INFALLIBILITY (from ML. infallibilis, in fallible, from in-, not + fallibilis, fallible, from fallere, to deceive, Gk. crodXXew, sphallein, to overthrow, AS. frallan, OHG. fallan, Ger. fallen, Eng. fall). The immunity from error, in all that regards faith and morals, which is claimed by the Boman Catholic Church. and, at least as regards the past, by the Greek Church, as represented in the decrees of the councils which the latter looks upon as ecumenical. The latter claim, how ever, 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 forward by the Roman Church, which in volves not alone an actual historical immunity from error, but also such a positive and abiding assistance by the Spirit of God as will at all times both protect against the possibility of error, and _aside and direct in the faithful teach ing of all necessary truth. The infallibility claimed by the Roman Church is thus of two kinds, pas sive and active—the first (Matt. xvi. Isl. in of which the Church never can receive or embrace any erroneous doctrine, no matter by In proposed; the second, in virtue of which she is charged with the function (Matt. xxviii. 19; Nark xvi. 15; Ephes. iv. 11-16) of permit mntly teaching to the world the essential truth-; of God, of actively resisting every access of error, and of authoritatively deciding every controversy by which the oneness of belief among the faith ful may be endangered. Catholics regard this gift as a natural and necessary accompaniment of the authority in the matters of faith with which they believe the Church to be invested, and which, if not guided in its exercise by such infallible as sistance, would be but a false light, and an at tractive but dangerous delusion. They have al. ways agreed that the body of bishops throughout the Church, acting in common with the Pope, con stitute the most perfect organ of the infallibility of the Church; and hence, that when they unite in any way, whether as assembled in a general council or separated in place, their judgment is infallible. Thus, if a doctrinal decree were ad.
dressed officially by the Pope to the whole Church, and either expressly confirmed or tacitly accepted by the bishopti, this decree was held to be infalli ble. In like manner, if a doctrinal decree, ema nating even from a local council, as that of a national or even a provincial Church, should he universal- accepted by the Pope and the bishops, that decree also was held to be infallible. In a word, wherever there is found the united judg ment of the Pope and the all agreed in accepting it as the infallible judgment of the Church. But should the Pope alone judge with out the bishops. there arose the well-known dis pute of the Galilean and Ultramontalle divines; the latter affirming, the former denying.• the Papal judgment to be infallible, but all agree ing 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. The for mal definition of Papal infallibility as de flute dates from the Vatican Council of 1870. The minority of bishops who opposed the decree did so, as a rule, not because they disbelieved the doctrine, but because they considered its in as a necessary article of faith inexpedient. As formally declared, the definition is that the doctrinal decrees of the Pope teaching ex ea thcara—that is, when in discharge of the office of pastor and doctor of all Christians, by virtue of his supreme apostolic authority, he defines a doctrine regarding faith and morals to he held by the universal C'hurch—are to he ac cepted as possessing the same infallibility which attaches to the teaching of the Church. See