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too many are off topic to reply: but let me just say that the fact the the CC gave the Bible is not as widley accepted as you may think it is. Same applies for Infallible Tradition and Papal Infallibilty.
and BTW 1 Timothy 3:15 means the beleivers, the people, not the building or some organization.
Red, you are willing to discuss other things off topic, so please answer those 10 questions. Yes, many books of the bible were considered inspired before the CC finally codified it, but other books (such as the book of Revelation) were not unanimously accepted until the 4th century, and some books were considered inspired that were later rejected by the CC. Jesus’ church made the final decision. Who gave Jesus’ church the authority to make such an authoritative decision? Who or What gives anyone the authority (outside Jesus’ established church) - to interpret the bible? If this were the case, then surely the holy spirit would have guided each Christian into the oneness and unity that the CC possesses. No one had bibles prior to its codification in 393 AD, as my sister seems to believe. Christians simply went to Jesus’ established church to receive edification and they were one and united, sharing the same truths vis-a-vis any one doctrine, unlike the myriad non-Catholic churches today.
With the Catholic church as the sole authority, Jesus’ church has remained one; with the bible as the sole authority, non-Catholic churches have become more and more insular and isolated from both Jesus’ church and other man-made churches. The bible as our only authority does not work, and furthermore, not one church adheres to this man-made doctrine. One must believe what one’s non-Catholic church teaches, otherwise one is not welcomed, as is the case with the church to which you belong and I once belonged.
I do agree with you; the CC did not write the bible, however, the bible as the only authority for the first 1500 years of Christianity would have been impossible for it was not readily available as it is today, thanks to the printing press. Without the CC. many people would not have had access to the word of God; that is why Jesus gave His one church the power (via the holy spirit) - to be Jesus’ witnesses, starting in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and eventually, to the ends of the earth. Jesus provided the world with a teaching church, (hence the magisterial office) - not a teaching book. Jesus knew that people would distort, dis-inform and misinterpret his teachings, most of the time unwittingly; that was why he empowered his church to teach, and His church derives all her power from the holy spirit, promised to be with Jesus’ bride until the end of time:
“you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
"All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
Jesus will be with His established church to the very end of the age, regardless of the weeds attempting to choke the life out of her. Only the church built by God received this power when the holy spirit came on her, on pentecost, and the holy spirit will remain with Jesus’ bride until the end of time, and that is why the imposition of hands, starting with the Apostles’ successors, is so important. It protects the deposit of faith! If someone wants to interpret the bible in a way that differs from the church built by God and guided by the holy spirit, he/she must take it to Jesus’ church leaders, as per the bible, to arbitrate through the mystical power of the holy spirit. Jesus’ church would possess absolutely zero power without the holy spirit. The holy spirit works through Jesus’ ministerial church leaders. The key is to find that one church built by God (never to impugn the work of churches built by men) - and once I did, I realized that I was finally home (house of the living God) - where the pillar and foundation of truth can be found, thanks to the spirit of truth. The holy spirit didn’t descend upon me or you or any one person, or any church built on the foundation of the protestant reformation, and that is what makes the clear distinction between Jesus’ church built on Peter and the rest of the apostles and prophets, and all the non-Catholic churches stemming from the reformation. The holy spirit didn’t leave Jesus’ one bride just to guide man-made churches into utter division, which is the work of the church’s enemy. Divide and conquer is this fallen angels only purpose, and, as an eternal fallen angel, he knows that he has very little time to fracture Jesus’ body, the church, and this fallen angel knows, in the end, Jesus’ church will prevail because He is the head and Savior of His Mystical body, the church, regardless of the chaff mixed in with the wheat.
What do you think you would have done if you lived in one of these centuries and you couldn’t afford a bible, couldn’t read, or didn’t have access to one? Finally which church in the world today would you have belong to for the first 1500 years of Christianity?**