|
In Catholicism, the magisterium is the authority to lay down what is the authentic teaching of the Church.〔(Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary )〕〔(Thomas Storck, "What Is the Magisterium?" )〕 For the Catholic Church, that authority is vested uniquely in the pope and the bishops who are in communion with him.〔"The task of interpreting the Word of God authentically has been entrusted solely to the magisterium of the Church, that is, to the Pope and to the bishops in communion with Him" ((Catechism of the Catholic Church, 100 ))〕 Sacred Scripture and Tradition "make up a single sacred deposit of the Word of God, which is entrusted to the Church",〔(Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation ''Dei verbum'', 10 )〕 and the magisterium is not independent of this, since "all that it proposes for belief as being divinely revealed is derived from this single deposit of faith."〔(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 86 )〕 == Solemn and ordinary == The exercise of the Church's magisterium is sometimes, but only rarely, expressed in the solemn form of an ''ex cathedra'' papal declaration, "when, in the exercise of his office as shepherd and teacher of all Christians, in virtue of his supreme apostolic authority, (Bishop of Rome ) defines a doctrine concerning faith or morals to be held by the whole Church",〔(First Vatican Council, "First Dogmatic Constitution on the Church", chapter 4, 9 )〕 or of a similar declaration by an ecumenical council. Such solemn declarations of the Church's teaching involve the infallibility of the Church. Pope Pius IX's definition of the Immaculate Conception of Mary, and Pope Pius XII's definition of the Assumption of Mary are examples of such solemn papal pronouncements. Examples of solemn declarations by ecumenical councils are the Council of Trent's decree on justification, and the First Vatican Council's definition of papal infallibility. The Church's magisterium is exercised without this solemnity in statements by popes and bishops, whether collectively (as by an episcopal conference) or singly, in written documents such as catechisms, encyclicals and pastoral letters, or orally, as in homilies. These statements are part of the ''ordinary'' magisterium of the Church. The First Vatican Council declared that "all those things are to be believed with divine and Catholic faith which are contained in the Word of God, written or handed down, and which the Church, either by a solemn judgment or by her ordinary and universal teaching magisterium, proposes for belief as having been divinely revealed".〔(Dogmatic Constitution on the Catholic Faith ''Dei Filius'', chapter III )〕 Not everything contained in the statements of the ordinary magisterium is infallible, but the Catholic Church holds that the Church's infallibility is invested in the statements of its ''universal'' ordinary magisterium: "Although the bishops, taken individually, do not enjoy the privilege of infallibility, they do, however, proclaim infallibly the doctrine of Christ on the following conditions: namely, when, even though dispersed throughout the world but preserving for all that amongst themselves and with Peter's successor the bond of communion, in their authoritative teaching concerning matters of faith or morals, they are in agreement that a particular teaching is to be held definitively and absolutely."〔(Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution on the Church ''Lumen gentium'', 25 )〕 Such teachings of the ordinary and universal magisterium are obviously not given in a single specific document. They are teachings upheld as authoritative, generally for a long time, by the entire body of bishops. Examples given are the teaching on the reservation of ordination to males,〔(Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, "Responsum ad propositum dubium concerning the teaching contained in ''Ordinatio sacerdotalis''" )〕 and on the immorality of procured abortion.〔 Neither of these has been the object of a solemn definition. Even public statements by popes or bishops on questions of faith or morals that do not qualify as "ordinary and universal magisterium" have an authority that Catholics are not free to merely dismiss. They are required to give that teaching religious submission: "Bishops, teaching in communion with the Roman Pontiff, are to be respected by all as witnesses to divine and Catholic truth. In matters of faith and morals, the bishops speak in the name of Christ and the faithful are to accept their teaching and adhere to it with a religious assent. This religious submission of mind and will must be shown in a special way to the authentic magisterium of the Roman Pontiff, even when he is not speaking ex cathedra; that is, it must be shown in such a way that his supreme magisterium is acknowledged with reverence, the judgments made by him are sincerely adhered to, according to his manifest mind and will. His mind and will in the matter may be known either from the character of the documents, from his frequent repetition of the same doctrine, or from his manner of speaking."〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Magisterium」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|