Do Protestants not see that the infallibility of the Catholic Church is apostolic?
March 23, 2011 by refl
Filed under Church stained
The Church cannot teach error, because it was founded by Christ, God Himself. He sent forth His Apostles with full powers to preach His Gospel. He said. “As the Father has sent me, I also send you” (John 20:21). “I will ask the Father and he will give you another Advocate to dwell with you forever. . . . But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and bring to your mind whatever I have said to you” (John 14:16,26).
By the infallibility of the Catholic Church is meant that the Church, by the special assistance of the Holy Ghost, cannot err when it teaches or believes a doctrine of faith and morals.
Christ promised: “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and teach all nations … teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and behold, I am with you all days, even unto the consummation of the world” (Matt. 28:20). If Christ is with the Church all days, it cannot err in teaching; it cannot lead men away from God.
“Infallibility” is often distorted by enemies of the Church to mean “impeccability”, and therefore derided. Infallibility is freedom from error; impeccability is freedom from sin. In an institution established by God for the salvation of men, error in doctrine is unthinkable.
Every teacher in the Church, from the Pope down to the humblest priest, like all of the faithful, is capable of falling into sin. But in the Catholic Church, because of the promise of Infallibility, the Holy Ghost cannot permit the purity of a single doctrine to be stained.
Jesus Christ promised to preserve the Church from error. If His prediction and promises were false, then He would not be God, since God cannot lie. Christ said: “Thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build My Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” If therefore the Church falls into error, the gates of hell certainly would prevail against it.
Christ promised: “I will ask the Father, and he shall give you another Advocate to dwell with you forever … He will teach you all the truth” (John 14). If the Church can err, then the Holy Ghost cannot abide in it and Christ has failed to keep His promise-a thing absolutely impossible.
A doctrine of faith is something we must believe in order to be saved. A doctrine of morals is something we must do in order to be saved.
For example, we must believe the doctrine of the Blessed Trinity: that there are Three Divine Persons in One God. We must believe that Jesus Christ is God. We must believe in the Blessed Virgin Mary’s immaculate conception.
Of things we must do are these: we must go to Mass on Sundays and holydays of obligation; we must fast and abstain when our bishops so order; we must receive Holy Communion at least once a year. We must obey the Ten Commandments.
Jesus Christ commanded all men to listen to and obey the Church, under pain of damnation. If His Church can teach error, then He is responsible for the error, by commanding all to obey.
Jesus sent forth His Apostles with full powers to preach His Gospel: “As the Father hath sent Me, I also send you.” – “Make disciples of all nations teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” – “Preach the Gospel to every creature.”
Christ said: “He who believes and is baptized shall be saved; but he who does Hot believe shall be condemned” (Mark 16: 16). A just God could not command men under penalty of damnation to believe what is false. So the teaching of the Church must be infallibly true.
He said: “You shall be witnesses for me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and Samaria, and even to the very ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). Since it was physically impossible for the Apostles to preach to the whole world, the mission must have been intended also for their successors to the end of time, our Catholic Bishops and priests.
Christ said: “If he refuse to hear even the Church, let him be to thee as the heathen and the publican” (Matt. 18:17) “He who hears you hears me; and he who rejects you rejects me; and he who rejects me rejects him who sent me” (Luke 10:16) .
He said, “And whoever does not receive you, or listen to your words-go forth outside that house or town, and shake off the dust from your feet. Amen I say to you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that town” (Matt. 10:14-16).
No Christian denies that the Apostles were infallible. In fact, in the first century, they were the only authority in the Church. The Bible was not completed till the end of that century, not within reach of all.
But God loves the Christians of today as much as He did the primitive Christians. We have as much need of unerring teachers as they. The Apostolic Church of the 20th century must therefore be as infallible as the Apostolic Church.
An infallible Bible is no use without an infallible interpreter. History has proved this, in th
An infallible Bible is no use without an infallible interpreter. History has proved this, in the multiplication of the innumerable denominations that deny the infallibility of the Church. By infallibility, the faithful know exactly what to believe and what to do in order that they may be pleasing to God and save their souls. They have surety; they need suffer no doctrinal doubt.
It is a great blessing that, in the midst of the everchanging views of men and the conflict of human opinion, there is one voice crying out in unerring tones: “Thus saith the Lord.”
The catholic church is a lie, as seen here:
http://profiles.yahoo.com/blog/7J24IUEKOFVOOQVKN436CTL4TM?eid=5zeb2LczmnW4W4sULwh10Oj1T8lS6pf9OjqGpVHJMqSE.QWOWw
“The church” was founded in 33 ad at Pentecost in Jerusalem.
NOT in 333AD in Rome!
Sheesh
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I suppose the infallible church was correct in selling forgiveness for sins.
EXACLY AS JESUS SAID TO PETER YOU ARE ROCK AND ON THIS ROCK ILL BUILD MY CHURCH.
Catholicism isn’t Christian. They worship the pope when they should be worshiping Jesus, man made rules, teach works for salvation, added books to the Bible, worship statues and loads of other idolatry. It can’t save. Only Jesus can. Please pray a sincere prayer with all of your heart admitting to Jesus you are a sinner. Have full faith that His blood pays off all of your sins and accept His gift of everlasting life. I pray that God blesses you with peace. Amen.
Wow – as my granny would have said, “You’re really eat up with it, aren’t you?”
Yea, right. And if you had been born and raised in a Protestant household you would be arguing the opposing side.
the catholic church does not teach the scriptures it teaches false doctrine
as mary was immaculate and went to heaven that way
as pray to saints and mary
they teach a purgatory that the bible does not
they teach the priest can offer absolution for sin which the bible does not.
only god has infallibility not a church or a religion or any man.
I believe most Protestants get what you’re saying and choose not to endorse it. First, it means that they are required to put themselves under the authority of a guy in Rome that even most Catholic theologians chaff against. Second, the fact that papal teachings have consistently contradicted themselves over the centuries leaves one wondering how it is rational to continue to claim infallibility (Here I speak of the great divergence found in regard to teaching on religious freedom and the church’s connection with the state. I do believe it took John Courtney Murray and many others arguing rather pursuasively before the church dropped the thesis/antithesis stance on religious freedom). As a Protestant at a Catholic school, I simply leave class often being grateful that I am a Protestant, even though I appreciate my Catholic brothers immensely.
Galileo
Acts 2:38
Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
Gods Word ” The Holy Spirit ” is Infallible, NOT Man.
The Bible speaks of only one abiding, “tangible,” infallible guide left by God for His church. It is the written word of God, not an infallible leader (2 Timothy 3:15-17).
The Bible teaches that it is Scripture that is to be used as measuring stick to determine truth from error. In Galatians 1:8-9, Paul states that it is not WHO teaches but WHAT is being taught that is to be used to determine truth from error. And while the Roman Catholic Church continues to pronounce a curse to hell upon those who would reject the authority of the Pope, Scripture reserves that curse for those who would teach a different gospel than what had already been given and recorded in the New Testament (Galatians 1:8-9).
EDIT: The world’s biggest lie is the Papacy. The world’s 2nd biggest lie is evolution which is taught in the RCC.
Both of these teachings are not of God’s word, but are man made. Catholics have fallen for both lies. “The Father of Lies” has done his job well in duping thousands.
Peace and Blessings
I am not a Catholic basher, however, you are speaking of papal infallibility or speaking ex cathedra.
Literally “from the chair”, a theological term which signifies authoritative teaching and is more particularly applied to the definitions given by the Roman pontiff. Originally the name of the seat occupied by a professor or a bishop, cathedra was used later on to denote the magisterium, or teaching authority. The phrase ex cathedra occurs in the writings of the medieval theologians, and more frequently in the discussions which arose after the Reformation in regard to the papal prerogatives. But its present meaning was formally determined by the Vatican Council, Sess. IV, Const. de Ecclesiâ Christi, c. iv: “We teach and define that it is a dogma Divinely revealed that the Roman pontiff when he speaks ex cathedra, that is when in discharge of the office of pastor and doctor of all Christians, by virtue of his supreme Apostolic authority, he defines a doctrine regarding faith or morals to be held by the universal Church, by the Divine assistance promised to him in Blessed Peter, is possessed of that infallibility with which the Divine Redeemer willed that his Church should be endowed in defining doctrine regarding faith or morals, and that therefore such definitions of the Roman pontiff are of themselves and not from the consent of the Church irreformable.”
Since this is the position of the Roman Catholic church how does one reconcile this doctrine with the first gospel message on the Day of Pentecost by the Apostle Peter. From what I understand he is considered to be the first pope and everything he said would fall under the doctrinal belief that he spoke ex cathedra. Therefore the message he preached concerning salvation could not be changed. Is that correct?
Now this is the crux of the problem, why was the baptismal formula changed from baptism in Jesus Name to that of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost?
Acts 2:38, Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. (KJV)
Acts 2:38, Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (NIV)
Acts 2:38, But Peter said to them: Do penance, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of your sins: and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. (Douay-Rheims Bible)
Either Peter was the very first pope or merely the chosen apostle Jesus chose to preach the first salvation message on the Day of Pentecost. He received this authority when Jesus gave him the ‘keys to the kingdom’. If Peter had preached anything contrary to the word of God there were 129 other disciples, including Jesus’ mother Mary, who would have objected to a false message and yet no one did. Ask yourself, who changed the baptismal formula and why.
In Christ, gatita_63109
Apostolic Believer In One God, Jesus
By infallible don’t you also mean immutable? It is obvious that the Catholic church has changed its position on many of its previous “infallible” decisions (see Vatican II) So…was Galileo in hell until just recently?
If the catholic church is infallible then why did the pope invent the doctrine of indulgences? No where in the inspired Scriptures did God ever send a bill of services to those who sins He forgave!
The pope used indulgences to bring trillions of dollars into the pocket of the pope. Are you saying by being infallible that God was for the robbing of innocent people of all their money?
I think you better read history for yourself instead of listening to the lies of your pope.
First, to proclaim the Truth is not “boastful”. Secondly, we owe the very existence of this Bible which “Protestantism accept the Bible as a revelation from God” to the Catholic Church. The fact remains that without the Catholic Church there would be no Bible. Does this weaken the Protestant man-made position of the Bible as the sole authority of mankind? most definitely, it becomes very hard to believe that a Book should the anyone’s “soul rule of faith” when for the first 300 years of Christianity they did not even have a complete canon of the New Testament and many times openly disputed the legitimacy of some of these book such as . thirdly, it’s hard do accept the authority of a book as being sacred and from God, when you reject the church which created it as being man-made.