What is Apostolic Christianity?
For the vast majority of Christians throughout history, the Nicene Creed has operated as the standard for what is and isn’t “authentic” Christianity. The words of the Creed break down the early Church’s beliefs about the nature of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, as well as a number of other topics. Near the end, the Creed includes the line “I believe in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church”. Of course, the first thing to note is that the “catholic” in this context does not mean Roman Catholic, which is why Methodists, Lutherans, Anglicans, Orthodox, and many more denominations which deny the Roman Church’s authority can still affirm the Nicene Creed without hypocrisy. But the term I’m interested in today is “apostolic”.
What does it mean for a church to be apostolic? This has been a debate throughout certain strands of Christianity since the beginning, and perhaps the most resounding answer has related to a concept called “Apostolic Succession” - the idea that the original apostles were not just close disciples of Christ, but were also holders of an office which needed to be passed down in the event of their deaths. The first evidence of such a belief actually comes to us from the Acts of the Apostles. In the first chapter, we are told that the disciples and “all those who believed” returned to Jerusalem and gathered in constant prayer. Eventually, Peter rose and spoke to the crowd, quoting scripture which he felt referenced Judas Iscariot, the former apostles who betrayed Jesus and then killed himself, and saying that another needed to “take his place of leadership.” The apostles then nominated two men and cast lots, eventually raising Matthias to the rank of apostle.
This story gives us a glimpse into the earliest days of the church and purports to showcase a belief present from the very beginning that the apostles were the leadership following Christ’s ascension into heaven, and that the position they held was a transferable office which needed to be handed down after their deaths.
As the apostles went out and preached their message and founded church bodies, they would act as the overseers and pastors to these groups. However, as the church grew, the apostles began to place new people in charge of their regional churches - presbyters (the Greek world from which we would eventually get the English word “priest”). The apostles continued to act as the overseers of the presbyters, their roles likely being very similar to that of Paul, who is obviously well known for writing instructive letters to the various churches he had founded. But still, the Church grew. Eventually, there were simply too many regional church bodies for the original apostles (even including Paul) to oversee directly, and, as the apostles died out and the earliest generations of Christians who had actually walked alongside Christ began to pass from the Earth, there came a need for a new pastoral office - a presbyter to presbyters - the office of episkopos.
These episkopos, who would eventually become known as bishops, and from whom we have derived the word “episcopal” which means “rule by bishops”, would become the successors to the apostles. They would hold and carry out the office and responsibilities of Christ’s closest disciples, and they would shepherd the Church through the centuries. Beneath them, presbyters - priests - would act with their authority, carrying out the sacraments in the name of their bishops who, themselves, carried out the sacraments in the name of Christ.
In the United States, we have a specific church which labels itself “The Episcopal Church”, but there are actually many episcopal churches. The Catholic and Orthodox Churches, as well as some Methodist and Lutheran denominations, also adhere to rule by bishops and so can be rightly called “episcopal” with a lowercase “e”. Each of these churches to some degree or another hold that the presence of bishops as successors to the apostles ties them to the original disciples and therefore to Christ himself. And each of these churches see, to some degree or another, this line of succession as the “apostolic” marker of the Church mentioned in the Nicene Creed. However, it should be noted that Lutherans also hold that the “apostolic” character in question has to do with more with the teachings of the Church rather than the structure. As long as the teachings remain in line with the original apostles, then the Church remains “apostolic”.
I’m not sure which side of the debate I fall on. I do believe in bishops and the historic episcopate as useful tools of unity amongst Christians, but I also believe that the teachings are likely more important than anything else, despite also agreeing that they should be subject to debate and change over time. Maybe it doesn’t matter than much. Perhaps, like with many other points of theological debate, this is more a problem for theologians with too much time on their hands and less a concern for the average day-to-day believer. Perhaps it’s enough to say the words with a sense of hope and wonder without knowing exactly what they need to mean.
