Why do most Christians not understand the Catholic Church was Christianity for over 1000 years?

Question

It seems many Christians when writing about Christianity, and just in the general mindset leave out the fact that the Roman Catholic Church was practically the only Christianity there was for over 1500 years or so at least the dominant form throughout practically the world. Protestant Christianity is a relatively recent invention in the scope of World History (400 years or so). The Roman Catholic Church is still the largest Christian denomination representing almost half of all the world's Christians, and largest religious body in the world.

Perhaps since I am from the US this is mainly a mistake by Protestant Christians in the US?


I am a spiritual person, do not belong to any specific denomination or like organized religion but attend various services at times.

Just saying it seems they look at it like Protestant Christianity has somehow been around since the time of Christ.

Answer 1

You need to study your history books again.

You are repeating the Roman Catholic view of history which says they were the only church. That is false.

There were five equal Bishops or Patriarchs of the church in the 9th Century:

The Patriarch of Rome
The Patriarch of Constantinople
The Patriarch of Alexandria
The Patriarch of Antioch
The Patriarch of Jerusalem

The dude in Rome started excommunicating the others and they turned around and excommunicated him. This was the start of the split between what is now known as the Orthodox Churches.

When I was in high school and I took "Early World History", we learned about the Western Catholic Church and the Eastern Catholic Church.

Roman Catholics today want to pretend none of that exists anymore and it was only Rome.

And there have always been other groups of Christians not connected with any of the above five in places like the Far East and Africa.

Its prideful and boastful arrogance to say the Roman Catholic Church was the only church for 1,000 years.

Its not true. It was not true then. Its not true now.

The Roman Church became the most corrupt which is why reformers started coming along hundreds of years before Martin Luther.

We don't know much about many of them because they were all murdered by the church of Rome. Martin Luther's teaching spread like they did for two main reasons:

1. The printing press had been invented in German in 1440.

2. Martin Luther was from German, so when he began writing, German printers started printing and cirulating his teachings and most of those who were educated enough to read knew he was right and the Pope was wrong.

We have to remember that Pope Leo X was horribly corrupt.

How old was Leo when he became Pope?

How old was Leo when he became Cardinal?

How old was Leo when he died and why did he die?

So let's remember that in the year 800 AD, the dude in rome controlled about one fifth of the "organizaed church".

There were lots of churches in Africa which were not connected to any of the five patriarchates listed above.

There were also churches in the far East, including India and China.

Most of what we call the bad teachings from the church of rome had their start AFTER these 5 patriarchates started to excommunicate each other.

So the mistake isn't made by the non roman churches, its a deliberate attempt by Rome to re-write history to make their own organization seem the most prominant.

Pastor Art

Answer 2

It is true that the Roman Catholic Church was the dominant Christian faith until a short time after Martin Luther's 95 Theses, however, the Roman Catholic Church was not the *only* church until the 1500s.

Until the Emporer Constantine made Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire, the RCC did not exist. The body of Christ survived mostly in house churches very similar to those described in Acts.

There is also the Orthodox Church, which has been around since, well, supposedly since Jesus ascended. The Eastern Orthodox Church can be directly traced back to the Greek and Asian house churches of the First and Second Centuries.

I will agree that Protestants forget that Roman Catholicism came first, or that the Protestant Reformation is only about 500 years old.

But pretty much everyone forgets that Orthodox Christianity came first.

Answer 3

Sorry bud, the oldest standing church in the World is in Syria.


Coptics in Egypt starting worshipping Christ when St. Mark the Apostle when to Africa to preach shortly after the Ascension of Christ.


According to Luke in Acts there were men from near Asia at the Pentecost. These men went home and preached about Christ. These beleivers became the Assyrians.


And, how can you leave out the Eastern Orthodox - Constantine and Justin.

To state the Roman Catholic church was the only church at any time is ignorant.

Africans and Arabs were the first beleivers, and still til this day practice in Syria, Iraq, Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Egypt.

Answer 4

Some of the responses above are just plain funny (ridiculous), but I understand that your question is really a historical one, and facts plain and simply are that for over 1,000 (actually 1,500) years there was only one Christian church in existence before the Protestant Reformation: the Roman Catholic Church.

There are some protestant denominations that ATTEMPT to claim origin to the time of Christ, but then they ALL do that in one way or another. Obviously their claims just don't hold water.

I used to be a protestant, but am now Catholic. Questions like yours are some of the reason why I became Catholic, as well as most other converts. You, me and others are simply after one thing: the truth. We're willing to ask the hard questions, and willing to prepare ourselves for the answers because we REFUSE to live fake lives. We want it real.

Hope I make sense, lol. God bless and take care.

Answer 5

The protestant churches have the goal to return to what the Bible says the early apostles were like, and shake off the pagan traditions that have been incorporated into the Roman Catholic Church. The "Church" went out of its way to persecute anyone who based their beliefs on the Bible and defied its authority. That is one reason why they remained the monopoly for so long. Scripture itself predicted this occurrence. In Daniel it describes a nation that would follow Rome, but it would be a combination of nation and religion. And it would speak boastful words against the Most High and persecute the saints. The Catholic Church fulfills all the descriptions about it to the T. I don't dislike Catholics, but everyone can see that the Church itself is corrupt. It surrounds itself in secrecy, adorns itself in pompousness, and lifts up humans beyond their stature. My words are not new. But they have been watered down over the ages in order to prevent the truth from offending. "Do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a servant of Christ."

Answer 6

I know what you are talking about, many christians try to forget the fact that for their denomination to be around it had to hav come from catholicism. I think the reason they dont acknowledge catholic christianity is because they see it as not having been brought back to its true form, whereas the protestants believe that when they came around they changed the religion to fit back with christ and now are the continuation of that church from christ. It all ends up with christians fighting over who thinks they are part of the "one true religion for the salvation of mankind". Each branch in christianity has claimed that they are the only one for salvation, and denounce the others. It has been going on since the conception of christianity, it started with christians denouncing the local pagans and jews, then moved to eastern and western christianity(orthodox vs catholic) and then exploded into protestant vs catholic. Saying someones denomination of christianity is a false path has no real affect on people, since it is what they believe and for them its true it comes from their soul, if anything happens its the people being denounced in turn end up denounceing others. With all the denouncing of christian denominations by the christians i would not be surprised if one day each one declared a type of crusade on the others, but this may have already happened with evangelical christianity in the usa through the battlecry movement, its a movement that claims to promote the teachings of the bible and make the usa a better nation by returning morality to it but really its just a militant fundamentalist movement that is bringing down christianity and is a threat to the usa or any nation that lets it in because it promotes a theocracy(government ruled by a religion)

Answer 7

It's an individual growing process of faith for each one of us. I changed from a Baptist church (which I grew up in) to a Presbyterian church when I was 23, then 8 years later attended and later joined an AoG church. I do believe the Full Gospel people are interpreting the Bible much more correctly than the main line churches. I have searched and paid attention to attitudes and all they purport to know and thoroughly believe the Full Gospel people have the answers, although I didn't say they were perfect. No church is and no individual is.

Answer 8

If God's Word, the Bible, has any bearing here, you must realize that "religions" are NOT what matters to God.

History written in books is man's account of what he BELIEVES took place. Surely there are many verifiable documents, etc. that support events and happenings throughout all time, but these writings, histories and accounts are useless to repeat before the Lord when a man faces eternal judgment.

Every man will be judged according to God's Word as it is written. The King James Version is the version I know God has honored for me.

What was the 'religion' of Adam? Abraham? Moses? Elijah? Was it not faith in God?

Everyone wants their personal views to be right and I can understand why. Eternity is something to consider when adhering to doctrines and 'religion'.

Even though religious differences have caused 98% of wars, not many will consider the fact that God has the final say-so in every single man's life, good or evil no matter what religious affiliation he claims.

God is omnipotent and greatly to be feared.

HE KNOWS EVERYTHING.

Answer 9

Most of the Christians I know DO understand that the Roman Catholic church was the first and only "organized" Christian religion in the world for over 1000 years.

Answer 10

They ignore the prophecy in Rev 11 which the Catholic Church would also like you to ignore. Remember...the Papal Rome supressed scripture for over 1260 years and the first time people saw scripture and could have it for themselves in its right and proper format as the two witnesses (OT and NT) was in 1611 with the KJV which has since then been altered. The Roman Catholic church is the harlot on the beast...Protestant religion is not an invention...its the bastard child of Catholism...the deal is for you to go to God as an individual person, inspired by a person of God perhaps and shown a few things to plant that seed, the Gospel, and then grab a Bible and get with God on it. He tells peeps over and over and over...do not put your faith in man, but on every word that proceeds out of His mouth. Love in Christ, ~J~