Roman Catholicism – Mystery Babylon

During 2005 and 2006,
I wrote a series in this magazine called
Confronting the Cults. The Roman Catholic Church was not
included in this series, as I felt the timing was wrong for a
confrontational approach. Now that Pope Benedict XVI has made his
heretical statement as reproduced here, I now feel that I have a
platform through the right of reply and the mandate to stand as a
‘Defender Of The Faith’ and expose the error and lies
which are woven into the very fabric of Catholicism.

Roman Catholic Church provides the only true path to
salvation

Pope Benedict XVI has ignited controversy across the world by
approving a document saying non-Catholic Christian communities
are either defective or not true churches, and the Roman Catholic
Church provides the only true path to salvation. "Christ
established here on earth only one church," said the
document, reasserting the primacy of Catholicism. It said other
Christian communities such as Protestants "cannot be called
'churches' in the proper sense" since they don't
have what's known as apostolic succession - that is, the
ability to trace their bishops back to the original 12 apostles
of Jesus. The document said the Orthodox church suffered from a
"wound" because it did not recognize the primacy of the
pope, adding the wound was "still more profound" among
Protestant denominations. It was "difficult to see how the
title of 'Church' could possibly be attributed to
them," said the statement from the Congregation for the
Doctrine of the Faith, purporting Roman Catholicism was "the
one true Church of Christ."

Excerpt from article pictured above from the Courier Mail,
July 12, 2007

What must now be said will take more than one issue. What must
also be said before we begin is this – Our great concern is
with the Catholic system, not the people. There is no doubt that
within Catholicism are countless ‘born again’
believers who are on their way to heaven. Why they stay in the
bondage of tradition rather than taste the freedom of the Spirit
is not the axe I want to grind. Let’s just say if they
really do belong to Jesus, then praise the Lord for that!

My critique will be based on Bible teaching and doctrine,
historical facts, and quotes from Catholic sources. I will be
writing of things which have occurred in the Papacy which cannot
under any criteria, be classed as Christian. In fact, I believe
that by the time I have finished this series, it will be obvious
to any fair-minded reader, that not only is the Roman Catholic
system fatally flawed, but because of the great deception it
operates under, it is undoubtedly part or all of the end times
prophetic vehicle that will usher in the False Prophet and
support the Antichrist’s rule in the final days. Mystery
Babylon and Revelation 17’s ‘Woman riding the
Beast’ are the allegorical pictures of Catholicism.

Let us begin by refuting some of the statements which the
current Pope has endorsed.

CATHOLICISM TRUE PATH OF SALVATION

The essence of the need for man’s salvation is contained
in Romans 3:23 which says – "For all have sinned
and fall short of the glory of God." We are born in sin
and as a result are spiritually lost. The remedy for all mankind
is provided as John 3:16 declares – "for God so
loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that
whosoever believes on Him should not perish but have everlasting
life." This remedy is based firstly on repentance, or
godly sorrow, a total turning away from the flesh and our sinful
actions, allowing the precious Blood of Jesus to wash our sin
away. This process allows our spirit to be regenerated (born
again) and His Spirit to dwell in the heart of every
believer.

Repentance of sin, and personally receiving Christ as Saviour,
by spiritual re-birth, is the Bible path to salvation. Most cults
teach salvation by works, or salvation by membership of a system.
Paul teaches otherwise in Ephesians 2:8 that "For by
grace you are saved through faith."

When the Reformation began, it was based on the revelation of
saving faith, which is standard New Testament doctrine. The
Catholic Church responded by convening the Council of Trent, and
reaffirmed the Catholic position by rejecting not only salvation
by faith, but the authority of the Word of God and the teaching
of the priesthood of believers.

To add insult to injury, the Council pronounced over 100
anathemas (curses) on evangelical believers who believed such
things, and this act of witchcraft has never been removed or
rescinded, even to the present time we live.

Rome insists that simple faith is not enough, but an ongoing
process in this life and beyond in Purgatory. This places every
Catholic in the horrifying situation of believing that the shed
Blood of Jesus and the atoning work of the Cross is not enough!
This leads countless millions into a life of bondage which does
not lead to salvation. I include here an extract from Dave
Hunt’s book, "The Woman Rides the Beast"
which is a true account of one Catholics experience, which
mirrors the experience of countless others.

"An ex-Catholic, cut off by his family, (who won’t
even discuss the issues) explains what Catholics trust in for
salvation – "I am so grieved over what the
Catholic Church is doing to members of my own family. It is
sending my mother to hell. She sees no need to know Jesus or to
read the Bible because of her belief that as long as she is in
right standing with ‘Jesus’s Church’, that is
all that is needed.

After all, she attends Mass every Sunday and holy day of
obligation. She is up on her confession and penance and she
regularly performs corporal works of mercy and recites many
prayers to saints and Mary for indulgences.

Her good deeds and the administration of so-called sacraments
are her passbook through the pearly gates once she’s spent
her allotted time burning in Purgatory to pay for what sins might
remain. And Peter himself has keys to give her entrance into
heaven and he passed those keys on to the Popes, so she thinks
she has got it made."

Paul, the greatest Apostle, teaches us (not Peter) that the
Church is one body (1 Corinthians 12:12). Every born-again
believer is part of that body, whether we are Jews or Greek,
slave or free. In Ephesians 4, Paul says there is one Lord, one
faith. In the light of this, we can see that Denominations have
become demonations! Especially when, like the Catholic Church
they blaspheme the truth by saying they are ‘THE way’
when in fact, all believers are equal.

This leads us to examine whether in fact the Pope has
Peter’s keys and is the authority Rome says he is.

PRIMACY OF THE POPE

Is the Pope God’s authority on earth? Can he trace his
line back to the Apostle Peter? The answer is an emphatic NO! It
seems unbelievable that millions have without question swallowed
a lie concerning these things.

The Bible Scripture which is quoted as proof of the Apostle
Peter being given all authority comes from Matthew 16. When Jesus
challenged the Disciples to say who He was, Simon Peter answered
saying, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living
God." Jesus replies, telling Peter that he has received
this answer by revelation from God.

The verses that Catholicism uses to claim their ‘one
true Church’ authority now appear. (v18 & 19) Here they
are – "And I say to you that you are Peter, and on
this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall
not prevail against it. And I will give you the keys of the
kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound
in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in
heaven."

Until we get into the original language we can easily
misconstrue what is being said here, and fall into the same trap
the Catholic Church finds itself in. Let’s look at some key
words again with the Hebrew and its meaning …. And I
(Jesus) say to you that you are Peter (Gk petros -
meaning little stone or pebble) and on this rock (Jesus - Gk
petra – meaning a ‘mass of rock’ as
distinct from a stone which might be thrown or easily moved) I
will build my church.

In other words, "You Peter are a little stone or pebble
in my sight, but I am something greater - the Rock – and on
that immovable foundation of Myself only, will the Church be
built. In order to confirm this we need to heed the Bible
admonition that "out of the mouths of two or three witnesses
shall all things be established." Let’s give 3
examples of the Bible being its own witness and interpreter. In
Matthew 7:24, Jesus says, "Therefore, whoever hears
these sayings of Mine and does them, I will liken him to a wise
man who built his house on the rock."
Note the connection to Jesus own sayings and the house built on
rock.

1 Corinthians 10:4 says, "…and all drank the
same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual
Rock that followed them, and that Rock
was Christ." Paul here is speaking of the Old
Testament story of the wilderness journeys, and here is the type
and shadow already set out for us that Christ is the Rock.
Remember the old adage – "the Old Testament is the New
Testament concealed. The New Testament is the Old Testament
revealed."

The third example (and there are many more) is Psalms 95:1
which says – "Oh come, let us sing to the LORD!
Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our
salvation." My challenge is clear. Until the
Catholic Church can show by the witness of Scripture (which they
can’t) confirming evidence of their viewpoint that Peter is
the ‘rock’, then their claims and interpretation are
nothing less than spurious and a lie. God has placed the
requirement for two or three witnesses of confirmation as proof
of teaching and doctrine for this very reason – that truth
might be evident. In fact, our judicial system is based also on
this very premise!

PETER’S KEYS

When Jesus told Peter He was giving him the ‘keys of the
Kingdom of heaven’ he explained that the reason they were
given was to bind and loose spiritual darkness, and minister the
forgiveness of sin. These were keys of authority to be used in
the spiritual realm as the final few verses of Mark so clearly
explain.

There is no evidence whatsoever that these keys had earthly
authority, except that they were to be used on earth to deal with
the spiritual realm. If they were keys of earthly authority, then
the Lord surely would have given ‘keys of the Kingdom of
earth.’ God doesn’t make mistakes like that, but it
is obvious the Catholic system is happy to live in error.

FIRST POPE NOT PETER

If Peter was not the first Pope, then the whole succession of
Popes and the authority ascribed to them is a lie! I have been
amazed at the revisionist rewriting of history that is in full
swing right now. The Catholic Church have been withdrawing and
burying every reference that opposes the official line.
Astounding in this regard is the parade of ‘lemmings’
on the Internet who are now parroting the official line. Just 3
years ago, while researching this area, I found vastly diverse
historical opinion on the Web. No longer. It’s been purged,
and it is becoming more difficult by the day to find the real
truth. Right now, millions are accessing the Web and having their
opinions shaped by an onslaught of false information. Yet the
facts stand for themselves. Here are a few of them.

PETER’S CHARACTER

It is not our intention to malign one of Jesus chosen
Apostles, but the Catholic position of Papal infallibility and
earthly power over all the church forces us to place
Peter’s character in perspective. Peter was neither
infallible, nor of unquestionable character. When Jesus said to
him, "get behind me satan" this is hardly a good CV for
the office of Pope.

His specific denial of Christ (nothing is said regarding the
other disciples) is hardly the trustworthiness required when
someone is supposedly to be handed apostolic succession.

In his two epistles, Peter clearly speaks of other believers
as equals, and in no way expresses any right to rule or have an
earthly authority any different from other believers. (see 1 Peter 5:1)

He writes as a self-confessed ‘witness of the sufferings
of Christ’, along with the other Apostles, not claiming any
special authority.

In Galatians 2:11-14, Paul publicly rebuked Peter for his
error in separating himself from the Gentiles – hardly
Papal infallibility in operation here!

In fact we can trace 7 steps in the fall of Peter –
Conceit Mt 26:33; Ease Mt 26:40;
Rashness Jn 18:10-11; Following afar Mt 26:58;
Evil association Jn 18:18; Open denial Jn 18:26;
Blasphemy Mk 14:70-71; This is hardly the pattern
of one being groomed by the Lord Himself for the earthly office
of Pope!

PETER’S MINISTRY

There is absolutely NO RECORD whatsoever that Peter was ever
the Bishop of Rome. The first 12 Bishops of Rome appeared on a
list supplied by Irenaeus who was Bishop of Lyons from 178-200.
Linus appeared as the first Bishop.

In absolute opposition to Catholic revisionist history,
Eusebius, the father of church history, never mentions Peter as
Pope or Bishop of Rome, but states he came to Rome near the end
of his days and was crucified there.

The Catholic Church claim Peter lived there many years,
fulfilling the role of Bishop of Rome. How strange then, that in
writing his Epistle to the Romans, that the Apostle Paul did not
include a greeting to Peter if he were living there and holding
down a position of supreme authority in the Church. In fact, why
would Paul be inspired of the Holy Spirit to write his epistle to
the Romans if Peter was on hand to actually minister and teach
them face to face. The answer is simple – it just
didn’t happen!

IS SIZE PROOF OF TRUTH?

The pope is the most powerful religious figure on the earth.
The Dalai Lama, Archbishop of Canterbury, Jewish rabbis and
Muftis of Islam cannot hold a candle to his position.

There are just on one billion adherents to the Catholic faith
– that’s 1 in 6 of the total world population. This
so-called ‘vicar of Christ on earth’ is in an almost
unassailable position, given the fact that the religious ties
that bind one billion people to him are far stronger than any
political tie.

The very fact of the size of Catholicism promotes and
undergirds its own power and authority and demands submission to
whatever doctrine is presented to the people. The very fact of
its age and size says ‘how can we be wrong?’

The Bible teaches that it is God’s privilege to create
vessels, some for honour and some to dishonour. Later in this
series we will examine whether Catholicism is in fact, a vessel
for dishonour, as the Bible clearly teaches that a "one
world Church", headed by a false prophet, is the willing
vessel and religious confederate of the Antichrist. It is very
hard to look past the Roman Catholic Church and see an
alternative candidate for the title of Mystery Babylon!

NEXT ISSUE – Bloodshed, Murder, Fornication
and Treason in the Papal line.