ORTHODOX CHURCH OF THE CULDEES
Apostolic Succession Lines
Rev. Dr. Stephen M.K. Brunswick
Primace of the Orthodox Church of the Culdees
St Andrew’s and St Joseph’s Orthodox Church of the Culdees
Selected records of historic episcopal succession, ecclesiastical recognition, and the Culdee, British and Glastonbury inheritance.
This register presents three principal historical lines, together with the ecclesiastical succession and recognition associated with the present ministry of the Primace.
The Apostolic Succession Register
Read the document below, or open the PDF for printing and reference.
The Historic Episcopate and British Church
Apostolic succession is maintained in the Church as a testimony to the continuity of Christian ministry, doctrine, and sacramental order. The Orthodox Church of the Culdees preserves its received traditions of episcopal and local ecclesiastical succession, together with its records of consecration, recognition, and fellowship with other Christian jurisdictions.
In his Life and Acts of Matthew Parker, the historian John Strype recorded the English Church’s appeal to an episcopal inheritance older than the mission of Augustine of Canterbury, associating this tradition with Joseph of Arimathea.
The Church of England would retain her episcopacy, but not as derived from Pope Gregory’s mission, instead appealing to Joseph of Arimathea.
The Church maintains its ecclesiastical certificates, instruments of consecration, records of appointment, and supporting historical references.
Liturgical and Ecclesiastical Continuity
The English Book of Common Prayer belongs to the historic Anglican liturgical inheritance. Related Western liturgical traditions have also been received or adapted in other Christian jurisdictions according to their respective ecclesiastical authorities.
The Orthodox Church of the Culdees maintains its own ecclesiastical order and recognizes the importance of lawful ministry, apostolic teaching, and sacramental continuity in its relations with other churches.
Historical and Canonical References
The following primary ecclesiastical documents are relevant to the historic episcopate, apostolic succession, and sacramental relations between churches.
- The English Ordinal and Book of Common Prayer. Historic formularies of episcopal, priestly, and diaconal ministry. Church of England text
- Unitatis Redintegratio (1964). The Second Vatican Council’s decree on ecumenism, including its treatment of Eastern Churches and apostolic succession. Read the decree
- Dominus Iesus, Section 17 (2000). Addresses the status of churches retaining apostolic succession and a valid Eucharist outside full communion with Rome. Read the declaration
- Code of Canon Law, Canon 844 (1983). Establishes the circumstances and conditions under which certain sacraments may be shared with Christians outside full communion with the Catholic Church. Read Canon 844
Ecclesiastical recognition and sacramental sharing remain subject to the applicable canons and competent authorities of each communion. The presence of apostolic succession claims does not, by itself, establish universal intercommunion.
Further reading: Catholic and Orthodox History and the Recognition of Sacraments Between Churches
Ministry and ecclesiastical chronology of the Primace
Published by the Orthodox Church of the Culdees, St Andrew’s and St Joseph’s Ministry.