What is the authority of the Catholic Church?

Answer 1

In Catholicism, only one man may teach with the authority of God, and that is whoever is serving as the pope when he specifically invokes the charism of his office as pope to definitively recognize what is the dogma concerning faith and morals for the Universal Church. In this way the Church has given authority to The Bible, having sorted and declared authoritative the Biblical canon and its inspiration as well as ratifying all the doctrines and teachings of the Faith that have been taught throughout the centuries. As well, those who are ordained are given the authority of Christ and His Church to go forth and preach the Gospel, administer the sacraments and work in the Name of God. This authority is implicit in the sacrament of Holy Orders and granted by the ordaining bishop in the Name of the Church, hence the importance of the apostolic succession and the validity of Holy Orders which the Orthodox maintain and some of the Protestant denominations have actively sought to reestablish. Only the ordained may teach with the authority of the Church since the Church grants them the mandate to do so. This is why Catholics are intolerant and do not respect the teachings or credentials of other Christian denominations since they have no mandate from the Church nor any apostolic succession. Ultimately, the Catholic hierarchy only distributes the authority that was originally given to the Church in its inception by Christ, that of keeping His words and teachings, distributing the sacraments and the mandate to go and preach to all nations.

Answer 2

Roman Catholic AnswerThe authority of the Catholic Church is God, specifically Our Blessed Lord. While he was on earth, He established the Catholic Church, set Peter and his successors over it as His Vicar on earth, and sent the Holy Spirit to guide It into all truth, and be with It until the end of time.