How can the Roman Catholic Church claim apostolic procession?

Question

How is it that the claim of Peter being the 1st POPE came about?
What about the APOSTOLIC PROCESSION? There were many, many years between Peter and the next 'Pope'.
If you have read the Bible, it clearly shows that Peter was not the Apostiles that held the most influence in the early church, but Paul.
Paul went to ROME
And the idea of the apostles being Peters bishops is equally unfounded, in both the bible and extra biblical, contemperary writings.
Paul rebuked Peter openly for his lack of faith and his fear of the converted Jews.
Jesus gave 3 disciples 'nicknames'
The 'sons of thunder', for their desire to call down fire from heaven, and 'peter', the stone, because of the revelation that he received.
the anticedent in the sentence upon this rock I shall build my church, was revelation, not a man.
The proof being that Peter had very little documented activity after Christ.
It was Paul, the one that picked up the Bishoprick of Judas, that was mightily used.
The Bible says so!

Answer 1

Jesus said to him in reply, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." (Matthew 16:17-19)

The Catholic Church believes the Lord made Simon alone, whom he named Peter, the "rock" of his Church. He gave him the keys of his Church and instituted him shepherd of the whole flock.

The current Pope is the direct successor of Simon Peter (the Rock).

With love in Christ.

Answer 2

The first Christians had no doubts about how to determine which was the true Church and which doctrines the true teachings of Christ. The test was simple: Just trace the apostolic succession of the claimants.

Apostolic succession is the line of bishops stretching back to the apostles. All over the world, all Catholic bishops are part of a lineage that goes back to the time of the apostles, something that is impossible in Protestant denominations (most of which do not even claim to have bishops).

The role of apostolic succession in preserving true doctrine is illustrated in the Bible. To make sure that the apostles’ teachings would be passed down after the deaths of the apostles, Paul told Timothy, "[W]hat you have heard from me before many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also" (2 Tim. 2:2). In this passage he refers to the first three generations of apostolic succession—his own generation, Timothy’s generation, and the generation Timothy will teach.

The Church Fathers, who were links in that chain of succession, regularly appealed to apostolic succession as a test for whether Catholics or heretics had correct doctrine. This was necessary because heretics simply put their own interpretations, even bizarre ones, on Scripture. Clearly, something other than Scripture had to be used as an ultimate test of doctrine in these cases.

Thus the early Church historian J. N. D. Kelly, a Protestant, writes, "[W]here in practice was [the] apostolic testimony or tradition to be found? . . . The most obvious answer was that the apostles had committed it orally to the Church, where it had been handed down from generation to generation. . . . Unlike the alleged secret tradition of the Gnostics, it was entirely public and open, having been entrusted by the apostles to their successors, and by these in turn to those who followed them, and was visible in the Church for all who cared to look for it" (Early Christian Doctrines, 37).

For the early Fathers, "the identity of the oral tradition with the original revelation is guaranteed by the unbroken succession of bishops in the great sees going back lineally to the apostles. . . . [A]n additional safeguard is supplied by the Holy Spirit, for the message committed was to the Church, and the Church is the home of the Spirit. Indeed, the Church’s bishops are . . . Spirit-endowed men who have been vouchsafed ‘an infallible charism of truth’" (ibid.).

Thus on the basis of experience the Fathers could be "profoundly convinced of the futility of arguing with heretics merely on the basis of Scripture. The skill and success with which they twisted its plain meaning made it impossible to reach any decisive conclusion in that field" (ibid., 41).

Answer 3

You're assuming the Roman Catholics were the first Christians.

The Catholics split from the Eastern Orthodox in 1054 AD (or thereabouts)

The Orthodox can prove apostolic succession, and don't have a "pope". A "pope" didn't exist until the schism in 1054.

Orthodox never had a pope. Never will have a pope. Christianity was not intended to work that way. Once you realize that, Christianity starts to make a whole lot more sense

Answer 4

Hmm, I studied this once but I can't remember what the book was I was reading out of. I don't think the Catholic Church realizes the apostolic succession was interrupted by the death of all the apostles (except for John, who we don't know the location of for now). I think it was Linus who was the arch bishop who took over after that. Having lost apostolic keys, I believe it became more difficult for church authorities to interpret doctrine. I have not heard of the "bishopric of Judas."

Answer 5

The Catholic Church, like most churches, wants to validate it's roots. It claims to be directly from the "Chair of St. Peter" mostly because it can. They view Peter as the first leader of the church after Jesus's death. They aren't very good at outlining the power struggle between Peter and James. Sometimes, I think they picked Peter because he got crucified too.

Basically, they love to say "We can trace our lineage back to Peter!"

Not that I really disagree or anything. I don't think it matters either way.

Answer 6

Your right the catholic church uses that verse to support its position. The verse is properly translated, and Im paraphrasing,"On THIS rock(Jesus) I build my church, you are Peter(petros=small stone). Also Peter had a mother in law as the Bible states. Hardly a role model for pepetual celabricy.

Answer 7

Tradition and Scripture tell it this way: (Mt 16:13-20)

13When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?"
14They replied, "Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets."

15"But what about you?" he asked. "Who do you say I am?"

16Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

17Jesus replied, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. 18And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. 19I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven." 20Then he warned his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Christ.


The fact that Peter faltered in his faith but moved on past it to belief is key. God knows we aren't perfect - heck, Jesus knew that Peter was going to betray him - but we are not expected to be perfect. We are expected to do our best, learn from our errors, and rise above them. God's love and law is not for a select few who "have it right" but for everyone, regardless of station.

Peter and Paul were both considered leaders of the early church. Tradition gave Peter the role of leader while Paul was messanger. And also according to tradition, St. Peter died in the year 67. He was followed by St. Linus (67 - 76), St. Anacletus I (76-88) and the St. Clement I (88-97). So there wasn't THAT much time in between... we've had larger gaps in the papacy.

Answer 8

The RCC compiled the Bible as they were inventing church history. Both are works of fiction.

Answer 9

i don't believe the doctrine of the roman catholic church. a pope to me become a object of worship there by breaking the commandment of having no other gods

Answer 10

If this is the kind of non-sense you're filling your head with, perhaps you should be asking yourself much bigger questions; Such as "Would I also believe my preacher if he told me that aliens contact him every 11 years to inform him of the Apocalypse" or "Why am I so gullible".