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The Claims of Rome and Eastern Orthodoxy  /  Apostolic Succession – Part 2  /  Discussion Questions
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Question 2
When Bercot re-reads Ignatius and finds repeated commands to obey the bishop but “absolutely nothing” about ordinations, sacramental priesthood, or who can consecrate communion, what picture of early church authority and unity emerges—and how does that challenge the way modern Christians instinctively connect authority to sacramental power?
Another way to ask: If Ignatius keeps saying “obey the bishop” but doesn’t talk about ordination, priesthood, or who can serve communion, what does that suggest about early church authority and unity? How does that challenge the idea that authority mainly comes from control over the sacraments?

Direct Answer The transcript presents Ignatius’s picture of authority as practical, local church order centered on unity and obedience to the bishop, without tying that authority to sacramental “priestly power.” That challenges the modern instinct to assume that if a bishop is emphasized, he must be a sacramental gatekeeper whose ordination lineage makes communion “valid.”

Support from Transcript:

  • Bercot notes Ignatius writes “a lot about bishops” and says “be obedient to your bishop… Don’t do anything without your bishop.”
  • Yet he stresses Ignatius says “absolutely nothing” about “ordinations, apostolic succession,” or “that a bishop has to be the one to consecrate communion or somebody ordained by him.”
  • Ignatius emphasizes not celebrating communion “without their bishop, or at least without his approval,” which implies oversight/permission rather than a sacramental mechanism.
  • Bercot concludes: “There’s no sense of a priestly office in Ignatius’ writings.”
  • He admits he once “read apostolic succession into everything” Ignatius said, but later realized that was reading in later doctrine.
Discussion Follow-ups What does it look like to honor church oversight without assuming leaders have an automatic priestly status? How might “approval” or accountability differ from sacramental exclusivity?

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