The word "Apostle", from the Greek apostello "to send forth", "to dispatch", has etymologically a very general sense. Apostolos (Apostle) means one who is sent forth, dispatched--in other words, who is entrusted with a mission, rather, a foreign mission. The first followers of Jesus were called the apostles, there were twelve of them.
- Simon, who is called Peter
- Andrew, his brother
- James, son of Zebedee
- John, His brother
- Philip
- Bartholomew
- Thomas
- Matthew, the Tax Collector
- James, son of Alphaeus
- Thaddeus
- Simon the Zealot
- Judas Iscariot
Their mission was to go forth and spread the word of God through the Teachings of Jesus.Despite Jesus only briefly requesting that they join him, they are all described as immediately consenting, and abandoning their nets to do so. Traditionally the immediacy of their consent was viewed as an example of divine power, although this statement isn't made in the text itself.
Apostolic Succession
The role of apostolic succession in preserving true doctrine is illustrated in the Bible. To make sure that the apostles’ teachings would be passed down after the deaths of the apostles, Paul told Timothy, "[W]hat you have heard from me before many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also" (2 Tim. 2:2). In this passage he refers to the first three generations of apostolic succession—his own generation, Timothy’s generation, and the generation Timothy will teach.
Thus all the bishops that currently Teach the word of God through the Church can trace their positions all the way back to the Twelve Apostles.
No comments:
Post a Comment