Papal Supremacy versus Episcopal Collegiality: Examining the necessity of a centralized authority within the hierarchy of Bishops

Eric Baffoe Antwi ORCID iD 

Issue: Vol. 12 No.7 2026 Issue Article 4 pp.301 – 308
DOI: https://doi.org/10.38159/erats.20261274 Published online 23rd September 2026.
© 2026 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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Bishops in the Roman Catholic Church are considered successors of the Apostles and serve a central role in the Church’s governance and mission. As chief shepherds of their dioceses, they are entrusted with the responsibility of governing, teaching, and sanctifying the faithful. They exercise authority within their dioceses while remaining in communion with the Pope, the Bishop of Rome, who serves as the head of the universal Catholic Church. If every bishop is endowed with the administration of his diocese, can one of them direct another on what to do? In carrying out his functions, the Pope can interfere in the affairs of every diocese. This brings to focus the issue of primus inter pares (first among equals). This paper aims to clarify the role of the Pope and that of every bishop to reveal whether or not the Pope duplicates the role of the bishop (Local Ordinary).

Keywords: Roman Catholic Church, Dicastery, Ordinary, Local Ordinary, Local bishop.

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Eric Baffoe Antwi holds a PhD in Systematic Theology. He is currently with the St. Gregory Provincial  Major Seminary, KNUST, Kumasi, in the Ashanti Region of Ghana.

Antwi, Eric Baffoe. “Papal Supremacy Versus Episcopal Collegiality: Examining the necessity of a centralized authority within the hierarchy of Bishops.”  E-Journal of Religious and Theological Studies 12, no.7 (2026): 301 – 308. https://doi.org/10.38159/erats.20261274

© 2026 The Author(s). Published and Maintained by Noyam Journals. This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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