ABSTRACT
RELIGIOUS AUTHORITY Because religions typically offer gui-
dance in matters of doctrine and life-
style, some source of authority is needed
for this purpose. Sources of authority
are various: a religious community may
claim to rely on supernatural authority,
the authority of a human leader or lea-
ders, or a set of sacred texts. These
sources of authority intertwine: Chris-
tianity acknowledges a human leader,
but accords divine status to him, and
has defined an authoritative set of
scriptures that record his life and teach-
ing, and – in the case of the Christian
Old Testament – allegedly point to him
prophetically. Additionally, a religion
may hold that its authority rests in its
community, or part thereof, or with
some aspect of the self, such as reason
or conscience.