[bdeaner]

Yes as the New Testament tells us, Jesus wore rich scarlet and purple robes, gold rings, cups, bowls, gold all over His grand palace, jewels in all His religious paraphernalia, wealthy beyond imagination, property, investments

I realize you are being sarcastic here, but you got it partly right in this first section of your response I have quoted. The New Testament you'd be referring to would be Revelations.

I invite you to attend a Catholic Mass and then read John's Book of Revelations. All of the major elements of the Catholc liturgy are described by John in the Book of Revelations, as the heavenly liturgy. From Scott Hahn's The Lamb's Supper: The Mass as Heaven on Earth (pp. 119-121):

Sunday worship: Rev. 1:10
A high priest: Rev. 1:13
An altar: Rev. 8:3-4; 11:1; 14:18
Priests (presbyteroi): 4:4; 11:15; 14:3; 19:4
Vestments: 1:13; 4:4; 6:11; 7:9; 15:6; 19:13-14
Consecrated celibacy: 14:4
Lamp stands, or Menorah: 1:12; 2:5
Penitence: Ch. 2 and 3
Incense: 5:8; 8:3-5
The book, or scroll: 5:1
The Eucharistic host: 2:17
Chalices: 15:7; ch. 16; 21:9
The Sign of the Cross (the tau): 7:3; 14:1; 22:4
The Gloria: 15:3-4; The Alleluia: 19:1, 3, 4, 6
Lift up your hearts: 11:12
The "Holy, Holy, Holy": 4:8
The Amen: 19:4; 22:21
The "Lamb of God": 5:6 and throughout
The prominence of the Virgin Mary: 12:1-6; 13-17
Intercession of angels and saints: 5:8; 6:9-10; 8:3-4
Devotion to St. Michael, Archangel: 12:7
Antiphonal chant: 4:8-11; 5:9-14; 7:10-12; 18:1-8
Readings from Scripture: 4:8-11; 5:9-14; 7:10-12; 18:1-8
The Priesthood of the faithful: 1:6; 20:6
Catholicity, or universality: 7:9
Silent contemplation: 8:1
The marriage supper of the Lamb: 19:9, 17


Take together, these elements comprise much of the Apocalypse--and most of the Mass.

Also, like the Mass, the Book of Revelations divides rather neatly in half. The first eleven chapters concern themselves with the proclamation of the letters to the seven churches and the opening of the scroll. This emphasis on "readings" makes Part One a close match for the Liturgy of the Word in the first half of the Mass. Significantly, the first three chapters of Revelation mark a sort of Penitential Rite: in the seven letters to the churches, Jesus uses the word "repent" eight times. This recalls the words of the ancient Didache, the liturgical manual of the first century: "first confess your transgressions, that your sacrifice may be pure." Even John's opening assumes that the book will be read aloud by a lector within the liturgical assembly: "Blessed is he who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear" (Rev. 1:3).

Revelation's second half begins in Chapter 11 with the opening of God's temple in heaven, and culminates in the pouring of the seven chalices and the marriage supper of the Lamb. With the opening of heaven, the chalices, and the banquet, Part Two offers a striking image of the Liturgy of the Eucharist, the second half of the Catholic Mass.

It's all in your Bible -- the one you espouse to be inerrant and infallible and your sole authority.

The early Christians, from the Apostles onward, were engaged in liturgy. See Mike Aquilina's The Mass of the Early Christians.

The rest of your post, er "rant," was mostly based on anti-Catholic propaganda and is either not factually correct or a gross distortion of the historical facts.

But in case you didn't know, the Catholic Church officially considers all Christians to be Brothers and Sisters in Christ.

God bless.

[bronxville]

Post 249 = excellent. Thank you - a keeper. :)

[papertyger]

It's all in your Bible -- the one you espouse to be inerrant and infallible and your sole authority.

Yeah, but only if you have the spirit to troof to guide you! Otherwise you'd "understand" the three times scripture mentions "born again" is to be taken literally while the five times Christ says "this is my body" is figurative.

[Petronski]

I simply MUST get that Scott Hahn book....ANY Scott Hahn book.

[kosta50]

But in case you didn't know, the Catholic Church officially considers all Christians to be Brothers and Sisters in Christ

Well, then, please don't consider us Orthodox as such because we don't consider all who call themsleves Christians to be brothers and sisters in Christ. We have already once broken off all talks with the Vatican because of this syncretistic approach. Something's gotta give; we can't talk at nauseum.