Continuation from Pt.1 . .

  • 3rd century – Persecutions of Christians continue under Roman emperors. –Development of the Nicene Creed in response to theological controversies, defining key Christian beliefs. – Demetrius: bishop of Alexandria, condemned Origen (Who didn’t believe in the divinity of Jesus, etc).

  • 4th century – 313 AD: Emperor Constantine’s Edict of Milan legalizes Christianity, suspended persecution but did not make it the state church of the Roman Empire.  – 325 AD: The First Council of Nicaea is convened to address theological disputes and establish the Nicene Creed. It was attended by over 250-300 bishops. Also they established a structure of ecclesiastical hierarchy but did not single out the pope.   –  Emergence of Eastern Orthodox Christianity & Western (Roman) Christianity. – Constantine died (337 AD). – 380 AD. Edict of Thessalonica,  (by Theodoseus I) is when Nicene Christianity received normative status. -381 AD: The First Council of Constantinople reaffirms & amends the Nicene Creed.

Emperor Constantine acquired several important titles like ‘Pontifex Maximus”, & presided over the Council of Nicaea as Bishop of Bishops (term for pope a few years later). And like Babylon, now Rome as well, with the Pontifex Maximus religious office given to the emperor, they fused religion with politics.  (Exactly what is happening today in the US & soon globally).

It’s important to note that emperor Constantine was a pagan who worshiped the sun god or “Sol Invictus” (The unconquered sun). When battling his rival Maxentius for the throne he asked the night before the battle his sun god for a sign. Then some say had a dream, others say in the way to battle he had a vision & saw an ankh or a Chi-Ro in the sky, and the words ‘In Hoc Signo Vences’ (In this sign conquer), he defeated his rival & in gratitude converted to Christianity. But even after this Constantine never got baptized (until when dying) & continued to feature pagan gods on coins.

 In Roman pagan religion there was a god called Neptune (Greek Poseidon) who according to their myths lived & ruled the oceans, but the god who ruled over god Neptune was called the  Pontifex Maximus” or “Chief bridge builder”. The official worship of Sol ended with the outlawing of paganism by Theodoseus I in 380 AD. Theodosius I or Theodosius the Great, was the last emperor to rule the entire Roman Empire before it divided.

During emperor Gratian’s reign (367-380) the Pontifex Maximus title for the emperor was changed to ‘pontifex inclytus’ (“honourable pontiff”) an example followed by emperor Theodoseus I, who reigned from 379 to 395 AD & others after him.

=> But it was Siricius bishop of Rome (384-399) the first to call himself “Pontifex Maximus” & the new term pope (which derived from the Latin word papa, & Greek pappas meaning “father”). In other words he was the first pope of Rome. After that all previous bishops of Rome were given the title of ‘pope’ retrospectively to show continuous apostolic succession.

  • But Jesus taught to His disciples:  “They [Scribes and Pharisees] do all their works to be seen by men. They make their Scripture boxes broad and lengthen the tassels on their prayer shawls. They love the places of honor at feasts, and the prominent seats in the synagogues, and greetings in the marketplaces, and being called ‘Rabbi’ by men.

“But do not be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have one Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brothers. 9 And call no man on earth your father, for you have one Father, who is in heaven.” Matt.23:5-9.  (Jesus isn’t talking about dads but about ‘religious’ titles).

  • 5th century – Pope Celestine I (422-432) called the Council of Ephesus (431 AD). His council called Mary the mother of God. [Titles of perpetual virginity -Lateran Council of 649, immaculate conception 1854, Co-redemptrix (Pius X, 1904), etc.]. – The Council of Ephesus deals with Christological controversies, contributing to the schism between Eastern and Western Christianity.
    – 451 AD: The Council of Chalcedon addresses further Christological issues, deepening the division between the Eastern Orthodox and the Oriental Orthodox churches. – By 440 AD, Pope Leo I (Leo the Great) significantly expanded papal authority by emphasizing Petrine primacy, arguing that the pope was the direct successor of Peter and thus held universal jurisdiction over the Church. Still the pope didn’t ruled over all churches world wide until 606 AD when pope Boniface III, takes title: “universal Bishop”.

The disciples knew well who was the Rock, Psalm 18:31 states:  For who is God except the Lord? Or who is a rock besides our God?

I believe the Rock in Matthew 16 is Jesus. The question was about His identity. He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” God the Father had revealed the truth to Peter : Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God’. He then says, “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church” (Matthew 16:18). The word for “Peter,” Petros, is a masculine noun that means “a detached stone, a stone that might be thrown or easily moved” (Zodhiates, S., The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament, AMG Publishers, 1992, p. 1,154). The word for “rock” mentioned next is a different Greek word, G4073: petra, a feminine noun that means “a mass of rock” or “a cliff” and therefore something foundational ( see also Matthew 7:24–25 uses the same word G4073: petra). The difference in the two terms may suggest that Jesus was contrasting Peter with Himself. Something like “You are the small rock, but on this foundational rock (His identity) I will build my church.” This view finds support in other passages that present Christ, not Peter, as the foundation of the church (1 Corinthians 3:11) and the Spiritual Rock (1 Corinthians 10:4).

Christ Himself is called the “Chief Cornerstone” & ‘Living Stone’ (1 Peter 2:1–7; Matthew 21:42). The chief cornerstone of any building was that upon which a building is anchored. Believers are the stones that make up the church. (1 Peter 2:5). They are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets (Yes, Peter has part on a foundational roll, but it isn’t just Peter) and ALL are anchored to the Chief Cornerstone, our Lord Jesus (Ephesians 2:20).

Apostle Peter wrote : ” For also it is contained in the Scripture,

“Look! I lay in Zion a chief cornerstone, elect, precious,
and he who believes in Him shall never be put to shame.” (1 Peter 2:6).

Even if Peter was a rock upon which Jesus promised to build His church, it does not give the Roman Catholic Church any authority.

Then, according to records Catholicism is a branch of Christianity that emerged over time.

We are not trying to put down our precious Catholics people, we appreciate you & pray for you. We know some of you are already save & many others the Lord is calling unto Him & working in your hearts. Our Lord Jesus loves you! We don’t agree with many teachings of Catholicism because they depart from the teachings of the Scriptures, but also we believe they dangerously distract you from having a closer relationship with our precious Lord Jesus, who paid on the cross for our sins. Difficult times are coming & the enemy has plans to shake our faith as believers in Christ, it will happen very soon, and we can only find safety in Him. I’m not pointing you to my church or any denomination, I’m pointing you to Him our Savior. Come to Jesus, please don’t delay! Invite Him into your heart & to be part of your daily life. God bless you!

If you want to know more about doctrinal problems, please go here. If want to read or study your Bible more you can go here.