Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!rutgers!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: bfinnert@castor.usc.edu (Brian Finnerty) Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Re: open communion Message-ID: Date: 22 Feb 90 09:20:38 GMT Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Organization: University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA Lines: 23 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu >I suppose that, technically, when the Pope speaks from the Chair, he is >prophesying. Not quite. Roman Catholics believe that the Pope has the charism of infallibility. This means the Pope is protected from teaching heresy when he makes a definitive judgement in the area of faith and morals. But it doesn't mean that the Pope has the gift of prophesy. When the Pope is asked a theological question, he relies upon the same sources as anyone else to find out the answer: scripture and tradition. The Pope has to do his homework like any other Christian. Infallibility doesn't mean he will always come up with an answer. Infallibility means that if he does manage to come up with an answer, and teaches the answer definitively, then the answer will be correct. The Roman Catholic Church teaches that revelation ended with the death of the last apostle. The Church sees itself as the guardian of the faith that has been passed down to it from Christ. The Church grows in its understanding of that faith, but the Church can not add to that faith, and the Church cannot take anything away. Brian Finnerty