A Protestant explains the Papacy

[dosdog]

Why do Catholics Have a Pope?
Sarah Jennings Crosswalk.com

With the recent, historic visit of Pope Benedict XVI to the U.S.,

While I had a basic understanding of the Catholic papacy before his visit, I didn’t fully grasp it. So, in an effort to better understand this central figure in Christendom and to help Christians more effectively dialogue, I dove into some heady reading materials from both Catholic and non-Catholic sources. Hopefully, my explanation here will offer some clarity on what Catholics really believe.

crosswalk.com/root/spirituallife/11574606/page0/

 

[Atreyu]

A good article. However, the author unfortunately perpetuates the myth that Saul was “renamed” as Paul. On the contrary, Paul is simply the Greek transliteration of Saul’s Hebrew (Aramaic?) name. If Saul was renamed to Paul in the Bible, then Peter was actually renamed three times:

1. 
   *]From Simon to Kepha
   *]From Kepha to Cephas
   *]From Cephas to Petros
   
   The second change would be equivalent to Paul’s name “change”. However, it really isn’t a change at all; just the same name in different languages.