Clearly they are two different offices in the NT. They are different Gk. words, and have different responsibilities. I was suprised to read that he does not recognize any difference. He believes there are only two offices, pastor, and deacon.Hi
I think that
Episkipos means bishop in English as he overseer of a diocese.
Presyteros mean priest (elder, father) in English.
SHW
Bastoune, getting frustrated with the ignorant rantings of our separated brethren will not bring them into wisdom. If they were willing to read and understand the catechism, they would not be posting statements like the one in the OP. If you believe it is a waste of time, why are you on the thread? The purpose of CAF is to address erroneous statements such as this.
You know what… next time someone tells me to “prove it using only scripture” I’m going to explain to them the logical fallacy of self verification, and then demand that they prove sola scriptura using NO scripture whatsoever. ::chuckles:: we’ll see how they handle that.
Actually I have done simialr to this often with evangelicals.
We see the same questions over and over because new forum members arrive with the same old baggage.
Amen! I would answer the same question a thousand times if it helps people.
I used to do this little question/answer experiment until I had a large enough sample group for my taste. I would ask “If God appeared before you right now and told you you were wrong, that the X denomination had it wrong, and that the Catholic church was the one true church, what would you do or say?”
Unfortunately for you, unless you have been ordained , all you are doing is pretending to be “priestly”Of course there are Christian priests. We are all supposed to be priests. Yet sadly, not all Christians act like priests in the way that they live their lives…
This is why I devote my life to Christ as though I were a priest, because that’s what I’m supposed to be. Holy, sanctified, set apart as an example for all the world to look upon. If people see you living a clean life and worshipping God in humility and grace, they will know something is different about you.
smiles
This is what happens when people take single “proof texts” way out of context. What about the laying on of hands for Apostolic Succession? (See the naming of Matthias in Acts as the successor of Judas Isacariot) Without sanction of Holy Mother Church, simply saying “I am a priest” means nothing. I too am chaste, but I am no priest.
I do not claim to be an Apostle, so no worries there. As for being a priest. The Scriptures are clear that if you are a true follower of Christ and belong to Him, you ARE a priest of the Lord God. Now if you wish to say that the Scriptures are wrong, that’s up to you.
Hi Crimson, of course we are all priests, but that’s not what St. Paul is talking about in this verse:
All followers of Christ are to be priest, prophets and kings. This is scriptural. However, there are also specifically ordained priests (1 Timothy 5:17) who anoint the sick (James 5:14-15), hear confessions (Matthew 9:8) and hold the Mass (“do this in remembrance of me”).
I can’t find “choir director” or “pastor” or “youth pastor” or “assistant pastor” or “secretary” or for that matter the “janitor”. Good grief, is this the best critical thinking some of you have out there? The Bible is NOT a dictionary and that was the best answer going. You cannot do a Bible word search for everything Christian and if the “word” is not found, declare the idea to be invalid. Leaders have different names…ours predated yours by a long shot but they are still leaders.
That is a translation from Greek I believe and you could call them priests too…I think the Greeks do but the point was and is…just because you can’t find the word in the Bible is not evidence of it’s invalidity.
