In politics, authority (Latin auctoritas, used in Roman law as opposed to potestas and imperium) is often used interchangeably with the term "power". However, their meanings differ. "Power" refers to the ability to achieve certain ends, 'authority' refers to the legitimacy, justification and right to exercise that power. For example whilst a mob has the power to punish a criminal, such as through lynching, only the courts have the authority to order capital punishment.

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Divine authority

Authority is genrerally derived from a source higher or more powerful than the claimant. When considering divine authority, there is the inherent recognition that no source is higher; therefore the claim for a right to direct or demand derives from the basic authorship of the the divine being- it is the basic defintion in rea'l that divinity is reality. Jesus dodged the question of the source of his authority by requiring the faith credentials of his audience; could they state the source of power that John the baptizer(his cousin) used in leading the masses in a revival- of course, the audience would not recognize the divine inspiration that John, like many revivalists in the Bible, had in claiming to know the present and future from divinity's perspective. Understanding the expectations and desires of one who is divine, infinite, and omniscient requires some kind of act of receiving direction. In various traditions, direction from God or from a god can be determined by contemplating utterances, texts, or visions that are considered to come from that divinity;an oracle, scripture, or the result of a ritual or a mystical experience;as well as by emulating or abiding by the dictates of those who are deemed to have access to the divine. Finally, in many traditions, there are times when it is necessary to divine God's specific will from a more general directive given.

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St. Anthony first-grader tells authorities man touched her in bathroom http://bit.ly/4NAoMF
minn_news (Star Tribune ) Thu, 24 Dec 2009 05:55:14 -0000
St. Anthony first-grader tells authorities man touched her in bathroom http://bit.ly/4NAoMF
Authorities deem Rockford police shooting justified http://bit.ly/5Xj2BJ #chicago
chitownnews (Chicago News) Thu, 24 Dec 2009 05:54:58 -0000
Authorities deem Rockford police shooting justified http://bit.ly/5Xj2BJ #chicago
Authorities deem Rockford police shooting justified http://bit.ly/5Xj2BJ
ChicagoBreaking (ChicagoBreaking) Thu, 24 Dec 2009 05:54:58 -0000
Authorities deem Rockford police shooting justified http://bit.ly/5Xj2BJ
BreakingNews| Authorities deem Rockford police shooting justified: Authorities in northern Illinois said the August... http://bit.ly/7xr3vK
ChicagoILrss (Yancey @YanceyG) Thu, 24 Dec 2009 05:54:57 -0000
BreakingNews| Authorities deem Rockford police shooting justified: Authorities in northern Illinois said the August... http://bit.ly/7xr3vK
AP - Latin Grammy winner Ramon Ayala was released from jail for health reasons Wednesday, but authorities said he r... http://bit.ly/8IrS3i
_enlightenment (Enlightenment Media) Thu, 24 Dec 2009 05:53:21 -0000
AP - Latin Grammy winner Ramon Ayala was released from jail for health reasons Wednesday, but authorities said he r... http://bit.ly/8IrS3i
Officials: Beware of holiday scamming: 'Tis the season for scamming, according to local and state authorities. http://tinyurl.com/ycxm6an
FindlayCourier (The Findlay Courier) Thu, 24 Dec 2009 05:52:51 -0000
Officials: Beware of holiday scamming: 'Tis the season for scamming, according to local and state authorities. http://tinyurl.com/ycxm6an

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