In order to properly understand the nature of correct eclessiology, it is necessary to set a firm foundation in scripture. While I realize that the members of this forum will doubtless disagree with my position, I still wish to share what I found out as I studied this issue in examining the ancient apostolic Faith and eventually converting to that Faith.
[color:"0000FF"]Hebrews 8:5 Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount.[/color]
Note that God does not here merely say to Moses "Well, it would be nice if you made things this way." No, indeed. He [color:"FF0000"]admonished[/color] Moses. This word carries the weight of God's serious instruction -- not to be ignored.
And why is this? We see in the beginning of the verse that the worship which Moses was to set out was to be "an example and shadow of heavenly things".
I remember hearing taught as a Protestant that the location in the desert where the Jews were encamped was "down on a plain" where all the neighboring pagan tribes could see what they were doing. God was, in effect, setting up a witness to the nations around the Jews, showing them what the true worship of Heaven was. No wonder Moses was admonished!
An important principle of God's dealing with mankind is that of covenant. The word "covenant" appears over 280 times in the scriptures. As the Bible is studied, God is seen to deal with man by means of covenant relationship. Therefore, it is important to know not only what a covenant is, but how it works.
Again, we have clues in scripture:
[color:"0000FF"]Ezekiel 16:8 Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time of love; and I spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness: yea, I sware unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord GOD, and thou becamest mine.[/color]
When Adam was created, God created a son. Using the concept that earthly realities are shadows of heavenly truths, the purpose in creation seems to be that God was creating a communio personarum (communion of persons) which was a picture of the union of love (communio personarum) of the Blessed Trinity.
And what was this intent of this creation? It was that Adam, as the son of God, would mature into full kingship and rule over the Creation which God had created. To this end, he was given a helpmeet. And from their union came forth life -- the children of their union.
Notice that this family is in the form of a triad. All covenantal unions in scripture appear to have this triadic form. For instance, king, queen, subjects. High priest, nation of Israel, believers. Holy Father, Mother Church, believers.
Why is it important that there be only one head over the Church on earth? Because as believers, we are still showing the world the structure and worship of Heaven. In Heaven, we have the family of believers who have by faith been redeemed and are part of the eternal family.
Jesus is the Last Adam (1 Corin. 15). He is the One Who is fully man, and as a resurrected man, is the King of all creation that Adam could have been had he not sinned. God's plan is not derailed by the Fall. The earthly plan is regenerated, the human race has a new covenantal head, and the family is restored to its original plan. Now we have in Heaven that covenantal family: Jesus the Covenantal Head, the covenantal helpmeet, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the offspring, the believers in Heaven.
This is why there can only be one leader of the Church on earth. The Church is the shadow and type of the heavenly reality - a reality in which there is only ONE divine Head, the Lord Jesus Christ. The Church as the shadow of the heavenly must have the same triadic covenantal structure -- covenantal head, helpmeet, offspring. The Holy Father is the covenantal head of the entire church -- the Church is the helpmeet to him in bringing to life believers and nourishing them to grow.
The same form exists in the local parish priest, the parish, and the believers in the parish.
I know you will accuse me of stretching things: so be it. But when I saw that Jesus, the man, is called the Last Adam, I couldn't help but make a connection between Adam and Jesus and ask how this worked itself out in a covenantal format. Once I understood that covenant is seen as union between two, by which their love produces a third, it all fell into place.
I'm sorry this is so short. I'm pressed for time at the holiday season. But I'm sure this will get a lively discussion started, since we do not see eye to eye on the covenant and how it works.
