Am 17. Feb.2007 um 16:27 Uhr schrieb John Briggs:
medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Marjorie Greene wrote:
We're not arguing about anything. I simply wondered if the principle
behind "ex opere operato" applied in the consecration of a bishop b/c
I'm not sure if the principle applies to anything but the
administration of the sacraments and I don't know if the consecration
of a bishop is a "sacrament" (though not in the list of the official
7) or if it falls under the rubric of Holy Orders. That's why I
questioned the reason for the removal of the pope who elevated
Stigand. If it was simply b/c he was a moral bum, the consecration of
Stigand would stand; if he wasn't pope at all, the consecration was
presumably invalid.
1) Yes, consecration of a bishop is a sacrament.
2) Yes, it is "holy orders" (the number of orders has varied over the centuries...)
3) This has nothing to do with Stigand (which was about his appointment as archbishop. Archbishop is a rank, not an order.)
4) The pope who confirmed Stigand's appointment (Benedict X) is officially a non-person (antipope), although he remains in the official numbering. Again, "pope" is a rank, not an order, so the question of invalidity wouldn't arise, even if we were talking about consecration (which we weren't).
"Ex opere operato" is technically about the efficacy of sacraments rather than their validity, but it is not easy to separate the two. Suppose a bishop's consecration was later found to be invalid. Which of the sacramental acts he performed would be regarded as valid? Depending on the circumstances, confirmation probably would be, ordination of priests might be, consecration of bishops wouldn't be.
John Briggs
**********************************************************************
To join the list, send the message: join medieval-religion YOUR NAME
To send a message to the list, address it to:
To leave the list, send the message: leave medieval-religion
In order to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write to:
For further information, visit our web site: