--- Luke -Jr luke@dashjr.org wrote:
On Saturday 22 March 2008, Philip Dorr wrote:
how about this the one true religion based upon Jesus Christ is the one in the bible! not the Catholic church, which did not exist untill around 100 years after the death of Christ
The Church spoken of in the Bible is the one and same Catholic Church as today. The laws might have changed a bit, but the doctrine and spiritual hierarchy is all the same.
I seem to recall from my Bible studies that the Bible not only allowed, but *insisted on*, the marriage of elders, deacons, and bishops. In fact, you were considered *ineligible* for these church offices until you were "the husband of one wife". The Pauline books that these verses appear in would have been written down earlier than any of the Gospels, 50-60 C.E. as opposed to the earliest Gospel dated around 70-84 C.E.
But when I turn to look at the Roman Catholic Church, *pre-Vatican II*, I see a church which requires a vow of *celibacy* for all its priests and bishops, and does not require its priests and bishops to be married, like the Bible insists should be so.
And so I find it a little hard to believe that the Church spoken of in the Bible is "the one and same Catholic Church as today." Especially as since it seems obvious that a Vatican II-like conference resulted in a sharp *change* from the Bible text requiring priests and bishops to be married.
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