It is believed, by Episcopalians, that the Savior, when upon earth, established a Church, or Society, of which He was the Ruler and Head, and with which He promised to be, till the end of the world. They believe, that, during the forty days in which He remained upon earth, after His resurrection, “speaking” to His disciples “of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God,” He gave them such directions for the government and management of this Society, or Church, as were necessary; which directions, they implicitly followed: and that, from their subsequent practice, these directions of the Savior, whatever they may have been, are to be ascertained.
“That it was the design of our blessed Redeemer to continue a ministry in the Church, after His ascension, is a truth, for which we ask no better proof, than that furnished by the narratives of the Evangelists, and the practice of the Apostles. If, then, a ministry, divinely authorized, was to exist, it is equally evident, that it would assume some definite form. It would consist, either of a single grade of office, in which every person ordained would have an equal share in its functions and prerogatives; or, of two, three, or more grades, distinguished from each other by degrees of authority and peculiarities of duty.” There must, also, exist, somewhere, the power of transmitting the ministry, by ordination. Among those, who suppose there is but one grade of office, this power is lodged in every minister. By Episcopalians, the power is confined to the highest order of the [pg 027] ministry,—the Bishops. It is evident, that the Savior could not have established both these different modes; and therefore both cannot possibly be correct. “To suppose, that He, who is the Fountain of all wisdom, could have been the Author of such inevitable disorder,—a kind of disorder which must ever keep the axe at the root of that unity for which He prayed,—is not only an absurdity, but an opinion equally repudiated by all parties.” “It is manifest,” therefore, “that whatever may prove itself to be the form of ministry, established and authorized by Jesus Christ, every other must be altogether void of such authority, and based simply on human appointment.”
That this Church, or Society, might endure, it must be provided with a well-arranged organization, or form of government, and consist of officers and members. No society can exist, without this; and the powers and duties of the officers should be well defined, and so adjusted, as to promote, in the best manner, the permanent good of the society. That this Society might endure forever, some provision must be made for the renewal of its officers, so that, when any were taken away, by death, their places might be supplied with suitable successors. That the Savior made all necessary provision for these purposes, there can be no doubt; and that the organization which He directed His Apostles to establish, was Episcopal, is easily susceptible of proof.
Throughout the Bible, different orders in the ministry are recognized or referred to. Under the Jewish dispensation, (which, be it remembered, was established by God Himself,) there were the three orders of High Priest, Priests, and Levites. When the Savior was upon earth, He was the visible head of the Church,—the “Bishop and Shepherd of our souls,”—and the Apostles and seventy Disciples were the other two orders. After his ascension, the Apostles became the visible heads of the Church, the lower orders being Bishops, (called also Priests or Presbyters, and Elders,) and Deacons. When the Apostles were called hence, their successors did not assume the name or title of Apostle, but took that of [pg 028] Bishop, which thenceforth was applied exclusively to the highest order of the ministry, the other two orders being the Presbyters (Priests or Elders) and Deacons. Thus it has continued to the present day.
It is worthy of remark, that “early writers have been careful to record the ecclesiastical genealogy or succession of the Bishops, in several of the principal Churches. Thus, we have catalogues of the Bishops of Jerusalem, Antioch, Rome, &c.; though it does not appear that the Presbyters and Deacons of those Churches were honored with any similar notice.” In like manner, catalogues of temporal Rulers are preserved, when the names of officers subordinate to them are suffered to pass into oblivion. It is easy to trace back the line of Bishops, by name, from our own day, up to the Apostles themselves.
There is no ancient writer on ecclesiastical matters, who does not speak of the division of the ministry into different and distinct Orders, and of certain individuals as Bishops of particular Churches; or who mentions, as existing at the same time, and in the same Churches, any other persons by the same name of Bishops.
But, it is to be observed, that it is not only necessary that a Church should preserve the true Order in the Ministry, but also that it retain the true faith. For a true faith and true Order are both necessary to constitute a Church. All the heretical sects of the ancient Church had the Apostolic Ministry; but, when they departed from the true faith, they were excluded from the communion of the Church. “The Arians, the Donatists, the Novatians, &c. &c., were all Episcopal in their Ministry, and in this respect differed in nothing from the Orthodox Catholic Church. Their grand error lay in the want of that union of Order and Faith, which are essential to the being of a Church.”
An external commission, conveyed by Episcopal consecration or ordination, is considered necessary to constitute a lawful ministry; and it is therefore declared, by the Church, that “no man shall be accounted or taken to be a lawful [pg 029] Bishop, Priest, or Deacon, in this Church, or suffered to execute any of said functions,” unless he has “had Episcopal consecration or ordination;” and the power of ordaining, or setting apart to the ministry, and of laying on hands upon others, is vested in the Bishops.
The ministry is of Divine appointment, and consists of three orders, only,—Bishop, Priest, and Deacon. The government is of human regulation, and may be modified as circumstances require. Other officers may be appointed, and the manner in which ministers are invested with their jurisdiction may be varied. To use the language of the Episcopal Church in the United States, in the Preface to her Book of Common Prayer, “It is a most invaluable part of that blessed liberty, wherewith Christ hath made us free, that, in His worship, different forms and usages may, without offence, be allowed, provided the substance of the faith be kept entire; and that, in every Church, what cannot be clearly determined to belong to Doctrine, must be referred to Discipline; and therefore, by common consent and authority, may be altered, abridged, enlarged, amended, or otherwise disposed of, as may seem most convenient for the edification of the people, ‘according to the various exigencies of times and occasions.’ ... The particular Forms of Divine Worship, and the Rites and Ceremonies appointed to be used therein, being things in their own nature indifferent and alterable, and so acknowledged, it is but reasonable, that, upon weighty and important considerations, according to the various exigencies of times and occasions, such changes and alterations should be made therein, as to those, who are in places of authority should, from time to time, seem either necessary or expedient.”
In the Church of England, there are Archbishops, Deans, and various other officers and titles of office; but these are of local authority, and do not interfere with the three Divinely-appointed orders. To use the language of Hooker, “I may securely, therefore, conclude, that there are, at this day, in the Church of England, no other than the same degrees of ecclesiastical orders, namely, Bishops, Priests, and Deacons, [pg 030] which had their beginning from Christ and His blessed Apostles themselves. As for Deans, Prebendaries, Parsons, Vicars, Curates, Archdeacons, and such like names, being not found in the Scriptures, we have been thereby, through some men's errors, thought to allow ecclesiastical degrees not known nor ever heard of in the better ages of former times. All these are in truth but titles of office,” admitted “as the state of the Church doth need, degrees of order still remaining the same as they were from the beginning.”