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AUTHORITY and CHARISMA in the BIBLE Rev BIBLICAL STUDIES JOURNAL (BSJ) http://www.biblicalstudies.in/ BSJ.2019; 1(1):01–12 Research article 2582-0214 AUTHORITY AND CHARISMA IN THE BIBLE Rev. Fr. Prof. Ferdinand Nwaigbo Catholic Institute of West Africa, Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Email: [email protected] A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T Article history: The first frame of the discussion is concerned with the innate Received 14 April 2019 Accepted 09 May 2019 authority and charism of God, as God is God‟s self. Authority and Available online: 12 May‟19 charism constituted who and what God is, God is all powerful (potestas) and God is full of goodness (charisma). This is called constituted and immanent authority and charism of God, as they exist in eternity and Keywords: transcend time. The second aspect discusses the authority and charism of Authority, Charism, economic Trinity, in creation, in redemption and in sanctification, as Economic Trinity, Church God relates to the human family in history, time and place. This is called the extension of economic authority and charism of God, in temporality and historicity. While the third dimension deals with the transfer and delegation of this authority and charism to the human family and their praxis and problems in the Church and in the world and their obligations within the human society. In praxis, the twin concepts authority and charism relate to the service and mission of empowering human potentialities and improving of human conditions on the socio-economic, political and cultural levels. Author(s) retain the copyright of this article ©2019 Publishedby VEDA Publications This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creative commons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/) 1 Rev. Fr. Prof. Ferdinand Nwaigbo BIBLICAL STUDIES JOURNAL (BSJ) http://www.biblicalstudies.in/ BSJ.2019; 1(1):01–12 THE QUESTIONS OF THE FUNDAMENTAL The Church, the semper reformanda, is not THEOLOGY always living at that oneness of the Trinity. The question of the fundamental In the Church, there exist many traces of theology at issue in this study is to determine conflicts between authority and charism and the relationship which exists between they re-echo from time to time in the history authority and charism through the of the Church, and they change from place to relationship which exists between the Father, place all over the world. The Church has Son and the Holy Spirit, in the MissioDei -in been divided between the Church of the mission of God - and in the mission of authority and the Church of charism.Who the Church which is ultimately the Missio among us has not sighed upon seeing the Dei itself. conflict between authority and charism in the Church, the conflict between the institution Authority is subject to a complex Church and the charisms of individuals or interplay with charism. Authority and groups? Does the exercise of authority and charism express the most organic dimension the gift of charism divide the Church? of God‟s nature: on the one hand, God is all Today, they are negative tendencies towards powerful, God is almighty and omnipotence, authority and charism in the Church and the and on the other hand, God is a gratuitous specific parental authorities in the human God, the Giver of every good gift (charis). family are gradually waning away by the Authority and charism are fundamental to corrosive force of disobedience. If we are God‟s uniquely divine nature and to the one and the Spirit of Christ unites us into one common ousia (substance) that are shared by Body in Christ, the Church: why are we not the Father, Son and Spirit: might, power, working and walking like a human body and majesty, equality, honour, which are in why are we lacking in solidarity with one concord with goodness, mercy, graciousness another? Why are the Christian and civic and gratuitousness that identified the God, leaders, the members of this Body, lacking in the Father, God the Son and God the Holy their obligations to service of humanity? Spirit. Why are they not using their positions of The unity within the Trinitarian authority and God-given charisma to serve community forms the unity between humanity? authority and charism. The inseparability of AUTHORITY AND CHARISMA IN THE the divine nature of the Trinity leads to the CONTEXT OF DIVINE REVELATION inseparability of authority and charism, in the divine work of creation, redemption and Authority (potestas) is a power or sanctification.In the order of creation, right to command action, obedience or redemption and sanctification, authority and compliance. In its very nature, authority is charism belong to the one divine/human and good. From the side of God as Creator, the undivided family of God, the Church. authority that emerges into a faith Authority and charism are united in the community is beyond human control or Father, Son and Holy Spirit and they are judgment and which human beings may and lived in the Church. 2 Rev. Fr. Prof. Ferdinand Nwaigbo BIBLICAL STUDIES JOURNAL (BSJ) http://www.biblicalstudies.in/ BSJ.2019; 1(1):01–12 must accept as the self-goodness of God “now the salvation and the power, and the (charis). Kingdom of Our God and authority of his God is freely good and gracious. As Christ have come” (Rev 11:12). Aquinas says, “God is not good because he In the order of redemption, teaching causes good” (that is also held by neo- is one of those gifts (charismata) of the Holy Platonism), “but rather goodness flows from Spirit that unites authority and charism the nature of God, because he is good. In the together in Jesus Christ, “Jesus taught the words of Augustine…because he is good we people as one who has authority”(Mark 1:21 exist” (Aquinas, Summa Theologiae, 1, q. 13 – 28). Authority and charism combine a. 2). i There is a goodness and grace (charis) together to form the single ministry of Jesus. in every authority, because every authority Jesus is the Embodiment of Authority and comes from God who is goodness in Charism. As we see in the Gospels, Mark in Himself. particular tells us that Jesus teaches the In this grand interplay of factors, people with great power and authority (Mark there is the peculiar role of God, in relation 1:27). Jesus‟ teaching brought a new world to authority and charism. God did not leave order and Jesus sees Himself as the herald of creation behind in order to attain something the new world. The old world order created a higher. In creation, God confirmed society, where people have to live on the redemption and sanctification. edge of the knife. In the old world order, a political culture will always use authority In the context of creation, only God, and power in totalitarian manner in order to the Almighty possesses the fullness of achieve its purpose. authority, we creatures of God share in God‟s authority, in various limited degrees, In the context of sanctification, the for instance the authority of God that the Holy Spirit sustains this authority parents are exercising towards their children, continuously in a complete manner, by the authority of the state towards the citizens equipping and directing the hierarchical and and the authority of leaders of the Church charismatic gifts of the Church and adorning towards the believers. the Church with spiritual gifts of nature and grace. Authority in Church of Christ is not In the context of Redemption, God‟s separated from the Spirit of Christ, but as the authority is transferred to Jesus Christ. Jesus important paragraph of Lumen Gentium five is the first born of creation and Redeemer of affirms, “by the power of the Gospel, the the world. In the context of Redemption and Spirit makes the Church keep the freshness Salvation of the human family, power and of youth. Uninterruptedly, the Spirit renews authority in a faith community are the Church and leads the Church into perfect transmitted through Jesus Christ, who is the union with her Spouse. The Spirit and the embodiment of all powers and authority, in Bride both say to Jesus the Lord, ”Come.” the universe. (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 5). In the apocalyptic reading, we come In the context of Christian tradition, across the centre point of Jesus‟ authority: the source of authority in a local Church is 3 Rev. Fr. Prof. Ferdinand Nwaigbo BIBLICAL STUDIES JOURNAL (BSJ) http://www.biblicalstudies.in/ BSJ.2019; 1(1):01–12 Jesus Christ, Himself: “Jesus who exists in an authority or a source of authority – the history as a fully human being, Jesus who is normanormans and principium theologiae. also at the same time and in the same In the Christian theology, the Scripture is appearance” (Lennan, 1997, 17). iithe Self- very decisive and plays an irreplaceable role Communication of the invisible God. In the in matters of theological discourse. It is a arena of creation, power and authority in a unique centre where God reveals himself to faith community, like all other powers and his people. The Holy Spirit reveals the authority in our global community is built on mystery of the Scripture to finite beings, who the power and authority of God, who is the understand, accept and believe in the Creator of heaven and earth, the universe. spiritual and religious truths through faith (1 God is the primary source of authority, in the Cor 2: 10-23). Authentic faith offers finite sense that He created everything that has life. beings a criteria on the reality based on the He created human beings and gave them the authority and veracity of God and God‟s human faculties to direct the community for revelation, over and above any human ability the common good.
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