Believers need a “pope” like a fish needs a bicycle.
You’ve got two popes wrong in one article! New record.
” Simply put, if no one is pope, everyone is pope. “
Martin Luther’s been there and done that.
It’s called the priesthood of believers.
There is no need for mediation between the believer and his God. To practice otherwise is asking for a cathedral of charlatans.
The big question I have, is without someone to be the final authority on something, how does anybody know a particular belief is true?
For example, there is the truth and not the truth. Either Christ’s church on Earth is true or not true. If everybody is on their own to make that determination, and believe it is done by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, does everybody thus know the truth?
The answer is no. A person is a member of a religious tradition because it believes that tradition teaches the truth to the exclusion of others.
A serious Presbyterian is not Baptist because they don’t believe as Baptists believe. There may be similarities, and some shared beliefs, but in the end, a person chooses one over the other.
Starting at Matthew 16:18, Peter is specifically called out among the Apostles. We then see him in the Council of Jerusalem leading the elders to decide the dispute of circumcision and other dietary/morality issues.
It is interesting that Peter had nowhere near the education of Paul, yet it was Peter Jesus appointed. James also showed himself a smart cookie, however, Peter was the leader.
As we look to the Reformation period, we see different factions (denominations) declaring they were not only different from the Catholic Church, but also from other denominations.
Back to question, if Luther believed what he taught was true based upon the Bible and the Holy Spirit, and others such as Zwingli, Knox, etc., also believed they themselves were right, then who is right, and why?
We know the Holy Spirit doesn’t lie, so the difference in beliefs must come from interpretations of Scripture. If everybody has a right to their own personal interpretation, then their is no “truth.” Rather, it is Relativism.
BTW, the Pope is currently Francis, and Benedict XVI is Pope Emeritus. More accurately, Benedict XVI is the retired Bishop of Rome and thus no longer Pontiff.