Church Tracing Roots

greenspun.com : LUSENET : Catholic : One Thread

I was wondering if someone could explain to me how our church can trace it's roots from our bishops today all the way back to Christ's apostles? I know our church makes that claim but I have never heard it explained before. Do we have records or something and are thee any books written about this?

-- Robert (Noemail@nts.com), April 23, 2004

Answers

Send this thread to the “New Answers” section of the forum to invite further discussion by posting this comment.

-- The Bumper! (Bump@bumpitybump.bump), April 23, 2004.

Robert,

Good question. We have a line of 264 popes from Peter to John Paul II, and you can find it on a good Catholic site (catholic.com among others). Eusebius' "History of the Church", written in 300-330 AD also shows the early Bishops and the Bishops of Rome. And, once again, the early Fathers will demonstrate the importance and unbroken nature of Catholic Apostolic succession.

-- Andrew Staupe (stau0085@umn.edu), April 23, 2004.


Robert,

Sorry this is a long email, but here is what you wanted; all Bishops come from the Popes and can be traced back from each one:

Apostolic Succession

* St. Peter (32-67), Matthew 16:18 * St. Linus (67-76), 2Timothy 4:21 * St. Anacletus (Cletus) (76-88) * St. Clement I (88-97), Philippians 4:3 * St. Evaristus (97-105) * St. Alexander I (105-115) * St. Sixtus I (115-125) * St. Telesphorus (125-136) * St. Hyginus (136-140) * St. Pius I (140-155) --------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- * St. Anicetus (155-166) * St. Soter (166-175) * St. Eleutherius (175-189) * St. Victor I (189-199) * St. Zephyrinus (199-217) * St. Callistus I (217-22) * St. Urban I (222-30) * St. Pontain (230-35) * St. Anterus (235-36) * St. Fabian (236-50)

--------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- * St. Cornelius (251-53) * St. Lucius I (253-54) * St. Stephen I (254-257) * St. Sixtus II (257-258) * St. Dionysius (260-268) * St. Felix I (269-274) * St. Eutychian (275-283) * St. Caius (283-296) * St. Marcellinus (296-304) * St. Marcellus I (308-309)

--------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- * St. Eusebius (April-August 309 or 310) * St. Miltiades (311-14) * St. Sylvester I (314-35) * St. Marcus (January-October 336) * St. Julius I (337-52) * Liberius (352-66) * St. Damasus I (366-83) * St. Siricius (384-99) * St. Anastasius I (399-401) * St. Innocent I (401-17)

--------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- * St. Zosimus (417-18) * St. Boniface I (418-22) * St. Celestine I (422-32) * St. Sixtus III (432-40) * St. Leo I (the Great) (440-61) * St. Hilarius (461-68) * St. Simplicius (468-83) * St. Felix III (II) (483-92) * St. Gelasius I (492-96) * Anastasius II (496-98) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* St. Symmachus (498-514) * St. Hormisdas (514-23) * St. John I (523-26) * St. Felix IV (III) (526-30) * Boniface II (530-32) * John II (533-35) * St. Agapetus I (535-36) * St. Silverius (536-37) * Vigilius (537-55) * Pelagius I (556-61)

--------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------- * John III (561-74) * Benedict I (575-79) * Pelagius II (579-90) * St. Gregory I (the Great) (590-604) * Sabinian (604-606) * Boniface III (February-November 607) * St. Boniface IV (608-15) * St. Deusdedit (Adeodatus I) (615-18) * Boniface V (619-25) * Honorius I (625-38) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* Severinus (May-August 640) * John IV (640-42) * Theodore I (642-49) * St. Martin I (649-55) * St. Eugene I (655-57) * St. Vitalian (657-72) * Adeodatus (II) (672-76) * Donus (676-78) * St. Agatho (678-81) * St. Leo II (682-83) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* St. Benedict II (684-85) * John V (685-86) * Conon (686-87) * St. Sergius I (687-701) * John VI (701-05) * John VII (705-07) * Sisinnius (January-February 708) * Constantine (708-15) * St. Gregory II (715-31) * St. Gregory III (731-41) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* St. Zachary (741-52) * Stephen II (March 752) * Stephen III (752-57) * St. Paul I (757-67) * Stephen IV (767-72) * Adrian I (772-95) * St. Leo III (795-816) * Stephen V (816-17) * St. Paschal I (817-24) * Eugene II (824-27) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* Valentine (August-September 827) * Gregory IV (827-44) * Sergius II (844-47) * St. Leo IV (847-55) * Benedict III (855-58) * St. Nicholas I (the Great) (858-67) * Adrian II (867-72) * John VIII (872-82) * Marinus I (882-84) * St. Adrian III (884-85) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* Stephen VI (885-91) * Formosus (891-96) * Boniface VI (April 896) * Stephen VII (896-97) * Romanus (August-November 897) * Theodore II (November-December 897) * John IX (898-900) * Benedict IV (900-03) * Leo V (July-December 903) * Sergius III (904-11) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* Anastasius III (911-13) * Lando (913-14) * John X (914-28) * Leo VI (May-December 928) * Stephen VIII (929-31) * John XI (931-35) * Leo VII (936-39) * Stephen IX (939-42) * Marinus II (942-46) * Agapetus II (946-55) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* John XII (955-63) * Leo VIII (963-64) * Benedict V (May-June 964) * John XIII (965-72) * Benedict VI (973-74) * Benedict VII (974-83) * John XIV (983-84) * John XV (985-96) * Gregory V (996-99) * Sylvester II (999-1003) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* John XVII (June-December 1003) * John XVIII (1003-09) * Sergius IV (1009-12) * Benedict VIII (1012-24) * John XIX (1024-32) * Benedict IX (1032-45) * Sylvester III (January-March 1045) * Benedict IX (April-May 1045) * Gregory VI (1045-46) * Clement II (1046-47) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* Benedict IX (1047-48) * Damasus II (July-August 1048) * St. Leo IX (1049-54) * Victor II (1055-57) * Stephen X (1057-58) * Nicholas II (1058-61) * Alexander II (1061-73) * St. Gregory VII (1073-85) * Blessed Victor III (1086-87) * Blessed Urban II (1088-99) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* Paschal II (1099-1118) * Gelasius II (1118-19) * Callistus II (1119-24) * Honorius II (1124-30) * Innocent II (1130-43) * Celestine II (1143-44) * Lucius II (1144-45) * Blessed Eugene III (1145-53) * Anastasius IV (1153-54) * Adrian IV (1154-59) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* Alexander III (1159-81) * Lucius III (1181-85) * Urban III (1185-87) * Gregory VIII (1187) * Clement III (1187-91) * Celestine III (1191-98) * Innocent III (1198-1216) * Honorius III (1216-27) * Gregory IX (1227-41) * Celestine IV (October-November 1241) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* Innocent IV (1243-54) * Alexander IV (1254-61) * Urban IV (1261-64) * Clement IV (1265-68) * Blessed Gregory X (1271-76) * Blessed Innocent V (January-June 1276) * Adrian V (July-August 1276) * John XXI (1276-77) * Nicholas III (1277-80) * Martin IV (1281-85) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* Honorius IV (1285-87) * Nicholas IV (1288-92) * St. Celestine V (July-December 1294) * Boniface VIII (1294-1303) * Blessed Benedict XI (1303-04) * Clement V (1305-14) * John XXII (1316-34) * Benedict XII (1334-42) * Clement VI (1342-52) * Innocent VI (1352-62) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* Blessed Urban V (1362-70) * Gregory XI (1370-78) * Urban VI (1378-89) * Boniface IX (1389-1404) * Innocent VII (1406-06) * Gregory XII (1406-15) * Martin V (1417-31) * Eugene IV (1431-47) * Nicholas V (1447-55) * Callistus III (1445-58) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* Pius II (1458-64) * Paul II (1464-71) * Sixtus IV (1471-84) * Innocent VIII (1484-92) * Alexander VI (1492-1503) * Pius III (September-October 1503) * Julius II (1503-13) * Leo X (1513-21) * Adrian VI (1522-23) * Clement VII (1523-34) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* Paul III (1534-49) * Julius III (1550-55) * Marcellus II (April 1555) * Paul IV (1555-59) * Pius IV (1559-65) * St. Pius V (1566-72) * Gregory XIII (1572-85) * Sixtus V (1585-90) * Urban VII (September 1590) * Gregory XIV (1590-91) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* Innocent IX (October-November 1591) * Clement VIII (1592-1605) * Leo XI (April 1605) * Paul V (1605-21) * Gregory XV (1621-23) * Urban VIII (1623-44) * Innocent X (1644-55) * Alexander VII (1655-67) * Clement IX (1667-69) * Clement X (1670-76) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* Blessed Innocent XI (1676-89) * Alexander VIII (1689-91) * Innocent XII (1691-1700) * Clement XI (1700-21) * Innocent XIII (1721-24) * Benedict XIII (1724-30) * Clement XII (1730-40) * Benedict XIV (1740-58) * Clement XIII (1758-69) * Clement XIV (1769-74) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* Pius VI (1775-99) * Pius VII (1800-23) * Leo XII (1823-29) * Pius VIII (1829-30) * Gregory XVI (1831-46) * Bl. Pius IX (1846-78) * Leo XIII (1878-1903) * St. Pius X (1903-14) * Benedict XV (1914-22) * Pius XI (1922-39) --------------------------------------------------------------------- -----------

* Pius XII (1939-58) * Bl. John XXIII (1958-63) * Paul VI (1963-78) * John Paul I (August-September 1978) * John Paul II (1978-)

-- Andrew Staupe (stau0085@umn.edu), April 23, 2004.


When my Arch-Bishop was ordained a preist, his bishop actually prepared for him a list that went, "you are ordained by me, I was ordained by so-and-so, who was ordained by . . ." It went back centuries. I've never seen it, but I must imagine what a great strength that must have given to him in his preisthood.

Dano

-- Dan Garon (boethius61@yahoo.com), April 23, 2004.


oh I know what strength they must have, because I as a Catholic get great strength reading the early writings of our Fathers, and see the Apostolic Succession right back to the Apostles. Its comfort and confidence no other Church can quite possess.

-- Andrew Staupe (stau0085@umn.edu), April 23, 2004.


Moderation questions? read the FAQ