Holy Fathers on Apostolic Succession

These quotes are from the Saints & confirm all the bishops sit on the throne of St. Peter, Prince of the Apostles.

It should be known that, for the Church Fathers, apostolic succession means petrine succession. The term originates from the later scholastics, but they did not understand it this way.

The Holy Fathers honored five episcopates with the satus of patriarchate, because each had been founded by St. Peter. The first, Rome, by both SS. Peter & Paul. The second, Constantinople, as New Rome, shared in Old Rome’s legacy, but the former is first as elder. The third, Antioch, by St. Peter alone. The fourth, Alexandria,by St. Peter’s disciple, St. Mark. The fifth, Jerusalem, by St. Peter & all the Apostles.

About the Holy Œcumenical Councils, it should be known that Old Rome only presided vicariously at the first council, but was totally absent from the second, third, quinisext, eighth, & ninth councils. In fact, the president of the second council was not in communion with Old Rome at the time. Additionally, the fifth anathema Pope Vigilius as an heretic. The sixth & seventh councils also anathema Pope Honorius as an heretic. The latter was confirmed by Pope Leo II of Rome. Originally Old Rome accepted the eighth council, during the time of Pope John VIII, only rejecting it retroactively later.

Œcumenical Anathemas

The Holy Œcumenucal Councils anathematize Vigilius & Honorius as heretics:

Constantine the most glorious quæstor said: “… the most pious emperor has sent a decree to your holy council about the name of [Pope] Vigilius, to the effect that in view of the impiety he has defended his name should no longer be included in the sacred diptychs of the Church.” The holy council Said: “May the sacred decree be duly received & read.” [The decree of St. Justinian]: “… we have pronounced that his name [Pope Vigilius] is alien to Christians & is not read out in the sacred diptychs…” The holy council said: “What has now seemed good to the emperor is consonant with the labors he has borne for the unity of the holy churches. Let us therefore preserve unity with the apostolic see of the sancrosanct church of Old Rome, transacting everything according to the tenor of the texts that have been read.”

With these we define that there shall be expelled from the Holy Church of God & anathematized Honorius who was some time Pope of Old Rome, because of what we found written by him to Sergius, that in all respects he followed his view & confirmed his impious doctrines.

But as the author of evil, who, in the beginning, availed himself of the aid of the serpent … in like manner now, having found suitable instruments for working out his will—we mean Theodorus, who was Bishop of Pharan, Sergius, Pyrrhus, Paul & Peter, who were Archbishops of this royal city, & moreover, Honorius who was Pope of Old Rome—has actively employed them in raising up for the whole Church the stumbling-blocks of one will & one operation in the two natures of Christ our true God, one of the Holy Trinity; thus disseminating, in novel terms, among the orthodox people, an heresy similar to the mad & wicked doctrine of the impious Apollinaris.

In like manner also in the times of the pious Emperor Constantine, a council of one-hundred & seventy Holy Fathers was assembled in this royal city which anathematized & denounced Honorius of Old Rome for having taught there was but one will & operation in the two natures of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Equality with All Bishops

The Saints never treat the Pope of Old Rome as supreme among the bishops:

It is manifest, therefore, that we should look upon the bishop even as we would look upon the Lord Himself.

He who honors the bishop has been honored by God; he who does anything without the knowledge of the bishop, does serve the devil.

As therefore the Lord does nothing without the Father, for says He, “I can of Mine own Self do nothing,” so do ye, neither priest, nor deacon, nor layman, do anything without the bishop.

Do ye also reverence your bishop as Christ Himself, according as the blessed Apostles have enjoined you. He that is within the altar is pure, wherefore also he is obedient to the bishop & priests: but he that is without is one that does anything apart from the bishop, the priests, & the deacons. Such a person is defiled in his conscience, & is worse than an infidel. For what is the bishop but one who beyond all others possesses all power & authority, so far as it is possible for a man to possess it who according to his ability has been made an imitator of the Christ of God?

In like manner, let all reverence the deacons as an appointment of Jesus Christ, & the bishop as Jesus Christ, Who is the Son of the Father, & the priests as the Sanhedrin of God, & assembly of the Apostles. Apart from these, there is no Church.

To Polycarp, Bishop of the Church of the Smyrnæans, or rather, who has, as his own bishop, God the Father, & the Lord Jesus Christ: abundance of happiness.

For neither does any of us set himself up as a bishop of bishops, nor by tyrannical terror does any compel his colleague to the necessity of obedience; since every bishop, according to the allowance of his liberty & power, has his own proper right of judgment, & can no more be judged by another than he himself can judge another. But let us all wait for the judgment of our Lord Jesus Christ.

That He might set forth unity, He arranged by His authority the origin of that unity, as beginning from one [Peter]. Assuredly the rest of the Apostles were also the same as was Peter, endowed with a like partnership both of honor & power; but the beginning proceeds from unity.

I hear, moreover, that the Paulinians are carrying about a letter of the Westerns assigning to them the episcopate of the Church in Antioch, but speaking under a false impression of Meletius, the admirable bishop of the true Church of God. I am not astonished at this … But I shall never be able to persuade myself on these grounds to ignore Meletius, or to forget the church which is under him, or to treat as small, & of little importance to the true religion, the questions which originated the division. I shall never consent to give in, merely because somebody is very much elated at receiving a letter from men [i.e. the Papacy of Old Rome].

Christ through Peter gave to the bishops the keys of the heavenly honors.

The Church is founded upon Peter, although in another place, the same thing is done upon all the Apostles, & they all receive the keys of the kingdom of heaven, & the strength of the Church is established equally upon them all.

Far be it from me to censure the successors of the Apostles, who with holy words consecrate the body of Christ, & who make us Christians. Having the keys of the kingdom of heaven, they judge men to some extent before the day of judgment, & guard the chastity of the bride of Christ.

They chose, therefore, as it is reported, to bring their dispute with Cæcilian before the foreign churches … the common outcry of all worthless litigants, though they have been defeated by the clearest light of truth—as if it might not have been said, & most justly said, to them: “Well, let us suppose that those bishops who decided the case at Rome were not good judges; there still remained a plenary council of the Universal Church, in which these judges themselves might be put on their defence; so that, if they were convicted of mistake, their decisions might be reversed.”

[Cæcilian] saw himself united by letters of communion both to the Roman Church, in which the supremacy of an apostolic chair has always flourished, & to all other lands from which Africa itself received the gospel.

You cannot deny that you see what we call heresies & schisms, that is, many cut off from the root of the Christian society, which by means of the Apostolic Sees, & the successions of bishops, is spread abroad in an indisputably world-wide diffusion.

Why do you not understand that the episcopate of Peter is equal & common to all the bishops?

“Upon this rock I will build My Church, & the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” … For this reason it is said to the blessed Peter, “I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: & whatsoever thou bindest on earth shall be bound in heaven, & whatsoever thou loosest on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” It is true that the right of this power also passed to the other apostles, but it is not in vain that it is commended to one because it is communicated to all. For this is why this is uniquely believed of Peter, because the example of Peter is laid out for all the rulers of the Church. Therefore Peter’s privilege remains, wherever justice is brought from him in equity; nor is there too much severity or relaxation, where nothing will be bound, nothing loosed, except what blessed Peter either bound or loosed.

Your most sweet holiness has spoken much in your letter to me about the chair of St. Peter, Prince of the Apostles, saying that he himself now sits on it in the persons of his successors. … And, though special honor to myself in no wise delights me, yet I greatly rejoiced because you, most holy ones, have given to yourselves what you have bestowed upon me. For who can be ignorant that holy church has been made firm in the solidity of the Prince of the Apostles, who derived his name from the firmness of his mind, so as to be called Petrus from petra. … Wherefore though there are many Apostles, yet with regard to the principality itself the see of the Prince of the Apostles alone has grown strong in authority, which in three places is the see of one. For he himself exalted the see [Old Rome] in which he deigned even to rest & end the present life. He himself adorned the see [Alexandria] to which he sent his disciple [St. Mark] as evangelist. He himself established the see [Antioch] in which, though he was to leave it, he sat for seven years. Since then it is the see of one, & one see, over which by divine authority three bishops now preside, whatever good I hear of you, this I impute to myself. If you believe anything good of me, impute this to your merits.

Now I confidently say that whosoever calls himself, or desires to be called, universal priest, is in his elation the precursor of the antichrist, because he proudly puts himself above all others.

Double Apostolic Primacy

The Holy Fathers preface appeals to the Pope of Old Rome’s primacy with her double apostolcity:

Follow the traditions of the orthodox faith of those chief apostles, SS. Peter & Paul, & kindly welcome their vicar [the Pope of Old Rome], even as your predecessors honored each on the vicar of his own days. And let your divinely-received power give all honor to the most holy Roman Church of these chief apostles … Now these same holy & chief apostles who laid the foundation of the Catholic & Orthodox faith have left a written law that all who ever should succeed to their thrones should maintain the same faith.

The very ancient, & universally known church founded & organized at Rome by the two most glorious apostles, Peter & Paul; as also the faith preached to men, which comes down to our time by means of the successions of the bishops. For it is a matter of necessity that every church should agree with this church, on account of its pre-eminent authority, i.e. the faithful everywhere, inasmuch as the apostolical tradition has been preserved continuously by those who exist everywhere.

Therefore you also have by such admonition joined in close union the churches that were planted by Peter & Paul, that of the Romans & that of the Corinthians: for both of them went to our Corinth, & taught us in the same way as they taught you when they went to Italy; & having taught you, they suffered martyrdom at the same time.

Similar Praises & Honorifics

Other bishops are praised & honored like the Pope of Old Rome:

You [Cæsarea] must then take thought for the whole Church as the Body of Christ, but more especially for your own, which was from the beginning & is now the mother of almost all the churches … You then have summoned us also to your discussion of this matter, & so are acting rightly & canonically … I believe that there are others among you worthy of the primacy, both because of the greatness of your city, & because it has been governed in times past so excellently & by such great men; but there is one man among you to whom I cannot prefer any, our son well beloved of God, Basil the Priest (I speak before God as my witness); a man of pure life & word, & alone, or almost alone, of all qualified in both respects to stand against the present times, & the prevailing wordiness of the heretics.

No one knows better than you do, that, like all wise physicians, you ought to begin your treatment in the most vital parts, & what part is more vital to the churches throughout the world than Antioch?

I am therefore constrained to point out that it is the prayer of the whole east, & the earnest desire of one who, like myself, is so wholly united to him [Meletius of Antioch], to see him in authority over the churches of the Lord. He is a man of unimpeachable faith; his manner of life is incomparably excellent, he stands at the head, so to say, of the whole body of the Church, & all else are mere disjointed members.

At any rate this city was of much account to God, as indeed He manifested by the very deeds which He did. At all events the master of the whole world, Peter, to whose hands He committed the keys of heaven, whom He commanded to do & to bear all, He bade tarry here for a long period. Thus in His sight our city was equivalent to the whole world. But since I have mentioned Peter, I have perceived a fifth crown woven from him, & this is that this man succeeded to the office after him.

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