"And a third thing is the understanding of the Church as a community, a communion which is just a hierarchy, but the people of God, whose servants are the priests and bishops"
About this Quote
The subtext is unmistakably Vatican II, especially Lumen gentium’s move to describe the Church as the People of God before it describes offices and ranks. Kung, who spent his career pressing Rome to take its own council seriously, is framing “communion” as a theological category with political implications. If the Church is fundamentally a communion, then authority exists for relationship, not control; teaching authority must remain accountable to the lived faith of the baptized, not insulated from it.
Context matters: Kung’s work unfolded during the postconciliar whiplash, when hopes for collegial governance and lay participation met a reassertion of centralized authority. Read against clericalism - and, from today’s vantage point, against the credibility crisis born of clerical protectionism - the line lands as more than ecclesiology. It’s an argument about power: hierarchy can exist, but it cannot be the Church’s self-image. The “third thing” sounds modest, almost like an add-on, but it’s a blueprint for who gets to speak, decide, and be believed.
Quote Details
| Topic | Faith |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Kung, Hans. (2026, February 17). And a third thing is the understanding of the Church as a community, a communion which is just a hierarchy, but the people of God, whose servants are the priests and bishops. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/and-a-third-thing-is-the-understanding-of-the-111383/
Chicago Style
Kung, Hans. "And a third thing is the understanding of the Church as a community, a communion which is just a hierarchy, but the people of God, whose servants are the priests and bishops." FixQuotes. February 17, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/and-a-third-thing-is-the-understanding-of-the-111383/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"And a third thing is the understanding of the Church as a community, a communion which is just a hierarchy, but the people of God, whose servants are the priests and bishops." FixQuotes, 17 Feb. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/and-a-third-thing-is-the-understanding-of-the-111383/. Accessed 19 Feb. 2026.
