What was Cyprian's view of the relative authority of the various bishops?

Answer 1

Thanks for asking. Although Cyprian said a lot about bishops, there are two key issues that stand out in my mind.

First, he was involved in the debates about what to do with clergy in general who lapsed (disclaimed their faith publicly to avoid persecution). Cyprian disagreed with the bishop of Rome (later known as the "pope") regarding how fast clergy who lapsed should regain their clerical status.

Second, this led to Cyprian's claim that it wasn't the Roman Bishop in particular who was the head of the church, but it is the bishops who were the rightful heirs of the apostles. Essentially, there was no authority of one bishop over the other, but the unity of the church was based on the unity of the bishops.

Hope this helps. God bless you.