A Question of Pentecost

Last week, Orthodox apologist Jay Dyer debated Roman Catholic apologist Timothy Gordon, with Dyer emerging as the clear victor according to over 75% of the audience in a post-debate poll. As a former Roman Catholic who converted to Orthodox Christianity, I have a personal connection to this discussion, having edited Gordon’s book The Case for Patriarchy during my time as a Catholic. While Gordon is a sharp and capable defender of the Catholic position, I believe the Roman Catholic stance on papal authority is fundamentally indefensible. This essay explores the core issue of the debate—the contrasting views of authority in the Orthodox and Catholic traditions—and argues that the Orthodox perspective, rooted in the guidance of the Holy Spirit, offers a more coherent and spiritually grounded approach.

A few days later, Fr. Peter Heers of Orthodox Ethos and Rdr. Paul Trinca, another prominent Orthodox apologist, hosted a recap of the debate. They focused on Gordon’s claims about the papacy, particularly the Catholic reliance on a centralized, legalistic authority. Fr. Peter offered a profound insight that resonates deeply with my own experience as a convert: the debate is not merely about history, theology, or ecclesiology but is fundamentally a spiritual matter.

Fr. Peter argued that the Catholic emphasis on the papacy reflects a deeper issue of spiritual insecurity:

There needs to be a deeper analysis of their understanding of authority itself, and their reliance on a legalistic external “security.” To me, I always think this actually points to a greater amount of insecurity. They’re looking for that in the person or the institution of the papacy. And this is one of the biggest stumbling-blocks for contemporary Roman Catholics to becoming Orthodox. They have this sense of security – even in spite of the many, many witnesses against it. But it’s been driven home that it is divinely inspired, divinely instituted, it is the Rock etc., etc... To abandon that, and to go to a place where the security is not so obviously manifested in one person or one institution or one local church – it's a challenge for people! But it points to a deeper problem, I think. That is often where my mind goes to. This isn't a question of epistemology. It's ultimately a question of Pentecost.>>

This perspective echoes the teachings of Fr. Seraphim Rose, who addressed the same issue in his book God’s Revelation to the Human Heart:

There are some who look at our Orthodox Church and say, “It’s impossible for people to find truth there. You say you don’t believe in any one pope or bishop, and thus there is no guarantee; you don’t believe in the Scriptures like a Protestant might and say that they are the absolutely ‘infallible’ word. If you have a controversy, where is the final word?” And we say that the Holy Spirit will reveal Himself. This happens especially when bishops come together in council, but even then there can be a false council. One might then say, “There’s no hope!” But we say that the Holy Spirit guides the Church, and therefore He will not be false to the Church. If you haven’t got the feeling that this is so, then you devise things like making the Bible infallible, making the Pope infallible… Orthodoxy always emphasizes this spiritual aspect of the relationship of one’s own soul to God; and all the sacraments and discipline of the Church are only a means of getting one’s soul right with God: this is the whole of our Faith.

Both Fr. Peter and Fr. Seraphim highlight a critical distinction: Orthodoxy trusts in the Holy Spirit’s invisible yet unmistakable guidance of the whole Church, the Body of Christ. Roman Catholics, meanwhile, seek a tangible, centralized authority in the papacy.

Put it this way. Our Lord said to the Apostles: “When the Spirit of truth has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come” (John 16:13). Catholics and Orthodox would agree on this point, of course. The passage appears in both of our Bibles!

At the same time, Roman Catholics insist that the Holy Spirit must act through a single, infallible head. If you ask them why, they'll give you a confused look. "What if the bishops can't agree with each other?" they'll ask. "Who's going to break the tie?"

The Orthodox would simply ask why the Holy Spirit can't lead ALL of the bishops (whether individually or in council), as He did at Pentecost?

Those who insist that the Church must be led by a single, "infallible" human do not demonstrate a lively faith in the Holy Spirit. What's more likely (from the Orthodox perspective) is that they have lost the guidance of the Holy Spirit and therefore must force a consensus through political means.

Indeed, it's interesting how many Catholic apologists will defend the papacy by saying things like, "Every human institution needs a leader." To the Orthodox, this is like nails on a chalkboard. First of all, the Church is not a human institution. It's the Body of Christ. Secondly, it has a leader, and that's the Third Person of the Trinity.

The First Vatican Council refers to the pope as the "true vicar of Christ, head of the whole church and father and teacher of all Christian people." And yet St. Paul teaches that “Christ is head of the church” (Ephesians 5:23). As St. Justin Popovich said, the Catholic Church has deposed Christ the God-Man in favor of the Pope, the man-god.

The Orthodox system is often criticized as “anarchic” due to its lack of a centralized authority. However, this perceived weakness is its strength. Our ecclesiology requires a deep trust in Divine Providence, particularly the promise of Pentecost. This trust can be challenging for those accustomed to the apparent certainty of the Catholic system, where disputes are theoretically resolved by papal decree. Yet, as Fr. Peter notes, this reliance on external authority often masks a deeper spiritual insecurity—a lack of faith in the Holy Spirit’s ability to guide the Church without a single, infallible figure.

Even on a practical level, Catholic claim to unity through papal supremacy is undermined by the reality of division within the Roman Church. Despite the centralized authority of the papacy, the Catholic Church is marked by significant internal conflicts: conservatives versus liberals, Modernists versus Traditionalists, and varying interpretations of papal and conciliar authority. There is no consensus on what constitutes an “infallible” papal teaching or even what qualifies as an Ecumenical Council. This disunity stands in stark contrast to the Orthodox Church, which, despite its lack of a supreme pontiff, maintains a remarkable degree of unity in faith and practice through the shared guidance of the Holy Spirit.

Why do our Catholic friends not understand this truth, when it's taught so clearly in the Bible? The Bible itself explains that, while all men can read the Word of God, not everyone can understand it. That's why it says that Jesus "opened their understanding [nous], that they might comprehend the Scriptures" (Luke 24:45). It may be that our Catholic friends—clever as they are—simply suffer from a spiritual or noetic "block." In that case, all we can do is pray for them.

Whatever the case may be, we should thank God that we belong to the Orthodox Faith, which continues to be led by the Holy Spirit and to recognize Christ as her Head.

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