Ep. #30 – Understanding Church Authority with Jimmy Akin
Summary
Many Catholics and non-Catholics alike fail to make careful distinctions regarding Church teaching. With many helpful examples, Jimmy explains the numerous categories of
Catholic apologist Jimmy Akin defends the claim that the Church teaches with authority. However, his main focus in this episode is explaining the details behind how She teaches. With what level of authority does the Church teach and how can we know this? Jimmy provides clear answers.
Guest Bio
Jimmy Akin is an internationally known author and speaker. As a senior apologist at Catholic Answers, he has more than twenty years of experiencing defending and explaining the Faith. Jimmy is a convert to the Faith and has an extensive background in the Bible, theology, the Church Fathers, philosophy, canon law, and liturgy. Jimmy is a weekly guest on Catholic Answers Live, a regular contributor to Catholic Answers Magazine, and a popular blogger and podcaster. His personal website is JimmyAkin.com. He’s also the author of several books, including the recent book, Teaching With Authority.
Show Outline
In the first segment, Jimmy gives an overview of why we should think the Church teaches with authority. He discusses his new book and what led him to write it. His book Teaching with Authority: How to Cut Through Doctrinal Confusion and Understand What the Church Really Says provides a wealth of important information for Catholics.
In the next segment, Jimmy explains the different categories of magisterial statement. Helpfully, he provides multiple examples to make the categories clear. We even consider controversial cases like Church teaching on contraception.
In the final segment, Jimmy discusses the authority of the code of canon law as well as what to do if a Catholic finds himself at odds with a particular Church teaching.
Resources Mentioned
Teaching with Authority by Jimmy Akin (Amazon)
Shop.catholic.com where you can order many Catholic books including Jimmy Akin’s Teaching with Authority
Magisterium by Avery Cardinal Dulles S.J.
Humanae Vitae by Pope Paul VI
Donum Veritatis by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger
Jimmy Akin’s Mysterious World(Podcast)
When Was the Gospel of Mark Written? (Blog post by Jimmy Akin)
When Was the Gospel of Matthew Written? (Blog post by Jimmy Akin)
Related Episodes
CORE #08 – He Founded the Catholic Church (Part 1)
CORE #09 – He Founded the Catholic Church (Part 2)
John, outstanding interview! Akin is clearly an authority on “authority”! And you really know how to conduct a good interview. Kudos! I’m just over halfway through “Teaching with Authority”, so this interview was a good refresher of what I already learned, and a nice peek at things to come. God bless you for all you do, John. I can see that this is a huge labor of love for you, and you’re making a difference.