Ordinary Magisterium Part 1

The second method of infallible teaching is taught to Catholics via the Ordinary Magisterium, which is called that because it is the more common and typical method. This consists of the consistent, and universal teachings of popes through their various decrees, documents, encyclicals, letters, etc. These do not consist of new doctrines, but explain current teachings. In other words, when the pope reiterates a belief consistent with his predecessors, that is considered Ordinary Magisterium.

The word papal is a reference for anything dealing with the pope. For example, a papal document is authorized by the pope, who usually signs it Servant of the Servants of God (or
Servus Servorum Dei in Latin). This title was first used by Pope St. Gregory the Great in the late 6th century. The pope is usually addressed as Holy Father or Your Holiness by others. The following are examples of papal documents.

• Papal Bulls
• Papal Encyclicals
• Papal Briefs
• Apostolic Exhortations
• Apostolic Constitutions
• Apostolic Letters
• Motu Proprios

Before the 2nd Vatican Council, the document used determined how much authority the pope wished to exercise by it. The lowest level was the Motu Proprio (Latin for of his own initiative). The Propio is like an international memo, its a short letter that grants a dispensation or deals with a small matter of Church discipline. An example of this is Pope John Paull II's permission to celebrate the Tidentine Mass. Papal Bulls were considered the highest authority. For example, the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception by Pope Pius IX in 1854 refers to Mary being free from Original Sin by the grace of God, and carries the full weight of papal authority. Dogma means doctrine, an official teaching on faith or morals that's divinely revealed. Catholics consider the Assumption of Mary and the Immaculate Conception to be infallible teachings, because they involve the full and universal papal authority.

Since Vatican II, however, more emphasis is placed on the content and context of the document, rather than the type of document. If the pope intends to teach the Church on a matter of faith or morals, then he is exercising his supreme authority as head of the Church. For example, in 1994 John Paul II issued an Apostolic Letter called Ordinatio Sacerdotalis in which he declared that the Church has no power to ordain women. This was not an Ex Cathedra statement (see previous post), but is part of Ordinary Magisterium and is thus infallible.