The Teaching Ministry of the Church

The Magisterium- the teaching authority of the R.C.C

When the Pope and Magisterium have to consider the needs of the members of the Church too called the Teaching Ministry- the function of the Church and its leaders to help believers live by the message of Jesus and to apply to modern times.

When passing an idea the R.C.C has to pass 2 basic tests:

1-the test of time. 2- the test of how widely accepted it is.

Each Bishop is responsible for a particular area of the Church. He is responsible for the organisation of the parishes, for the ordination of priests and for the final reception into the church of new members in confirmation. He has the power to confirm and ordain.

The Bible was written 2000 years ago and needs to be applied to the modern situation. People need to take eternal truths and try to live according to them. It is hard to be faithful to the principles as there is a great deal of modern pressure- such as advertisement exploiting the idea of sex.

The Creed: Is statements of faith- It is the Bishops responsibility to ensure the faith found in the creeds is kept pure and complete. Creeds do not tell people what to do, it should lead you into certain actions. eg. if a person accepts God as creator, you can respect him by caring for his creation.

The Magisterium presents the word of God to believers. The Bible depends on the Teaching authority of the Church. The Bible and Magisterium cannot be seperated. The teaching authority cannot come up with anything new; it can only apply to eternal truths to new situations eg- test tube babies.

Because of the Churches experience believers can have confidence that the guidance is solid and reliable. The church is unlikely to change it teachings.

The encyclical is a document on modern issues related to the faith.