Catholicism Refuted- The Truth about Catholicism, Part 1

1. Quotes from the Catholics Beliefs

1) They say, “It is not necessary for everything to be absolutely clear in Scripture alone, because that is not a teaching of Scripture itself.”

2) They say, “Scripture also points to an authoritative Church and Tradition….” They cite 2 Thessalonians 2:15 in support of this concept. This verse says, “Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.”

3) They say, “The very books of the Bible had to be determined by the Church, and that didn’t happen until the late fourth century. Therefore, human tradition and authority were necessary for us even to have a Bible today.”

2. The Bible says,

1) That it is clear and understandable. Ephesians 3:3-5 “How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ) Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit;”

2) Tradition is not a source of religious authority. Mark 7:9 Jesus says, “And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.”

3) That the “traditions” that 2 Thessalonians 2:15 speaks about are the authoritative apostolic traditions. Acts 2:42 “And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.”

4) That the Holy Spirit determined what is scripture, not the Catholic church. 1 Corinthians 2:13 “Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.”

1. Catholicism says,

1) “Catholics believe that Jesus commissioned St. Peter as the first leader of the Church.” They cite Matthew 16:18-19 to support this.

2) “A pope can make infallible, binding pronouncements under certain conditions. . . . We Catholics also believe that God the Holy Spirit protects His Church and its head from error….” They cite John 14:16 to support this.

2. The Bible says,

1) Matthew 16:18-19 “And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

2) Who was the rock? The rock is Jesus, not Peter. He is the foundation–1 Corinthians 3:11; He is the rock–1 Corinthians 10:4; He is the cornerstone–Ephesians 2:20.

3) Jesus was speaking of truth in John 14:16, not infallibility. “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.”

1. Catholicism says . . .

1) They cite Matthew 23:9 which says, “And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven.”

2) Then they say, “In this passage, Jesus is teaching that God the Father alone is ultimately the source of all authority. But he is not speaking absolutely, because if so, that would eliminate even biological fathers, the title ‘Church Fathers,’ the founding fathers of a country or organization, and so on.”

3) They go on to say that Jesus uses the term father in regard to Abraham and Paul uses the term to describe himself in his relationship with Timothy in 1 Corinthians 4:15.

2. What does the Bible say?

1) Matthew 23:5-10 says, “But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments, And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues, And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi. But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren. And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven. Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.”

2) We agree that this passage is not talking about “fathers” in any of the senses that they listed.

a. Biological fathers.

b. Ancestral fathers.

c. Founding fathers.

d. Even fathers in the faith.

3) We disagree that this passage is talking about God as our authority.

4) This passage discusses religious elitism and the sin in so calling someone by the religious title of Rabbi, Teacher, Father, Master.

5) So they fail to achieve what they need to achieve from this passage and still stand condemned.

1. Catholicism says . . .

1) “The Bible teaches the rightness of prayers for the dead….”

2) They cite 2 Maccabees 12:40ff, 1 Corinthians 15:29, and 2 Timothy 1:16-18.

2. The Bible says . . .

1) First, the book of 2 Maccabees is not even part of the Bible and holds no authority whatsoever.

2) 1 Corinthians 15:29 speaks of “baptism for the dead” and has nothing to do with prayer. It is an incredible stretch to say that because Paul spoke of baptism for the dead that therefore we can pray for the dead.

3) 2 Timothy 1:16-18 says, “The Lord give mercy unto the house of Onesiphorus; for he oft refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain: But, when he was in Rome, he sought me out very diligently, and found me. The Lord grant unto him that he may find mercy of the Lord in that day: and in how many things he ministered unto me at Ephesus, thou knowest very well.” There is NO indication in this passage that Onesiphorus was dead.

1. Catholicism says . . .

1) “No Catholic who knows anything about the Catholic faith has ever worshipped a statue (as in pagan idolatry).

2) They justify their statues by saying, “Statues are simply a visual reminder of great saints and heroes of the faith….”

3) Let me say that I find it hard to believe that bowing down in front of statues and kissing their toes are not acts of worship.

4) The big toe of Peter in St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome has been completely rubbed off over the centuries because of people kissing it.

2. The Bible says,

1) Exodus 20:4-5 “Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing 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 the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;”

2) 1 Corinthians 5:11 says idolaters will not inherit the kingdom of heaven. Ephesians 5:5 says that covetousness is idolatry, so just because it is not like ancient paganism doesn’t mean something can’t be an idol!

1. Catholicism says,

1) “Jesus gave His disciples–and by extension, priests–the power not only to ‘loose’ sins (that is, forgive in God’s name), but also to ‘bind’ (that is, impose penances) . . . .” They cite Matthew 18:18 “Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” as justification for this as well as Matthew 16:19.

2) They cite John 20:23 as justification for forgiving sins on earth. “Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained.”

3) They cite Matthew 3:5-6, Acts 19:18 and 1 John 1:9 as authority for priests to take confessions.

2. The Bible says . . .

1) All Christians are priests! 1 Peter 2:5 “Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.” 1 Peter 2:9 says we are a royal priesthood.

2) Revelation 5:10 says, “And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.” Who are these? The ones who have been redeemed as verse 9 indicates.

3) Sin is committed only against God and so God alone can forgive sins. Psalm 51:4 “Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.”

4) What then is the Bible speaking about when talking about the disciples forgiving sins? Certainly not some formal clergy of priesthood that requires the sinner to confess sins to the priests to get forgiveness.

5) The context of Matthew 18 is in regard to personal sins against brethren.

6) The context of John 20:23 is in regard to the work of the Apostles on the earth.

7) Jesus claimed all authority in Matthew 28:18. The apostles had no right to go beyond that authority.

8) Matthew 3:5-6 is speaking of John the baptizer and his work. The confession of sins was an act of repentance here. Acts 19:18 is in regard to pagans who were repenting. By confessing their sins they were showing repentance here as well. 1 John 1:9 is not even speaking of men, but God! To take this passage and use it to support their doctrine of confession is to wrest the scriptures to their own destruction.

9) Christians are supposed to confess their sins one to another (James 5:16), but this is a far cry from the formal type of confession the Catholic church would have us to believe.