Then why does Protestantism deny the possibility of the Holy Spirit interpreting by or through the Magisterium, in effect denying the Episcopacy of the Catholic Church what it claims for every other believer, and insist that it only be done by the individual while ignoring the thousands of different interpretations produced?
Peace and Blessings.
Peace and Blessings back atcha.King James Bible (Cambridge Ed.)
... work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
Who, then, is going to interpret the interpretation of the magisterium? Otherwise, we'd have thousands of interpretations of the magisterium.
And how do we know THEIR interpretation is correct and that the people are interpreting that correctly?
We could then build a case that the magisterium's interpretation needs to be interpreted and need a body to interpret that correctly, and so it goes.
Turtles all the way down.
They don't, not really. If the magesterium of the Roman Catholic Church teaches truth that is revealed in Holy Scripture, no true believer would have any reason to deny them the same consideration. But where the magesterium diverts away from Scripture and invents doctrines either not mentioned in Scripture or even contrary to Scripture then they are just as wrong as any other sect or religion that projects itself above the word of God.
I'll give you an example. When the Catholic Catechism describes the Trinity, and it matches what the Bible says about the Trinity - such as the deity of Jesus Christ, the second person of the Trinity, the Son of God - and also teaches about the Father and the Holy Spirit with the Son all being one God, they are teaching the truth (orthodoxy). If someone comes along and teaches that Mary is the fourth person of the Trinity - as many Catholics HAVE done - both nonCatholics AND Catholics can confidently say they are not teaching according to Scripture and they are teaching heterodoxy.
Like I have said many times here, as have others, there is much that we hold in common concerning our Christian faith. Where we differ, where the Reformers differed, have been in the areas that Rome has ventured away from what was the orthodox faith. How can we know what is the orthodox faith? The doctrines must be found in Scripture and proven by them. This doesn't make the Bible an idol or make those who trust in it to teach the truth, Bibliolaters. It places the importance on what the Bible contains - and that is the Divine, God-breathed truth that God, Himself, says will NEVER pass away, will always accomplish what HE sends it out to do and that HE preserves so that we CAN know the truth. It takes the indwelling Holy Spirit within the person with a new, Spirit nature to receive the things of God and to understand and know them. When those within the Catholic magesterium mandate obedience of all Christians to doctrines God does not, then the prudent believer chooses to obey God rather than man - even men that hold a position of ecclesiastical power over them.
And to answer your probable next question, there are NOT "thousands" of different interpretations produced by holding to the authority of the Scriptures. That is a strawman, an impossibility and a false construct. There is truth or thousands of not-truth, but truth is still truth even if NO ONE believes it. Having a magesterium has not prevented the Catholic Church from members differing with each other. A lot is tolerated and excused. Where there is and MUST be unity is on the major tenets of the faith and they are ALL found in the Bible. As Paul said, we should not go beyond that which is written. Good advice.
You presume that the Magisterium actually possess the Holy Spirit ... we Protestants do not presume that.