“The local assembly of believers was the Catholic Church .. period. Scripture clearly established “offices” and a “hierarchy” among Christians. The offices of “bishop, priest (presbyter) and deacon” are mentioned in Scripture (1 Timothy 3:1,8; Titus 1:7 ). “
No priest in that list of leaders. All Christians are priests.
The Catholic Church as it is today took more than a thousand years to ferment and add in many pagan customs. The early Church in Scripture was simply local gatherings of believers.