Catholic claims
Monopoly of the Roman Empire
The great crime of Catholicism is the secularization of spiritual power. Even if it was once in the position to serve Jesus Christ on this earth, it has permanently removed itself from this position and claimed attributes that only God is entitled to. The Catholic Church has become a sect through this distortion of clear facts. It is the representative of those who want to make Jesus ineffective.
As an obvious characteristic for everyone, it has drafted or adopted pagan teachings, thereby destroying the redemption through Jesus Christ. It always has only one goal in mind: the concentration of power on itself. The worst blasphemy that it could ever do to itself is the assertion that Jesus could not be effective outside the Catholic Church. What a stupid human determination! No waterworks in the world could ever claim that no more rain would fall outside its area of activity. No generator of electricity could ever claim that there is no more electrical energy elsewhere. No farmer can claim that only his products are food.
But the Catholic Church claims to be the monopoly of the power of God!
To give an impression of the abstruse world of thought of the Roman rulers, here are a few quotations. By the way, the Catholic Church's claim to sole beatifying power can also be found in other religions. In Islam and in the Watchtower Society.
Claims of the Roman Empire
(Quotes from "What matters is the truth" by Walter Veith, page 97)
This power blasphemes God. No other earthly power has dared to make such assertions as the papacy. The Roman Catholic Council of Trient made the following statement:
- We hereby declare that the Holy Apostolic See and the Pope have primacy over the whole world.
Another challenging claim comes from the mouth of Pope Leo XIII:
- We hold the place of God Almighty on this earth.
The magazine »Catholic National«, July 1895 reports as follows:
- The pope is not only the representative of Jesus Christ, but he is Jesus Christ himself, hidden under the veil of the flesh.
Other examples of blasphemous statements are:
- The Pope is of such great dignity and so highly exalted that he is not a mere man, but it is as if he were God, the Vicar of God... He is also the divine ruler; the supreme emperor and king of kings... so that, should it be possible that angels err in faith or think contrary to faith, they could be judged and excommunicated by the Pope.
Cardinal Bellarmine writes:
- All names applied to Christ in the Holy Scriptures by virtue of which he stands above the Church apply equally to the Pope.
The Bible shows very clearly that the claim of a person to be able to forgive sins is blasphemy. Nevertheless, we find the following statement in the Catholic Encyclopedia with reference to the authority of the pope:
- This judicial power also has the power to forgive sins.
In the »Catechism of the Catholic Religion« the following question is asked:
- QUESTION: Does the priest really forgive the sins or does he just declare them forgiven?
ANSWER: The priest really and truly forgives sin by virtue of the power given him by Jesus Christ.
In »Dignity and Duty of the Priest«, it says:
- The priest has the key power or power to deliver sinners from hell, make them worthy for the Kingdom of Heaven, and turn them from slaves of Satan into children of God. God himself is obliged to hold fast to the decision of the priest and either forgive or not forgive ... When Michael comes to a dying Christian who asks for his help, the holy archangel can cast out the devils, but he cannot free his patient from the chains until the priest comes to give him absolution.
This audacity to use Jesus' promises directly and immediately for one's own increase of power is only found again in the Watchtower Society. The only difference is that it lacks the masses and thus the possibility to sneak into people's consciousness like a thief. But there is one thing both Antichrists have in common. In their own way, they butter Jesus down and take over his function, his task, his work and the salvation he intended for us.
But only Jesus can save!
If the Bible has its way, Jesus is the one who saves us. Everyone has access to him, everyone can turn to him directly. No one can ever take away his power without corrupting him. This is the work of the Catholic Church: it uses Jesus for its own benefit.
