Context, Context, Context...Your man Clement was suggesting that he received personal information from the apostles that he and other popes, cardinals, and bishops have the right and duty to select future bishops and popes...
And then you supply a piece of scripture that 'appears' to back up Clement's claim...
But you conveniently left out the qualifying scripture, didn't you...
1Ti 3:2 A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behavior, given to hospitality, apt to teach;
1Ti 3:3 Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous;
1Ti 3:4 One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity;
1Ti 3:5 (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?)
This disqualifies anyone in your church that has been chosen to be a pope, cardinal, bishop or priest, including Clement...
Don't you find it odd that Clement was a pope in your religion but Timothy, a major bible figure was not???
Like I say, Clement seems to have 'turned a corner' in Christianity at about that time...He is not teaching what Jesus taught Paul who taught Timothy...Looks like he turned left while everyone else kept going straight...
Does that disqualify refering to Titus 3:2. I think anyone who reads it would say it only states that you can't have a twice married bishop. He can't be an alcoholic, that doesn't mean he can't drink the occasional glass to vino.
How do you know Clement wasn't married, and had no children?
I've previously dealt with the silly exegesis that has St. Paul supposedly praising single celibacy in 1 Cor 7, and then prohibiting single celibates from being bishops or priests in 1 Tm -- as well as declaring Christ, St. John, and perhaps himself as well to be ineligible!
If St. Paul had wanted to prohibit the episcopacy to single celibates, he would simply have said "bishops must be married," not "husband of one wife". He is prohibiting those who have remarried, not those who are "eunuchs for the kingdom of God".
As you say, "context, context, context". Why don't you practice it?
Don't you find it odd that Clement was a pope in your religion but Timothy, a major bible figure was not???
I find it odd that you find that odd. Most "major bible figures" weren't Popes.
However, St. Clement is mentioned in Scripture, as is the second Pope, St. Linus.
St. Timothy was a bishop in the east, probably at Ephesus. Nothing wrong with that, he was a fine man and is a great saint. Tradition records that he was martyred for the faith around the year 97. St. Timothy, pray for us.