Introduction to
The Authority of the Church in the World 

A Text of
the Faith and Order Commission of
the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA 

by Dr. Antonios Kireopoulos,
Senior Program Director for Faith & Order and Interfaith Relations
National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA 

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me” (Mt 28:18b, NRSV).

“As you have sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world” (Jn 17:18, NRSV). 

Authority:  a vexing problem for the Church.  On the one hand, Christians believe that the authority possessed by Jesus, as the Son of God, is given through the Holy Spirit to his followers in order that, as the Church, they may witness to God’s will for the world.  On the other hand, we live in a time when all authority is questioned, and when even the notion of a single, objective, and comprehensive authority is challenged.  How, then, does the Church speak with authority? 

In response to the request of participating churches and other sending bodies, from 2000 to 2007 the Faith and Order Commission engaged in a study to answer this question.  The resulting text, “The Authority of the Church in the World,” explores the nature of the Church’s authority, and what an effective exercise of this authority might look like.  I am pleased to be able to present this text.   

This study took into account the perspectives of a wide variety of Christian traditions, and while some differences were noted, much on which the churches agree was found.  Despite historical manifestations of authority in terms of socio-political power and influence, the Church’s authority is genuinely realized when it reflects the holiness, transcendence, and truth of God.  This means that the Church speaks most authoritatively, whether on spiritual or political issues, when justice, reconciliation, salvation are at the heart of its proclamation.  As it states in the text, “The process of discipleship whereby Spirit-filled communities help people to live into the way of Christ; the practical valuation of every person as an embodiment of the image of God; the naming of certain actions and attitudes as ‘sin’ in a way that both unveils their destructiveness and holds out the possibility for redemption; all these are ways in which the churches exercise authority together.”   

This last statement bears upon the nature of the ecumenical task itself, which is to seek Christian unity.  The study noted that any authoritative word spoken by the Church is rendered less credible by the state of division within the Christian community.  “There can be no doubt,” says the text, “but that visible unity among the churches would enable a more credible witness in the world.”   

The importance of this analysis is not to be underestimated.  “At stake is the ability of the Church itself to proclaim, in word and deed, the good news of Jesus Christ in the midst of a fractured society.”  The authority by which the Church seeks to mend that fracture is not reflected in power or force, but is brought forth in the divine message of healing and love.