THE HYPOCRISY OF THE PAPACY..AND ITS HATRED FOR THE WORD OF GOD.... .The Papacys Methods: It brought itself to power by shrewd political alliances, and by deception, and by armed force; and by armed force and bloodshed, it has maintained itself in power. Papal Revenues: Through a large part of its history the Papacy, by the sale of ecclesiastical office, and its shameless traffic in Indulgences — has received vast revenues that enabled it to maintain, for much of the time, the most luxurious Court in Europe. Personal character of the Popes: Some of the Popes have been good men; some of them have been unspeakably vile; the most of them have been absorbed in the pursuit of secular power. Papal Claims: Yet, in spite of the character of the general run of Popes, their methods, and the bloody record of the Papacy — these Holy Fathers claim that they are the Vicars of Christ, Infallible and that they hold the place of Almighty God on this earth, and that obedience to them is necessary to salvation. The Papacy and the Bible: Pope Hildebrand ordered Bohemians not to read the Bible. Pope Innocent III forbade the people reading the Bible to their own language. Pope Gregory IX forbade laymen possessing the Bible, and suppressed translations. Translations among the Albigenses and Waldenses were burned, and people burned for haying them. Pope Paul IV prohibited the possession of translations without permission of the Inquisition. The Jesuits induced Pope Clement XI to condemn the reading of the Bible by the laity. Popes Leo XII, Pius VIII, Gregory XVl and Pius IX all condemned Bible Societies. In Catholic countries, the Bible is an unknown book.
Posted on: Thu, 25 Dec 2014 20:08:31 +0000