Nothing gets the clergy ticked off more than telling them that their religious organization is not the holder of the legitimate title of "church". It is like telling them that their religion is worthless.
A few weeks ago the Pope issued a letter that riled up Protestant and other Christian denominations because it said they were not true churches but merely ecclesiastical communities and therefore did not have the "means of salvation." The pronouncement repeated Roman Catholic teaching that says the RC Church "has the fullness of the means of salvation."
The document stated that "Christ 'established here on earth' only one church," and that the other communities "cannot be called 'churches' in the proper sense" because they do not have apostolic succession -- the ability to trace their bishops back to Christ's original apostles -- and therefore their priestly ordinations are not valid.".
First off... that is a very silly statement because Jesus did not establish an institution called the church. He only used th word in scripture twice and never referred to a new religious institution when he did it. The church is not any given religious institution. (and I could go into the problems with the RC concept of 'apostolic succession' and the claim that Peter is the first pope, but many others have done that and I don't need to bore you with it.)
The church is the people who have been saved by Jesus, who have a relationship with Him, not merely a religious affiliation with an organization that calls itself a "church". The "church" that Jesus described is a free-flowing invisible force on earth that He compared to the wind (John 3:8) when talking to Nicodemus. It is the church that Jesus built -- those led by His Spirit -- not those led by an institution and titles.
I'm sorry to say that not only are the protestant instituions not really the "one true church" but neither is the Roman Catholic church, or any other religious 'club'. The one true church is the one that JESUS built... that he built in the hearts of mankind through His Spirit... and only Jesus holds the "fullness of the means of salvation"... no man run religious organization.
It is sad that those who claim to have their life centered in Jesus love to battle over titles and whose religious institution is ordained of God and all those kinds of foolish hurtful things. I find the Pope's statement to be foolish and unfounded, but I also find the protestant reaction just as foolish to try and shoot it down. No one has an "ordained by God organization called the church". His people are supposed to BE the church.
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