Vicar of Christ

E51432

The Vicar of Christ is a traditional title signifying the Pope’s role as the earthly representative of Jesus Christ and spiritual head of the Catholic Church.


Statements (48)
Predicate Object
instanceOf ecclesiastical title
honorific title
papal title
affirmedBy First Vatican Council
Second Vatican Council
appliedToOffice Pope
surface form: "Bishop of Rome"
associatedWith Papacy
surface form: "Papal supremacy"

Papacy
surface form: "Petrine primacy"

papacy
codifiedIn 1917 Code of Canon Law
Code of Canon Law (1983)
surface form: "1983 Code of Canon Law"
contrastedWith Vicar of Peter
criticizedFor claim of universal spiritual authority
denotesRole earthly representative of Jesus Christ
spiritual head of the Catholic Church
developedIn Western Christianity
surface form: "Latin Christianity"
hasAspect doctrinal authority
liturgical presidency
pastoral leadership
hasMeaning vicarious representative of Christ on earth
hasOppositionFrom some Protestant traditions
heldBy all validly elected Popes
current Pope
impliesAuthorityOver Catholic bishops
Catholic faithful
impliesResponsibilityFor governance of the universal Church
preservation of doctrine
unity of the Church
isTitleOf head of the Catholic Church
languageOfOrigin Latin
originalForm Vicarius Christi
recognizedBy magisterium of the Catholic Church
surface form: "Catholic magisterium"

Code of Canon Law (1983)
surface form: "Code of Canon Law"
relatedTitle Pope
surface form: "Bishop of Rome"

Pope
surface form: "Roman Pontiff"

Servant of the Servants of God
Pope
surface form: "Supreme Pontiff"
theologicalBasisIn John 21:15–17
Matthew 16:18–19
Pillars of the Church
surface form: "Petrine ministry"
titleHolds universal jurisdiction over the Catholic Church
usedBy Pope
usedIn Roman Catholicism
surface form: "Catholic Church"
usedInContext Catholic theology
canon law
usedInDocumentType papal bulls
papal encyclicals
usedSinceCentury 3rd century

Referenced by (5)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Papacy associatedWithTitle Vicar of Christ
subject surface form: "Wibert of Ravenna"
Pope Zosimus hasTitle Vicar of Christ
pontificate of Gregory XI papalTitle Vicar of Christ
Pope traditionalTitle Vicar of Christ

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