Is Roman Catholicism Christian?
GodVoter.org response:
Thank you for your email. Roman Catholicism came
into existence in the 6th century when the bishop of Rome gained ascendancy over
four rival bishops (of Jerusalem, Antioch, Alexandria and Constantinople),
appointed himself the oracle of God and the sole authority on the
Bible, which he then put away, and began to issue man-made rules and edicts. A thousand years
later, Roman Catholicism had strayed so far from the Bible that the few with access to
it protested, and then led a revolt, resulting in the "Protestant" Reformation.
The Vatican initially tried to silence the protesters through intimidation,
torture and murder, leaving a trail of 50 million murdered Protestant (
History
of Romanism, pp. 541, 542. New York:
1871), far more than the number murdered by the Romans, Muslims and Communists
put together, during the golden age of innovation in torture methods.
Having failed, the Vatican since has been engaging in twisted acrobatics in logic to try to justify
Transubstantiation,
Papacy,
Indulgences,
Purgatory,
Mary-worship and
other unbiblical beliefs and traditions. When challenged, Roman Catholics usually cites
Popes, early church "Fathers" and its Catechism of the Catholic Church,
but not the Bible, whose final warning (
Revelation 22:18-19) disqualifies
all of them.
That some consider Roman Catholicism Christian has more to do with the size, wealth and
the political power of Roman Catholicism than its doctrines. Base on the latter, it is outside the
bounds of Biblical Christianity.
Lest Protestants relish the above, Roman
Catholicism exemplifies the dangers that await any "Christian" denomination,
pastor or church that strays from the Bible, especially as they gain wealth and power. It is
crucial for every believer in the Lord Jesus Christ to take ownership of their faith and filter all teachings through the Bible,
not filter the Bible through pastoral or church teachings; the eternal destiny of their soul is too
important to outsource it to someone else. Here is a set of
good sermons and
good Bible study
(that should be filtered through the
Bible). You may also appreciate our next reply:
Jesus flesh. May the Lord bless you.