Ecclesiology

Father Hardon’s writings on ecclesiology explore the mystery and mission of the Catholic Church founded by Christ. These articles examine Church authority, unity, apostolic succession, the Mystical Body of Christ, and the role of the Church in salvation history.

Communion of Saints: St. Robert Bellarmine on the Mystical Body of Christ

By Father John A. Hardon, S.J. Shortly after his defection from Rome, Johann Döllinger bitterly reproached the First Vatican Council with “doing nothing but defining the private opinions of a single man—Cardinal Robert Bellarmine.” The accusation is false but suggestive, because it leads us to investigate the teaching of St. Robert on the organization of […]

Councils of the Church

By Father John A. Hardon, S.J. Councils of the Church are authorized gatherings of bishops for the purpose of discussing ecclesiastical problems and passing decrees on them. In Roman Catholic terminology, if all the bishops are called to participate, thus actually representing the Christian world, the assembly is called general, or ecumenical, which means universal; […]