Skip to main contentAccessibility feedback
Background Image

The Orthodox Have Apostolic Succession

Question:

Do Orthodox bishops and patriarchs have apostolic succession?

Answer:

Yes, the Orthodox Churches are considered to have valid Apostolic Succession.

In spite of a difference in their appreciation of the office of Peter, the Catholic Church, the Orthodox church, and the other churches that have retained the reality of apostolic succession are at one in sharing a basic understanding of the sacramentality of the Church, which developed from the New Testament and through the Fathers, notably through Irenaeus. These churches hold that the sacramental entry into the ministry comes about through the imposition of hands with the invocation of the Holy Spirit, and that this is the indispensable form for the transmission of the apostolic succession, which alone enables the Church to remain constant in its doctrine and communion (Catholic Teaching on Apostolic Succession, International Theological Commission, 1973).

Did you like this content? Please help keep us ad-free
Enjoying this content?  Please support our mission!Donatewww.catholic.com/support-us