Schools, a question by @Earth caught my eye. In today's post, I will be addressing this question.
Again, however, I must stress that these posts aren't about debating or arguing, but about sharing different perspectives. Most bear misconceptions about the Catholic Church, so I hope to clarify Catholic positions and share her correct teachings with others. If any confusion lingers after reading the following, mention me in the comments and I will try my best to answer. That being said, I am not perfect by any means and do not know everything there is to know about the faith. I may very well make a mistake in answering these post-like questions, or when addressing comments. I hope you will not take my personal imperfection to be an accurate representation of the Catholic faith. I urge all to conduct research themselves, for as C.S. Lewis once said, "Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance."
QUESTION.
I was asked a very central question regarding Catholicism: "What are your thoughts on the papacy?" As some can infer—being a Catholic—I hold the papacy to be a divinely appointed institution by Jesus Christ, and the pope (from the Latin word papa, meaning father) to be the vicar of Christ. But what is the pope?
ANSWER.
Catholics (such as myself) believe the pope is the Bishop of Rome and the visible head of the Catholic Church, tasked with safeguarding faith and morals, unifying the faithful, and leading the Church in its mission to spread the Gospel. Why? In Matthew 16:18-19, Jesus declares, "you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades (hell) will not prevail against it." giving him the "keys of the kingdom of heaven" and the authority to bind and loose. This act signifies Christ entrusting Peter with a unique leadership role, rooted in spiritual authority and service.
Apostolic succession is the unbroken transmission of spiritual authority from the apostles, through their successors—the bishops, and particularly the Pope as the successor of St. Peter—down to the present day. Catholics believe it is true because it is rooted in both Scripture and Tradition. In the New Testament, Jesus commissions the apostles to continue His mission, saying, "as the Father has sent me, so I send you" (John 20:21) and granting them the authority to teach, sanctify, and govern in His name (Matthew 28:19-20). This authority was not meant to die with the apostles but to be passed on, as seen when the apostles appoint successors like Matthias (Acts 1:20-26) and ordain leaders through the laying on of hands (2 Timothy 1:6; Titus 1:5). Early Church Fathers, such as St. Irenaeus in the 2nd century, explicitly affirm apostolic succession as the means by which the true faith is preserved, identifying the bishops as custodians of apostolic teaching. Apostolic succession directly connects the Pope to St. Peter, ensuring that the unique authority Christ gave to Peter continues through an unbroken line.
History offers inspiring examples of the papacy’s impact. Pope Pius XII, who saved more Jews during the Holocaust than Schindler, penned the profound encyclical Humani Generis and provided life-saving aid to millions of refugees during and after World War II. Pope St. John Paul II, instrumental in the fall of communism, survived an assassination attempt, forgave his assailant, and gifted the Church the transformative Theology of the Body. While there have been “bad popes” in the Church’s history, these are two of my favorite examples of how the papacy can exemplify extraordinary courage, leadership, and fidelity to Christ.
NOTE.
The sins or failures of individual popes do not falsify the papacy because the office itself, established by Christ, is grounded in divine authority, not human perfection. Jesus chose Peter, a flawed man who denied Him three times, to be the rock upon which He built His Church (Matthew 16:18-19), demonstrating that God works through imperfect individuals to accomplish His will. The Church teaches that the pope’s charism of infallibility applies only to official teachings on faith and morals, not to personal holiness or decisions (though that is another topic altogether). The persistence and unity of the papacy across centuries, despite the failings of some popes, affirm Christ’s promise that "the gates of Hades (hell) will not prevail against it"