Roman Catholicism Compared With Biblical Christianity, Part 1

By Andrew Corbett, Part 1

Any discussion about religious wars, clergy violations, or child abuse, and it won't be long before the The Roman Catholic Church unfortuntely features. But I want to have a different discussion. And unlike most of the 'discussions' of this nature, I'm not on a mission to attack, ridicule, or mock anyone. Rather, I want to look at what the Roman Catholic Church officially teaches and asserts and compare it with the Bible's teaching.

I've been a denominational minister for over two decades, so I know that it is possible to be a part of an organisation with which you disagree on some points.  I understand that this is certainly the case with the Roman Catholic Church as there are many priests who do agree with all that their Church asserts. For the purposes of this discussion, I have chosen to take the official Catholic positions on the matters I am comparing with the Biblical data. It is my hope that my Roman Catholic audience will acknowledge that I have represented their views fairly - but it is also my hope that I can appropriately demonstrate how these core views compare with the Biblical prescriptions.

AUTHORITY

The foundational difference between Roman Catholicism and Protestantism is Authority. Roman Catholics regard a particular tradition (those decisions and decrees made by Church Councils and the College of Cardinals) as having (at least) equal authority to that of Scripture. Since Christ gave the "keys" of 'the Kingdom' to the Apostle Peter, who Catholics assert was the first Pope, it stands to reason that these 'keys' are a metaphor for the authority of Christ. Catholic scholar, Dr. Jeffrey Mirus, Ph.D., states-

In one sense, to establish that Christ empowered the popes of the Roman Catholic Church to act as his vicars is sufficient to establish everything else about Christianity, including the foundation of the Church. It is far easier for most of us to perceive the necessity of a Church, however, than to perceive the precise structure or exercise of authority within that Church. Therefore it is expedient to consider precisely how authority is exercised within the Catholic Church, especially with reference to the primacy of the popes. In this way, we will find the surest means to learn all the truths, which God would teach to men.

The traditional assertion of Catholics in this matter is that each pope has the totality and supremacy of the power Christ left on earth for the building up of the kingdom of God. The pope is said to have the plenitudo potestatis, or fullness of power. His authority, direct from Christ after the manner of a vicar, extends equally directly to each man, woman and child committed to his care, namely all men.
THE AUTHORITY OF THE POPE, catholicculture.org

Romans Catholics believe that it was the foundation of authority invested in the first "vicar" (substitute for Christ) that forms the entire basis for the existence of the Roman Catholic Church and every doctrine it espouses. In response to Protestant objections that Scripture is the highest authority, Catholics are quick to point out that it was the original Bishops of the Church who officially sanctioned the Canon of Scripture, thus making them a higher authority than the Bible. But this is actually a non-sequitur. Upon what does the Roman Catholic Church base its foundational teaching (the supreme authority of the Pope)? They cite Matthew 16:18-19 ("And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.") as the documented source of their foundational teaching. But in order to do this, the authority of this Scripture must have precedence. Therefore, the Roman Catholic Church's claim is actually negated by the source of its claim!

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