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The Ecumenical Catholic Church
United Kingdom

Apostolic Succession

Independent Catholic Churches and their Bishops are constantly plagued by people demanding to see their “Lines of Succession” in order to prove their historical link with the Apostles.

This historical link is essential. Jesus gave the power of the Priesthood to His Apostles and it is clear from Acts that they passed this on by “Prayer and the laying on of hands”. This Tradition has been constant and unchanged since the time of the Apostles and is a main foundation of the theology of ministry in all branches of Christianity based on the bishop’s office.

On 28th September 2001 in the Cathedral of Christ, Washington DC, and following the revised Roman Rite, four Archbishops consecrated Bishop Terry Flynn before a large gathering of the faithful. These Archbishops were: +Bruce J Simpson (Principal Consecrator), +Timothy Paul Baymon, +David Billings and +John Paul James.

Both +David Billings and +John Paul James were consecrated by +Timothy Paul and +Dominic Martin, who was also principal consecrator for +Bruce J Simpson. This means that listing the lines of +Bruce J Simpson and +Timothy Paul Baymon will suffice to demonstrate Bishop Terry’s Apostolic Succession.

Primary Line,
St Peter to Terry Flynn – The Roman Catholic Succession

On 29th June 1880 EDUARDO SANCHEZ Y COMACHO was consecrated Bishop of Tamaulipas Mexico by Pedro Loza y Pardave, Archbishop of Guadalajara. (Lines prior to this moment are undisputed historical fact on record at the Vatican.)

In 1899 Edward Rufane Benedict Donkin was consecrated Bishop by the Said Eduardo Sanchez y Comacho.

On 10th August 1904 Ulric Vernon Herford was consecrated Bishop by the said Edward RB Donkin.

On 18th October 1931 Hedley Coward Bartlett was consecrated Bishop by the said Ulric V Herford

On 20th May 1945 Hugh George (Mar Georgius I) de Willmott Newman was consecrated Bishop by the said Hedley C Bartlett.

On 6th June 1946 Wallace David (Mar David I) de Ortega Maxey was consecrated Bishop by the said H G de Wilmott Newman.

On 27th May 1950 Harold Percival (Mar Joannes) Nicholson was consecrated Bishop by the said Wallace D de Ortega Maxey.

On 14th April 1952 Philip Charles Stuart (Mar Philippus) Singer was consecrated Bishop by the said Harold P Nicholson.

On 14th November 1954 Charles Brearley was consecrated Bishop by the said Philip C S Singer.

On 14th May 1968 Andre Leon Zotique Barbeau was consecrated Bishop by the said Charles Brearley.

In June of 1991 Tod Francis Xavier (Dominic Martin) Biltcliffe was consecrated Bishop by the said Andre L Z Barbeau.

In January of 1999 Bruce John Simpson was consecrated Bishop by the said Dominic Martin

On 28th September 2001 Terry Flynn was consecrated as detailed above.

Secondary Lines
Through Archbishop Timothy Paul Baymon.

Archbishop Baymon was consecrated on 7th August 1999 by four Bishops, +Carl Allen Jimenez, +Peter Paul Brennan, +James Lagona and +Joseph Grenier.

+Timothy Paul has published extensive documentation of the lines of succession of all these Bishops, so suffice it to record here the outline of the main links.

On 4th June 1911 the Roman Catholic Bishop Sebastiao Leme de Silveira Cintra was consecrated by Joaquin Arcoverde de Alburquerque-Cavalcanti.

On 8th December 1924 Carlos Duarte Costa was consecratedby the said Sebastiao Lde Silveira Cintra.

On 3rd May 1948 Duarte Costa consecrated Luis Fernando Castillo Mendez

In May 1989 Castillo Mendez consecrated Justo Gonzalez.

On 22nd September 1990 Justo Gonzalez consecrated DonaldJ Buttenbusch.

On 17th February 1996 Buttenbusch consecrated Raymond F Kelly.

On 6th April 1997 Kelly consecrated Joseph A Grenier Who in turn consecrated Timothy Paul Baymon.

The same Carlos Duarte Costa also consecrated Salmeo Ferraz on 15th August 1945.

On 29th May 1951 Ferraz consecrated Manuel Ceja Lananjeina

On 15th August 1965 Lananjeina consecrated Benedito Lima.

On 1st August 1966 Lima consecrated Jose Machado

On 2nd December 1967 Machado consecrated Oscar Fernandez.

On 29th April 1973 Fernandez consecrated Michael Saffiero

In November 1976 Saffiero consecrated Renier Lauters

On 30th April 1977 Lauters consecrated Charles McCarthy

On 25th September 1977 McCarthy consecrated Charles David Luther.

On 5th February 1983 Luther consecrated Martin J Hill.

On 26th June 1983 Hill was co-consecrator of Justo Gonzalez, from whom the line to +Timothy Paul Baymon and +Terry Flynn is listed above.

Through +James Lagona the lines trace back via Arnold Harris Matthew and the Old Catholic Church of Uttrecht to Antonio Cardinal Barberini, Archbishop of Rheims, France, consecrated in 1655.

Also through Lagona the line is traced, via Joseph Rene Villate (1892) to Patriarch Ignatius Elias II of the Syrian-Antiochean Church.

+James Lagona has several other lines listed which are unnecessary here.