Thank you for your reply - beautifully written. I appreciate what you are saying in:
"Our Lord is rock and key-bearer and shepherd: He will
continue all that each title implies through Peter.
Church or Peter, it is all the same. Neither matters
save as an instrument through which Christ has chosen to
work. "
My argument is on the assumption that:
"He built His Church upon the rock known as Peter....our
first Pope."
The Rock the church is built on is Christ Himself. I see no way to think otherwise. However, He does work through churches and Christians - Catholic and Protestant and Non-denominational. There are wonderful attributes to all but I believe that problems can and have arisen when traditions of men supercede the Word of God.
Thank you so much for your thoughts on this subject.
I think some of these comments are addressed to me. First, please realize that I am NOT the author of this text. Frank Sheed is a famous Catholic apologist and I am much in his debt for the clarity and beauty of his writings on Theology. I have taken the liberty to copy some of the text of "Theology and Sanity" and presented it above. Sheed's work is an excellent read, especially for a Christian wondering just what the Catholic Church teaches with a great deal of biblical background and the weight of tradition to buttress his views. He is an eminent spokesman.
Second, I do not fully agree with your second statement regarding the traditions of men. For this I refer you to Dave Armstrong (who I believe frequents this forum). He has a number of great books on the Faith and is a Catholic convert with an extensive bible background. His book, The Catholic Verses, is one I am finishing up now. Again, if you find you have an interest, he makes a compelling case based totally on Scripture and the inconsistencies found when Authority was abandoned by the Reformation, to buttress his views and those of the Church.
I thank you for your kind comments. It is always great to have a civil and cordial dialog between fellow Christians.
May God be with you this fine day!
Frank
Some wise words here. thank you.