United States of America

TRINITARIAN CATHOLIC CHURCH
Official Web Site
Copyright © 2010 T.C.C.
 All Rights Reserved. No part of the electronic, intellectual or proprietary content of this web site
may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system
or transmitted in any form or by any means,
electronic, mechanical, recording or otherwise,
without the written or expressed permission of the
Presiding Bishop of the T.C.C.

For permission to use copyrighted
materials contact us by e-mail.

[Trinitarian Catholic Church]
2005-2010

 
About Us. . . .

You may be wondering how we began so let’s begin with some factual history.

The Trinitarian Catholic Church is actually one of many Authcephalous, Catholic Churches whose origins can be traced back to the late Roman Catholic, Archbishop Carlos Duarte Costa (b.1888-d.1961) of Brazil whose valid Apostolic Succession which originated with Scipione Cardinal Rebiba (b.1505-d.1577) of the Roman Catholic Church.  Archbishop Duarte Costa, who was Bishop of Maura, and Bishop Emeritus of Botucatu, was ordained a priest (1911) and later became a Bishop in Brazil in accordance with the Latin Rite and in union with the Roman Catholic Church. He consecrated bishops before and after his break with Rome in 1945. All of the Bishops of the Brazilian Apostolic Catholic Church (Igreja Católica Apostólica Brasileira; ICAB) as well as all of the Bishops whose subsequent consecrations lead to and include the consecration of our Metropolitan, derive Holy Orders from him. The resulting branches of his Church spread to other places around the world through subsequent ordinations and consecrations. In the United States and elsewhere, many Independent Catholic churches and Episcopal Jurisdictions can trace their Apostolic lines to Archbishop Duarte Costa.

The Episcopal lineage of Bishop Coates can therefore be traced back to the lines of Apostolic Succession proceeding from Archbishop Duarte Costa and to preceding Apostolic lines dating back to Scipione Cardinal Rebiba of the Latin Rite. Bishop Coates also has valid Apostolic Succession proceeding from Bishop Dionysius the Great of Alexandria (Born late 2nd, early 3rd century-Died November 17, 265), Jurisdiction of the Greek Orthodox Church, the Holy See of Saint Mark, Alexandria. Both lines of succession are the result of his Episcopal consecration by +The Most Reverend Michael Ronald Steinhardt and +The Most Reverend Raphael Byron Solano DeFord, bishops respectively of The Free Christian Catholic Orthodox Church, Costa Rica. 

Archbishop Duarte Costa was consecrated as the Roman Catholic Diocesan Bishop of Botucatu, Brazil, on December 8, 1924, until certain views he expressed about treatment of Brazil's poor, by both the civil government and the Roman Catholic Church in Brazil, caused his removal from the Diocese of Botucatu. Archbishop Duarte Costa was subsequently named Titular Bishop of Maura by the late Pope Pius XII (Eugenio Cardinal Pacelli, formerly Vatican Secretary of State until 1939, under Pope Pius XI). Archbishop Duarte Costa had been a strong advocate in the 1930's for reform of the Roman Church; he challenged many of the key issues that the Second Vatican Council would thirty-five years later take action upon.

His criticisms of the Holy See, particularly about Vatican foreign policy during World War II toward Nazi Germany, were not well received at the Vatican, and he was eventually separated from the Roman Church by Pope Pius XII. This action was taken only after Duarte Costa's strong and repeated public denunciations over the fact that the Vatican Secretariat of State was engaged in the issuance of Vatican Passports to some very high ranking German ex-Nazis, a practice referred to as the "Ratline."

These former Nazi officials were among some of the most notorious of war criminals, such as, the Auschwitz  Concentration Camp Commandant Adolf Eichmann and the infamous, Dr. Josef Mengele, the "Angel of Death," both of whom traveled after the War on officially issued Vatican Passports. Such criminals were in flight from trial to South America in 1945.

The Brazilian Government came under the criticism of Archbishop Duarte Costa for collaboration with the Roman Church over these passports. Duarte Costa espoused liberal church positions on divorce, challenged mandatory celibacy for the clergy, and publicly stated his contempt regarding abuses of papal power, including the concept of Papal Infallibility, which the Archbishop considered a misguided and false dogma. Archbishop Duarte Costa left the jurisdiction of the Roman Catholic Church on July 6, 1945. He immediately founded the independent Igreja Catolica Apostolica Brasileira (ICAB) on that same date and remained Primate until his death in 1961.

Archbishop Luis Castillo Mendez of Brazil, Patriarch of the National Catholic Apostolic Churches (Igreja Catolica Apostolica Nationales) was consecrated by and succeeded the late Archbishop Duarte Costa as Primate in 1961. Archbishop Luis Castillo Mendez is still leading the worldwide spiritual confederation of the National Catholic Apostolic Churches founded by the late Archbishop Duarte Costa. These national churches are now estimated to have a combined worldwide membership which exceeds 12 million members. According to the ancient practice of the early Church and among many Orthodox Christian bishops, such Catholic apostolic churches exist in their countries, functioning both as autonomous and independent Particular Churches. The Trinitarian Catholic Church, for one, functions in such a manner.

In addition to ICAB in Brazil, there are sister apostolic branches in thirteen other countries in the Western Hemisphere, Europe, the Pacific and in Asia, including: Argentina (ICAA), Chile, Venezuela, Cuba, Mexico, Spain, Germany, France, Portugal, Australia, the Philippines, Canada and the United States of America. While bound by a common origin from Archbishop Duarte Costa's apostolic lineage, each bishop or bishops are autonomous, being completely independent and self governing, while adhering to doctrinal precepts of Orthodox Christianity.

Bishop Salomao Ferraz, who was a former Roman Catholic Priest, was consecrated a bishop by Archbishop Carlos Duarte Costa for the Igreja Catolica Apostolica Brasileira (ICAB) in 1945, and was eventually reconciled with the Roman Catholic Church in 1958 during the late pontificate of Pope Pius XII. Bishop Ferraz was named by the Holy See to be Titular Bishop of Eleuterna on May 12, 1963. Although he was still married, Bishop Ferraz was later appointed Auxiliary Bishop of Rio de Janeiro by Pope John XXIII. Bishop Ferraz was later called by Pope Paul VI to serve on a working commission of the Second Vatican Council and addressed the Council Fathers in session.

It is notable that Bishop Ferraz was never re-consecrated by the Roman Catholic Church, not even conditionally (sub conditione), and later was buried with the full honors accorded Bishops of the Roman Catholic Church. The Roman Church, by accepting Bishop Ferraz in this manner, without any re-consecration, affirm de jure and de facto the sacramental validity of the Duarte Costa Apostolic Succession lines of what is commonly known as the "Rebiba Apostolic Succession."

In simple terms this means that the Roman Catholic Church acknowledges that the unbroken line of ordinations and consecrations that proceeded from Archbishop Duarte Costa are in Apostolic Succession and have sacramental validity. While some in the Roman Church may wish to assert that these ordinations and consecrations are irregular, since they did not come about as the result of papal approval, they are nevertheless as valid as any ordination or consecration in the Roman Catholic Church. Through our Bishop and those whom he has ordained, The Trinitarian Catholic Church has sacramental validity and a priesthood in valid Apostolic Succession. As an autocephalous, Catholic Church, we do not need, nor must we obtain the permission of the Holy See in Rome in order to exist as a Christian, Catholic Jurisdiction outside of the authority of Rome. In as much as we are all Catholics by baptism, we respect the Bishop of Rome and Roman Catholic Church even though we do not always agree with his or their policies and positions on many important issues. On local levels, our Church is always willing to work with Catholics and other Christians as well as people of faith from all traditions in the important task of repairing God’s House.

The Trinitarian Catholic Church was officially founded following the consecration of +The Most Reverend Russell F. Coates, Jr., FDP, M.Div. in 2004, in Rocky Hill, Connecticut  USA. +Bishop Coates founded The Franciscans of Divine Providence in 1995 after leaving the Mercy of God Community, which is an ecumenical Order where he was a religious Brother and a co-founder. The growth and work of the Franciscans of Divine Providence lead him to become ordained to the priesthood in 1997 as an independent, Catholic priest. Subsequently, +Bishop Steinhardt and +Bishop DeFord elected him to the Episcopacy in 2003. They came to the United States in 2004, where they consecrated him according to the traditional Rite found within the Pontificale Romanum as a Catholic Bishop in Apostolic Succession through both the Latin and the Orthodox Rites of the Church.

The Franciscans of Divine Providence, which began as an independent Order, is now a canonical religious Order of the Trinitarian Catholic Church. His Eminence, +Bishop Coates is the first Metropolitan Bishop of our Church. His Jurisdiction is the Metropolitan Diocese of Hope which includes New England, New York and New Jersey (USA).

TRINITARIAN CATHOLIC CHURCH
Metropolitan Diocese of Hope
Res: 967 Elms Common Drive, #212
Rocky Hill, Connecticut  06067-1816  USA

Bishop_TCC @ hotmail.com

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world.
Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” Margaret Mead