Because Jesus instituted a physical church which needs a leader…
And yet Peter still lives, or do you not believe that?
Do you not believe that Jesus is also physical and the head of the church? If Jesus is the head of the church, and he's alive and leading along with the holy spirit, and he's also not "here," then Peter doesn't need to be "here" to be the rock upon which the church is built.
I'm not trolling. I just can't believe that catholics can't bother to figure out pretty simple stuff like this.
Judas was replaced because of the betrayal, not because the 12 apostles needed to be succeeded in perpetuity. The Apostles will sit in judgment of the 12 tribes. The Apostles. Not anyone else. That's their role, other than obviously filling the great commission. There has never been any indication in scripture (that I'm aware of) that The Church is in need of a singular human leader. Following the lead from the OT, kings were NOT what God preferred for His chosen nation. I can and do equate the pope to a self proclaimed king (yeah, yeah, he's elected, BFD) which is, IMO, anathema to how God wants His people to be "ruled."
What you are saying is, IMO, much to materialistic and also does not follow the precedents set by God in the example of Isreal (the people from the Bible, not the current state gubment) and how He wishes them to be.
I don't really care how narrowly defined papal infallibility is or is not. It's an idiotic concept prima fascia. The whole of the papacy is incorrect. The whole hierarchical structure of the church is incorrect. Much of the doctrine is directly in conflict with scripture (used in a fairly broad sense here), and therefore is, IMO, heretical.
It might seem like I'm trolling, but I'm not. I place no faith in men. I place less than no faith in those that claim some sort of power over me. I have no king but Christ. Anyone who would Shephard me better be local and strong, and I don't consider the pope to be either.
Replies (2)
Because there aren't any “Christians” who claim no one has authority over them because they're under the guidance of the Holy Spirit who aren't a “mouthpiece of the satanic pedo death cult”? I can't believe Protestants can't bother to see what has happened to Christianity outside the Church.
It's shocking how weak the arguments are against Catholicism and how intransigent its opponents are. I've yet to see a Biblical reference or evidence to refute my claims, only opinions written authoritatively. I'm all for conversations between different denominations to figure out the truth, but many like this lack essential goodwill.
Who said I was a protestant? I heave huge issues with pretty much all protestant denominations as well as issues with orthodoxy. Stop assuming things.
You can't believe what's happened to Christianity outside the catholic church? Well, I can't believe what's happened to the totality of Christianity in "the west." period. Catholics always act holier than everyone, and don't want to hear any, even minor, criticisms of the claims of the catholic church being the one, true church. That goes against all the descriptions of the church used in the Bible. Christians are part of the body of Christ. Follow that metaphor: each body part is unique, but essential. That should clue you in that there is no one single church that's complete in and of itself. We are all part of the body of Christ, we are all unique, and we don't all need to fall under anyone else's lead but Christ's.
The pope has no right of authority over me, even since I simply reject his authority, or any pope's authority. The current pope certainly has issues with his philosophical foundations, is directly in bed with anti-humam forces, and is not leading the catholic church in a direction that I think is correct for any person claiming to follow Christ. Specifically, his socialist bent is disturbing and gross.
To answer your charge, specifically: protestants are generally a bunch of lame grandstands, at least in the US and Yurp. They are victims of their own success and ego and I can't stand all the idiocy that goes into many of the supposed tenets of their faith.
Using examples from the Bible about how God dealt with his chosen nation is weak? 🙄
I've already provided several direct concepts from the Bible. That's evidence that I'm guessing you ignored. That's pretty lame of you. 😐
Why should I have any goodwill to modern catholicism? It's not even what once was and has lost most of what made it powerful, though, I am not knowledgeable enough to go after the roots of its power in any depth.
The arguments are making are "the catholic church is great because the catholic church is great!" That's weak reasoning, and hearing that is actually lame.
