As at best he only has a claim to be a bishop elected by a city as nowhere does Scripture state that the authority the Pope claims was passed on to him. Well, the authority of the Pope is not from scripture, but can be shown to be from another origin and authority. The College of Cardinals, with the Pope given authority at its head, is just the counterpart of the Pagan College of Pontiffs, with its "Pontifex Maximus," or "Sovereign Pontiff," which had existed in Rome from the earliest times, and which is known to have been framed on the model of the grand original Council of Pontiffs at Babylon.
The College of Pontiffs (Collegium Pontificum) came from the religion of the original Council of Pontiffs at Babylon, was then established in ancient Rome and the Pontifex Maximus (Latin, literally: "greatest pontiff") again established as the high priest of the pagan religion. This was the most important position in the ancient Roman religion as it had been in Babylon.
One of the things history show about the ascendancy of the papacy is that the church of Rome promotes the pope as the "Pontifex Maximus" or, Supreme Pontiff. The title Pontifex Maximus is mentioned numerous times by the early church fathers (particularly by Tertullian), but it was not applied to a Christian bishop. The early church fathers say that the Pontifex Maximus was the "King of Heathendom", the high priest of the pagan mystery religion of Rome. The Pontifex Maximus was an imperial office, usually held by the Emperor himself, which made one the "chief priest" of the Roman "state cult."
It's nice that you refer to the early church fathers. What most of them thought of the papacy is well documented in post #11, that you seemed to have skipped over. You wrote "(particularly by Tertullian)"
“Peter, who is called ‘the rock on which the church should be built,’ who also obtained ‘the keys of the kingdom of heaven…’”
Tertullian,
On the Prescription Against the Heretics, 22 (c. A.D. 200).
“For it is evident that those men lived not so long ago,–in the reign of Antoninus (Ad 138 to 161) for the most part,–and that they at first were believers in the doctrine of the Catholic Church, in the church of Rome under the episcopate of the blessed Eleutherus, until on account of their ever restless curiosity, with which they even infected the brethren, they were more than once expelled.”
Tertullian,
On the Prescription Against Heretics, 22,30 (A.D. 200).
“And Peter, on whom the Church of Christ is built, against which the gates of hell shall not prevail…”
Origen,
Commentary on John, 5:3 (A.D. 232).
“By this Spirit Peter spake that blessed word, ‘Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.’ By this Spirit the rock of the Church was established.”
Hippolytus,
Discourse on the Holy Theophany, 9 (ante A.D. 235).
“’…thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church’ … It is on him that he builds the Church, and to him that he entrusts the sheep to feed. And although he assigns a like power to all the apostles, yet he founded a single Chair, thus establishing by his own authority the source and hallmark of the (Church’s) oneness…If a man does not fast to this oneness of Peter, does he still imagine that he still holds the faith. If he deserts the Chair of Peter upon whom the Church was built, has he still confidence that he is in the Church?”
Cyprian,
De Unitate Ecclesiae (Primacy text), 4 (A.D. 251).
In 63 B.C., Julius Caesar had himself elected Supreme Pontiff blah, blah, blah......
The transfer of a title does not prove transfer of function. Pontifex Maximus was originally a title for the pagan emperor who had temporal and spiritual jurisdiction. The title does not give the pope authority over paganism, but you have to blurr the lines to support your "Catholic Imperial Cult Roman Pagan Church" theory which is
biblically and historically stupid and absurd.
Constantine eventually supported Christianity very strongly. The Latin term
pontifex means “bridge builder.” In ancient Roman religion, the head priest was called the
pontifex maximus (the greatest bridge builder). Julius Caesar held this title more than 40 years before Jesus was born.
After Christianity was legalized under the Emperor Constantine (313), it became the state religion within 100 years. Adopting a title coming from Roman paganism became feasible then. Applying this title to the bishop of Rome, the successor of St. Peter, seemed appropriate. It doesn't prove the pope adopted paganism..
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Opponents of the Church often attempt to discredit Catholicism by attempting to show similarities between it and the beliefs or practices of ancient paganism. This fallacy is frequently committed by Fundamentalists against Catholics; by Seventh-day Adventists, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, and others against
both Protestants and Catholics; and by atheists and skeptics against both Christians and Jews.
The nineteenth century witnessed a flowering of this “pagan influence fallacy.” Publications such as
The Two Babylons by Alexander Hislop (the classic English text charging the Catholic Church with paganism) paved the way for generations of antagonism toward the Church. During this time, entire new sects were created
(Seventh-day Adventists, Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses)—all considering traditional Catholicism and Protestantism as polluted by paganism. This era also saw atheistic “freethinkers” such as Robert Ingersoll writing books attacking Christianity and Judaism as pagan.
The pagan influence fallacy has not gone away in the twentieth century, but newer archaeology and more mature scholarship have diminished its influence. Yet there are still many committing it. In rabid anti-Catholic circles, numerous works have continued to popularize the claims of Alexander Hislop, most notably the comic books of Jack Chick and the book
Babylon Mystery Religion by the young Ralph Woodrow (later Woodrow realized its flaws and wrote
The Babylon Connection? repudiating it and refuting Hislop). Other Christian and quasi-Christian sects have continued to charge mainstream Christianity with paganism, and many atheists have continued to repeat—unquestioned—the charges of paganism leveled by their forebears.
Catholic beliefs are not "borrowed" from earlier pagan cults. We clear away the confusion and give you some helpful hints on how to respond to this charge.
www.catholic.com
