Civilization as it was known in the Roman times was wiped out by Barbarians. The light of Roman civilzation went out and the Dark Ages began. The Catholic Church at the time had the only structure in place that could effect some order. The Church kept civilzation alive in her monastaries and in Rome. \QUOTE]
So what, since when was the mission of the Church to keep civilization alive? And by the way, persecuting people is not a recommended practice for the maintenance of civilization.
One of the complaints about the Catholic Church, for centuries, has been that it places more emphasis on its secular welfare than on tending the spiritual needs of the flock. When I view the church history and structure, I see little evidence that the Catholic Church places its faith in Jesus Christ to provide, it expends enormous effort in maintaining its secular self-sufficiency, even to the extent of having its own city complete with police force, army, hospital, post office, and according to the Italian Tax Office, its own interpretation of tax law.
That you even suggest that the Church has such a role simply illustrates that the transition that Jesus tried to accomplish, from Mosaic Law and the Old Testament Covenant with Israel, to the New Testament Covenant, has failed to make it into the consciousness of many.
I think you are placing to much importance a this Bull, it has nothing to do with the Church’s doctrines and beliefs. It is the writing of one man; this man is not a Church Doctor/Father (as in St. Ambrose, St. Augustine) whose writings greatly influenced the Church’s understanding of Scripture and Christ’s teachings. Saul persecuted Christians, he was instrumental in the martyrdom of St. Stephan, the first martyr, whose feast we celebrate today. St. Peter denied Jesus after he accepted Jesus as his “personal savior.” John 6:6xxsomething
I can accept that, the Pope, the Bishop of Rome, the successor of Peter, the Vicar of Christ, a man granted the gift of infallibility when speaking
ex cathedra, His Holiness the Holy Father, is not to be compared with someone like Augustine, who while being an influential writer, had no authority.
One final point.
Either you decided that it was not important, or you simply missed it, but you did not address the issue that while the Papal Bull was issued by one man, the edicts it contained were extended by the following two popes, who obviously agreed with Paul IV. This is evidence of systemic behaviour, not simply “the writings of one man”.
I also do not understand why you consider a Papal Bull relatively unimportant, nor do I understand why you consider a written edict not a teaching.
Do you have children?
Tell them that if you behave badly, don’t take any notice, leading by example has nothing to do with teaching. Also tell them that if you put a list of house rules on the refrigerator, they don’t apply to the youngest becasue he/she can’t read yet, and they don’t apply to anyone else who can’t read them for any reason. And also tell them that just because you as the House Father wrote a list of instructions, that is not to say that they need to be obeyed because they are not laws and not teachings, they are just your opinion and you can be wrong, except of course when you say you are not.
And if they then ask why you wrote the list in the first place, and what they are meant to learn from them, you will of course tell them … what?
P.S. Why can’t I get these quote marks working properly? They appear consistent when I insert them, but do not result in consistent behaviour in the post. Does someone know the correct syntax?
to help support the interpretation. In my opinion, it will take some koine greek in conjunction.