Bionic: We were in a Bible study led by a seminarian. He told us that the idea of Apostolic Succession was introduced by Tertulian (ca 200AD), who said that people should receive teaching from someone whose discipling could be traced directly back to those discipled by the Apostles. This ensured that you were getting correct teaching. So the earliest teaching had no mention of magic hands, special annointings, etc. This was a bit unusual for the Episcopal Church, where Apostolic succession is a big deal.
I think it certainly can't hurt, but history & the current state of Apostolic churches show that it is neither necessary or sufficient to ensure either salvation or straight doctrine.
Bionic: We were in a Bible study led by a seminarian. He told us that the idea of Apostolic Succession was introduced by Tertulian (ca 200AD), who said that people should receive teaching from someone whose discipling could be traced directly back to those discipled by the Apostles. This ensured that you were getting correct teaching. So the earliest teaching had no mention of magic hands, special annointings, etc. This was a bit unusual for the Episcopal Church, where Apostolic succession is a big deal.
I think it certainly can't hurt, but history & the current state of Apostolic churches show that it is neither necessary or sufficient to ensure either salvation or straight doctrine.