INFALLIBILITY, in controversial theology, means the immunity from error, in all that regards faith and morals, which is claimed by the Roman Catholic church, and, at least as regards the past, by the Greek church, as represented in the decrees of the councils which that church looks upon as ecumenical. The latter claim, however, which does not go beyond that of inerrancy, or actual exemption from error up to the present time, differs widely from that of infallibility, as put forwar 1 by the Roman church, which involves not alone an actual historical immunity from error, but also such a pos itive and abiding assistance of the Spirit of God as will at all times both protect against the possibility of error, and guide and direct in the faithful teaching of all necessary truth. The infallibility claimed by the Roman church is thus of two kinds, passive and actire the first (Matt. xvi. 18), in virtue of which the church never can receire or embrace any erroneous doctrine, no matter by whom proposed; the in virtue of which she is charged with the function (Matt. xxviii. 10; Mark xvi. 15; Ephes. iv. 11-16) of perma nently teaching to the world the essential truths of God, of actively resisting every access of error, and of authoritatively deciding every controversy by which the oneness of belief among the faithful may be endangered. Catholics regard this gift as a natural and necessary accompaniment of the authority in matters of faith with which they believe the church to be invested, and which, if not guided in its exercise by such infal lible assistance, would be but a false light, and an attractive but dangerous instrument of delusion.
Such is the notion of infallibility as claimed by the Roman church. Two very important and practical questions, however, arise regarding it, both of which have been the occasion of much controversy even among Catholics themselves; viz., as to the sub ject, that is, the seat or the organ of this infallibility, and as to the object, that is, the matters to which it extends.
As to the first, all Catholics have been agreed that the body of bishops, morally speaking, throughout the church, acting in common with the pope, constitute the most perfect organ of of the church: and hence, that when they unite in any way, whether y,ttissembled in a general council or-separated in'place, their judgment is infallible. Thus, if a doctrinal decree be addressed officially by the pope to the whole church, and be either expressly confirmed or tacitly accepted by the bishops, this decree was held to be infallible. In like manner, if a doctrinal decree, emanating even from a local council, as that of a national or even a provincial church, should be universally accepted by the pope and the bishops, that decree also was held to be infallible. In a word, wherever there is found the united judgment of the pope and the bishops, all agreed in accepting it as the infallible judgment of the church. But should the pope alone judge without the bishops, then arose the well-known dispute of the Gallivan and ultramontane divines; the latter affirming, the former denying, the papal judgment to be infallible; but all agreeing that it was not binding as an article of Catholic faith, so long as it had not received the assent of the body of the bishops. By the decree of the
Vatican council, 1870, this controversy has been decided; and it is now agreed that the doctrinal decrees of the pope teaching ex cathedrd are to be accepted as possessing the same infallibility which attaches to the teaching of the church. See CouNcrr..
On the matters or subjects to which the gift of infallibility extends Catholics are agreed in one principle, that it embraces all those subjects, and those only, which are necessary for the maintenance of divine truth in the church. Hence, presupposing divine revelation, either written or oral, it embraces all questions of faith and morality, all subjects of general discipline, so far at least as to preclude the introduction, by authority of the church, of any discipline which should be injurious to faith or to morality. On the other hand, it does not embrace questions of science, or matters of fact,•or abstract opinions unconnected with religion. On this point all Catholics have been agreed. But a very celebrated dispute arose in the 17th c., on occasion of the Augustinus of Jansenius, as to the infallibility of the church in judging of books, out of which originated the well-known Jausenist distinction of law and of fact. See JAN SENISM. On this subject, it will be enough to say, that all Catholics are now agreed in recognizing as a necessary condition to the effective infallibility, that it should extend to the judgments upon books so far as to decide whether the doctrine contained therein may or may not be opposed to sound faith or morality.
The arguments in favor of the infallibility of the church, which Roman Catholics derive from texts of Scripture, are set aside by Protestants on the ground that these texts only teach the permanence of the church and the continuance of God's grace towards it (as Matt. xvi, 18; Matt. xxviii. 19, 20; etc.), and have no relation whatever to the special subject.of infallibility.—It is common also for Protestants to urge that on the supposition of infallibility and of the need of an infallible interpreter of Scripture, as commonly declared by Roman Catholics, there can he no value in any argument from Scripture; and that the Roman Catholic theologian, in attempting to prove the iufalli bility of the church by Scripture, and the authority of Scripture by the infallibility of the church, is involved in the sophism of reasoning in a circle.—It is sometimes added that if God's word needs an interpreter to make it a safe rule of faith, man's word may well be supposed equally difficult to compreltend.—And the notion of infallibility, with the whole system of which it forms an essential part, against as cc ft airy to the rational nature of man, and to that personal relation and to God which are at the foundation of all true religion. Something is also made in argument of the difficulty which the advocates of the infallibility of the church have found in agreeing as to where it is lodged.