ALL Christian Churches share common Apostolic Roots. More importantly, they all share CHRIST.
I guess apostolicity of origin doesn't assure apostolicity of doctrine after all.
PING!
The simple reason for that is that in a small, geographically isolated congregation the bishop alone is sufficient, as he is also a priest. The growth of the number of priests who are not bishops, the vast majority today, is a result of the spread of Christianity, by definition did not obtain in the Early Church, and therefore is not reflected in the Holy Scripture.
Note to a casual reader:
A bishop (episkopos, patriarch) is a priest who can teach and ordain priests. He himself is consecrated by another bishop, in a genealogy of consecrations starting with one of the Holy Apostles. A Pope is a bishop of Rome. Other distinctions that you hear about, especially the cardinals are administrative roles, not clerical faculties. Caridnals are bishops (typically) who form the papal "cabinet". All bishops are celibate men.
A priest (presbyter) is the fundamental sacramental concept in the Church; his function is to offer the Sacrifice of Christ in the Eucharist. Only priests can consecrate the Communion bread and wine, which then become for us the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Christ, which we eat in a memorial of Him (Luke 22:19). Only priest can absolve sins (John 20:23), or offer last rites to the dead, gravely sick or dying (James 5:14). The authority to teach is secondary in a priest, as a teacher, the priest acts as a transmitter of the ideas set forth by the bishop; a priest may, in turn, ask a deacon to preach. Priests have a faculty to serve in a particular Chruch, so there are Roman Catholic Priests, Eastern Catholic priests for several Eastern Catholic Churches, and Orthodox priests. All priests have a restriction on remarriage if they become priests as married men, and married Roman Catholic priests are only exceptions form the general rule of celibacy.
Deacons, finally, are servers to the priest who work on his behalf in the congregation and assist during liturgy.
Monks and nuns, commonly known as "religious orders" are people with a vow to serve Christ by personal example of good works and chastity (Titus 3:14, 1 Cor. 7:7) or live consecrated live for the benefit of their own salvation (Luke 18:22). The exact discipline varies from order to order; the common among the vows are obedience to the superior (abbot, or abbess), celibacy, and poverty. Some live as hermits, others in monasteries, yet others preach publicly. They have internal administrative hierarchies. Priests and eventually bishops often, but not always, come from monks; if that is the case, a priest has his monastic obligations combined with the priestly obligations.
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