Answer:
The term patriarch was used to describe the head of the five major sees (Rome, Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, and Jerusalem). 9 The patriarch is more than the head of the church. He is the father of the flock, a symbol of the faith, and a figurehead of the community.
Explanation:
The Book of Genesis opens with the story of the origin and meaning of human life. Then, after recounting how humanity willfully sinned, Genesis sets out the Lord’s blueprint for the reconciliation and salvation of fallen humanity. Under this plan, God would gradually reveal himself and, through a chosen people, progressively prepare mankind for Christ, his Gospel, and the Church, which are prefigured in this history.
The natural consequence of sin, of turning away from God who is the source of life, is death. Yet, when the scourge of sin had filled the earth and that death came, the righteous Noah and his family were saved in the ark, which in a sense signifies the Church, while the waters washed away the sin in the world, prefiguring baptism (Genesis 6:8-9:17; CCC 1094, 1219). Seen from this perspective, the story of the Flood is really one of God’s mercy. Although evil and sin may surround us, God’s faithful people in his ark, the Church, will be saved. With creation renewed, God then formed a special bond – a covenant – with Noah and his family and their descendants.
Generations later, the Lord chose the family of Abraham through which he would be made known to the world, which also anticipates the Church (CCC 762). The Lord made a great covenant with the patriarch and his descendants, binding himself to his people in a relationship of fidelity and care as a husband pledges fidelity to his wife and promising to make them a great nation in a land of plenty (Genesis 12:1-22:19, cf. Hosea 2:21-22). In this way, the heavenly kingdom is also foreshadowed. The sign of the covenant was marked in the flesh of Abraham and his male descendants, just as the sign of the New Covenant in the Holy Spirit is marked on our hearts.
