This Article is a response to William Webster the Protestant Apologist and his article, "The Church Father's Interpretation of the Rock of Matthew 16:18 - An Historical Refutation of the Claims of Roman Catholicism"
You can find his article here: https://christiantruth.com/articles/articles-roman-catholicism/mt16/
You can also find the full documents of the First Vatican Council here: https://www.ewtn.com/library/councils/v1.htm
I want to start out by praising William Webster for looking at the Church Fathers and reading what they said. Most Protestants I know don't bother and simply look at other Protestants and what they say about the Church Fathers. So, I want to commend him for this and encourage him to keep reading the Church Fathers.
As with the other article I’ve written were I responded to an objector of the Catholic Church I’ll make points that the author makes and then respond directly to those points. I’ll try my best to answer all the arguments the author makes but if I miss any or misrepresent any of his arguments then I apologise and please let me know so that I can fix them and respond more accurately to what the author says.
As a disclaimer unless otherwise specified all mentions of “quote” come from the above-mentioned Article by William Webster. I also mean no disrespect when I refer to William Webster simply as William.
Part 1 – Introduction
Point 1: The Claims of Authority from the Catholic Church rest entirely on Matthew 16:18
Quote: “Matthew 16:18 is the critical passage of Scripture for the establishment of the authority claims of the Roman Catholic Church. It is upon the interpretation of the rock and keys that the entire structure of the Church of Rome rests.”
While it is true that Matthew 16:18 does play a large role in the Catholic understanding of where she receives her authority, it is not dependent solely upon Matthew 16:18. The understanding of Church Authority comes directly from the idea that St. Peter was appointed as the visible head of the Church. As we read from the First Vatican Council, “Therefore, if anyone says that blessed Peter the apostle was not appointed by Christ the lord as prince of all the apostles and visible head of the whole Church militant… let him be anathema.”
Now that we can understand that it is based on the idea of St. Peter being the visible head of the Church that ‘the entire structure of the Church of Rome rests’, and not ‘the interpretation of the rock and keys’, we can now look to evidence which backs up this claim. The First Vatican Council gives two passages from scripture to back up the claim that St. Peter was the visible head of the Church. The First is Matthew 16:16-19, the second is John 21:15-17.
The passage from Matthew 16 describes Peter confessing that Christ is ‘The Son of the Living God’. Then Jesus Blesses ‘Simon Bar-Jona’ because, ‘my Father who is in heaven’ had revealed this to him. Jesus goes on to remind Peter of the new name that He had given to him which we find in John 1:42 by changing his address of him from ‘Simon Bar-Jona’ to ‘You are Peter’. Jesus then says, ‘and on this rock I will build my Church’. Jesus then states that the powers of Hell or Hades or death will not prevail against it. Jesus then gives Peter two things. First, ‘the keys to the kingdom of heaven’. Second, the power of binding and loosing.
The passage from John describes Jesus after the Resurrection talking with Peter saying, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.” 16 A second time he said to him, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Tend my sheep.” 17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?” And he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.” The First Vatican Council adds in its interpretation of this passage saying, “And it was to Peter alone that Jesus, after his resurrection, confided the jurisdiction of Supreme Pastor and ruler of his whole fold, saying: Feed my lambs, feed my sheep”.
However, even though The First Vatican Council only pointed to these two passages in it’s 4th session dealing with the institution of the apostolic primacy in blessed Peter. We should also look to John 1:42 where Jesus gave Simon Bar-Jona the new name of Peter (Kepha) because, according to Chrysostom, this passage is foreshadowing Matthew 16:18.
We also have some disagreements among theologians as to the different meanings of Kepha. Thomas Aquinas says that Kepha in the Aramaic can be translated into Greek as Head (Kephale). John Chrysostom even gives Peter the title as Head in his Homily on the Gospel of St. John referring to John 21:15. However, most Protestant scholars disagree with this interpretation such as Matthew Poole the reformed Theologian who believes that the root of the Greek word head is kefalh and not kefa or Kepha. I’m not personally arguing one way or another as I have no expertise in etymology. However, I just wanted to point out that this is another historical point that could re-affirm other evidence of Peter being the Visible Head of the Church.
We also look towards the Early Church and what they said about Peter as the Head of the Church and times when they refer to the Bishop of Rome to solve disputes. William goes into depth on these points throughout the whole article so we will leave this point until later when he brings up certain Church Fathers.
Also, even though they do not submit to the Bishop of Rome, the Orthodox Church still views the Bishop of Rome as having Primacy over the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church in terms of the Order of the Major Sees. We can find this in the Ravenna Document signed by the Pope and the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople which states, “Both sides agree that this canonical taxis was recognised by all in the era of the undivided Church. Further, they agree that Rome, as the Church that “presides in love” according to the phrase of St Ignatius of Antioch (To the Romans, Prologue), occupied the first place in the taxis, and that the bishop of Rome was therefore the protos among the patriarchs.” So, the idea of Peter being the Head of the Church is not limited to the Roman Catholics but also the Eastern Orthodox which re-affirm it, although disagreeing with how that Primacy is to be understood.
Even some Protestants affirm that Peter was the head of the Early Church such as Oscar Cullman and Donald Carson who both said that the rock described in Matthew 16:18 was Peter but deny any sort of papal succession.
It is from this point that William Webster will continue to assume that Catholics need the Rock described in Matthew 16:18 to only be Peter. However, this isn’t the case since Biblical passages can be polyvalent or have many layers which illumine different aspects of the Truth in different ways. The Rock can be Peter’s confession, Jesus Christ and Peter himself all at the same time. These don’t contradict each other but simply illumine different aspects of The Church and its foundation. For William to disprove the foundation of the Catholic Church he must prove that the Rock described in Matthew 16:18 ABSOLUTELY CANNOT be Peter rather than show that it can be something else.
Point 2: The Church, Unanimous Consent of the Fathers and Interpreting Scripture
Quote: “the Roman Catholic Church alone has authority to interpret scripture and that it is unlawful to interpret it in any way contrary to what it calls the ‘unanimous consent of the fathers.’ This principle does not mean that every single father agrees on a particular interpretation of scripture, but it does mean that there is a general consensus of interpretation, and Vatican I claims to be consistent with that consensus.”
No point of contention here.
Point 3: Catholic Apologists and their 4 Arguments for Papal Primacy in the Early Church
Quote: “Briefly, the arguments can be summarized as follows:
• The fathers often speak in lofty language when referring to the apostle Peter implying a personal primacy. • Numerous fathers interpret the rock of Matthew 16 as the person of Peter. • While some of the fathers interpret the rock to be Peter’s confession of faith, they do not separate Peter’s confession from his person. • The fathers refer to the bishops of Rome as successors of Peter.”
These are arguments that are made by Catholic Apologists, but they are not the only ones. Another argument is Peter as the Shepherd of the Church as was discussed in John 21:15-17. Even Anglican Charles Ellicott saw Peter as the Shepherd of the Church saying on 1 Peter 5:2, “St. Peter, to whom the flock throughout the whole world was committed, saw it as a whole”
Another argument is in Luke 22:24-32 when the Apostles were arguing about who was the greatest among them and Jesus gives a three-fold response. First, replying that the leader should be one who serves. Second, that all the Apostles that continue with Jesus in His trials will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel. Lastly, He turns to Peter and says that He has prayed that Peter’s Faith won’t fail after his denial of Christ and that after the denial that Peter should strengthen the others. We see the Early Church Fathers comment on this like St. Jerome who says, “And thou being once converted, confirm thy brethren: even all the other apostles and bishops, over whom I have made and constituted thee and thy successors the chief head, that such a head being appointed by divine authority, all occasions of schisms and divisions might cease.”
Another argument was Peter’s place when placed in a list of the Apostles. In the Synoptic Gospels when the Apostles are listed (Matthew 10:1-4, Mark 3:13-19, Luke 6:13-16) and in Acts 1:13 Peter is always named First. Now Peter wasn’t the first to be called since his brother Andrew was called before him, so the list isn’t in order of earliest disciple to latest. Nor is it listed in terms of age since John is often seen as the youngest of the Apostles, but he listed 4th in Matthew and 3rd in Mark, Luke and Acts. Therefore, we see these lists ordered in terms of importance since with each of them (besides the list in Acts) Judas Iscariot is always mentioned last, and he would be the least important since he was the one who betrayed Jesus. Even John Calvin admits that Peter in this passage can be referred to as the First of the Apostles although he disagrees that this is extended to the successors in Rome, “That Simon Peter was the first among the apostles we readily allow, but what was true in reference to a few persons, cannot, on any proper grounds, be extended to the whole world… Granting all that they ask regarding Peter, his rank will be of no avail to the Roman See, till they prove that wicked and sacrilegious apostles are Peter’s successors.”
Henry Alford, an Anglican and author of the ‘Greek New Testament Critical Exegesis Commentary’ says about these lists, ‘πρῶτος Not only as regards arrangement, or mere priority of calling, but as primus inter pares. This is clearly shewn from James and John and Andrew being set next, and Judas Iscariot the last, in all the catalogues… So that πρῶτος here must be understood as signifying the prominence of Peter among the Apostles, as well as his early calling’
John Chrysostom agrees that they are listed in order of dignity when speaking of the list in Mark while commentating on Matthew, “Now Mark does also put them according to their dignity”.
As we can see there are other arguments for Peter as the Head of the Church besides the ones William Webster lists.
Point 4: The Statements used by Catholic Apologists are taken out of context and in some cases misquoted.
Quote: “These statements are given completely out of context of the rest of the writings of these fathers thereby distorting the true meaning of their words. And in the case of Augustine, as we will see, his words are actually misquoted. All too frequently statements from the fathers are isolated and quoted without any proper interpretation, often giving the impression that a father taught a particular point of view when, in fact, he did not.”
This is what we hope to disprove when we look at his further points regarding each Church Father. Although, I’m sure that there will be times when Catholic Apologists have probably misquoted or taken a point out of context, I hope to prove that the Church Fathers still held that Peter was the Head of the Church and that he had successors in Rome.
Point 5: Catholic Apologists claim that Reformers invented an exegesis of Matthew 16
Quote: ‘Karl Keating states that the reformers had invented a novel exegesis of Matthew 16 in order to aid them in their rebellion against the papacy. This is a complete misrepresentation. As historian Oscar Cullmann points out, the view of the Reformers was not a novel interpretation invented by them but hearkened back to the patristic tradition’
Well, we just quoted Oscar Cullman before as being a Protestant who holds that the Rock quoted in Matthew 16:18 is referring to Peter.
Cullman’s quote in Gerhard Kittel’s Theological Dictionary of the New Testament goes, “The obvious pun which has made its way into the Greek text . . . suggests a material identity between petra and Petros . . . as it is impossible to differentiate strictly between the two words. . . . Petros himself is this petra, not just his faith or his confession. . . . The idea of the Reformers that he is referring to the faith of Peter is quite inconceivable. . . . For there is no reference here to the faith of Peter. Rather, the parallelism of “thou art Rock” and “on this rock I will build” shows that the second rock can only be the same as the first. It is thus evident that Jesus is referring to Peter, to whom he has given the name Rock. . . . To this extent Roman Catholic exegesis is right and all Protestant attempts to evade this interpretation are to be rejected.”
William Webster’s use of Oscar Cullman as an authority seems to backfire when we look at what Dr. Cullman says about the passage. So, either reformed theologians agree with Roman Catholics about who ‘The Rock’ is, or there seems to be no opposition to the claims made by the Catholic Apologist that Reformed Theologians invented an exegesis.
Point 6: Protestants and Orthodox agree with the patristic understanding of Matthew 16:18
Quote: “This particular article is strictly historical in nature. Its purpose is to document the patristic interpretation of the rock of Matthew 16:18. And the evidence will demonstrate that the Protestant and Orthodox understanding of the text is rooted in this patristic consensus.”
As we have quoted before from the Ravenna Document, the Orthodox agree with the Roman Catholic Understanding of Peter being the Head of the Church and having successors in Rome. The only disagreement between the Catholics and Orthodox is how Papal Primacy works. The Catholics claim Papal Supremacy and the Orthodox claim First among equals. However, both agree with Papal Primacy.
Point 7: Catholics claims that the Church is built upon Peter in an exclusive sense
Quote: “The Roman Church states that Matthew 16 teaches that the Church is built upon Peter and therefore upon the bishops of Rome in an exclusive sense.”
No, we don’t. Yes, we say that the Church built upon Peter, but we never say that it is built on him exclusively. The word exclusive doesn’t appear once in all the documents from the First Vatican Council. The Catechism of the Catholic Church affirms that, “the Lord compared himself to the stone which the builders rejected, but which was made into the comer-stone. On this foundation the Church is built by the apostles and from it the Church receives solidity and unity.” (CCC 756) but also, “The Lord Jesus endowed his community with a structure that will remain until the Kingdom is fully achieved. Before all else there is the choice of the Twelve with Peter as their head. Representing the twelve tribes of Israel, they are the foundation stones of the new Jerusalem.” (CCC 765) The New Jerusalem being the Church. The Catechism also affirms Peter’s confession saying, “Moved by the grace of the Holy Spirit and drawn by the Father, we believe in Jesus and confess: 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.' On the rock of this faith confessed by St. Peter, Christ built his Church.” (CCC 424)
So, the Catholic Church affirms that the Church is built on Jesus, The Twelve Apostles with Peter as their head, Peter’s confession, as well as Peter himself.
These points show that William’s later point (where he describes the Biblical interpretation of Matthew 16) is in line with Catholic teaching:
Quote: “This demonstrates that from a biblical perspective, even if we were to interpret the rock of Matthew 16 to be the person of Peter, the New Testament does not view the apostle Peter to be unique in this role. Christ is the foundation and the Church is built upon all the apostles and prophets in the sense of being built upon their teaching.”
Point 8: Matthew 16 doesn’t talk about infallibility or successors
Quote: “The Roman Catholic interpretation imports a meaning into the Matthew 16 text that is completely absent. This text says absolutely nothing about infallibility or about successors.”
I think this would be a good point to explain how Catholics read infallibility and succession into Matthew 16.
Firstly, with the quote, “Keys to the Kingdom of Heaven.” Catholic theologians see that Jesus is here referencing Isaiah 22:22 which says, “And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; and he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open.” In the context of Isaiah 22 we see that God is calling a successor to the House of David, namely Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who will be handed the authority of his predecessor and that he will have the power to open and close.
This is where we see succession in Peter’s role. If the passage that Jesus was talking about was referring to succession an authority, then he must be granting Peter an authority that can be also be succeeded. Catholic Theologian George Leo Haydock also writes that these same keys can also be seen in Revelation 3:7.
Secondly, with the term Binding and Loosing is relating to the Jewish phrase which appears in the Targum, relates to the Jewish school of Shammai and the school of Hillel which were Jewish schools of thought in the 1st century AD. This term of Binding and Loosing means according the Jewish Encyclopedia, “to forbid by an indisputable authority and to permit by an indisputable authority.” This term relates to the doctrine of infallibility.
The term Binding and Loosing is also used again in Matthew 18:18 in relation to the Church (the other Apostles) being able to bind and loose.
Part 2 – Tertullian
Point 9: When Tertullian says that Peter is the Rock, he is stating that the Church is built through him as he preaches the gospel.
Quote: “In one of his writings Tertullian identifies the rock with the person of Peter on which the Church would be built:
Was anything withheld from the knowledge of Peter, who is called the ‘rock on which the church should be built’ who also obtained ‘the keys of the kingdom of heaven,’ with the power of ‘loosing and binding in heaven and earth? (Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson, Ante-Nicene Fathers (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1951), Volume III, Tertullian, Prescription Against Heretics 22).
Though Tertullian states that Peter is the rock he does not mean it in a pro–papal sense. We know this because of other comments he has made…Tertullian explains what he means when he says that Peter is the rock on which the Church would be built:
If, because the Lord has said to Peter, ‘Upon this rock I will build My Church,’ ‘to thee have I given the keys of the heavenly kingdom;’ or, ‘Whatsoever thou shalt have bound or loosed in earth, shall be bound or loosed in the heavens,’ you therefore presume that the power of binding and loosing has derived to you, that is, to every Church akin to Peter, what sort of man are you, subverting and wholly changing the manifest intention of the Lord, conferring (as that intention did) this (gift) personally upon Peter? ‘On thee,’ He says, ‘will I build My church;’ and, ‘I will give thee the keys’…and, ‘Whatsoever thou shalt have loosed or bound’…In (Peter) himself the Church was reared; that is, through (Peter) himself; (Peter) himself essayed the key; you see what key: ‘Men of Israel, let what I say sink into your ears: Jesus the Nazarene, a man destined by God for you,’ and so forth. (Peter) himself, therefore, was the first to unbar, in Christ’s baptism, the entrance to the heavenly kingdom, in which kingdom are ‘loosed’ the sins that were beforetime ‘bound;’ and those which have not been ‘loosed’ are ‘bound,’ in accordance with true salvation…(Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson, The Ante-Nicene Fathers (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1951), Volume IV, Tertullian, On Modesty 21, p. 99).
When Tertullian says that Peter is the rock and the Church is built upon him he means that the Church is built through him as he preaches the gospel. This preaching is how Tertullian explains the meaning of the keys. They are the declarative authority for the offer of forgiveness of sins through the preaching of the gospel. If men respond to the message they are loosed from their sins. If they reject it they remain bound in their sins.”
Here William quotes two passages from two different works by Tertullian. The First is Prescription Against Heretics and the second is On Modesty. Since he claims that Catholic Apologists take these texts out of context, we will look at the full context of these texts.
The first is Tertullian’s Prescription Against Heretics. This passage comes from Chapter 22 which is called, “Attempt to Invalidate This Rule of Faith Rebutted. The Apostles Safe Transmitters of the Truth. Sufficiently Taught at First, and Faithful in the Transmission.”
This Chapter is dealing with heretics which said, “the apostles did not know all things: (but herein) they are impelled by the same madness, whereby they turn round to the very opposite point, and declare that the apostles certainly knew all things, but did not deliver all things to all persons — in either case exposing Christ to blame for having sent forth apostles who had either too much ignorance, or too little simplicity.”
Tertullian then refutes these heretics by saying, “What man, then, of sound mind can possibly suppose that they were ignorant of anything, whom the Lord ordained to be masters (or teachers), keeping them, as He did, inseparable (from Himself) in their attendance, in their discipleship, in their society, to whom, when they were alone, He used to expound all things Mark 4:34 which were obscure, telling them that to them it was given to know those mysteries, Matthew 13:11 which it was not permitted the people to understand?”
This is when Tertullian then goes on to say the above-mentioned quote about Peter, “Was anything withheld from the knowledge of Peter, who is called the ‘rock on which the church should be built’ who also obtained ‘the keys of the kingdom of heaven,’ with the power of ‘loosing and binding in heaven and earth?”
In this context we see that these Catholic Apologists aren’t taking this passage out of context. Tertullian is describing the dignity of Peter to show that he is an authoritative figure on the Truth of what Jesus taught. By describing his dignity, he mentions that Peter is the Rock and that he was given the keys and that he had to power to bind and loose. I should also mention that Tertullian mentions Peter first among the list of apostles which is interesting when it considers their Authority on Truth. This may imply that Tertullian saw Peter as the greatest authority because of the dignities bestowed on him by Christ and why he is mentioned first.
As to the next text by Tertullian, ‘On Modesty’, the passage quoted by William above comes from Chapter 21 which is called, “Of the Difference Between Discipline and Power, and of the Power of the Keys”. This entire chapter begins by discussing the difference “between the doctrine of apostles and their power.” He then moves onto to the question, “Who, moreover, was able to forgive sins?” and especially, “mortal sins”. For this question Tertullian argues, “if it were agreed that even the blessed apostles had granted any such indulgence (to any crime) the pardon of which (comes) from God, not from man, it would be competent (for them) to have done so, not in the exercise of discipline, but of power.” Tertullian argues that the ability of the apostles to forgive sins (and grant indulgences) is a power given to them by God. Later, Tertullian then agrees with the heretics that the Church has the ability to forgive sins saying, “you say, ‘the Church has the power of forgiving sins.’ This I acknowledge and adjudge more than you.” However, he goes on to question whether the Church of the Heretics is the same Church that has the ability to forgive sins saying, “I now inquire into your opinion, (to see) from what source you usurp this right to ‘the Church’.” This is where we find the above-mentioned quote which says,
“If, because the Lord has said to Peter, ‘Upon this rock I will build My Church,’ ‘to thee have I given the keys of the heavenly kingdom;’ or, ‘Whatsoever thou shalt have bound or loosed in earth, shall be bound or loosed in the heavens,’ you therefore presume that the power of binding and loosing has derived to you, that is, to every Church akin to Peter, what sort of man are you, subverting and wholly changing the manifest intention of the Lord, conferring (as that intention did) this (gift) personally upon Peter? ‘On thee,’ He says, ‘will I build My church;’ and, ‘I will give thee the keys’…and, ‘Whatsoever thou shalt have loosed or bound’…In (Peter) himself the Church was reared; that is, through (Peter) himself; (Peter) himself essayed the key; you see what key: ‘Men of Israel, let what I say sink into your ears: Jesus the Nazarene, a man destined by God for you,’ and so forth. (Peter) himself, therefore, was the first to unbar, in Christ’s baptism, the entrance to the heavenly kingdom, in which kingdom are ‘loosed’ the sins that were beforetime ‘bound;’ and those which have not been ‘loosed’ are ‘bound,’ in accordance with true salvation…”
We see that in this passage Tertullian is switching between what the Heretics claim and what is really the truth. The first part is talking about what the heretics claim, “If, (because God bestowed powers upon Peter), you therefore presume that the power of binding and loosing has derived to you, that is, to every Church akin to Peter…” The Tertullian rebukes them saying that it is personally upon Peter that the Church is built, “‘On thee,’ He says, ‘will I build My church;’” Tertullian then goes on to show how the Church is able to forgive sins saying, “(Peter) himself, therefore, was the first to unbar, in Christ’s baptism, the entrance to the heavenly kingdom, in which kingdom are ‘loosed’ the sins that were beforetime ‘bound;’ and those which have not been ‘loosed’ are ‘bound,’ in accordance with true salvation” Here Tertullian say that the ability to forgive sins comes from the kingdom through baptism. This is not as William says through the generic ‘preaching of the gospel’ but explicitly through baptism.
However, Tertullian doesn’t stop there because he then explains what this power given to Peter refers to. He says that the powers of binding and loosing doesn’t refer to forgiving sins but actually to the matter of doctrine. He says,
“Moreover, in that dispute about the observance or non-observance of the Law, Peter was the first of all to be endued with the Spirit, and, after making preface touching the calling of the nations, to say, ‘And now why are you tempting the Lord, concerning the imposition upon the brethren of a yoke which neither we nor our fathers were able to support? But however, through the grace of Jesus we believe that we shall be saved in the same way as they.’ This sentence both ‘loosed’ those parts of the law which were abandoned, and ‘bound’ those which were reserved. Hence the power of loosing and of binding committed to Peter had nothing to do with the capital sins of believers…”
In this he explains that binding and loosing refers to the act Peter did in Acts 15 when it was declared that Gentiles didn’t need to be circumcised. In this way Peter bounded and loosed Doctrine.
So, again we can see in the full context of the chapter that there is nothing which goes against the Catholic Apologist’s ability to use this passage from Tertullian. It first states clearly that Peter explicitly is the person that Christ built his Church on, it even goes further to show that Peter was given the power of binding and loosing doctrines, and that Peter was a great Authority on the Truth. We also see that the Church can forgive sins, that the Church can grant indulgences and that there are such things as mortal sins. These are all orthodox Catholic teachings.
Regarding William’s translation, even if we were to throw all of this away and agree with William that it was through Peter that the Church was built from Peter’s preaching of the gospel. This doesn’t mitigate the fact that Tertullian sees Peter as the Rock which is what Catholics claim. If Catholic Apologists want to use this text to show the fathers explicitly said that Peter is the rock, then there is no misuse in doing so.
Point 10: Tertullian doesn’t teach Petrine Primacy or successors in the Bishop of Rome
Quote: “Tertullian explicitly denies that this promise can apply to anyone but Peter and therefore he does not in any way see a Petrine primacy in this verse with successors in the bishops of Rome.”
William here is wrong. Tertullian does teach Apostolic succession and specifically in Rome. We can see this explicitly in Prescription Against Heretics, chapter 32 which is titled, “None of the Heretics Claim Succession from the Apostles. New Churches Still Apostolic, Because Their Faith is that Which the Apostles Taught and Handed Down. The Heretics Challenged to Show Any Apostolic Credentials.”
In the very first part of the chapter Tertullian writes, “But if there be any (heresies) which are bold enough to plant themselves in the midst of the apostolic age, that they may thereby seem to have been handed down by the apostles, because they existed in the time of the apostles, we can say: Let them produce the original records of their churches; let them unfold the roll of their bishops, running down in due succession from the beginning in such a manner that [that first bishop of theirs ] bishop shall be able to show for his ordainer and predecessor some one of the apostles or of apostolic men, — a man, moreover, who continued steadfast with the apostles. For this is the manner in which the apostolic churches transmit their registers: as the church of Smyrna, which records that Polycarp was placed therein by John; as also the church of Rome, which makes Clement to have been ordained in like manner by Peter. In exactly the same way the other churches likewise exhibit (their several worthies), whom, as having been appointed to their episcopal places by apostles, they regard as transmitters of the apostolic seed.”
Clearly, this last part shows that Tertullian believed that the Bishops of Rome were successors of Peter.
When we read even further, we see that Tertullian taught that Rome did have Primacy in Chapter 36 titled, “The Apostolic Churches the Voice of the Apostles. Let the Heretics Examine Their Apostolic Claims, in Each Case, Indisputable. The Church of Rome Doubly Apostolic; Its Early Eminence and Excellence. Heresy, as Perverting the Truth, is Connected Therewith.”
In this Chapter he writes, “Since, moreover, you are close upon Italy, you have Rome, from which there comes even into our own hands the very authority (of apostles themselves). How happy is its church, on which apostles poured forth all their doctrine along with their blood! Where Peter endures a passion like his Lord's! Where Paul wins his crown in a death like John's where the Apostle John was first plunged, unhurt, into boiling oil, and thence remitted to his island-exile!”
Clearly, Tertullian believes in a Primacy in the Church of Rome through their Apostolic Successors.
Point 11: Patristic Scholar Karlfried Froehlich says that Tertullian sees Peter as a representative of the entire church.
Quote: “The patristic scholar, Karlfried Froehlich, states that even though Tertullian teaches that Peter is the rock he does not mean this in the same sense as the Roman Catholic Church:
‘Tertullian regarded the Peter of Matthew 16:18–19 as the representative of the entire church or at least its ‘spiritual’ members.’”
I honestly don’t see how this quote helps William’s case. The Catholic Church doesn’t deny that Peter represented the Early Church. In fact, as the leader of the Early Church it makes sense that he would be the representative.
Point 12: A Catholic Apologist left out a large portion of Tertullian’s quote which distorted the meaning.
Quote: “When comparing this citation with the one given above it is clear that these authors have left out the last half of the quotation. The part of the quotation that is omitted defines what Tertullian means by the statement that Christ built his Church on Peter and invested him with authroity (sic).”
It’s only natural that a quotation is going to start at a place and end at another place. The Catholic Apologists use don’t use the second part of William’s quote because Tertullian later denies that Peter’s Authority to bind and loose has to do with sins.
However, this argument can easily be put back on William. Why does he omit the other parts I mentioned in point 10 which backs up the Catholic claim that Tertullian taught Petrine Primacy and Succession in Rome? Why did he leave out the parts I mentioned in Point 9 which showed that Tertullian taught about Indulgences, mortal sins, the Church being able to forgive sins, etc? Clearly it can also be said that he was selective in his quotes.
Point 13: The Quote by St. Maximus of Turin expresses the same view as Tertullian which is against the Catholic Church
Quote: “This is similar to the view expressed by Maximus of Tours (sic) when he says: ‘For he is called a rock because he was the first to lay the foundations of the faith among the nations’ ”
It would be prudent to see the whole quote of St. Maximus of Turin to see what he is saying.
“Last Sunday we showed that Saint Peter proceeded along his erring ways during the Savior’s suffering and that after he denied the Lord he was better. For he became more faithful after he wept over the faith that he had lost, and for that reason he gained back a greater grace than he lost: like a good shepherd he accepted the charge of protecting his sheep, so that he who had previously been weak to himself would now become the foundation for all, and the very person who had faltered when tested by questioning would strengthen others with the unwavering character of his faith. On account of the firmness of his faithfulness he is called the rock of the churches, as the Lord says: You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church. He is called a rock because he will be the very first to lay the foundations of the faith among the nations and so that, like an immovable stone, he might hold fast the fabric and the structure of the whole Christian endeavor. Because of his faithfulness, therefore, Peter is called a rock, as the Apostle says: And they drank from the spiritual rock that was following them, and the rock was Christ. Rightly does he who merits fellowship in deed merit fellowship also in his name, for in the same house Peter laid the foundation and Peter does the planting, and the Lord gives the increase and the Lord provides for the watering.” (The Sermons of St. Maximus of Turin, Sermon 77.1)
We can see from this full quote of St. Maximus of Turin that he is calling Peter the Rock because of his unshakable faith. However, contrary to what William says, this doesn’t go against Catholic Church teachings. Maximus still says that Peter is the rock on which the Church is built.
Point 14: Tertullian becoming a Montanist shows that he didn’t believe in the orthodoxy of the Catholic Church
Quote: “In his later years Tertullian separated himself from the Catholic Church to become a Montanist. He clearly did not hold to the view espoused by Vatican I that communion with the Bishop of Rome was the ultimate criterion of orthodoxy and of inclusiveness in the Church of God.”
I really don’t see William’s point here.
If his point is that Tertullian, a prominent writer, became a heretic, then there were many heretics who were prominent writers in the Early Church. Tertullian was one, Origen was another. If by this William means that all the works of Tertullian shouldn’t be used by Catholics or that Catholics shouldn’t quote him, then this is a Non Sequitur. Catholics can absolutely use Tertullian’s works when he was still a Catholic. Just because he changed doesn’t mean we can’t reference his works before he changed. A flower can still be appreciated before it withers.
If William’s point is that Tertullian changing his beliefs shows that the Catholic Church can’t be trusted or isn’t orthodox, then again this is a non sequitur. One person adopting a heresy doesn’t decide whether the Catholic Church is true or not. If a prominent Protestant became a Catholic would that one act invalidate all the claims of Protestantism? Of course not.
If William’s point is that Tertullian never believed in the Orthodoxy of the Church of Rome, then this is also incorrect as we have shown in point 10.
I really don’t see his point. If William wants to defend Tertullian’s heresy of Montanism and Subordinationism, then go right ahead.
Part 3 – Origen
Point 15: The Catholic Apologists omitted the full quote of Origen because it was antithetical to their position
Quote: “This is one of the most important passages in all the writings of Origen for an understanding of his view of the rock of Matthew 16. Yet this passage is is (sic) not included in those referenced by the authors of Jesus, Peter and the Keys. This is a glaring omission given the importance of the passage and the fact that it is easily accessible in the work the Ante-Nicene Fathers. One can only conclude that the authors purposefully omitted the passage because it is antithetical to the position they are seeking establish.
I’m not going to quote the passage because it is very long, but you can find it in William’s original article. Basically, what it says is that all the faithful who proclaim that Jesus is the son of the living God are just like Peter and in fact become a Peter. As we become a Peter so too do, we become a rock like Peter and ‘upon every such rock is built the very word of the church’.
To address why Catholic Apologists don’t use this quote from Origen is simple. Firstly, it from a different work by Origen than the part that the Catholic Apologists are quoting. The first quote in which Origen says, “Look at the great foundation of that Church and at the very solid rock upon which Christ has founded the Church. Wherefore the Lord says: ‘Ye of little faith, why have you doubted?’ “comes from his homilies on Exodus. The second much longer quote William makes is from Origen’s commentary on Matthew. The Catholic Apologists are just wanting to prove that Peter is seen as the rock from the Church fathers like the heretic Origen. However, it’s not the job of the Catholic Apologists to try and defend a heretic.
In saying this Origen’s commentary is simply saying that The Rock is the Faith or confession of Peter which I have mentioned in Point 7 is a part of Catholic Teaching.
So, even though the Catholic Apologists did omit the quote from Origen on Matthew 16, it isn’t antithetical to the position of the Catholic Church. It was merely not in line with what they were setting out to do by quoting Origen.
Point 16: John Meyendorff affirms that Origen’s interpretation of Matthew 16:18 is that the rock is the true belief in the divinity of Christ or ‘Peter’s Confession’.
Quote: “John Meyendorff was a world renowned and highly respected Orthodox theologian, historian and patristics scholar. He was dean of St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary and Professor of Church History and Patristics. He gives the following explanation of Origen’s interpretation and of his influence on subsequent fathers in the East and West:
Origen, the common source of patristic exegetical tradition, commenting on Matthew 16:18, interprets the famous logion as Jesus’ answer to Peter’s confession: Simon became the ‘rock’ on which the Church is founded because he expressed the true belief in the divinity of Christ.”
Again, this is in line with Catholic teaching as we pointed out in Point 7. This doesn’t disprove that Matthew 16 can have other acceptable interpretations too.
Point 17: Tertullian representing the West and Origen from the East were the first fathers to give an exegesis of Matthew 16 and don’t interpret it in a pro-roman sense.
Quote: “Origen and Tertullian are the first fathers, from the East and West respectively, to give an exposition on the meaning of the rock of Matthew 16 and the role and position of Peter. Their views are foundational for the interpretation of this important passage for the centuries following. Strands of their teaching will appear in the views of the fathers throughout the East and West. It is important to point out that the first Eastern and Western fathers to give an exegesis of Matthew 16 do not interpret the passage in a pro–Roman sense.”
As we have mentioned before, Origen gives an interpretation that is consistent with the understandings of Rome and Tertullian is much more explicit in his Pro-Roman writings.
Part 4 – Cyprian
Point 18: Cyprian describes Peter as the Rock but also describes the rock as the entire episcopate
Quote: “Cyprian clearly says that Peter is the rock… Cyprian teaches that Peter alone is not the rock or foundation on which the Church is built, but rather, he is an example of the principle of unity. He is representative of the Church as a whole. The entire episcopate, according to Cyprian, is the foundation, though Christ is himself the true Rock.”
Again, these points are consistent with Catholic Church teaching. Cyprian clearly teaches that Peter is the Rock in his treatise, On The Unity of the Church. He also teaches that all the bishops (the successors of the apostles) are also that rock. This is also consistent with Church teaching as we have mentioned in Point 7.
Point 19: Cyprian did not believe that the Bishop of Rome had a higher authority over other bishops
Quote: “Cyprian did not believe that the bishop of Rome possessed a higher authority than he or the other African bishops. They were all equals”
While Cyprian’s treatises tend to emphasise Episcopal autonomy within the unity of the Church, we see that Cyprian’s actions speak much louder than his words. On multiple occasions Cyprian appeals to Rome to solve disputes or even the Cathaginians (the people Cyprian was the bishop over) would appeal to Rome.
The first dispute was over Imprudent confessors who were ignoring their bishops about proscribing penances to lapsed Catholics and apostates who wanted reconciliation (or the laying on of hands). Cyprian sent copies of all his letters on this issue to Rome (who had no bishop at this time).
The second dispute was when Cyprian went into hiding and the Carthaginians sent complaints to Rome. The Romans then wrote back to Cyprian on the matter.
The next dispute was when the Romans (who still had no bishop at the time) wrote to Cyprian’s Archdeacon (bypassing Cyprian the Bishop) about how they should deal with the lapsed. Cyprian wrote back saying he had read the letter and would uphold their opinion.
Cyprian in a letter to a group of Christians who went to Rome to join a heretical group condemned them for going to ‘The Principal Church’. This phrase Principal church was used both by Irenaeus and Tertullian (Cyprian’s Master) to mean “sovereign ruling”. Cyprian went on to say that the Romans are “they to whom faithlessness can have no access.”
The Next dispute comes from the Catholic historian that William quotes Robert Eno in the same book, ‘The Rise of the Papacy’.
“Another case came at about the same time from the fractious world of Southern Gaul. Marcian, bishop of Arles, had taken a hard line against the lapsed, even refusing them reconciliation on their death beds. In his letter 68 to Stephen, Cyprian complains that nothing had been done about Marcian’s case.”
We see that Cyprian appeals to Pope Stephen, the Bishop of Rome, to do something about this case. Why would Cyprian appeal to Stephan unless he was able to do something about another Bishop?
We also see with Cyprian’s discourse with Stephan that even Stephan himself uses his office as the successor of Peter to enforce authority over Cyprian and to forbid him to re-baptise. So, the idea of the Bishop of Rome having Primacy over other churches because they are the Successor of Peter dates all the way back to the Patristic age which refutes many of William’s arguments.
Even though Cyprian maintains the importance of local churches and the authority of Bishops, that he still acted in a way that showed that Rome had a sovereignty over other churches.
Point 20: Cyprian’s views are incompatible with Vatican 1
Quote: “The above quotations from world renowned Roman Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox historians reveal a consensus of scholarly opinion on Cyprian’s teaching effectively demonstrating the incompatibility of Cyprian’s views with those espoused by Vatican I.”
Cyprian’s views aren’t incompatible with Catholic teaching. What he says about Bishops is true. All Bishops are equal. One Bishop isn’t consecrated more than another. They all share apostolic succession, they all share the same power over the sacraments, they all hold an office over a diocese. As a Bishop, all bishops are equal. In this regard, Pope Francis is equal to your local diocesan bishop. So, in this regards Cyprian is correct. This is the point he wants to stress in his treatise on the unity of the Church. However, in his other writings when he actually addresses Rome, we see that he calls it the principle church. We see that his dealings with the church of Rome show that he acknowledges all the points brought up in the First Vatican council. So, no his views are not incompatible with Vatican 1.
Part 5 – Eusebius
Point 20: Eusebius teaches that the Rock is Christ or the Apostles and prophets.
Quote: “Eusebius unambiguously teaches that the rock is Christ. He correlates this interpretation with the parallel rock and foundation statements of 1 Corinthians 10:4 and 3:11. He goes on to say that there is a subsidiary foundation, from Ephesians 2:20, of the apostles and prophets, the Church also built upon them, but the cornerstone is Christ.”
Again, as stated before these are Catholic Teachings. Nothing heretical or against Catholic Teaching here.
Point 21: Eusebius teaches that Christ didn’t establish a Papal office in Peter and his successors.
Quote: “…he does not mean that Christ established a papal office in Peter and that the Church is built upon him in a personal sense and through him upon his supposed successors.”
On the contrary, Eusebius as a Church historian gives multiple examples of the Bishop of Rome holding Primacy over other episcopates.
The first is about how Pope Victor, bishop of Rome in 190 A.D. excommunicated a large part of the eastern churches because they had a different date of Easter and wouldn’t submit to his ruling that all churches should have the same date.
“A question of no small importance arose at that time [A.D. 190]. For the parishes of all Asia [Minor], as from an older tradition held that the fourteenth day of the moon, on which the Jews were commanded to sacrifice the lamb, should be observed as the feast of the Savior’s Passover. . . . But it was not the custom of the churches in the rest of the world . . . as they observed the practice which, from apostolic tradition, has prevailed to the present time, of terminating the fast [of Lent] on no other day than on that of the resurrection of the Savior [Sunday]. Synods and assemblies of bishops were held on this account, and all, with one consent, through mutual correspondence drew up an ecclesiastical decree that the mystery of the resurrection of the Lord should be celebrated on no other but the Lord’s day and that we should observe the close of the paschal fast on this day only. . . . Thereupon [Pope] Victor, who presided over the church at Rome, immediately attempted to cut off from the community the parishes of all Asia [Minor], with the churches that agreed with them, as heterodox. And he wrote letters and declared all the brethren there wholly excommunicate. But this did not please all the bishops, and they besought him to consider the things of peace and of neighborly unity and love. . . . [Irenaeus] fittingly admonishes Victor that he should not cut off whole churches of God which observed the tradition of an ancient custom” (Church History 5:23:1–24:11).
As you can see, the bishops never said he didn’t have the authority to excommunicate but that he shouldn’t have done it. They didn’t question his authority to excommunicate but questioned it’s wisdom.
The Second example comes from Antioch where the bishop Paul had fallen into heresy and the Church he was occupying was given to the Roman Church to decide what to do with it.
“As Paul had fallen from the episcopate, as well as from the orthodox faith, Domnus, as has been said, became bishop of the church at Antioch. But as Paul refused to surrender the church building, the Emperor Aurelian was petitioned; and he decided the matter most equitably, ordering the building to be given to those to whom the bishops of Italy and of the city of Rome should adjudge it.” (Church History, Book VII, Chapter 30)
Why would a church in Antioch be given to Rome unless there was a recognised Primacy there? As we can see, Eusebius through his writings on Church History makes it clear that the Bishop of Rome had Primacy.
So, although Eusebius sees the Rock as Jesus, The apostles and Prophets and Peter. He still affirms the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome.
Part 6 – Augustine
Point 22: Vatican 1 says that the Church made Authoritative interpretations on Matthew 16 before Augustine.
Quote: “The fact that he would even suggest that individual readers could take a different position is evidence of the fact that after four hundred years of church history there was no official authoritative Church interpretation of this passage as Vatican One has stated.”
Vatican 1 makes no such claim. Vatican 1 only claims there was a consensus of the Fathers on how they interpret scripture. It never mentions that there was an Authoritative interpretation on how one should interpret Matthew 16 prior or even during Augustine’s life.
Point 23: Peter was a representative of the whole church, he wasn’t the rock.
Quote: “Augustine could not be clearer in his interpretation of the rock of Matthew 16. In his view, Peter is representative of the whole Church. The rock is not the person of Peter but Christ himself. In fact, in the above statements, in exegeting Matthew 16, he explicitly says that Christ did not build his Church on a man, referring specifically to Peter.”
Yes, it is true that Augustine retracted his previous belief that Peter was the rock and now stated that he wasn’t the rock, but Christ was or at least Peter’s confession was. This is a point the Catholic Church says that Augustine was wrong on. As stated previously, a consensus of the Fathers doesn’t mean that every Church father is correct. In this instance, the church says, regretfully, that Augustine was wrong. This isn’t the only time the Church has had to say one of their greatest theologians was wrong on a subject. They even had to declare that another of the Church’s greatest theologians, St. Thomas Aquinas, was wrong on the Immaculate Conception. This doesn’t detract from their other writings, but even great minds can be wrong on some things.
Point 24: If Christ didn’t establish his Church on the person of Peter then there would be no papal office and successors in Rome.
Quote: “If Christ did not build his Church on a man then he did not establish a papal office with successors to Peter in the bishops of Rome.”
“According to Augustine the Apostles are equal in all respects.”
“While it is true that Augustine has some very exalted things to say about Peter, as do many of the fathers, it does not follow that either he or they held to the Roman Catholic view of papal primacy.”
Augustine would disagree and this really gets to the heart of William Webster’s argument. William presumes that one must hold that Peter is the Rock in order to believe in the legitimacy of the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome. This is not true, and Augustine is a great example of a man who openly stated that he didn’t believe that Peter was the Rock but still recognised the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome.
Augustine wrote his confessions between 397-400AD yet at the same time as he was writing his confessions he also was saying this:
“Carthage was also near the countries over the sea, and distinguished by illustrious renown, so that it had a bishop of more than ordinary influence, who could afford to disregard a number of conspiring enemies because he saw himself joined by letters of communion to the Roman Church, in which the supremacy of an apostolic chair has always flourished.” Augustine, To Glorius et.al, Epistle 43:7 (A.D. 397).
“The chair of the Roman Church, in which Peter sat, and in which Anastasius sits today.” Augustine, Against the Letters of Petillian, 2:51 (A.D. 402).
“If the very order of episcopal succession is to be considered, how much more surely, truly, and safely do we number them [the bishops of Rome] from Peter himself, to whom, as to one representing the whole Church, the Lord said, ‘Upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not conquer it.’ Peter was succeeded by Linus, Linus by Clement. … In this order of succession a Donatist bishop is not to be found” (Letters 53:1:2 [A.D. 412]).
Clearly, Augustine at the time of writing his confessions still believed in successors to Peter and the primacy (or in Augustine’s own words, “supremacy”) of the Bishop of Rome in accordance with today’s understanding of the Catholic Church.
Point 25: Catholic Apologists assume that when the fathers talk about Peter that these comments also apply to the Bishop of Rome
Quote: “The common mistake made by Roman Catholic apologists is the assumption that because some of the fathers make certain comments about Peter—for example, that he is chief of the apostles or head of the apostolic choir—that they also have in mind the bishop of Rome in an exclusive sense. But they do not state this in their writings. This is a preconceived theology that is read into their writings. Did they view the bishops of Rome as being successors of Peter? Yes. Did they view the bishops of Rome as being the exclusive successors of Peter? No. In the view of Augustine and the early fathers all the bishops of the Church in the East and West were the successors of Peter. They all possess the chair of Peter. So when they speak in exalted terms about Peter they do not apply those terms to the bishops of Rome. Therefore, when a father refers to Peter as the rock, the coryphaeus, the first of the disciples, or something similar, this does not mean that he is expressing agreement with the current Roman Catholic interpretation.”
If we look at the three previous quotations we made by Augustine we can see that William is clearly wrong.
The first quote talks specifically about the supremacy of an apostolic chair in the Roman Church. Singular chair, not ‘the chair’ but a chair. This shows that there are multiple chairs and Peter’s Chair is just one amongst them. The second quote shows that this apostolic chair in the Roman Church is exclusive to the Bishop of Rome. See how Augustine only mentions one person as sitting in the Chair of Peter? This person is Anastasius, who was the Bishop of Rome during the life of Augustine. The Third quote reaffirms this apostolic succession.
So, let’s directly answer William’s question about whether these ideas of authority and primacy only referred to Peter. Well, from the above quotes it’s clearly a no. Augustine describes the Apostolic Chair in Rome as having supremacy, not Peter. Augustine says, that Peter once sat in this chair and now the successors of Peter in the Bishop of Rome now sit in it. It’s clear this supremacy that Augustine describes is based not on Peter but on the position of Bishop of Rome from Peter.
Part 7 – Ambrose
Point 26: Ambrose interprets the rock as Peter’s confession and Peter’s primacy as one of faith and not of rank.
Quote: “What does Ambrose mean when he says that Peter is the foundation? In the sense that he was the first to openly confess faith in Christ as the Messiah and Son of God. The rock is not Peter himself but Peter’s confession of faith! It is this faith which is the foundation of the Church. Peter possesses a primacy, but he explains that primacy as one of confession and faith and not of rank in the sense of ruling over the other apostles.”
Again, William makes the argument that because a Church father doesn’t equate Peter as the rock in Matthew 16, that the Church father didn’t believe in the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome. However, when we read Ambrose’s other writings, we find that Ambrose most certainly believed in the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome. In his letter to Prince Theodosius about two bishops who claimed to be the bishop of Constantinople he writes:
“Nor does it seem unbecoming, your Majesty, that the persons, who thought the judgement of Acholius, a single Bishop, so well worth waiting for, that they called him to Constantinople from the regions of the West, should be obliged to submit to the discussion of the Bishop of the Church of Rome…”
Why should the people disputing over the bishop of Constantinople submit specifically to the Bishop of Rome unless it had some Primacy of Authority? So, once again we see that a Doctor of the Church can still have differing opinions on what the rocks means specifically in Matthew 16 but still believe in the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome.
Part 8 – John Chrysostom
Point 27: The Titles Chrysostom gives to Peter are not given to him exclusively
Quote: “It is clear from these statements that Chrysostom, while certainly granting a large leadership role to Peter, does not consider him to have been made the supreme ruler of the Church. These passages demonstrate that the exalted titles applied to Peter were not exclusively applied to Peter.”
While there are some titles that Peter shares with the other Apostles according to John Chrysostom, there are some titles exclusive to Peter. One is “Foundation of the Church”, which is not given to any other apostle in Chrysostom’s works. He also gives Peter the title, “Chief Authority among the brethren” which is not given to any of the other apostles for the obvious reason that a chief means a singular ruler or the most important and describes a singular position. However, as we see in the next point William tries to refute this title.
Point 28: Peter is not the Supreme ruler of the Church because the other apostles are described as receiving charge of the whole world.
Quote: “This would seem to indicate that Chrysostom taught that Peter was the supreme ruler of the Church. However in the passage cited above Chrysostom speaks of the apostle John as also receiving the charge of the whole world and the keys equally with Peter.”
Just because another apostle was said to have received charge over the whole world doesn’t then follow that he also held the ‘Chief Authority’ among the Apostles, especially since Peter was also given that title. No where in Chrysostom’s works is John mentioned as Chief Authority among the Apostles. This is a singular title given to Peter. Just as a Parliament can be said to preside over the whole of its jurisdiction this doesn’t infer that the members of this parliament share equal authority with the head of the Parliament.
Point 29: James is described by Chrysostom as being the Chief rule and authority in Jerusalem and over the Jerusalem Council.
Quote: “Further, Chrysostom speaks of James, and not Peter, as possessing the chief rule and authority in Jerusalem and over the Jerusalem Council:
This (James) was bishop, as they say, and therefore he speaks last…There was no arrogance in the Church. After Peter Paul speaks, and none silences him: James waits patiently; not starts up (for the next word). No word speaks John here, no word the other Apostles, but held their peace, for James was invested with the chief rule, and think it no hardship. So clean was their soul from love of glory. Peter indeed spoke more strongly, but James here more mildly: for thus it behooves one in high authority, to leave what is unpleasant for others to say, while he himself appears in the milder part”
The part of Chrysostom’s writings quoted by William is actually two parts that you can see by the use of the ellipsis, the first half comes from the substance of what Chrysostom is saying and the second part is just Chrysostom’s own summarisation of what he had said previously (in the first part) which was:
“This (James) was bishop, as they say, and therefore he speaks last, and herein is fulfilled that saying, ‘In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.’ Deuteronomy 17:6; Matthew 18:16 But observe the discretion shown by him also, in making his argument good from the prophets, both new and old. For he had no acts of his own to declare, as Peter had and Paul. And indeed it is wisely ordered that this (the active) part is assigned to those, as not intended to be locally fixed in Jerusalem, whereas (James) here, who performs the part of teacher, is no way responsible for what has been done, while however he is not divided from them in opinion.”
It is with this context which William conveniently leaves out that we can understand Dom Chapman who William then quotes:
“Obviously, it is James who has the ‘rule’ and the ‘great power’ as bishop of those believing Pharisees who had initiated the discussion. But the idea that he had (rule) over Peter is, of course, ludicrous, and the notion that he could possibly be the president of the council certainly never occurred to Chrysostom’s mind” (Dom John Chapman, Studies on the Early Papacy (London: Sheed & Ward, 1928), p. 90).
So, while William goes on to say:
“Chrysostom says nothing about the chief rule of James being limited to that of the believing Pharisees. There is not one word said about Pharisees. His reference to the chief rule is of the overall Council over which James presided.”
We can see that looking at the greater context of Chrysostom’s writings on Acts that James’s Chief rule was regarding his Bishopric, and not that as presiding over the Council because as Chrysostom, himself, says, “as not intended to be locally fixed in Jerusalem, whereas (James) here, who performs the part of teacher, is no way responsible for what has been done”. However, William is right that the ‘believing Pharisees’ are not directly mentioned in this text.
Point 30: All the Apostles are a part of the headship of the Church.
Quote: “When all of his statements about Peter, Paul, James and John are taken together, it becomes clear that in the mind of Chrysostom, all the apostles together held the care of the world and headship of the Church universally.”
Except that as we have shown that Peter was the only one called The Chief Authority over the Apostles. So, while the Apostles as a collective are the head of the Church, Peter specifically is described by Chrysostom as the Chief Authority among the Apostles and therefore the head of the Apostles or the coryphaeus of the choir of apostles.
Point 31: Peter’s confession is the foundation of the Church
Quote: “It is Peter’s confession that is the foundation of the Church. Peter is not the foundation. According to Chrysostom that position belongs to Christ alone.”
“Chrysostom states that Peter is not the rock”
Except that John Chrysostom specifically gives Peter the title of ‘Foundation of the Church’ which we have pointed out in Point 27. While Chrysostom does say that the rock is Peter’s confession this then doesn’t mean that Chrysostom doesn’t also see it as Peter himself with the title, “foundation of the Church”. Chrysostom never says that Peter is definitely not the Rock like Augustine.
Point 32: All Bishops are successors of Saint Peter
Quote: “While holding a very high view of the status of the apostle Peter, Chrysostom, like Augustine, did not transfer this status to the bishops of Rome. In his thinking, along with Cyprian, Augustine, Jerome and Ambrose, all bishops are successors of Peter. There is no supreme authority of one bishop over another. In all his remarks about Peter, where does Chrysostom apply them to the bishops of Rome in an exclusive sense? He never does that. He never personally makes that application in his statements and it is historically dishonest to assert that that is what he meant when he personally never said it. In similar fashion to Cyprian, Chrysostom refers to the chair of Peter, stating that the bishop of Antioch possesses that chair, demonstrating that in his mind all legitimate bishops are successors of Peter and not just the bishop of Rome…”
This is a misunderstanding on William’s part because the Catholic Church does affirm that the bishop of Antioch and the bishop of Alexandria are also successors to St. Peter and are respectively called the Petrine Sees. So, when Chrysostom is referring to Antioch as a successor of Peter he is doing so because Antioch is a Petrine see and not to say that all bishops hold that title. This is why Chrysostom speaks in such a way in the following quote cited by William:
“In speaking of S. Peter, the recollection of another Peter has come to me, the common father and teacher, who has inherited his prowess, and also obtained his chair. For this is the one great privilege of our city, Antioch, that it received the leader of the apostles as its teacher in the beginning. For it was right that she who was first adorned with the name of Christians, before the whole world, should receive the first of the apostles as her pastor. But though we received him as teacher, we did not retain him to the end, but gave him up to royal Rome. Or rather we did retain him to the end, for though we do not retain the body of Peter, we do retain the faith of Peter, and retaining the faith of Peter we have Peter.”
Antioch obtained the chair of Peter because it is a Petrine see. He even goes on to say that Antioch didn’t retain Peter because he ended up going to Rome, which is where Peter established another successor. This is also why Chrysostom talks about retaining the faith of Peter and not his body because Antioch retains his faith from their succession whereas Rome retains both his faith and his body in their succession.
Point 33: Chrysostom never gives these titles he gave to Peter to the Bishop of Rome.
Quote: “There is no reason to suppose that Chrysostom envisioned a papal office when he speaks of Peter as the foundation of the Church. We have seen quite clearly from Chrysostom’s statements that he taught that the Church was built on Peter’s confession of faith. It can be said to be built on Peter only in the sense that it is built on his confession. Chrysostom’s comments given above on Antioch demonstrate that he teaches that the Church’s foundation is preserved throughout history as Peter’s confession of faith is preserved. It is not preserved by being built upon the bishops of Rome as supposed exclusive successors of Peter, but upon Peter’s confession.”
There are a lot of false presumptions in this quote by William. First, there is no proof that Chrysostom says that the rock is not Peter’s person as Augustine did. This is just William reading his view into Chrysostom’s writings. Second, we have also refuted the point that Chrysostom’s comments on Antioch's Petrine succession then generalises this succession to all bishops. This is simply a misunderstanding on William’s part on the history of the Church.
These are the only points he brings up to defend that these titles aren’t given to the Bishop of Rome. However, when we read Chrysostom’s letters to Pope Innocent, the Bishop of Rome, we see that John does indeed afford this Primacy to Pope Innocent too.
“…clergy have everywhere made insurrection against bishops, there has been schism between bishop and bishop, people and people, and will be yet more; every place is suffering from the throes of calamity, and the subversion of the whole civilized world. Having been informed then of all these things, my lords, most honourable and devout, exhibit the courage and zeal which becomes you, so as to put a stop to this great assault of lawlessness which has been made upon the Churches.”
“Having considered therefore all these things, and having been clearly informed of all particulars by my lords, our most devout brethren the bishops, may you be induced to exert your zeal on our behalf; for in so doing you will confer a favour not upon ourselves alone but also upon the Church at large, and you will receive your reward from God who does all things for the peace of the Churches. Fare you well always, and pray for me, most honoured and holy master.”
“Even so we also although we be separated by a journey of such great extent are near to your Piety, and in daily communion with you…”
As we can see from these excerpts from Chrysostom’s letters to Pope Innocent I, he asks him to resolve a dispute among bishops. How can an equal resolve a dispute among equals when it comes to schism unless they have some authority over them? Also, why does Chrysostom appeal to the Bishop of Rome rather than a Bishop closer by unless the Bishop of Rome has some privileged position? We also see that Chrysostom being the Archbishop of Constantinople referred to the bishop of Rome as his master. The term master is only given to someone in a position of authority. If they were equals, then Chrysostom would have used the term brother. Lastly, Chrysostom talks about being in communion with the Bishop of Rome rather than Chrysostom and the Bishop of Rome being in communion with each other. This puts a greater emphasis of importance on being in communion with Pope Innocent rather than bishops being communion with each other.
As we can see, Chrysostom still sees a Primacy or at the very least an Authority in the Bishop of Rome.
Part 9 – Theodoret of Cyrus
Point 34: Peter’s faith is the foundation of the Church
Quote: “Peter is called the foundation because of his confession of faith. It is his confession which is the rock of the Church. The rock and foundation is Jesus Christ alone.”
As we have stated before, this interpretation is accepted by the Catholic Church although Theodoret never says that Christ alone is the rock.
Point 35: Theodoret, like Chrysostom, says that Antioch is a successor of Peter and thus all bishops are successors of him.
Quote: “Theodoret does state that Peter is first among the apostles and the coryphaeus but, like Chrysostom and Augustine, these titles carry no unique jurisdictional primacy in a Roman Catholic sense. All the apostles are equal in authority and all bishops are successors of Peter. In a statement reminiscent of Cyprian and Chrysostom, Theodoret speaks of the bishop of Antioch as possessing the throne and authority of Peter demonstrating that this was not something unique to the see of Rome…”
Again, as we stated before with Chrysostom and his remarks, this is a misunderstanding of William. Antioch actually is a legitimate and literal successor of Peter through his student Mark from which we have Mark’s Gospel. Just because Theodoret talks about another Petrine See, this doesn’t infer that all Bishops who don’t have some succession from Peter like Rome, Antioch and Alexandra have are also successors of Peter.
Point 36: Theodoret didn’t acknowledge the Primacy of Peter
Quote: “Michael Winter, demonstrates this to be the case when he sums up Theodoret’s views this way:
He declared at one time that the rock foundation of the church was faith, and at another that it was Christ. Elsewhere he applies the notion to all the Apostles…It is evident that he did not acknowledge the primacy of St. Peter”
Regardless of whether Theodoret acknowledged the Primacy of Peter, he certainly acknowledged the authority of the Bishop of Rome. In his writings on Ecclesiastical History (in the second chapter of the first book), Theodoret mentions the Principal Bishops of the Church. He first mentions Rome, then Antioch, then Jerusalem, then Constantinople, then lastly, Alexandria. We can safely assume two things from this list. Firstly, that some bishops were held to be greater than others which immediately refutes William’s claims that during the Patristic age all bishops were seen as equals. Secondly, that by naming Rome first among these Principal Bishops that Rome was held to be greatest.
He also in Chapter 8 mentions how the East did not celebrate Easter as the same time as Rome did and thus submitted to the Roman time for having Easter. Why would the East who have many distinguished churches like Antioch, Constantinople, and Jerusalem submit to the Roman time of having Easter at the order of the Bishop of Rome unless Rome had authority over these Churches? It seems Theodoret was happy to cite times when the Bishop of Rome exercised its authority.
Theodoret even goes on to say:
“An orderly and excellent form of commemoration is observed in all the churches of the western, of the southern, and of the northern parts of the world, and by some of the eastern; this form being universally commended, I engaged that you would be ready to adopt it likewise, and thus gladly accept the rule unanimously adopted in the city of Rome, throughout Italy, in all Africa, in Egypt, the Spains, the Gauls, the Britains, Libya, Greece, in the dioceses of Asia, and of Pontus, and in Cilicia, taking into your consideration not only that the churches of the places above-mentioned are greater in point of number…”
How can anyone think that after reading that, that Theodoret thought all the Bishops were equal, let alone that Rome wasn’t the greatest?
It’s clear that Theodoret recognised the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome.
Part 10 – Cyril of Alexandria
Point 37: Cyril says that the rock is the faith of Peter.
Quote: “Cyril’s views are very similar to those of Chrysostom. He identifies the rock of the Church to be Peter’s confession of faith and not the person of Peter himself. He separates Peter’s faith from Peter’s person”
Cyril never makes the statement, as Augustine did, that the rock is not Peter as a person. Here William is making the same Non Sequitur argument repeatedly that just because someone says that Peter’s confession is the rock that this then follows to mean that Peter isn’t the rock. This isn’t true. We have seen from the previous Fathers of the Church that one can hold both at the same time as being true.
Point 38: Cyril’s views are antithetical to the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church
Quote: “Cyril’s views are completely antithetical to those of the Roman Catholic Church. He is no proponent of the teaching of papal primacy.”
As we have stated before, the Catholic Church holds that the rock is the confession of Peter. This isn’t antithetical to the Church’s position at all. Also, Cyril very much was a proponent of papal primacy especially with his attack against Nestorius. Cyril writes in his third letter to Nestorius:
“…if thy Piety do not so, according to the ordinance set forth in the Letters of the afore-mentioned most holy and most pious Bishop and our co-minister of the church of the Romans, Celestine, know that thou hast no lot with us, nor place nor rank among the Priests of God and His Bishops.”
We see that Cyril in his letter to Nestorius is relying on the Authoritative order of the Bishop of Rome, Pope Celestine, to Nestorius to denounce his heresies to remind him that if he doesn’t that he will be excommunicated. We should remember that Cyril is a Bishop of the Petrine see of Alexandria and doesn’t rely on any authority he has to excommunicate Nestorius, the bishop of Constantinople, but relies on the bishop of Rome’s authority. It seems clear that Cyril recognised that the Bishop of Rome had power over other bishops and thus relied on its authority.
We can see that Cyril of Alexandria believed in the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome.
Part 11 – Other Church Fathers (Hilary, Jerome, Epiphanius, Basil of Seleucia, Paul of Emesa, John of Damascus)
Before we move on to the next points, we should note that William now begins to claim that the views of the above Church fathers are also present in the following and begins to quickly list off church fathers and their teachings without doing much explanation. However, as we have pointed out, William is incorrect in his presumption that if a Church father didn’t hold that Peter was exclusively the rock mentioned in Matthew 16 then that Church father didn’t believe in the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome. This is simply not true as we have pointed out with Tertullian who believed that the rock was Peter and he believed in the Primacy of the Bishops of Rome. Cyprian who believed that the rock was Peter and through his actions showed that he believed in the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome. Eusebius believes that the rock is Christ and shows the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome in his Church history. Augustine denied that Peter was the rock and said it was either Christ or Peter’s confession but still believe in the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome. Ambrose believed that the rock was the confession of Peter and believed in the Primacy of the Bishop of Rom., Chrysostom believes that both Peter and his confession of faith and Christ are the rock and he believes in at least the Authority of the Bishop of Rome. Theodoret believes that Peter’s faith is the rock but also recognises the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome. and finally Cyril believes that Peter’s faith is the rock and also in the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome. The only Church Father listed, so far, by William that we have not found to recognise the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome was Origen who ended his life as a heretic.
So, we will just add to our list what these further Church fathers that William lists and what they believed about the rock and also what they thought about the primacy of the Bishop of Rome.
Hilary of Poitiers
Believed that the rock was the faith of Peter, I can’t find any evidence to suggest he said anything about the bishop of Rome.
Jerome
Jerome believed that Peter was the Rock along with the other apostles but mentions that Peter was the head of the Apostles saying:
“‘But,’ you [Jovinian] will say, ‘it was on Peter that the Church was founded’ [Matt. 16:18]. Well . . . one among the twelve is chosen to be their head in order to remove any occasion for division” (Against Jovinian 1:26 [A.D. 393]).
Jerome also believed in the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome saying:
“I follow no leader but Christ and join in communion with none but your blessedness [Pope Damasus I], that is, with the chair of Peter. I know that this is the rock on which the Church has been built. Whoever eats the Lamb outside this house is profane. Anyone who is not in the ark of Noah will perish when the flood prevails” (Letters 15:2 [A.D. 396]).
Epiphanius
Epiphanius said the rock was Peter’s Faith. I can’t find any evidence that he explicitly said anything about the primacy of the Bishop of Rome.
Basil of Seleucia
Basil said that the rock was Peter, his confession and Christ. I can’t find any evidence that he explicitly said anything about the primacy of the Bishop of Rome.
Paul of Emesa
Paul said that the rock was Peter’s faith. He did believe in Peter’s headship of the other Apostles. I can’t find any evidence that he explicitly said anything about the primacy of the Bishop of Rome.
John of Damascus
John said that the rock was Peter’s faith and Christ. I can’t find any evidence that he explicitly said anything about the primacy of the Bishop of Rome.
This is the end of the list of Church fathers which William gives. However, there are many others that affirm that Primacy of Peter and the Bishop of Rome and affirm the Rock as Peter himself.
Part 12 – The Fathers William forgot to mention
Pope Clement I
“Owing to the sudden and repeated calamities and misfortunes which have befallen us, we must acknowledge that we have been somewhat tardy in turning our attention to the matters in dispute among you, beloved; and especially that abominable and unholy sedition, alien and foreign to the elect of God, which a few rash and self-willed persons have inflamed to such madness that your venerable and illustrious name, worthy to be loved by all men, has been greatly defamed. . . . Accept our counsel and you will have nothing to regret. . . . If anyone disobey the things which have been said by him [God] through us [i.e., that you must reinstate your leaders], let them know that they will involve themselves in transgression and in no small danger. . . . You will afford us joy and gladness if being obedient to the things which we have written through the Holy Spirit, you will root out the wicked passion of jealousy” (Letter to the Corinthians 1, 58–59, 63 [A.D. 80]).
Ignatius of Antioch
“Ignatius . . . to the church also which holds the presidency, in the location of the country of the Romans, worthy of God, worthy of honor, worthy of blessing, worthy of praise, worthy of success, worthy of sanctification, and, because you hold the presidency in love, named after Christ and named after the Father” (Letter to the Romans 1:1 [A.D. 110]).
“You [the church at Rome] have envied no one, but others you have taught. I desire only that what you have enjoined in your instructions may remain in force” (ibid., 3:1).
Irenaeus
“But since it would be too long to enumerate in such a volume as this the succession of all the churches, we shall confound all those who, in whatever manner, whether through self-satisfaction or vainglory, or through blindness and wicked opinion, assemble other than where it is proper, by pointing out here the successions of the bishops of the greatest and most ancient church known to all, founded and organized at Rome by the two most glorious apostles, Peter and Paul, that church which has the tradition and the faith which comes down to us after having been announced to men by the apostles. With that church, because of its superior origin, all the churches must agree, that is, all the faithful in the whole world, and it is in her that the faithful everywhere have maintained the apostolic tradition” (Against Heresies 3:3:2 [A.D. 189]).
Clementine Letter and Homilies
“Be it known to you, my lord, that Simon [Peter], who, for the sake of the true faith, and the most sure foundation of his doctrine, was set apart to be the foundation of the Church, and for this end was by Jesus himself, with his truthful mouth, named Peter” (Letter of Clement to James 2 [A.D. 221]).
“[Simon Peter said to Simon Magus in Rome:] ‘For you now stand in direct opposition to me, who am a firm rock, the foundation of the Church’ [Matt. 16:18]” (Clementine Homilies 17:19 [A.D. 221]).
Firmilian
“[Pope] Stephen [I] . . . boasts of the place of his episcopate, and contends that he holds the succession from Peter, on whom the foundations of the Church were laid [Matt. 16:18]. . . . [Pope] Stephen . . . announces that he holds by succession the throne of Peter” (collected in Cyprian’s Letters 74[75]:17 [A.D. 253]).
Pope Julius I
“[The] judgment [concerning Athanasius] ought to have been made, not as it was, but according to the ecclesiastical canon. It behooved all of you to write us so that the justice of it might be seen as emanating from all. … Are you ignorant that the custom has been to write first to us and then for a just decision to be passed from this place [Rome]? If, then, any such suspicion rested upon the bishop there [Athanasius of Alexandria], notice of it ought to have been written to the church here. But now, after having done as they pleased, they want to obtain our concurrence, although we never condemned him. Not thus are the constitutions of Paul, not thus the traditions of the Fathers. This is another form of procedure, and a novel practice. … What I write about this is for the common good. For what we have heard from the blessed apostle Peter, these things I signify to you” (Letter on Behalf of Athanasius [A.D. 341], in Athanasius, Apology Against the Arians 20–35).
Council of Sardica
“[I]f any bishop loses the judgment in some case [decided by his fellow bishops] and still believes that he has not a bad but a good case, in order that the case may be judged anew . . . let us honor the memory of the apostle Peter by having those who have given the judgment write to Julius, Bishop of Rome, so that if it seem proper he may himself send arbiters and the judgment may be made again by the bishops of a neighboring province” (canon 3 [A.D. 342]).
“[I]f some bishop be deposed by the judgment of the bishops sitting in the neighborhood, and if he declare that he will seek further redress, another should not be appointed to his see until the bishop of Rome can be acquainted with the case and render a judgment” (canon 4).
Ephraim the Syrian
“[Jesus said:] ‘Simon, my follower, I have made you the foundation of the holy Church. I betimes called you Peter, because you will support all its buildings. You are the inspector of those who will build on earth a Church for me. If they should wish to build what is false, you, the foundation, will condemn them. You are the head of the fountain from which my teaching flows; you are the chief of my disciples’” (Homilies 4:1 [A.D. 351]).
Optatus
“You cannot deny that you are aware that in the city of Rome the episcopal chair was given first to Peter; the chair in which Peter sat, the same who was head—that is why he is also called Cephas [‘Rock’]—of all the apostles; the one chair in which unity is maintained by all. Neither do the apostles proceed individually on their own, and anyone who would [presume to] set up another chair in opposition to that single chair would, by that very fact, be a schismatic and a sinner. . . . Recall, then, the origins of your chair, those of you who wish to claim for yourselves the title of holy Church” (The Schism of the Donatists 2:2 [A.D. 367]).
Council of Constantinople I
“The bishop of Constantinople shall have the primacy of honor after the bishop of Rome, because his city is New Rome” (canon 3 [A.D. 381]).
Damasus I
“Likewise it is decreed . . . that it ought to be announced that . . . the holy Roman Church has not been placed at the forefront [of the churches] by the conciliar decisions of other churches, but has received the primacy by the evangelic voice of our Lord and Savior, who says: ‘You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it; and I will give to you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. . . . ’ [Matt. 16:18–19]. The first see, therefore, is that of Peter the apostle, that of the Roman Church, which has neither stain nor blemish nor anything like it” (Decree of Damasus 3 [A.D. 382]).
Synod of Ambrose
“We recognize in the letter of your holiness [Pope Siricius] the vigilance of the good shepherd. You faithfully watch over the gate entrusted to you, and with pious care you guard Christ’s sheepfold [John 10:7ff], you that are worthy to have the Lord’s sheep hear and follow you” (Synodal Letter to Pope Siricius [A.D. 389]).
Pope Innocent I
“If cases of greater importance are to be heard [at a council], they are, as the synod decrees and as happy custom requires, after episcopal judgment, to be referred to the Apostolic See” (Letters2:3:6 [A.D. 408]).
“In seeking the things of God . . . following the examples of ancient tradition . . . you have strengthened . . . the vigor of your religion with true reason, for you have acknowledged that judgment is to be referred to us, and have shown that you know what is owed to the Apostolic See, if all of us placed in this position are to desire to follow the apostle himself [Peter] from whom the episcopate itself and the total authority of this name have emerged. Following him, we know how to condemn evils just as well as we know how to approve what is laudable. Or rather, guarding with your priestly office what the Fathers instituted, you did not regard what they had decided, not by human but by divine judgments, as something to be trampled on. They did not regard anything as finished, even though it was the concern of distant and remote provinces, until it had come to the notice of this See [Rome], so that what was a just pronouncement might be confirmed by the authority of this See, and thence other churches—just as all waters proceed from their own natal source and, through the various regions of the whole world, remain pure liquids of an incorrupted head. . . .” (ibid., 29:1)
Pope Celestine I
“We enjoin upon you [my legates to the Council of Ephesus] the necessary task of guarding the authority of the Apostolic See. And if the instructions handed to you have to mention this and if you have to be present in the assembly, if it comes to controversy, it is not yours to join the fight but to judge of the opinions [on my behalf]” (Letters 17 [A.D. 431])
Council of Ephesus
“Philip, the presbyter and legate of the Apostolic See [Rome], said: ‘There is no doubt, and in fact it has been known in all ages, that the holy and most blessed Peter, prince and head of the apostles, pillar of the faith, and foundation of the Catholic Church, received the keys of the kingdom from our Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior and Redeemer of the human race, and that to him was given the power of loosing and binding sins: who down even to today and forever both lives and judges in his successors’” (Acts of the Council, session 3 [A.D. 431]).
Pope Leo I
“Our Lord Jesus Christ . . . established the worship belonging to the divine religion. . . . But the Lord desired that the sacrament of this gift should pertain to all the apostles in such a way that it might be found principally in the most blessed Peter, the highest of all the apostles. And he wanted his gifts to flow into the entire body from Peter himself, as if from the head, in such a way that anyone who had dared to separate himself from the solidarity of Peter would realize that he was himself no longer a sharer in the divine mystery. . . . [You, my brothers], must realize with us, of course, that the Apostolic See—out of reverence for it, I mean—has on countless occasions been reported to in consultation by bishops even of your own province [Vienne]. And through the appeal of various cases to this see, decisions already made have been either revoked or confirmed, as dictated by long-standing custom” (Letters 10:2–3 [A.D. 445]).
“As for the resolution of the bishops which is contrary to the Nicene decree, in union with your faithful piety, I declare it to be invalid and annul it by the authority of the holy apostle Peter” (ibid., 110).
“If in your view, [Anastasius of Thessalonica], in regard to a matter to be handled and decided jointly with your brothers, their decision was other than what you wanted, then let the entire matter, with a record of the proceedings, be referred to us. . . . Although bishops have a common dignity, they are not all of the same rank. Even among the most blessed apostles, though they were alike in honor, there was a certain distinction of power. All were equal in being chosen [to be apostles], but it was given to one to be preeminent over the others. . . . [So today through the bishops] the care of the universal Church would converge in the one see of Peter, and nothing should ever be at odds with this head” (ibid., 14:11)
Peter Chrysologus
“We exhort you in every respect, honorable brother, to heed obediently what has been written by the most blessed pope of the city of Rome, for blessed Peter, who lives and presides in his own see, provides the truth of faith to those who seek it. For we, by reason of our pursuit of peace and faith, cannot try cases on the faith without the consent of the bishop of Rome” (Letters 25:2 [A.D. 449]).
Council of Chalcedon
“Wherefore the most holy and blessed Leo, archbishop of the great and elder Rome, through us, and through this present most holy synod, together with the thrice blessed and all-glorious Peter the apostle, who is the rock and foundation of the Catholic Church, and the foundation of the orthodox faith, has stripped him [Dioscorus] of the episcopate” (Acts of the Council, session 3 [A.D. 451]).
Pope Gregory I
“Your most sweet holiness, [Bishop Eulogius of Alexandria], has spoken much in your letter to me about the chair of Saint Peter, prince of the apostles, saying that he himself now sits on it in the persons of his successors. And indeed I acknowledge myself to be unworthy . . . I gladly accepted all that has been said, in that he has spoken to me about Peter’s chair, who occupies Peter’s chair. And, though special honor to myself in no wise delights me . . . 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 Peter from petra. And to him it is said by the voice of the Truth, ‘To you I will give the keys of the kingdom of heaven’ [Matt. 16:19]. And again it is said to him, ‘And when you are converted, strengthen your brethren’ [Luke 22:32]. And once more, ‘Simon, son of John, do you love me? Feed my sheep’ [John 21:17]” (Letters 40 [A.D. 597])
Part 13 – In Conclusion
At the start of this article we argued that for William to disprove the foundation of the Catholic Church he had to prove that the rock could absolutely not be Peter. Unfortunately, he has failed to do it and instead has affirmed that many church fathers did indeed believe that Peter was the rock.
As we can see, Peter as the Rock is a belief held by many of the Church fathers in addition to the rock being Peter’s confession and Christ Himself. We can also see the root of William’s error which is that the only passage that shows the Primacy of Peter and the Primacy of his successors in the Bishop of Rome is in Matthew 16. However, this is not the case since John and Mark both have passages that refer to Peter as the shepherd that Christ entrusts his sheep and that Peter should strengthen the faith of his brethren.
Therefore, the conclusions of Vatican I are not against the teachings of the consensus of the Early Church Fathers who the vast majority held that the Bishop of Rome had Primacy over the rest of the Church. The rest of them we couldn’t find any comments for or against such a position.
I want to encourage William to keep reading the Church Fathers along with all Christians because St. Paul himself told us to hold to the Traditions of the Apostles (2 Thessalonians 2:15). By understanding the Traditions of the Early Church Fathers we can best understand how to live out our Christian Faith and understand the Bible more clearly.