Apostolic Succession of the True Church (Fr. Phelan, 1915)

[Pacelli]

The following are three chapters, "The True Church Must be Apostolic," "The Catholic Church is Apostolic," and "No Other Church is Apostolic," taken from the book ,The Straight Path or Marks of the True Church, 1915, pages 80-111.

PDF of the three chapters linked HERE

The full book is available online HERE

[John Lewis]

Pacelli, thanks for sharing this excellent book. Archive.org is not available at present. Could you please share the full book via google drive?

[John Lewis]

M. J. PHELAN, S.J. 1915 THE STRAIGHT PATH OR MARKS OF THE TRUE CHURCH

“It follows then that, in casting a glance over the various Christian bodies to-day, no Church has a claim on our allegiance that cannot produce her diploma bearing the triple seal of Apostolicity.

I. She must be founded by the Apostles or their successors.
2. She must be able to trace back her pastors' descent, in an unbroken chain, to the Apostles.
3. She must show her doctrine to be identical with that of the Apostles.

If she fail in any of these three she cannot be recognised as the true Church…”

“The true Church should show a complete identity of doctrine with that of the Apostles; adding not a syllable, abstracting not an iota; so that the true Church of to-day should be the echo of the Apostles' voice. If we discover a genuine departure from the Apostles' doctrine, St. Paul tells us how to deal with such a Church : "Though an angel from heaven preach a gospel to you beside that which we have preached to let him be anathema. …”

“By what test do you prove the doctrine of the Church to-day to be Apostolic or not? We have a simple, conclusive and effective one. Here is the canon of doctrinal criticism recognized in every age. Whatever is in harmony with the uninterrupted chain of Apostolic teaching is true, whatever contradicts it is false.

Now, we have four monuments that afford amplest evidence as to what is the unbroken chain of Apostolic tradition…

1. The creeds, 2. The liturgies, 3. The writings of the fathers, 4. The judgements of councils. (my summary of points)

…Now, antiquity speaking through these four tongues is decisive."

“The second canon is supplied by St. Pacian of the fourth century, and it applies with even stronger force to our own times than his. Here is his golden rule to distinguish truth from error : "Error is always new and various in form, while truth is unchangeable and equally held by all.” Let the persons, at all times, and in all places be good enough to keep these two canons well before his mind: conformity with antiquity and the unchangeable nature of truth: it is by these that we shall test the Apostolicity of the Catholic and Non-Catholic Churches.

Let us apply the first: conformity with antiquity. If there is anything a Catholic is particularly proud of, it is that he can challenge the world to produce, from any period of the past, an authentic condemnation on any article of the faith he professes. Read aloud to him every creed from the Apostles' Creed up, and the declarations of every Council, from the Council of Jerusalem to that of the Vatican; and to every article of faith so read out he can firmly answer Credo - I believe..."

"...let us now apply the second canon - the unchangeable nature of truth. On this we need waste few words, because our adversaries prove our case by making our conformity with this canon a reproach. The say, the Catholic Church never changes, her motto is Semper eadem, or, as they put it - "she is non-progressive."...

What is the meaning of progress? - Is it not the going from an imperfect towards a perfect state? Surely non one will quarrel with that definition. Yet it follows from such definition that a Church already perfect cannot make progress... to move from that position would not be perfection but a step towards imperfection.

...Christ promised that the Spirit of Truth should abide with His Church for ever. Can she then declare as true in one generation what she brands as false in another? Can God be deceived or can time add to His knowledge? Can man improve on His work?

...So that, when a person boasts of his Church being progressive he declares that the truths she held yesterday she abandons today, and the truths she holds today she may throw overboard tomorrow. He declares her a man-made Church, a creature of tiem, a human institution bearing on her forehead the hallmark of clay."

"We now come to the final question. Is any other Church Apostolic?...

To have Apostolicity of pastors more is required than mere material succession. When a schismatic Bishop occupies the see of a true successor of the Apostles, and robes himself in his vestments, he is indeed a material unit in the line of succession, but all vital and organic connexion has ceased. And, in this, all the difference lies.

By schism, the Greeks are completely cut off from Peter, the head source of authority and jurisdiction, and the stream cut from its fountain flows no longer. Your arm while in connexion with your body is animated by the soul, the spirit flows through it; sever the arm from the body, Will the soul flow out after it? - No, the spirit remains behind and the limb dies. Cut a telegraph wire and the message from the electric centre travels to the gap but will not pass across it.

A Greek priest might pronounce the words of absolution, but the words would die on the air. The stream of power that accompanies these words from the lips of a Catholic Priest would here by absent. He belongs to a Church that is a limb indeed, but an amputated one; a branch indeed but a torn one. He is the ambassador in rebellion, his seal is worthless, his commission cancelled..."

[Pacelli]

Archive.org is back up so the link above is working again.

[John Lewis]

So Pacelli , where is the Church of Christ?

We know that it must still exist in all times in the same form in which it was constituted. In the present times we have "traditionalists" who claim to preserve Apostolicity of Doctrine but lack jurisdiction and a mission from the Church.

Then we have the modernists and those following them, who lack apostolicity of doctrine yet claim to have jurisdiction and apostolic succession. Looking at the Eastern Rite Bishops and (future) Cardinals from my region, all of them are publicly involved in ecumenical activities.

[Pacelli]

Oct 24, 2024 19:24:36 GMT -5 John Lewis said:

So Pacelli , where is the Church of Christ?

We know that it must still exist in all times in the same form in which it was constituted. In the present times we have "traditionalists" who claim to preserve Apostolicity of Doctrine but lack jurisdiction and a mission from the Church.

Then we have the modernists and those following them, who lack apostolicity of doctrine yet claim to have jurisdiction and apostolic succession. Looking at the Eastern Rite Bishops and (future) Cardinals from my region, all of them are publicly involved in ecumenical activities.

Well, I wrote this in 2017:  tradcath.proboards.com/thread/735/where-catholic-church-today-2017  It's hard to believe 7 years have gone by since then.  

It may be that the eastern rite bishops in your country are heretics, it's hard to say for sure without digging deeper. Interfaith activity with heretics and schismatics, in of itself, would cause a suspicion of heresy, but would not be certain proof that the one doing it is actually a heretic. 

[John Lewis]

Oct 25, 2024 6:00:57 GMT -5 Pacelli said:

Oct 24, 2024 19:24:36 GMT -5 John Lewis said:

So Pacelli , where is the Church of Christ?

We know that it must still exist in all times in the same form in which it was constituted. In the present times we have "traditionalists" who claim to preserve Apostolicity of Doctrine but lack jurisdiction and a mission from the Church.

Then we have the modernists and those following them, who lack apostolicity of doctrine yet claim to have jurisdiction and apostolic succession. Looking at the Eastern Rite Bishops and (future) Cardinals from my region, all of them are publicly involved in ecumenical activities.

Well, I wrote this in 2017:  tradcath.proboards.com/thread/735/where-catholic-church-today-2017  It's hard to believe 7 years have gone by since then.  
[It may be that the eastern rite bishops in your country are heretics, it's hard to say for sure without digging deeper. Interfaith activity with heretics and schismatics, in of itself, would cause a suspicion of heresy, but would not be certain proof that the one doing it is actually a heretic. 

Is it possible that we won’t know who the true Bishops are until with the Pope they elect they consecrate Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary and she is converted? Is this the miracle which will prove their mission from God?