Judged: two independent readers; copy check clear.
authority
authority In this historical source, authority in religion means a recognized standard or organizing power that sets limits or starting points for belief and thought.
In this historical source, authority in religion means a recognized standard or organizing power that sets limits or starting points for belief and thought. It can refer to an external church structure that governs individuals, to church creeds and scripture as norms for personal or theological reasoning, or in more philosophical theology to reason or dogma as the basis for religious conclusions.