A few excerpts from one of my Bible Handbooks. The caps are mine:
“Original Mission of the Church
The Church was founded, not as an institution of Authority to force the Name and Teaching of Christ upon the world, but onLy as a Witness-Bearing institution to Christ. Christ himself, not the Church, is the Transforming Power in Human Life. But the Church was founded in the Roman Empire, AND GRADUALLY DEVELOPED A FORM OF GOVERNMENT LIKE THE POLITICAL WORLD IN WHICH IT EXISTED, BECOMING A VAST AUTOCRATIC ORGANIZATION RULED FROM THE TOP.
Peter
THE ROMAN CATHOLIC TRADITION THAT PETER WAS THE FIRST POPE IS FICTION PURE AND SIMPLE. There is no New Testament hint, and no historical evidence whatever, that Peter was at any time bishop of Rome. Nor did he ever claim for himself such Authority as the Popes have claimed for themselves. It seems Peter had a divine foreboding that his “Successors” would be mainly concerned with “Lording it over God’s flock.” (1 Pet. 5:3)
Augustine’s “City of God”
Augustine wrote his monumental work, “The City of God,” in which he envisioned a Universal Christian Empire. This book had vast influence in molding opinion favorably to a Universal Church Heirarchy under One Head. This promoted ROME’S CLAIM FOR LORDSHIP. THUS THE CHURCH WAS CHANGING ITS NATURE, MAKING ITSELF OVER INTO THE IMAGE OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE.
Imperial Recognition of the Pope’s Claim
Leo I (AD 440-461), called by historians the First Pope...HE PROCLAIMED HIMSELF LORD OF THE WHOLE CHURCH, advocated exclusive Universal Papacy; said that resistance to his authority was a sure way to hell; advocated death penalty for heresy.”
You can't use Bible Handbooks. Only the Bible itself. Or did I miss something?
Which, in an of itself, says that one needs more than Scripture alone in order to understand Scriptural context. Why is your context of greater value than those of the Church Fathers, Saints and Martyrs?
A nifty little history you've written there, except that Christ said that He founded a Church that even the Gates of Hell would not prevail against, yet you are basically saying that The Gates of Hell DID prevail against the historical Church. Please tell me when that happened? Before 1040AD or after? Because you seem to completely ignore that the Orthodox Church even existed or exists --only the Roman Catholic Church seems to have historical significance to you. Why?
I am really curious to understand your viewpoint on this. I am not trying to be snarky.
Whoa -- so it's not sola scriptura for you? You need some "handbook" to interpret scripture for you?