Chapter 6: The Church's Authority in Doctrine

Article XXI

OF THE AUTHORITY OF GENERAL COUNCILS^[1]

General Councils may not be gathered together without the commandment and will of Princes. And when they be gathered together (forasmuch as they be an assembly of men, whereof all be not governed with the Spirit and Word of God), they may err, and sometimes have erred, even in things pertaining to God. Wherefore things ordained by them as necessary to salvation have neither strength nor authority, unless it may be declared that they be taken out of Holy Scripture.

In the preceding Article on the authority of the Church we noted the distinction between the Church’s judicial authority in matters of Faith, and her legislative authority in respect of Rites and Ceremonies. The Preface Concerning Ceremonies (1549) concedes that ‘every country should use such Ceremonies as they shall think best to the setting forth of God’s honour and glory . . . without error or superstition’. It is generally agreed that, owing to different customs and standards of taste among different peoples, the churches of the various nations must be allowed to decide which Rites and Ceremonies are most convenient and appropriate for use in public worship. Each national church, as the local representative of the one Catholic Church, acts in such matters through its own synods or councils.

This Article, however, is concerned with General Councils as distinct from local or national synods or councils. A General Council is an assembly of the chief persons, especially the Bishops, in the churches throughout the world for the purpose of determining the truth on subjects of controversy which vitally concern the doctrine and order of the whole Church. Our Lord commissioned the Apostles to ‘make disciples of all nations’,^[2] and promised them the guidance of the Holy Spirit to teach them ‘all things’^[3] and to guide them into ‘the whole truth’.^[4] The same authority and responsibility for safeguarding the Faith was given to Timothy and Titus and to Bishops generally. But even Apostles could err,^[5] and Bishops as individuals have sometimes failed to express the true voice of the Church. Hence the early Church found it desirable to follow the Apostolic example^[6] of summoning Councils representative of the whole Church to decide disputed points of faith and practice.

^[1]Only a few small verbal alterations have been made in this Article since its composition as one of the Forty-two Articles, for instance, after ‘erred’ it had originally ‘not only in worldly matters but also in’.

^[2]Mtt. 28:19 f.

^[3]Jn. 14:26; cf. 2:22, 12:16.

^[4]Jn. 16:13 (GK).

^[5]E.G., Peter’s vacillation – In Acts 11:1-18 he justified eating with Gentiles; later he refused to eat with Gentiles and was rebuked (Gal. 2:11 f.).

^[6]The Apostles summoned the Council of Jerusalem to decide the vexed issue of the relation of the Jewish Law to the Gospel (Acts 15.).


	The Church's Authority in Doctrine
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Title Contents Preface Introduction Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Appendix A Appendix B Appendix C Site Search: powered by FreeFind Copyright & Credit	Article XXI OF THE AUTHORITY OF GENERAL COUNCILS^[1] General Councils may not be gathered together without the commandment and will of Princes. And when they be gathered together (forasmuch as they be an assembly of men, whereof all be not governed with the Spirit and Word of God), they may err, and sometimes have erred, even in things pertaining to God. Wherefore things ordained by them as necessary to salvation have neither strength nor authority, unless it may be declared that they be taken out of Holy Scripture. In the preceding Article on the authority of the Church we noted the distinction between the Church’s judicial authority in matters of Faith, and her legislative authority in respect of Rites and Ceremonies. The Preface Concerning Ceremonies (1549) concedes that ‘every country should use such Ceremonies as they shall think best to the setting forth of God’s honour and glory . . . without error or superstition’. It is generally agreed that, owing to different customs and standards of taste among different peoples, the churches of the various nations must be allowed to decide which Rites and Ceremonies are most convenient and appropriate for use in public worship. Each national church, as the local representative of the one Catholic Church, acts in such matters through its own synods or councils. This Article, however, is concerned with General Councils as distinct from local or national synods or councils. A General Council is an assembly of the chief persons, especially the Bishops, in the churches throughout the world for the purpose of determining the truth on subjects of controversy which vitally concern the doctrine and order of the whole Church. Our Lord commissioned the Apostles to ‘make disciples of all nations’,^[2] and promised them the guidance of the Holy Spirit to teach them ‘all things’^[3] and to guide them into ‘the whole truth’.^[4] The same authority and responsibility for safeguarding the Faith was given to Timothy and Titus and to Bishops generally. But even Apostles could err,^[5] and Bishops as individuals have sometimes failed to express the true voice of the Church. Hence the early Church found it desirable to follow the Apostolic example^[6] of summoning Councils representative of the whole Church to decide disputed points of faith and practice. ^[1]Only a few small verbal alterations have been made in this Article since its composition as one of the Forty-two Articles, for instance, after ‘erred’ it had originally ‘not only in worldly matters but also in’. ^[2]Mtt. 28:19 f. ^[3]Jn. 14:26; cf. 2:22, 12:16. ^[4]Jn. 16:13 (GK). ^[5]E.G., Peter’s vacillation – In Acts 11:1-18 he justified eating with Gentiles; later he refused to eat with Gentiles and was rebuked (Gal. 2:11 f.). ^[6]The Apostles summoned the Council of Jerusalem to decide the vexed issue of the relation of the Jewish Law to the Gospel (Acts 15.).
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