The concept and the declaration by the Roman Catholic Church that what the Pope declares concerning faith and morals ex cathera (from the throne) is immune from error. It is a popular misconception that the pope claims to be infallible. He is not; that is not an official Catholic affirmation. He is infallible only when he speaks ex cathedra and in matters of faith, which is rare and exception when an issue is of great and grave significance.
The authority of the bishop or overseer, as the shepherd of the church, has never been defined in Scripture. That perhaps explains where the Church has often been so divisive, and denominations so plentiful, as different voices vie for obedience. It is, therefore, completely understandable why the Roman Church should enact such a tenet. The infallibility of the pope was first declared by Vatican I, based on passages such as Matt 16:18, Lk 22:3 and Jn 21:15, but also on the understanding that infallibility is a charismata. The decision for the declaration of papal infallibility in 1870 was probably not merely a matter of strictly theological interest. The papal state was under siege as the drive for a united Italy was underway, and papal properties all over the Italian peninsula had been taken over and nationalized until only Rome was left to be taken, and that taken later that year (Sept 1870). So, at a time when the papal state was at its nadir the proclamation gave papal dignity a very much needed boost.
Papal authority has always been an issue in the history of the Christian Church. The claim of the Bishop of Rome to speak on behalf of the Christian Church has been challenged since the earliest days when the Roman Church began to assert its influence upon the rest. Thoughout history there were movements, collectively known as the 'conciliar movement,' to require that the pope calls for regular gathering of the learned, wise and godly of the church to consider issues that affect the life of the church, instead of the pope assuming the voice of the church. While the instrument of papal infallible allows the pope this privilege when speaking ex cathedra what goes on before he ascends the steps, when the declaration is being drafted, is hidden behind closed doors of consultation and bargaining.
Protestant churches have, of course, always opposed this tenet of the Catholic Church. For them it is only the Word of God that is infallible.
©ALBERITH
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