Sources of Authority, Volume 2: Contemporary Churches

“The common study of the sources of authority shows that the church cannot exist without, beyond, or above authority. The church sustains the authority of God. And here comes the clash with the secular world. Discovering that sources of authority are inseparable from earthly life, Christians must learn how to bridge this clash without either rejecting the secular world or adjusting their principles to those alien to the Christian faith. The task is not easy. Studying various sources of authority of the Christian faith ecumenically helps Christians with this difficult task of bringing Christian virtues into the secular world or giving a common witness.”

— from the foreword

The perennial and vexing question of authority lies at the root of many of the deepest divisions in and among Christian churches. Yet how is one to understand authority itself and the many axes of Christian existence—scripture, tradition, the believing congregation, liturgy, magisterium, reason, and experience—that prove to be more or less authoritative for churches and communions in their life, their governance, and their acceptance of change? And, crucially, how are the issue and reality of authority altered in a religious tradition, such as Christianity, that claims to subvert the bald exercise of power by leaders?

Volume 1 of Sources of Authority examined these questions historically, concentrating on the early church. Now, ranging across the confessional traditions, this second volume turns to contemporary churches themselves and asks theologians to reflect critically on and elaborate those most authoritative aspects of their own ecclesial traditions that, in the end, bind believers together.

Tamara Grdzelidze is programme executive for the Faith and Order Commission, World Council of Churches. A theologian and historian, her work centers on Orthodox theology and spirituality, Georgian Orthodox Church history, and interconfessional dialogue.