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I think Albion hit the nail on the head in his Post #12:
The interesting thing to me is the fact that it is actually irrelevant whether ”rock” refers to Peter or not. It is often the object of attention when people set out to debunk the idea of the Papacy, but if ”rock” does refer to Peter (which I think it does), there still is no basis for a Papacy to be found in Scripture (and of course there is none in Tradition either, if one thinks that Tradition might be definitive).
1. It was Peter who was the focus expounder of the message of salvation through the exalted Jesus. to the Jews, on the day of Pentecost (in Acts Chapter 2).
2. It was Peter (accompanied by John) who first brought the empowering of the Holy Spirit to the Samaritans in Acts Chapter 8.
3. It was Peter who first brought the message of salvation to the Gentiles (in Acts Chapter 10).
Thus the church (as a worldwide, multi-racial, multicultural organism, as opposed to a (corrupt*) hierarchical organisation headquartered in Rome) was built on Peter, just as Jesus said it would be.
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*The recent revelations across multiple countries regarding the sexual molestation of children by priests, and more importantly the deliberate and in-depth cover ups designed to shield the Roman Catholic Church from exposure to the truth – those alone, in the absence of other examples including historical, and the sexual cover-ups yet to be revealed – they are sufficient to warrant the label of “corrupt”.
Even a Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church (Australian George Pell) was charged with historical sexual assault on minors. I expressed at the time (to my wife), that the evidence was so strong that action could not be avoided.
I added that because of the powerful influence of the Roman Catholic Church in all walks of life, I wondered if George Pell would not be convicted, or if a conviction could not be avoided, would be given only a light sentence – a sentence not in keeping with the lives he had destroyed.
George Pell was found guilty of a small number of charges (because legal technicalities and witness loss through death, significantly reduced the number of charges he had to face). I understand his sentencing has yet to take place.
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