Did Rome give Protestants the Bible?

They say that they did, but it is an outrageous fib.  The canon was not formulated or compiled by the Pope, but by the universal agreement of the undivided church.  At that time Rome was by no means the leader of all Christians, just of the Italians.  In Britain the church was decidedly not Roman, but Celtic, with its own laws and traditions.  The churches of Alexandria, Antioch, and Constantinople, if anything, had the pre-eminence at that time!

The universal church of that time did not recognize the Pope as the Vicar of Christ, and refused to allow him this title and authority.

During the Middle Ages Rome refused to allow translations of the Bible into the language of the people, insisting upon the Latin translation known as the Vulgate.  In England ordinary people were executed for saying the Lord’s Prayer and Apostle’s Creed in English.  When Tyndale translated the Bible into English he was murdered by Rome and its allies, and every copy that the Bishop of London could get his hands on, he burned in huge piles.  Papists were Bible-burners, not the benevolent Bible-givers that they now present themselves as.

The truth is that we gave the Bible to the church, who had hidden it away as a book too dangerous to be read.  Protestants read it out loud to the people in their own languages in church, over the murderous protests of Rome.  Now the Romans are doing it too, and they are following a Protestant tradition in doing so.

We also gave communion to the people, and that weekly.  In medieval Romanism the people got it once a year, at Easter, and then only half.  To this day they may be denied the wine. Now RCs can have it daily, but only because Protestants blazed the trail.

We also gave congregational worship to the people.  In medieval churches the people were silent spectators, watching the priest and his assistants do everything.  Protestants included the people’s responses into their liturgies, and gave them Psalms and Canticles to sing.  Later what we know as  hymns were written, and in time they became a universal practice.

So when you see Roman Catholics responding during the liturgy, taking Communion regularly, and singing in church, know that they are  being Protestant!

At least they had the good sense eventually to fall into line, even if it was through gritted teeth, and at the cost of much blood and suffering.

The truth is that Rome refused to read the Bible, it prevented people from doing so, and it murdered those who did.

Our Protestants fathers got hold of copies of the Greek NT from Greek scholars fleeing the fall of Constantinople, translated them into the languages of the people, and put it into their hands, ears, hearts, and minds.  Rome did everything in its power to withhold the Bible, but the Reformers would not allow it.

Against the Pope

Q: How can I know that I am in the true church?

A: The true church is the household of God. By our baptism we are baptised into the name of Jesus Christ – the man whom God has appointed as our ruler under God – in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Thus everyone who is baptised and believes is in the true church, the house of God, an adopted and beloved child of the same, and will be saved.

Q: What is an Antichrist?

A: AN antichrist is someone who attempts to be a world-ruler. The Lord Jesus Christ is the King of Kings and the Lord of lords, so any claim of any other person to the same power makes him a rival, or anti, Christ.

Q: Why is the Bishop of Rome an Antichrist?

A: The Lord Jesus Christ, by his death and resurrection, has been given all authority in heaven and on earth. He has sat down at the Father’s right hand upon the throne of David where he has begun to rule that same empire. His ascension into heaven does not imply a distancing from power over the affairs of the earth, but the exact opposite. The right hand of Power is the most powerful place a man can be. He has begun to wage war against his enemies on earth from there, as it is written, “The LORD said to my Lord, sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool.”

The Pope claims to be excercising Christ’s power upon earth in his absence, hence the title Vicar of Christ (vicarious ruler). He has usurped Christ’s power and office, so he is without doubt an Antichrist.

Q: How are my sins remitted?

A: By grace alone, through the propitiation of the cross alone, and by faith alone, apart from the works of the law. If it is by grace then it is not of works, or grace is no longer grace. If then we are justified apart from the works of the law, being the commandments of God, how much less are we justified by the laws of the Pope?

Nevertheless, Pope Boniface VIII declared in his bull Unam Sanctum of 18 November 1302:

We declare, say, define, and proclaim to every human creature that they by necessity for salvation are entirely subject to the Roman Pontiff.

Luther commented:

Therefore, it is the devil himself who is speaking in the person of the pope and all such papal decrees. For if salvation consists in the observance of the pope’s laws, what need do we have of Christ as our Justifier and Saviour?

We see then that the Church of Rome, far from being the true church, is the home of treason against Christ, denial of the sufficiency of the cross, and it is filled with wicked hubris, pride and arrogance.