I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give to [Peter] the keys of the kingdom of heaven. And whatsoever thou shalt bind upon earth, it shall be bound also in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose upon earth, it shall be loosed also in heaven. (Matthew 16:18-19)
Well, as you can see from many, though not all, of the dissenting posts on this thread, this verse becomes cast aside, as it would acknowledge the Primacy of Peter and his successors, the next 15 of which were martyred for their Faith.
Read the thread and you can see. It's easier for some dissenters to make fun like spoiled children, criticize like bullies on the school playground, and to interpret the Bible as they themselves see fit.
Note also how very few have ventured to declare a denomination, a spiritual director, a mentor they can trace farther back than his/her (the mentor's) own dissention; nor do they say how they found their own beliefs, what it was that brought them to where they are now.
See how few dissenting posts there are which proclaim the writer's faith; rather the "contributor" finds it necessary to bash Catholicism in order to justify their own erroneous beliefs.
We must love ALL our brothers and sisters in humanity; we must continue to pray for them all, whether they are genuinely concerned with our spiritual welfare (as I sincerely believe some truly are), or not.
There are always those who are willing to have a mature, adult discussion; yet there are those who are not capable of doing so, and use childish tactics unworthy of a Follower of Christ. By their fruits you shall know them.
There does come a time when we must walk away, on the strength of our own beliefs, shaking the dust from our feet, in a wise, yet gentle manner. I've personally heard it all before, and it has not shaken my Catholic Faith. I chose It and I believe It with all my heart!
God bless you!
And I will give to [Peter] the keys of the kingdom of heaven.
What translation is it from?
Well, there's nothing in Scripture either that supports the primacy of Peter, nor does it at all address apostolic succession or how it's to be carried out, nor does it address the subsequent popes.
And many people have been martyred for their faith. How does them being martyred for their faith mean anything except that they were martyred for their faith?
The Holy Spirit.
Thank you.
I deliberately started with the intention to build Christ’s Church, leaving the issue of who the Rock is aside. The point is that think what you will about the papacy, this is a statement of the Church being the rule of faith, the body of people who “bind and loose”.