< Previous |
Index |
Next > |
The names of several orders of bishops appear early in the history of the church, such as archbishops, metropolitans, patriarchs, etc. But their office was very unlike those of the same name under the established hierarchy of the church, just as in civil governments, the same name may, at different times, denote offices widely different.
In this place it is proper to remark, that a long, intricate, and angry strife existed between the Eastern and Western churches, as well as between particular and provincial churches. But it would be foreign to my purpose to speak of these, and I dismiss them with this brief notice.
The Episcopal form of government recognizes in general two orders of bishops – superior and inferior.