Kind of hard NOT to ask the obvious. Where were the Protestants when Jesus died? St. Peter was NOT a Protestant, neither was St. Paul. They were sent by Jesus to "go teach all nations." And, of course, they did what their Savior commanded.
In fact, St. Peter was the first VICAR of Christ, appointed by Jesus to "go teach all nations." Peter did go to Rome, at Paul's request, and there Peter died, martyred, crucified UPSIDE down, as he did not feel that he "deserved" to die at his Savior did.
You KNOW, of course, where he was crucified, on VATICAN HILL, an already existing hill in Rome. Inside the Vatican Church, behind the very front-most altar (There are MANY!), in their museum is a smallish box, obviously hermetically sealed now, labeled: HERE LIES PETER. I don't expect that too much is left of the FIRST VICAR of Christ, but his remains are there where he died.
Luther, a 16th century Catholic priest, OBVIOUSLY did not intend on doing what he did, that is, separate Christians from each other. He merely meant to reform The Church. The Church DID reform but those others who "protested" took on that very name and became the Protestant faiths, now all 30,000 of them.
Hard to think of the Protestants as anything but divisive among THEMSELVES: 30,000 different denominations! I sometimes wonder if Dr. Martin Luther, doctor of the ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH, would be proud of what his actions wrought. I don't think so. I believe that he was a GOOD man whose intentions were good. It's my belief that he would have been the first to wish that his Church, the Roman Catholic Church, would have stayed as ONE.
I am NOT a "confused" Catholic. My thinking is straight and clear...well on the important things to me. Since I also attend daily Mass I've gotten, over the decades, to know hundreds of NON-confused Catholics. I'm sure it's the same with you, knowing hundreds of NON-confused Protestants.
Also "Rome," as you call the FIRST Christian church, is not a "'unified' mess." There are some 3.3 billion Christians on this good earth of God's with 1.6 billion Catholics and the rest divided among 30,000 different Protestant denominations.
As for the Catholic Church, founded in 33 A.D.: not BAD for the FIRST church in existence, Catholic that is, Roman or Orthodox [Oh, those Greeks!]. And who knows, the Greek and Roman Catholic Churches may yet unify some day. Language was one of the major causes of the schism, but now, thanks to the Pope, all Masses may be celebrated in the vernacular, even in Greek!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts. I appreciate the dialogue.
Prove it (you can't).
St. Peter was NOT a Protestant, neither was St. Paul.
Neither were they Romanists.
In fact, St. Peter was the first VICAR of Christ, appointed by Jesus to "go teach all nations."
Prove it (you can't).
Peter did go to Rome, at Paul's request, and there Peter died, martyred, crucified UPSIDE down, as he did not feel that he "deserved" to die at his Savior did.
Prove it (you can't).
You KNOW, of course, where he was crucified, on VATICAN HILL, an already existing hill in Rome. Inside the Vatican Church, behind the very front-most altar (There are MANY!), in their museum is a smallish box, obviously hermetically sealed now, labeled: HERE LIES PETER. I don't expect that too much is left of the FIRST VICAR of Christ, but his remains are there where he died.
Prove it (you can't).