LIVES OF POPES PART 2

LIVES OF POPES

PART 2

     There exists and always will exist the Church which Jesus Christ founded and there is the papacy and these two are not the same, because Orthodoxy alone is the Church and Body of Christ, which preserves His doctrine. Because the papacy claims that each pope is a successor of Christ through Peter, we are revealing the historical record of their anti-Christian lives. Orthodox leaders should be ashamed to even speak of the idea of unity and certainly not of a second church, which is impossible/

Specimen of the Life of Popes

(continued)

     The character of Pope John XII, as portrayed by Roman Catholics themselves is an amazing testimony. Hear what Dr. Brands, who is a Roman Catholic, says about this pope: “In the person of this grandson of Narozia, the papacy was reduced to its deepest degradation, and Rome to its lowest depth of dishonor and humiliation.”  Finally this pope was deposed by a Council for his licentiousness and other crimes, which would fill a volume, if we were to insert them one by one; and yet the Romish church, unblushingly calls on us to believe that this wretch was legitimate successor, of self-denying Peter and Paul and above all, that he was infallible.

     Pope Otto the Great was succeeded in 973 by two rival heads of the church, namely, Pope Boniface VII and Benedict VII. The opposition between them was absolute.  The pope of one party was the antipope of the other. What one authority decreed the other strictly forbade. Pope Benedict excommunicated Pope Boniface, and the other returned the compliment, yet both of them held the authority of binding and losing, ordained priests and bishops and bestowed blessings as Vicar of Christ, etc. 

LIVES OF POPES 

Part 1

     The majority of Orthodox leaders who in our days, embrace the pope as a brother, but they ignore history which demonstrates that if they are really our brothers, then Orthodoxy is not the one true Church. What really took place is that Rome apostasized from the Church and formed a new organization called the papacy, separated from the Church they descended into immorality.  Orthodox Christians would do well to let their leaders know that union is poisonous.

      The Papacy, which poses as the Catholic Church, boldly proclaim that the Pope and the Papacy are the only true church and without them there is no salvation.  Although in these days of confusion coupled with the poison of ecumenism, the papacy will at times deny their claims for its own purpose, but the fact remains that it is their official and canonical doctrine, that you must honor and obey the pope and the papacy to be saved, because the pope is the successor of Peter The papacy alleges that it is founded upon Peter, and they claim that this succession has lasted almost two thousand years passing from one pope to the next pope in succession which is necessary. But are they really successors of holy and pure Saint Peter? This can be answered by examining their lives.

“I AM WITH YOU TO THE CLOSE OF THE AGE”

“I AM WITH YOU TO THE CLOSE OF THE AGE”

(Mat. 28:20

     Our Lord Jesus Christ promised  “to be with us to the close of the age,” therefore, as God He is with us, as well as the Holy Spirit whom He sent to comfort and guide us.  We can easily see who was  Head and Guide of the Church from its infancy and who remains so until the present day. There is one God, Father Son and Holy Spirit and these three are one God. There is one High Priest according to Holy Scripture and Orthodox History and that High Priest is Jesus Christ. No one can replace either our Head or our Guide or the Church which Christ founded

     “The Lord swore and will not change His mind; you are a Priest forever after the order of Melchisedec; by so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament.  And there were truly many priests but they were not able to continue by reason of their death.  But this man (Jesus), because He continues forever has an unchangeable priesthood. Wherefore He is able to save them to the uttermost who come unto God by Him, seeing that He is always alive to make intercession for them.  For such a High Priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; who needs not as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices daily, first for His own sins and then for the people, for this He did once when He offered up himself.  For the law makes men high priests which have infirmity; but the word of the oath, which was since the law, makes the Son who is consecrated for evermore”        (Heb. 7:21-28).         

     The old Levitic priesthood was succeeded by the Priesthood of Jesus Christ which remains forever. The priesthood of Christ is found all through His Body the Church, through bishops ordained by the Church and the priests ordained by  bishops. The Church and its organic structure has been preserved since ancient days, and Christ alone is the only High Priest through whom all  ordained clergy derive their priesthood.