Panagiotis Nounis: On the Protestant Theory of the “Great Apostasy” of the Holy Apostolic Church
On the Protestant Theory of the “Great Apostasy” of the Holy Apostolic Church This Political-Theological Reflection critically examines the theory that the One, Holy, Apostolic, and Catholic Church, collectively abandoned, the apostolic truth and lost its authentic faith until the emergence of the Reformation. The central Orthodox ecclesiological argument is that biblical warnings concerning apostasy and deception do not, in themselves, establish the complete disappearance of the Church. On the contrary, Christ’s assurances that the gates of Hades shall not prevail against His Church (Matthew 16:18) and that He will remain with His disciples until the end of the ages (Matthew 28:20) constitute fundamental elements of the theological argument. The testimony of Saint Irenaeus of Lyons, concerning apostolic Tradition and historical succession, together with the struggles of Saints Athanasius the Great and Maximus the Confessor, illustrates how the apostolic faith was preserved and c...
