I’ve discussed this verse (1 Tim 3:15) on more than one occasion, but since Catholics keep citing it as a prooftext for Catholicism, I have to correct them more than once.
To some extent I’ll repeat myself since they repeat themselves, but I’m also going to expand on some points.
Catholics always quote this out of context. But what questions should we ask ourselves when we approach this verse?
1. How should we render the Greek phrase? The Greek construction is anarthrous. There is no definite article. Therefore, there’s no reason to automatically translate the phrase as “the Church of God.”
2. Even if, for the sake of argument, we use a definite article, notice what the verse doesn’t say. It doesn’t say, “the Church of Rome is a pillar and pedestal of truth.”
3. So what church is Paul talking about? What’s the destination of the letter? The church of Ephesus (1 Tim 1:3).
4. So Paul is talking about a local church, and the referent is the church of Ephesus.
5. Why did Paul write 1 Timothy in the first place? What occasioned this letter?
The church of Ephesus had been infiltrated by false prophets. Paul sent Timothy to function as a troubleshooter and letter courier.
Now, think about that for a moment. Is a local church that’s been infiltrated by false teachers a “pillar and pedestal” of truth? Would such a church be a source of false teaching rather than sound doctrine?
Why did Paul write them in the first place? Why did he leave Timothy behind? To combat false teachers in the church of Ephesus.
6. And this is not the only example by any means. Was the church of Corinth a “pillar and pedestal” of truth? No, it was a source of false teaching. He had to write to correct their false teaching.
Were the churches of Galatia pillars of truth? No, they were teetering on the brink of apostasy. What about the church of Colossae? No, he wrote that church to combat the Colossian heresy. What about the church of Thessalonica? No, he wrote that church to combat the Hymenaean heresy.
And it isn’t limited to Paul. Were all seven churches of Asia Minor (Rev 2-3) pillars of truth? No. What about the Christian communities to which Peter addressed 2 Peter and Jude addressed his epistle? No. What about the destination of 1 John and the letter of Hebrews? No and no.
Because Catholics fall back on traditional prooftexting, and think in abstract rather than historical terms, they don’t stop to consider the concrete circumstances of the NT churches.
7. Catholics only quote 1 Tim 3:15b. But what’s the immediate context of that clause? 1 Tim 3:14-15a.
Does Paul say that in his absence, the church of Ephesus can get along just fine without him since the church is a pillar and foundation of truth? That Ephesian Christians can learn everything they need to learn from the Magisterium or teaching office of the Church?
No, he says nothing of the kind. To the contrary, he is writing to them so that they will know how to conduct themselves in church. They aren’t getting this from the church. They are getting this from him. From his teaching to the church (e.g. the household code in 1 Tim 2:1-3:13).
He is writing them because he can’t teach them in person—at the moment. But in any case, their source of sound doctrine comes from him. Not from the church, as a pillar and pedestal of truth.
In context, 1 Tim 3:15 is the very antithesis of a prooftext for ecclesiastical authority.
