[wmfights]

"Pagans use to have the "Queen of Babylon" that they prayed to. I'm not sure but I suspect that this where all this began in your church, when pagans were incorporated converted into the church during Constantine's era they brought some of their beliefs with them.

No."
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Pagans came into the church and nothing changed, non of your practices, doctrine or titles.

Where did the name pontiff come from?

Under Constantine the church and state were one.

Under Constantine changes in worship included incense being used, choirs were developed, riches and pomp were seen as GOD'S favor (until this time Christianity was largely a faith of the poor). Churches were built on top of martyrs graves and bones were put on display - you would receive special consideration by touching the martyr's bones.

Under Constantine the power of the State was used to punish heretics. If you don't believe the State's doctrine you are a heretic.

As Pagans were forced into the church and baptized they brought in their tradition of praying to various gods for specific things, that was changed to praying to Saints.

[ventana]

Pontif comes from the Latin for Bridge maker as in modern Italian Ponte means bridge. As in a bridge (connection) between The Heavenly and the Earthly Church REF: Mat 16:19 And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

As to the rest.

Please read Exodus 25-40, Leviticus 6:15-17 for just a small sampling of how incense figures in the worship of the Lord in the Judeo-Christian tradition.

But more to the point: will you walk a mile in my shoes? Please read the 5th chapter of Revelations. Then please seek out and attend a Tridentine Mass and come back and tell me whether you still think the incense, pomp, forms, order, and music in the Catholic Mass is from the Pagans or lifted straight from Scripture.

With an open heart, you could really see this at any Mass but it is really emphasized in the original on top of it being an early example of worship in the Church. The Tridentine Mass is an ancient Mass dating from the 6th century. That's as far back as I can take you with a living tradition. I would, though, like to see your documentation backing up your assumptions on Religious practices prior to that date & prior to Constantine's conversion.

The first part of my request to you (Reading Scripture To See If These Things Were So) is certainly easy enough that I would have hoped you would have done it prior to making your comment vis a vis pagan influences in my Church rather than taking someone else's rather poorly researched word for it. "It's right there in the Bible" would seem like it should carry some weight with those who declaim Catholicism, but I have observed that not to be the case here with some frequency, ultimately with "that can't possibly mean what it plainly says" following a close second.

If anything, the Catholic Mass adheres to the Jewish rituals of old. The pomp, the seriousness, the reverence and the Glory are all prefigured by both the Old Covenant and John's vision in Revelation. Can you give me any information on how it came to pass that the Baptists discarded the Holy Rituals of ages past along with so much of Scripture itself (outside of a few prooftexts) along the way? It's been a long time, but do I remember correctly that you will never kneel before him in corporate worship? However did this tradition come to pass?