June 21, 2023
Many books have been written in support of or against the Roman Catholic Church. This brief article is an attempt to explain why I am no longer a member of the Roman Catholic Church. I make no pretense that I will be able to convincingly state all the reasons why I do not believe that the Roman Catholic Church is Biblical. Furthermore, I am under no delusion that I will be able to convince Catholics to leave the errors of the Roman Catholic Church. I recognize and have myself felt strong ties to the Catholic Church, at one time. Family ties are one of those strong attachments. I grew up in a Catholic home, and almost everyone I knew growing up was a Catholic. It seemed that nearly everyone in my life, whom I cared about, was a Catholic. Also, I was told that the Roman Catholic Church was the one true church and that there was no salvation outside of the church. This helps explain why it is so tough for a Catholic to leave the Roman Catholic Church.
It needs to be said at the outset that I love Catholics even though I do not embrace their religion or doctrines. Many fine Catholic people are some of the nicest individuals you can imagine. I have nothing against them. I am for them and wish to share Biblical truth with them. Many do not know much about the Bible. My critique is of the Roman religion and its leadership. Also, I write about my disagreements with other religions, not just the Catholic faith. And that includes Protestant and Evangelical church doctrines.
This is an immense subject because the Roman Catholic Church is vast in its influence around the world over many centuries. I intend to write about the influence of the Catholic Church in the areas of theology, politics, history, and culture. I will begin with what I believe to be the most important of all the errors of the Roman Catholic Church. This false teaching gives birth to every other false (unbiblical) teaching in the Roman Catholic Church. It is the foundation. It is how (and why) the Roman Catholic Religion presents a false gospel, a false Jesus, a false Mary, and a false view of Christianity.
Final authority
The Roman Catholic Church believes that its Magisterium and oral tradition are equal to or even of more authority than the written Word of God, the Bible. Likewise, the Mormon, the Jehovah’s Witnesses, and the Old Testament religion of the Pharisees all believe that tradition or extra-biblical writings trump the Word of God. All these groups use oral tradition or the teachings of the elders to add to or subtract from the written Word of God. By the way, the Bible expressly forbids adding to and subtracting from the written Word of God. Consequently, within these cultic groups, there is no unchanging absolute standard of truth. The Roman Catholic Church and most other Christians agree that the Bible is the God breathed word to us all. However, the Roman Catholic Church, like the Mormons, also believes that its traditions are equally or even more important than the written Word of God. That is how they have created a different Mary, a different Jesus, a different gospel, and a different salvation from the Word of God handed down to us by the apostles. Their “truth” is fluid. God, who is truth, is not constantly changing what is truth.
The Roman Catholic Church teaches that, as the one true Church in the line of apostolic succession from Peter, only it has the authority to interpret the Holy Bible. In other words, the Roman Catholic Church can make the written Word of God say whatever it wants. If someone disagrees with their interpretation of the Bible, they are considered cursed because only the Roman Catholic Church claims to hold apostolic authority. Untold numbers of Bible-believing Christians have been murdered by the Roman Catholic Church over the centuries because they refused to accept the unbiblical teachings of the Church.
The Roman Catholic Church doesn’t believe in our right and duty of private judgment. They think that men and women should blindly trust them and disregard what their reason and conscience tell them. Even when they read the written Word of God for themselves, they must not presume to think differently from the orthodox interpretation of the Roman church. That explains why the Roman Catholic Church, using the false premise of apostolic succession and the papacy, kept the written word of God from the laity for such long periods. It is still out of reach to the nominal Catholic because only the Pope and the church are authorized to interpret the Bible.
A few quick examples that oral tradition is not equal to the scriptures in authority. The Apostle Paul wrote to the church he founded in Ephesus, known as the Epistle to the Ephesians. Years later, Jesus Himself rebuked the church in Ephesus in Revelation 2 1-7. He said this,
“I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars: ……..Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do thy first works or else I come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.”
Jesus mentions that the Ephesians did not fall for false apostles but found them to be liars. How did they determine they were false apostles? They verified their words and actions with the words of Scripture, rather than following oral tradition or new teachings. Jesus rebuked them because they had deviated from Scripture’s foremost commandment, which is to love God, with all of their heart, soul, mind, and strength, “thou hast left thy first love.” Likewise, Jesus rebuked the Pharisees because they set aside the doctrines of God by their traditions. (See Matthew 15:3)
In the following verses, there is another example of those who would deviate from the Holy Scripture. “But I fear; lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtly, so your minds, should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye received another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him. For I suppose I was not a whit behind the very chiefest apostles.” 2 Corinthians 11:3-5, KJV, emphasis added.
Paul is stating that he was no less important than any other apostle, including Peter, the supposed Vicar of Christ and first Pope. If Peter was the Vicar of Christ, Paul knew nothing about it. Paul is also telling them to watch and be careful for false apostles, prophets, and teachers will come preaching a different or another Jesus, a different or another spirit, a different or another gospel. They were to rest on the authority of Holy Scriptures, which were given to the body of Christ (His church) through the apostles. They were not to accept the new teachings of the elders, or traditions of men who called themselves apostles, prophets, or teachers. They were to reject all who contradicted the Holy Word of God and the apostles who were anointed and commissioned by Christ.
“For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore, it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.” 2 Corinthians 11:13-15.
Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light, just like some men are transformed into false apostles of Christ. Traditions of men and words from “God”, which contradict His written revelation, can’t be trusted. Only the written Word of God can be trusted. Jesus never used the traditions of men to establish His authority whereas the Pharisees constantly used traditions as their primary source of authority. Jesus said that they made void the word of God by their traditions. He rebuked them as they taught as doctrines of God, the traditions of men. (Matthew 15:2-6)
God inspires all scripture, and anyone who adds to or subtracts anything from it is under divine judgment. That is not me being judgmental; that is what the God of the Bible proclaims. Adding additional books or the teachings/traditions of the elders to the Bible as authoritative is cursed by God. God closed the canon of scripture many centuries ago, yet there are churches today who presume to “update, clarify, change, reduce, and expand” what was once for all delivered to us as Holy Scripture. The Mormons have added five additional books to their list of authoritative books. The Roman Catholic Church, with the Pope as the head of the church, adds to and subtracts from the Holy Bible regularly. In this short article, you will read about many such changes.
The final authority for all Christians should be the Word of God and not the traditions of men or the teaching of their denomination. A Christian’s final authority is not the interpretations of other men but the Word of God and their conscience. We give up our right and duty of private judgment at the peril of our souls.
The Pope
It might surprise many Catholics to know that 1) there is no direct line of papal succession from Peter as the first pope down to the present pope, and 2) the doctrine of Papal Infallibility is very recent. According to one commentator and contrary to the Church of Rome, the first recognized Pope was Pope Gregory 1 in 590 AD until he died in 604 AD. According to non-Catholic sources, this first real Pope incorporated the pagan doctrine of purgatory into Catholic beliefs. Moreover, it was by this man that much of the corruption of the Roman Church gained steam. The Catholic Church, in its list of “popes”, cobbles together the names of bishops or elders in Rome and calls them popes. The Bible refers to the title of Bishop, and the Bishop was the leader of a local church, an overseer, or an elder. But none of these Bishops in Rome claimed the office of Pope or thought they were the Pope over the entire Christian people around the world. These were leaders of local Christian groups (house churches) in many cities, just like in the City of Rome. Neither is there an unbroken line of Popes dating back to Peter. There were periods in history when there was no Pope or multiple Popes at the same time. There never was an unbroken line from Peter to today, except in the minds of Catholic theologians.
Furthermore, Peter never thought of himself as being the pope, the Vicar of Christ on earth. The other apostles and early church fathers never thought of Peter as the first pope. The Bible, when listing the offices in the Church of Christ, mentions apostles, prophets, teachers, and so on, but never mentions the supposed office of the pope. Given the supreme importance of the role of the Pope, it is a great mystery and must be an oversight by God that the written Word of God forgot to mention this critical office of the Pope. Wouldn’t you agree?
“And He gave some; apostles, and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some pastors and teachers.” Ephesians 4:11. You will search in vain to find the role of Pope anywhere in scripture as an office like an apostle, prophet, or teacher. The office of the Pope is following tradition and teachings of men, not of God. (You will read later in this article that this is an office created by the Roman emperor when Rome ruled the world).
The dogma of papal infallibility asserts that the Pope, when he speaks ex cathedra, is preserved from the possibility of error on doctrine. (You will soon see this is not true.) This authority was initially given to the apostles and handed down through tradition and the scriptures according to the Church of Rome. This doctrine was not made official until the First Vatican Council in 1870. If papal infallibility was so essential, why did it take about 1,800 years to be recognized? This dogma is nothing but the tradition of the Roman Church made law by the same. The Immaculate Conception of Mary and the Assumption of Mary are two examples of the Pope speaking ex cathedra. I do not think there is a specific list of all the ex cathedra pronouncements ever given. If there is such a list, I am unaware of its existence. But did Jesus make Peter the first pope? If not, then the entire idea of papal succession and papal infallibility is unbiblical.
“He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father, which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, Thou art Peter (a stone), and upon this rock, I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” Matthew 16:15-18, emphasis added. See next verse.
“And he brought him to Jesus, And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone.” John 1:42, emphasis added
In Matthew, Jesus is not saying to Peter that upon Peter (A stone), He will build His church, but upon God Almighty, The Rock, He will build His church. Jesus uses two different Greek words in this passage. One means a rock and the other a stone. God is, in scripture, referred to as the rock of our salvation, not Peter or any man. Jesus said You are Peter, a stone, and upon this Rock, Himself as the Christ of God, will He build His church. Peter recognized that Jesus was the Christ. That profession of faith in Jesus as the Christ is the rock being referred to, not Peter, a stone.
Jesus did not contradict Himself. Jesus said Peter was a stone in the gospel of John. In the gospel of Matthew, Jesus said He would build His church on the rock (Himself), not Peter the stone. Moreover, the “church” Jesus refers to is not an institution or a building but the body of true believers throughout the ages. The gates of hell will not prevail against this “body of believers”. It has nothing to do with the Roman Catholic Church/organization or any other Church denomination.
Catholics insist that the rock is Peter, but that is not what the Bible teaches. Throughout the scripture, the rock, including the Old Testament, represents God Himself. The rock is not any man, including any apostle or prophet. Remember that after this declaration by Jesus, His ascension into heaven, and the giving of the Holy Spirit, Paul rebuked Peter. The first Pope, according to the Catholic Church, was corrected by Paul for his sin. Paul focused much of his work on the Gentiles as an apostle to the Gentiles. Peter’s focus was on the Jews. Paul wrote most of the New Testament, not Peter. If any man might be considered the central leader of the early Church, which had a significant outreach to the Gentiles, all these points to Paul and not Peter. Jesus never told Peter or Paul or any man that He would build His church upon a man. How prideful and arrogant this is to think that a man could be the rock (foundation) on which God Almighty would build His church. No apostle or prophet or any person has what it takes to be Christ’s Vicar on earth. The very thought of it is so ridiculous that it is almost laughable. The only one capable of this is God Himself. The only one qualified is God Himself.
Jesus told Peter he was a stone, not the rock. (John 1:42) Clearly, Jesus was telling Peter that He would build His Church on our confession and belief that Jesus Christ is the Messiah of God. History shows that some Popes have been among the most wicked individuals, proving they were fallible and sinful. These evil Popes often acted more like representatives of Satan than of Jesus. Were these Popes the Vicar of Christ or the Vicar of Satan? The evidence points to the latter. I might add, God is not foolish and would never entrust His “Church” to any man because He knows what dwells within man. It’s hard to believe that a rational person could accept the idea that an all-wise, all-knowing, and omnipotent God would choose a sinful man as the Vicar of Christ. Sadly, few people think deeply about matters of faith.
The Roman Catholic Church gives the title of Holy Father to the priests of Rome, including the Pope. But the Bible explicitly tells us not to call any man father, for we have only one Holy Father, God the Father. Catholic doctrine also states that the Vicar of Christ, the Pope, is the ruler of the entire world. The Pope claims authority over all nations and their leaders. If the Pope could enforce this doctrine, the world would be a much different and darker place. Think of the times in history when the Roman Catholic Church had more power, such as during the Inquisition and the Crusades. The more power the Roman Catholic Church wields, the more brutal and authoritarian it becomes.
As we consider the supposed infallibility of the Pope, let us review what the Pope, the Vicar of Christ on this earth, believes concerning the Muslim faith. The Pope says that Muslims and Catholics serve the same creator god. They may serve the same god, but it is not the God of the Bible. (Some evangelicals claim the same thing about Muslims and evangelicals serving the same god). In the Quran (Koran), it states that Jesus Christ didn’t rise from the dead. The Muslim Jesus was a prophet of Allah but not the Son of God. The Muslim Jesus is not the Son of God, for Allah has no son. Yet Jesus Himself declared that He was the only begotten Son of God. The Muslim God (Allah) rejects the Christian doctrine of one God in three persons. Let the apostle John rebuke the Pope and the Muslim (and evangelicals).
“Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is anti-christ, that denieth the Father and the Son. Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: but he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also. 1 John:22,23
While the Muslims may pay lip service to Abraham and Jesus, it is not the Abraham and Jesus of the Bible. Allah has no son according to the Quran. Jesus came into the world as the Son of God. I repeat, the Pope and Muslims may indeed serve the same god, but it is not the God of the Bible. It is not the one true God. This is just one example of how the Pope contradicts the Word of God and never blinks an eye because he believes he has the authority to determine truth. He does not; only God does.[1] (See my three articles on the religion of Islam).
The Roman Catholic Church has a priesthood, but the Bible teaches the priesthood of the believer. We do not need to confess our sins before a Catholic priest; we go directly to God because Jesus made the way. In the Old Testament, the Jews had a line of priests who ministered for the people before God. They had access to God through the priests who officiated the sacrifices. When Jesus died, the curtain in the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. We believers, in the New Testament, have direct access to God; we are the priesthood of the believers.
More False Doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church
The following are some additional reasons why I am no longer a Catholic. This list is not meant to cover every error of the Roman Catholic Church, just the ones I believe are the most egregious.
The unbiblical dogmas pertaining to Mary, the mother of Jesus.
Many ordinary Catholics say that they do not worship Mary. But they do venerate her, kneel before her, pray to her, and hold her in the highest regard. They do worship her, as I will make clear. It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a Catholic to deny their idolatry of Mary. The leadership of the Catholic Church certainly goes well beyond what most ordinary Catholics believe. They make Mary more attractive than even God Himself. Catholics are told to pray to Mary as she has a mother’s heart, and Jesus will not deny her anything she asks. Mary is the central part of their rosary. More prayers are said to her in the Rosary than to God the Father.
Catholic leadership views Mary as a significant and integral part of salvation as co-redemptrix and co-redeemer. This is most assuredly a blasphemous dogma with no Biblical evidence whatsoever to support it, but much to condemn it. This dogma is right out of the pit of hell, in keeping with the ideas more fitting of goddess worship than the worship of Jehovah. In a real sense, they ascribe to Mary the prerogatives and attributes of deity. They believe it is through Mary that we receive grace and mercy, and through Jesus, we receive justice. They say, no one would be saved without Mary’s intercession and her help in redemption. The Bible rebukes that false doctrine by the following scriptures.
“Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” Acts 4:12. The apostle, who wrote the book of Acts, apparently didn’t know that Mary’s role was so critically important in the salvation of men and women. The author of the Acts of the Apostles states emphatically that there is only one name, not two names, whereby we must be saved, and that is the name of Jesus and not the name of Mary. Even the Holy Spirit of God points people to Jesus and not even Himself as a member of the Godhead. But Rome points people to Mary or Mary and Jesus. It is hard to understand how anyone who names the name of Jesus Christ could believe such a wicked lie. Jesus Christ alone is the focal point of all history. To Him be all the glory, honor, and worship. Mary should not even be mentioned in the same sentence. That is not to denigrate the special role she had and the honor due her as the mother of Jesus.
“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6. Jesus said He, not Mary, is the only way, the only truth, and the only life, and that no man comes to the Father but by Himself. It seems that the Jesus of the Roman Catholic Church didn’t know that Mary also brings men and women to the Father by her intercession.
In multiple places in scripture, Jesus told His disciples that we should ask the Father or pray to the Father, in His name. How can the Church of Rome add the name of Mary? The Roman Church prays to Mary, but Jesus said we are to pray in His name, not Mary’s. Prayers to Mary are not heard by God the Father or God the Son. Only prayers in Jesus Christ’s name, not Mary’s, are heard by the Father.
The Catholic Church believes Mary was conceived without the stain of Original Sin. In other words, her conception was immaculate. However, she is not an immaculate conception. This doctrine is necessary because they believe in Original Sin, whereby all Adam’s descendants incur his guilt and are born with a sinful nature. Without this dogma, Jesus would inherit a sinful nature from Mary. That can’t happen hence the immaculate conception of Mary and therefore of Jesus. Much more should be said on this subject, but it will need to wait for another time.
The Catholic Church also believes that Mary was sinless, that she is ever virgin, and that she was assumed up into heaven without seeing corruption of her body. None of this is Biblical. Roman Catholic Church leaders, over time, make this stuff up out of thin air. This is why tradition and the teaching of “church” leadership must be by scripture, or it must be rejected.
Mary and Joseph had children of their own after Jesus was born. She was not, ever-virgin. In the book of Matthew, it is written that Mary had other sons and daughters. (Matthew 13:5-6). The Roman Catholic Church says these are merely cousins, but the word for cousins is not used. The word for son and daughter is used. Mary was a virgin until after the birth of Jesus. Then Mary and her husband, Joseph, had children. But the Roman Catholic Church believes that Mary was ever virgin. Furthermore, they believe Mary gave birth to Jesus, not through the birth canal as other women, but miraculously. If she were in any way harmed physically by the birth of Jesus, as is the case in all births, they think that negates her perfection. After Jesus was born miraculously, Mary and Joseph never lived as a married couple; Mary was ever a virgin. All this is unbiblical and demonstrates why tradition must not be allowed to change the written Word of God. Our final authority must be the Word of the Living God and not tradition or the teaching of the “church.”
Mary did not believe she was sinless, and the Bible does not say she was perfect or without sin. She needed a Savior just like everyone else. In Luke 1:47, it says, “And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my savior.” Mary understood that she also needed a Savior, contrary to Roman Catholic teachings.
The Roman Catholic Church teaches that both Jesus and Mary were sinless, without original sin, and lived lives of permanent sinlessness or perpetual perfection. The Bible explicitly teaches that Jesus Christ alone (Mary had no part in our redemption), is the savior of mankind. Jesus was tempted as we are, but never sinned. There is no such Biblical testimony regarding Mary’s supposed sinlessness. Jesus and not Mary died on the cruel Roman cross for our sins. Neither Jesus nor Mary needed a savior according to the Roman Catholic Church. Some Catholic theologians believe that at three years old, Mary went into the temple and gave all of herself to God. And she vowed perpetual virginity as a child. The holy child was perfect and lived in sinless perfection. But this is not the testimony of the Bible. More false traditions of men and more adding to the Word of God in violation of God’s commands.
Catholics also believe Mary is the mother of God and the queen of heaven. These are more attempts to deify Mary. God has no mother or father. God is spirit and eternal. God has no beginning and no end. The man, Jesus, had a mother, Mary. The Holy Spirit of God was the Father. Jesus Christ is the God-man. He was a real man and God at the same time. I, too, believe that the idol “Mary,” the Roman Catholic Church has created, is the queen of heaven. The queen of heaven is talked about in scripture.
“The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead their dough, to make cakes to the queen of heaven and to pour out drink offerings unto other gods, that they may provoke me to anger. Do they provoke me to anger? Saith the Lord: do they not provoke themselves to the confusion of their own faces?” Jeremiah 7:18-19.
“As for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the LORD, we will not harken unto thee. But we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our mouth, to burn incense unto the queen of heaven, and to pour our drink offerings unto her, as we have done, we, and d our fathers, our kings, and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem: for then had we plenty of victuals and we well off, and saw no evil. But since we left off to burn incense to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, we have wanted all things, and have been consumed b the sword and by the famine.” Jeremiah 44:16-18
Who is this queen of heaven that the Jews were worshipping? According to Wikipedia, she was a sky-goddess (hosts of heaven, the sun and moon), such as Inanna, Anat, Isis, Nut, Astarte, Ashtaroth, and Asherah in Jeremiah’s day, who were known as the queen of heaven. In Greco-Roman times, Hera and Juno bore this title. Under Rome’s rule, there were different names, but the same mother/son pagan goddess worship.
Mother/child worship is common in antiquity. The Jews worshipped Baal and Ashtaroth. Baal was the virgin-born son of the goddess, Ashtaroth. Baal was the resurrected son of the goddess. What was so wrong with this female goddess/son worship? It included all manner of sexual perversions and the sacrificing of their babies/children to Baal. God destroyed the nation of Israel for these sins. The mother goddess went by many names throughout the centuries. The cakes the Jews were making were for the queen of heaven, the mother of the son, Baal. She was Semiramis, Ashtaroth, Astarte, Isis, and so on. The period began in the 9th century BC and continued through the Roman Empire during the time of Jesus Christ. The Ephesians called her Diana in the time of Paul.
Ezekiel 8:14 says the following, “So He brought me to the door of the north gate of the Lord’s house; and to my dismay, women were sitting there weeping for Tammuz.” Semiramis, the mother goddess, alone could bring peace with the gods through the sacraments and offerings made to her. Her virgin-born son, Tammuz, was slain by a wild boar, and then he was resurrected from the dead 40 days later. If the woman would enter a 40-day time of weeping, her blessing would come. By the time of Christ, this pagan cult of worshiping a goddess or son had so influenced Roman life that the Caesars were not only crowned as Emperors of Rome, but were also called the Pontifex Maximus. That means Caesars were also the high priest of the pagan Roman worship of Venus, the fertility goddess, and her son, Cupid. The Pope of the Roman Catholic Church still uses the title of Pontifex Maximus. This is the same Babylonian pagan goddess/son worship. During the centuries after Christ, the Roman priests of Tammuz discovered they could easily make the transition into Christianity. And under Constantine, this process began when he made Christianity a state religion. Over time, church leadership renamed the mother/child pagan goddess worship: Mary and her son Jesus. (YouTube video, Pagan Roots of Roman Catholic Beliefs, DTBM.)
Forms of goddess worship and names varied, but the God of the Bible condemned all of it. Knowing this, the Roman Catholic Church still gave Mary the title of the Queen of Heaven. Why? Because Jesus is called the King of the Jews, and every King needs a queen. It is easy to end up in a dark place with all this wicked thinking. God condemned all this. Today, goddess/son worship continues, but the female goddess is now named “Mary, the queen of heaven and mother of God,” and her sacrifices are not bloody as they once were. The sacrifice of the Mass is an unbloody sacrifice of the Son. It is a blend of paganism and a bit of Christianity. That is the way of the Roman Catholic Church, the blending of paganism and Christianity.
Mary’s Assumption in 1950 became church doctrine. Why did it take so long? If Popes are the Vicar of Christ, one would think that such vital truths would be known immediately. Mary ascended into heaven immediately after death so that she did not undergo any corruption like mere mortals. This thinking goes way back to the 5th century, I believe, when it was considered heretical. Praying to Mary came early, also.
The magazine Newsweek published an article in the late 1990s about the Trinity turning into the Quartet (Father, Son, Holy Spirit, and Mary). It is easy to see how Mary has become at least equal to, if not superior to, Jesus. Some Catholics say that they don’t believe that Mary is divine, but Roman Catholic leadership talks as if she is the fourth member of the Godhead. They believe and teach that Mary must cooperate with Jesus, or none of us would be saved. They think that without Mary’s intercession, we would not be saved.
Have you ever noticed that “Mary” keeps appearing in apparitions? There are lots of them, over 300 individual visions, some approved by the Roman Catholic Church, while others are not approved, at least not yet. Millions of lost souls have made this worship of Marian shrines and apparitions idolatrous in every respect.
According to the Roman Catholic Church, God never gives grace except through Mary’s intercession. Mary is harmless and compassionate, whereas Jesus is hard and challenging. Go to Mary first, and she will save you. Jesus can’t resist Mary, and Mary can’t resist you because she is so compassionate. God is cold and hard, but Mary is soft and tender. Jesus only gives grace through Mary and no one else. Mother of all grace and mercy is Mary. It is hard not to believe that this is nothing but pagan goddess worship with a new name. In Catholicism, the true God is reinvented as judgmental and harsh, but Mary, the Queen of heaven, the mother of God, is soft and compassionate. Mary gets everything she asks for, and Jesus never denies her anything-ever. Who really rules in heaven? Certainly not the Jesus Christ of the Bible, the King of the Jews, if the Roman Catholic Church is correct.
The unbiblical dogma of the sacrifice of the Mass and the Eucharist (transubstantiation)
The Bible proclaims that Jesus Christ died once, for all sin, for all mankind. You will also notice that this passage, which follows, states emphatically that Jesus, not Mary, “ever liveth to make intercession for them.” Rome teaches that Mary has this intercessory role, but the Word of God says that this role belongs to Jesus Christ, our high priest. There is only one high priest and it is not Mary.
“By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament. And they truly were many priests, because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death; But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them. For such a high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for his own sins and then for the people’s; for this he did once, when he offered up himself.” Hebrew 7:22-27
The old covenant priests made sacrifices daily for their sins and the sins of the people, but Christ put an end to that by the once-and-for-all sacrifice of Himself. The Roman Catholic Church has incorporated the old covenant priesthood into its religious system in contradiction to the Word of God. The systems may not be identical in every way, but the similarity is undeniable. Christ died once for all, and therefore any system that claims a daily continued sacrifice is false to the core. It is also an explicit denial of the sufficiency and efficacy of the blood of Jesus Christ. What an affront that must be to Jesus Christ and His Holy Father. Scripture clearly says that Christ suffered once, not often. Yet in the sacrifice of the Mass, the Roman Catholic Church claims that Jesus is sacrificed and suffers again and again each time the Mass is said. Understandably, many Bible believing Christians view this as a horrible, damnable, and blasphemous doctrine. Note: There are evangelical churches that teach the same denial of the adequacy of the blood of Christ. They do not believe that a Christian can or will cease from the practice of sin. In other words, the blood of Christ is insufficient to cleanse us from habitual sin. In this case, they are no different from the Roman Catholic Church’s denial that Jesus needed to die only once for all sins. In the Mass, Jesus dies each time the Mass is said.
“For Christ is not entered into the holy place made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us; Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others; For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world; but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment: So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.” Hebrews 9:24-28
The verse below from Hebrews chapter ten repeats it. Christ died once for all sin for all mankind. This ends the “every priest standeth daily ministering and offering often the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins.” But the priests of Rome stand daily at their fake altar, sacrificing a fake Jesus every day, not understanding that their fake offering can never take away sins. How sad and how wicked to trample underfoot the truth of God and the once and for all sacrifice that Jesus Christ made for us.
“By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering often times the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins; But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever; sat down on the right hand of God; From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his foot stool. For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified.” Hebrews 10:10-14
Contrary to all these passages, the Roman Catholic Church believes that priests of Rome, in the sacrifice of the mass, literally bring Jesus down from heaven and crucify Him again and again each time a mass is said and in every place where the mass is said. The Jesus of the Catholic Church dies many times each day in literally thousands of locations. According to the Roman Church, the Eucharist (wafer and wine) literally becomes the body and blood of Jesus, and that Catholics literally eat Jesus’ body and drink His blood (literally, not figuratively). This is the Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation, which was made a doctrine by the church in 1215. In 1226, the host was officially called God and worshipped. Still is today. If that isn’t idolatry, then what is? If this is not a perfect example of the corrupting influence of the traditions of men making void the Word of God, then what is?
Every thinking person should easily understand that Jesus Christ is not subject to the authority of the Roman Catholic priests and being literally crucified and eaten again and again in the mass. To think that a mere man, could call God down from heaven and sacrifice Him over and over again is beyond belief yet many do believe it. Is not this belief an abomination of the highest order?
How do we explain Jesus’s words, “As they did eat, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and brake it, and gave it to them, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. And he took the cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them; and they all drank of it. And he said unto them, this is my blood of the New Testament, which is shed for many.” Matthew 14:22-24. Elsewhere Jesus said that if we do not eat His flesh and drink His blood, we have no part in Him. Are sin and holiness physical substances? Do we become holy by eating the flesh of Jesus?[i]
This is obviously figurative language and should not be taken literally. In the Mosaic law, God prohibited the drinking of blood at any time and for any reason. God is not commanding us to become cannibals or vampires. That idea is abhorrent to most of us. The Roman Catholic Church often takes what is meant to be literal and interprets it figuratively. Conversely, it sometimes takes a figurative expression and forces a literal interpretation, as in the passage just quoted.
Elsewhere, Jesus said I am the vine and you are the branches. Clearly, He is not a literal vine and we are not literal branches. As the vine gives life to the branches, Christ (The Word of God) gives life to His followers. Jesus said you are the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Clearly, these are all figurative expressions. Followers of Christ are not literal salt but have characteristics of salt in that salt cleanses, preserves, and makes food taste better. Christ’s followers have the same characteristics. The Roman Catholic Church takes the creation story in Genesis, which is meant to be literal, and makes it allegorical, myth, or figurative. Jesus said I am the door. He is not a literal door hanging on literal hinges. But like a door, Jesus is the way to God the Father. He is the door to God the Father, and only through that door can anyone come to the Father. Mary has no part in it at all.
With the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD, the Jewish practice of daily sacrifices ended. Christ had died once for all time for all of mankind. Daily sacrifices were no longer appropriate, needed, or even possible when the temple was destroyed. Not according to Rome, for that system of daily sacrifices was eventually reinstituted with the ancient priesthood. Both of which were done away with. The Roman church mingles paganism and the Levitical priesthood with the idea of Christianity. They believe the priest of the Roman Catholic Church brings Jesus down from heaven on their command every time the mass is said. Mary only brought Jesus down once in the incarnation. They believe that priests are another “Christ” and they can forgive sins of the living and the dead who are in purgatory. Purgatory is another fiction of the Roman Catholic Church. Catholics can have masses said for both the living and the dead. There is often a fee for doing so. In 1100 AD, the beginning of the sale of the mass for a fee is marked. In about 1190 AD, the Roman Catholic Church started selling indulgences as well. All these have been very profitable. In 1229, it became illegal and sinful for the laity of the Church to read the Bible. The traditions of men are being added to the word of God, in direct contradiction to the commands of God.
The Council of Trent, convened by the Roman Catholic Church, was held in three sessions from 1545 to 1563 and was prompted by the Reformation. It further deepened and hardened the division between Catholics and Protestants. The Roman Church condemned to hell anyone who would not accept all Roman Catholic dogmas, including those who reject the Apocryphal books, written and unwritten traditions of the Catholic Church, and all the other dogmas mentioned.
In 593 AD, the pagan doctrine of purgatory was brought into the church. This concept was Canaanite in origin and taught in the worship of Baal. A discussion about the absurdities of purgatory will need to wait for another time. Purgatory is required in order to purge sinners of sin because the blood of Jesus Christ is not sufficient to do that. Their Jesus is a different Jesus.
The Roman Catholic Church has not changed its view of the 1545-1563 Council of Trent. It is still in force today. In 1962, the Second Vatican Council reaffirmed the Council of Trent’s pronouncements. In 1854, the Roman Catholic Church declared the Immaculate Conception of Mary. In 1870, the Pope was declared infallible. In 1950, the Church declared that Mary was bodily assumed into heaven on her death. I repeat myself, the traditions of men being added to the word of God, in direct contradiction to the commands of God.
The Catholic Mass is the source and summit of the Roman faith. It represents false sacrifices, on a false altar, by a false priest, in a false church. The Roman Catholic Church is mainly pagan with some Christianity thrown in to make it appear to be “Christian”. It is disguised as an angel of light, but is an angel of darkness according to scripture.
The Jesus of the Roman Catholic Church is not the Jesus of scripture. The Jesus Christ of the Mormons is not the Jesus Christ of Scripture. The Jesus of the Jehovah’s Witnesses is not the Jesus of the Bible. They all claim to worship Jesus Christ of the Bible, but they most assuredly do not. They use the same name but serve a different God.
The Roman Catholic teaching about salvation is contrary to what the Bible teaches.
The Roman Catholic Church believes in Infant Baptismal Regeneration. The Catholic Church has murdered untold numbers of Christians for refusing to believe in the dogma. For the Catholic, this is how a person is born again: baptism. The Catholic Church believes that a Catholic receives grace by taking the sacraments of the Roman church and by good works. A Roman Catholic can never really have assurance of salvation. Like many Protestant Churches, the Roman Catholic Church is a religious system of “form over substance.” Rituals, the prayers of the Rosary, attendance at church, taking of communion, going to confession, giving to the church, taking the sacraments, and so on, are easily substituted for a heart change and becoming a new creation in repentance and faith. ‘Form over substance’ fits well with the Catholic system of indulgences, confession, penance, and church sacraments. However, Jesus said first make the inside of the cup clean, and then it will be clean on the outside as well. Catholicism is all about cleaning the outside of the cup, and leaving the inside unclean, ‘form over substance’. But the real gospel of Jesus Christ is a new creation, not a somewhat cleaned-up religious person, but a new creation—one who has a new heart. “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things have passed away and all things have become new.” The new birth, regeneration, or salvation is conditioned on faith and repentance. We are saved by grace through faith and that not of ourselves, lest any man should boast. Unfortunately, many Protestants, Baptists, and others teach a faith without virtue, which is equally false along with the Roman Catholic view. The Roman Catholic Church believes that faith plus good works are necessary for salvation, but that doesn’t necessarily mean a new creation and a new heart. The typical Pharisee is an excellent example of a religious perfectionist who is not a new person in Christ and is not saved. The gospel of Jesus Christ is about receiving grace through faith that produces good works, which come from a new heart by the Spirit of God. A new heart is humbled and repentant. The new birth and the new heart are ‘substance over form’. The Roman Catholic Church system is ‘form/ritual over substance’.
Brief history of the Roman Catholic Church
The apostles spread the gospel of Jesus Christ throughout their lives. Some of their writings exist today in the New Testament. Their travels took them to the far ends of the earth. After all these men died, their disciples or the early church “fathers” continued to spread the gospel. Some of these names are titled Apostolic Fathers: Clement of Rome, Ignatius of Antioch, Polycarp of Smyrna, Papias of Hierapolis, and Quadratus of Athens. The Apostolic Fathers yield the following dates on Wikipedia. It states that Clement of Rome (c. 35-99) was bishop of Rome from 88-99; Ignatius of Antioch (c. 35-110); Polycarp of Smyrna (c. 69-155); Papias (c. 60-130); and Quadratus (c. died 129). Other important names in early Christian history are Tertullian, who was born around 160 AD and died around 220 AD; Origen, who was born about 185 AD and died around 254 AD; and Augustine of Hippo, who was born in 354 AD and died in 430 AD. There are many other important names that I intentionally left out. I just listed a few that many of us have heard of. During this time (the first three centuries after Christ), Christians were persecuted by the Romans and others. Often that persecution was just local, and sometimes general. The Roman Empire was disintegrating from within and without during these turbulent times. Initially, the Christian Church was dealing with the religion of Judaism, pagan Rome, and persecution. Soon enough, it was also dealing with false teachers and false teaching during these first few centuries. It is a fascinating history.
Constantine, AD 280-337, the emperor of Rome starting in 306, eventually made Christianity a legal religion of the Roman Empire. Christianity, along with all the other pagan gods, was now acceptable. His conversion story is interesting. At the Battle of the Milvian Bridge, in a battle with another Roman ruler like himself, Constantine’s vision/dream about how to win the fight came true. Just before this battle, he had a dream or vision in which he saw the symbol for Chi-Rho or the Christogram. He was instructed to put this on his banners, and in doing so, he would win the battle. After he won this battle, he made Christianity licit. Before this time, it was illicit. The Edict of Milan in 313 made Christianity legal and a legitimate form of worship along with all the other pagan religions of the Roman Empire. Was Constantine anything more than just a nominal Christian? History records that he killed his son after his conversion. Does a murderer have eternal life abiding in him? Not according to God’s word.
The Council of Nicaea, in 325, was presided over by Constantine. This council defined some Christian doctrine regarding the Holy Trinity and the deity of Jesus Christ. The Arain heresy was addressed and condemned. This false belief stated that the deity (Jesus Christ) could not take on sinful human flesh. Arain believed Jesus was a great and noble teacher, but that he was a created being, not God in human flesh. The council also removed several books from the canon of scripture.
Many believe, including me, that by making Christianity a state-sponsored religion, he diluted the true gospel by incorporating pagan Roman practices and ideas into Christianity. Much of this happened slowly. In the fourth century AD, the Emperor Constantine moved the capital of the Roman Empire to Constantinople, which he founded. This replaced the City of Rome as the imperial city. When the Western Roman Empire disintegrated in the 5th century, its lands were conquered by Germanic tribes, while the Eastern Empire lived on for nearly an entire millennium. As new states and nations grew in the West, the influence of the Roman Catholic Church and the Pope grew significantly in power and wealth. The emperors of the Holy Roman Empire, founded by the Frankish king, Charlemagne, in 800 AD, were crowned by the Roman Catholic Pope. This made their coronation and rule legitimate.
The theological disputes between Eastern and Western Christianity seem insignificant by today’s standards. In 1054, the church split (Great Schism) into the Eastern Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church of the West. The two leaders, Pope Leo IX and Patriarch Michael Cerularius, excommunicated each other. The church was split in two and has remained divided to this day. It would seem that the eastern branch might have an equal claim to apostolic succession.
The Dark Ages are about the 900 or so years of European history between the 400s and the 1300s, the 5th and 14th centuries. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the Dark Ages began. It is termed the Dark Ages due to the supposed decline in culture, knowledge, health, and science. The Roman Catholic Church became powerful, superstitious, and even more corrupt. Then in 1517, Martin Luther, a Catholic priest, published his 95 protests against Catholic abuses.
The eight major Crusades occurred between 1096 and 1291 AD. These were a series of religious wars between Christians (Catholics for the most part) and Muslims regarding the control of the holy land sites sacred to both religions. The Muslims started the war in their continued military expansion and forceful acquisition of lands, including the holy land.
The Inquisition by the Roman Catholic Church was meant to stop heresy within the church and the empire. The Inquisition repressed Jews, Muslims, and Bible believing Christians, Protestants. It was a shameful and evil practice by the Roman Catholic Church. It was one of the most grotesque in all church history. The Spanish Inquisition lasted from 1478 to 1834. Hundreds of thousands of people were harassed, tortured, and killed by the Roman Catholic Church.
Other Wars the Roman Catholic Church is partially responsible for.
The Roman Catholic Church’s role in starting wars or encouraging wars around the world will be considered very briefly in these pages. I suspect that there are so many examples of this nefarious work that it would take volumes to address them all. As far as I know, Rome has fomented many wars. They include our own Revolutionary War, the Civil War, the First and Second World Wars, and the Vietnam War, to name a few that come immediately to mind. (A Google search will reveal many smaller wars over the centuries.) Recall the Inquisition and the Crusades, as they too are examples of the Roman Catholic Church’s penchant for war and bloodshed.
One brief comment about Hitler and the Second World War. Without Catholic assistance from the Pope, Hitler would not have been able to secure dictatorial powers during the Second World War and embark on his genocidal campaigns. The then Pope was, for all practical purposes, silent about the murder of Jews and the Nazi’s in their murderous conquests. Not to be forgotten, the Vatican Ratlines helped free Nazi criminals after the war. The Church has never repented of its involvement. An infallible Church can’t admit that they were wrong.
The total number of those killed by the Roman Catholic Church is 50 million, according to Dr. William P. Grady. I take that number as his best estimate as an historian and researcher. Only God knows the exact number of people that the Roman Catholic Church has destroyed and all the evil perpetrated by this Church. Can this really be the “church” that the lamb of God started? May it never be.
Founding of the USA
Some of our most influential founders knew about the threat that the Roman Catholic Church, especially the Jesuits, posed to our constitution. Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and Professor Samuel F. B. Morse are three of them. And I quote, “Lamenting a resurgence of Jesuit activity, John Adams wrote to Thomas Jefferson in 1816: I am not happy about the rebirth of the Jesuits. Swarms of them will present themselves under more disguises ever taken by even a chief of the Bohemians, as printers, writers, publishers, school teachers, etc. If ever an association of people deserved eternal damnation, on this earth and in hell, it is the Society of Loyola.” (See Dr. Grady’s book, What Hath God Wrought, page 93.) By the way, the Jesuits have been expelled from around 80 nations over the years. Some let them back in to their regret. (See also Dr. Grady’s book, pages 226 through 231, which contain lengthy quotes from Secretary Thompson, Dr. Morse, and Thomas Jefferson warning us about the Roman Catholic Church and its plans to subjugate the United States to the Pope of Rome and overthrow our constitutional liberties).
The Jesuits were involved, according to some authors that I have read, in the assassination of two US presidents, one of whom was Abraham Lincoln. Of the four U.S. presidents who have been assassinated, two were likely murdered by the Jesuits of the Roman Catholic Church. One was a Catholic sitting President assassinated by his government (CIA, FBI?). Some of us find it hard not to ask the question, ‘What role, if any, did the Roman Catholic Church play in the assassination of JFK?’ We know that Catholics sometimes kill their own, so this is a natural question arising from the character of the Roman Church itself.
I highly recommend a book titled ”50 Years in the Church of Rome”, by Charles Chiniquy. This long-time Catholic Priest, who after 50 years of being a priest, could no longer put up with the evil in the Church, so he left the church. He was sure that the Jesuits were the ones who masterminded the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. He was not alone in that assessment.
This is what President Abraham Lincoln said, “If I were fighting against a Protestant South, as a nation, there would be no danger of assassination. The nations that read the Bible fight bravely on the battlefields, but they do not assassinate their enemies. The pope and the Jesuits, with their infernal Inquisition, are the only organized powers in the world which have recourse to the danger of the assassin to murder those whom they cannot convince with their arguments or conquer with the sword.” (Dr. Grady’s book, pages 306, 307.) On April 14, 1865, Lincoln was murdered by John Wilkes Booth and other rabid Catholics under the leadership of the Jesuits, according to the good man, Charles Chiniquy, and others. Lincoln also said this, “If the American people could learn what I know of the fierce hatred of the priests of Rome against our institutions, our schools, our most sacred rights, and our so dearly bought liberties, they would drive them out as traitors.” Religious liberty, that our nation fought so hard to achieve, turns out to be a double-edged sword. Jesus said, A house divided against itself can’t stand. When we stop thinking we are wiser and more compassionate than God, there may be some hope for us.
In a letter to Catholic Bishops in England, Pope Pius praised King George III for the Revolutionary War against the United States. “The tyrant who invaded the 13 colonies and started the American Revolution was just another dupe of the Vatican.” (Dr. Grady’s book, page 96). I included this quote only to illustrate that the Church of Rome is involved in most of the conflicts around the world, particularly in areas where they have an interest or are located, such as in the USA.
William Penn once said, “If God will not govern us, then we will be ruled by tyrants.” The Bible says it this way, “The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.” Psalm 9:17. Politicians who forget God, and that is most of them, are the problem. If we let them rule over us, they will turn into tyrants. We are seeing it today with our own eyes. Our USA government is becoming a “banana republic.” President Joe Biden, a professing Roman Catholic, has weaponized the CIA, IRS, FBI, the White House, the DOJ, and all other governmental agencies against our constitution, against the God our founders made a covenant with, and against those citizens who believe in what the fathers of this nation tried to bequeath to us. These early settlers left the Roman Catholic oppression in Europe and England, hoping to find religious freedom in the new country of North America. The only way to do that was to leave their homes. Why? Because the Roman Catholic Church was the most dangerous threat to them, their loved ones, religious liberty and their lives. The Roman Catholic Church was and is a considerable threat to the real Church of Jesus Christ (body of Bible believing Christ followers). But the gates of hell will not prevail against the real Church of Jesus Christ. Neither the Roman Catholic Church nor any form of godless government will prevail against the true church of Jesus Christ.
The Roman Catholic Church was a supporter of the South in our Civil War. According to the men I have quoted, the Roman Catholic Church stands against our constitution, especially the First Amendment of religious freedom and a free press. The Roman Catholic Church doesn’t believe people should be able to choose their religion and doesn’t believe in private judgment or free speech. Or that we should obey our conscience before their church. Why is that? The Roman Catholic Church believes that there is only one church of Jesus Christ, and this is the Roman Catholic Church. And the Pope is the vicar of Christ on earth and speaks for God. Every other church is wrong because the Vicar of Christ on earth says so. The Roman Catholic Church expects everyone to obey the Pope and the church. The Roman Catholic Church must bind everyone’s conscience. No individual thinking allowed, and no reading of scripture on your own is tolerated. By that I mean, a Catholic can read the Bible all they want, but they can’t interpret it on their own. The Roman Catholic Church will tell them what scripture means.
Since the beginning of our nation, the Roman Catholic Church has had a plan to swamp the population of the USA with Catholics from around the world, especially those that will do Rome’s bidding. This is the opinion of the authors I am quoting in this article. I believe them. One example is the Irish in the 19th century and the large numbers who immigrated to the US. The Roman Catholic Church is opposed to birth control and abortion, not because it is a moral wrong, but because this is the only way the church can grow and gain ascendancy over the masses.
The Roman Catholic Church doesn’t evangelize. Therefore, they must grow by breeding and immigration. The Roman Catholic Church has also practiced forced conversions like the Muslims, convert or die. Some of our founders were very worried about the influx of new immigrants, who were poor and wicked Catholics, bringing with them moral decay, which they did. Take, for example, the Catholic Church’s practice of selling sin. For a price, determined by the Catholic Church, a Catholic could buy an indulgence for sinful practices. The result of such wickedness is to spread immorality. The Roman Catholic Church purposefully focused new immigrants into large cities so that they might gain political influence. It worked. It did not take too long before the political tide turned in favor of Catholics. Look today at the number of Senators, Supreme Court Justices, representatives, and leaders of various agencies, who are Catholics. Some do the bidding of Rome to some extent, while others are more cautious. Still, one wonders where their ultimate allegiance rests. If they are good Catholics, their ultimate loyalty is to the pope, the vicar of Christ on earth.
The Roman Catholic Church has its leaders, including Jesuits, involved in business, education, arts, entertainment, the media, health care, grade school, high school, and university education, federal and state politics, international affairs, and every other conceivable venue. Today, it is a powerful force in the United States.
How is it that the Roman Catholics say they are pro-life like their church, yet they vote for the Democratic Party, which is pro-choice? How does that make sense? The trend since JFK is that Catholics vote about 50% Democrat and 50% Republican based on social issues, mainly according to Dr. Grady. But that was not always the case, especially in the 19th century, when Roman Catholics voted Democrat primarily. How is it that we can have Catholic Senate Democrats and a Catholic President who is a Democrat, when their party supports baby killing until the moment of birth? These Catholics care very little about murdering babies in the womb. What kind of Christian is that? And if the Roman Catholic Church is so against baby killing, why is it that the church has not yet excommunicated these people? Explain that if you can.
In the mid-19th-century America, there were riots, just like today, in the large cities back east. Many of the riots were fomented by the Roman Catholic Church clergy and its parishioners. People died. The Roman Catholic Church is against freedom of conscience, freedom of religion, and freedom of speech. It is against our constitution. It is against the God of the Bible.
Fast forward to today, under Catholic President Biden. We have an open southern Border. What percentage of those illegal aliens will vote Democrat? What percentage is Roman Catholic? Many of us believe that the majority of illegal aliens are going to vote Democrat. Biden cares nothing about letting into our country drug dealers and evil people who traffic children, as long as he gets more votes. This has always been the plan of the Roman Catholic Church to take over Protestant America, according to Dr. Grady. Might this explain in part why the Roman Catholic Church has not excommunicated Biden and others?
Sexual scandals and abuses by the Roman Catholic Church
Sexual abuse of minors (pedophilia) by priests and nuns, both heterosexual and homosexual abuse, has been going on for many centuries. Only recently has it been exposed to the world. Some Catholics only see it dimly, because they do not want to believe that this abuse has always been part of their “holy church.” And they don’t want to think that many thousands of children and adults have been victims of their church and its evil leadership.
Sexual abuse of nuns by priests and other nuns has occurred within the Church. How many babies born by nuns have been killed or aborted and buried in convent yards? How many nuns have been killed?
Then there is the issue of priests sexually abusing women and children (both boys and girls) through the confessional. Books have documented these abuses. These are heartbreaking stories that reveal the cruel nature of the Roman confessional.
It would take many pages to discuss all the sexual abuses of just the last century. Sexual abuse cases are in as many nations in which the Catholic Church “ministers” in, which is very many, all over the world. There are tens of thousands of cases of abusing priests and nuns just within the last 150 years. If we went back through the entire history of the church, the number would be much larger. It would be staggering. God alone knows the real number. And we know that Catholic leadership did almost nothing to stop it and hold the guilty responsible. Leadership covered it up and, most likely, still does, at least to some extent. “What you do through others, you do yourself” is a maxim that pertains to this cover-up by the powers that be in the Roman Catholic Church, from the Pope down. Where does the buck stop, if not at the feet of the pontiff?
Recent estimates, by those within the church, are that between 50% to 60% of Roman Catholic priests are homosexual. That doesn’t mean all these priests are pedophiles or active homosexuals. But is the true Church of Jesus Christ overseen by a fraternity of homosexuals? If you think that is no problem, you do not know the God of Scripture. I would never attend or support any church that was run by those who embrace what God hates. To think that godless homosexuals lead the Church of Christ is an abomination and a fatal error.
Final comments
How does one make sense of all this information? We are not just talking about theological issues that don’t impact people. The Roman Catholic Church’s theology has spilled much blood over theological distinctives. We are addressing an organization that is multi-national, political, and a big business. It influences media, education at all levels, entertainment, and health care. It has its tentacles in all areas of life and culture in every nation in which it serves. That is true at least to some extent. In some countries, the influence of the Roman Catholic Church is pervasive and powerful. How can all this be understood from a Biblical viewpoint? Jesus said it well. He said a good tree can’t bring forth evil fruit, and a bad tree can’t bring forth good fruit, for a tree is known by its fruit. The Roman Catholic tree is a bad tree from its roots to its branches. That has been demonstrated in the following.
The corrupt root of the Roman Catholic Church is its claim to be the final authority. As such, the church alone determines the meaning of scripture and very often elevates its oral and written traditions above the Word of God. In short, the Roman Catholic Church is the source of truth, which is a lie. Just review the many dates supplied in this article for the traditions of men that have been made equal to or of greater importance than the Bible over these many centuries.
The corrupt trunk of the Roman Catholic tree is Papal succession and Papal Infallibility. The Pope claims to be Christ’s Vicar on earth, governing with His authority. This is another unbiblical position or lie.
From this root and trunk, we see all the corrupt branches of the Roman Catholic tree. These branches include the worship of Mary, the Roman Catholic priesthood, the sacrifice of the mass, the Eucharist, purgatory, the confessional, the sacraments, numerous cases of sexual abuse, bloodshed by the Roman Catholic Church, its political influence worldwide, and every other false teaching of the Church.
Although I did not mention it, we also need to recognize the incredible wealth of the Roman Catholic Church. Its holdings in land, cash, art, gold, and other valuable assets are almost beyond measure. The entire world would be stunned if people knew how wealthy the Church truly is, especially considering the significant humanitarian needs worldwide.
“Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the Kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the Kingdom of God. And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, by ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.” 1 Corinthians 6:9-11. Emphasis added.
This New Testament passage clearly states that no one who practices idolatry will inherit the Kingdom of God. Idolaters will go to hell according to this and other scripture passages. What is idolatry?
“Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I am the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third generation of them that hate me”. Exodus 20:3-5
Israel worshiped many gods, including the one true God. They tried to worship and serve all of them, similar to what happens in the Catholic Church. The veneration of Mary is almost identical to worship, including bowing down and serving her, which God strictly forbids. The leaders of the Roman Catholic Church elevate Mary to the status of co-redeemer and co-savior. The church instructs Catholics to pray to Mary and ask her to intercede with God the Father, claiming her intercession is essential for salvation. Jesus never refuses anything Mary asks. However, that role belongs to Jesus Christ alone. In many ways, Mary is worshiped and venerated in direct violation of this command. My iPhone dictionary defines idolatry as “excessive or blind adoration, reverence, devotion, etc.” In theological terms, idolatry is excessive devotion to a false god, which is a god different from the one revealed in scripture. The depiction of Mary, Jesus, the altar, the priest, the mass, and the gospel of the Roman Catholic Church differs significantly from the Bible. One is the truth, and the other is a lie. I believe the Bible is the truth. All of Roman Catholicism is idolatrous. God forbade idolatry and destroyed the Jewish nation because of this sin. Worshiping the God of the Bible along with other gods is condemned. The Roman Catholic religion blends paganism with elements of Christianity. Idolatry always leads to lawlessness because it involves worshiping other gods. In the New Testament, it states that idolaters will not inherit the kingdom of God. That is a strong reason why I left the Roman Catholic Church.
These are the main reasons why I am no longer a Roman Catholic. When any religion strays from the truth of Scripture, this is what it looks like. I am for Roman Catholic people but not for lies. Jesus said the truth will set us free, not the Roman Catholic Church or any Church denomination. Mankind’s problem is our sin. Jesus Christ came to save us from, not in, our sins. Jesus said the truth will set us free from sin. I am for the truth and will go wherever that takes me. How about you?
[1] On July 11, 2023 it was reported that Pope Francis appoints men and women to create a “Synodal Church” that will affirm the LGBTQIA movement as part of the Roman Catholic Church. The Vatican says that a more Synodal Church will be open to ecumenical and interfaith wisdom. This is worldly wisdom and not wisdom from the God who created all things. This is another very clear example that the Pope is not the Vicar of Jesus Christ or the truth.
[i][i] Moses, Aaron and the 70 elders of Israel were instructed to come to God on the mountain. “And they saw the God of Israel:” Exodus Chapter 24:10. “And upon the nobles of the children of Israel he laid not his hand: also they saw God, and did eat and drink” verse 11. Seeing God, they did eat and drink God. They ate and drank in God figuratively not literally in a physically sense. The essence and holiness of God was a spiritual banquet and they did eat and drink. It seems to me that this is exactly what was going on with Jesus at the last supper when He said take and eat this is my body, take and drink this is my blood. Obviously, they did not eat His body and drink His blood. They were to feast on the spiritual reality of what Jesus was about to do for them and all mankind on the cross.
