Fr. Dn. Christopher B. Warner: Peter’s Duty: Papal Authority and the Restoration of Ecclesial Order
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Contemporary painting (c. 1870) of First Vatican Council. [commons.wikimedia.org/]
By Fr. Dn. Christopher B. Warner, Catholic World Report, May 5, 2025
Fr. Dn. Christopher B. Warner lives with his wife and son on a small farm in West Michigan, where he serves as a deacon of the UGCC. He writes for the Acton Institute and is the author of Catholic Money: A Father Teaches His Son About Family Finances. His essays have appeared in Catholic World Report, National Catholic Register, Religion & Liberty, First Things, and other publications.
The pope is the father of the Church, but his authority is deviant if it does not serve life, truth, and divine order. Restoration will not come through papal novelty but through papal fidelity to Christ, Scripture, and Tradition.
In an age of radical individualism and ideological rebellion against every form of authority, the Catholic tradition offers a necessary and urgent corrective. Rooted in Sacred Scripture, developed by the Fathers of the Church, refined by St. Thomas Aquinas, and clarified by the Magisterium, the Christian understanding of authority is neither authoritarian nor permissive. It is a structured reflection of divine love. Authority is granted to leaders by God, not for domination, but to promote the common good and guide souls to their supernatural end. And the pope, as the Vicar of Christ, serves as the father of the universal Church.Related posts
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