Question from visitor:

Hello, I want to know more about Catholicism please. Are the priests false prophets or there is a another problem inside the catholic practice? And more specifically about the Saints concept? Thank you

Response:

Hello, I’d be glad to help explain Catholic beliefs and practices, particularly concerning the role of priests and the concept of saints. I will also address some distinctions in how grace, faith, and Christ’s sufficiency in salvation are understood from a Protestant (Reformed) perspective. Good question for Reformation Day.

The Role of Priests:

The role of priests in Catholicism is a significant area of concern when compared to biblical teachings on Christ’s priesthood. According to Scripture, Jesus Christ is our ultimate and eternal High Priest (Hebrews 4:14-16), the sole mediator who intercedes on behalf of His people. In the Catholic Church, however, priests function as intermediaries, mediating sacraments such as confession, the Eucharist, and last rites. This role diminishes Christ’s singular priestly role by establishing human priests as additional mediators.

The New Covenant message in the New Testament presents Christ alone as the one mediator between God and humanity (1 Timothy 2:5), making human mediators unnecessary for accessing God’s grace. From this view, any practice that suggests reliance on human priests for salvation completely misinterprets the unique work of Christ, who has fully accomplished our redemption and opened the way to direct access to God for every believer (Hebrews 10:19-22).

The Concept of Saints:

In Catholicism, saints are venerated, and believers may pray to them as intercessors. This practice introduces intermediaries beyond Christ, whom the Bible describes as the sole mediator. While it is biblical to honor the lives of faithful Christians who have gone before us, the Catholic practice of praying to saints for help or intercession directly contradicts the Bible’s teaching that all believers are saints—“holy ones” set apart by God for His purposes (Romans 1:7, 1 Corinthians 1:2). Scripture consistently directs us to bring our requests directly to God through Jesus Christ alone, who is our one and only mediator and intercessor before the Father (1 Timothy 2:5; Hebrews 7:25).

The Bible offers no precedent for seeking the aid of saints; instead, it underscores that we are invited, and even commanded, to approach God with confidence through Christ. By turning to saints for things only God can provide—such as peace, guidance, protection, or forgiveness—this practice runs dangerously close to idolatry, as it places trust in beings other than God to meet our needs. Praying to saints can detract from Christ’s unique role as our mediator and risks undermining the exclusive relationship every believer is privileged to have with God through Christ.

Grace and Works: The Nature of Salvation

The Catholic Church teaches that grace is essential for salvation, beginning with what they call prevenient grace, which prepares and enables a person to respond to God. However, Catholic doctrine holds that grace alone is insufficient for complete salvation; the believer’s cooperation through good works and participation in the sacraments is necessary to remain in a state of grace. This cooperative aspect means that while salvation starts by grace, it requires the believer’s ongoing response, expressed through attending Mass, receiving confession, penance, and other sacramental actions.

In contrast, the biblical view as understood in Reformed theology asserts that salvation is by grace alone (sola gratia). This means God’s grace is entirely sufficient and effective in securing a believer’s salvation, without any contribution from human merit or works. Ephesians 2:8-9 underscores this: “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” Here, salvation is presented as a free and unearned gift, rooted entirely in God’s grace and not contingent upon the actions or merits of the individual.

Faith Alone: Justification and Sanctification

The RCC teaches that faith in Christ, though necessary, is not sufficient by itself for justification (the act of being declared righteous before God). In Catholic theology, faith must be accompanied by works and sacraments, leading to a process of justification. This view was solidified by the Council of Trent, which rejected the Reformation doctrine of sola fide (faith alone), instead affirming that justification involves both faith and works of love.

In Reformed theology, however, justification is understood as by faith alone (sola fide). It is a one-time act of God, declaring a sinner righteous solely on the basis of Christ’s righteousness imputed to them by faith (Romans 4:5). While good works are indeed important, they are the evidence of genuine faith and flow naturally from a heart transformed by grace, not as a requirement for securing or maintaining salvation. The Westminster Confession echoes this, affirming that “faith alone is the instrument of justification,” with good works serving as the fruit rather than the foundation of salvation.

Christ’s Sufficiency and the Role of Sacraments

The Catholic Church teaches that Christ’s work on the cross is necessary but not by itself sufficient for salvation. Instead, salvation is mediated through the sacraments, which are seen as essential channels by which God dispenses grace throughout a believer’s life. For instance, baptism is believed to cleanse original sin, the Eucharist renews grace, and penance restores grace lost through mortal sin. This perspective sees the sacraments as necessary for continuing and applying Christ’s grace to the believer, maintaining their just standing before God.

In Reformed theology, however, Christ’s work is viewed as completely sufficient for salvation. Hebrews 10:14 confirms this by saying, “For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.” Christ’s sacrificial work on the cross is final and fully accomplishes redemption for His people. The sacraments in Reformed thought (baptism and the Lord’s Supper) are viewed as signs and seals of grace that confirm and strengthen faith rather than means of dispensing new grace. Believers are encouraged to look directly to Christ as their sole mediator, who has accomplished all that is necessary for their salvation (1 Timothy 2:5).

Question fro another visitor:
I would also like to see what you have to say about the Pope specifically addressing the Catholic take on "Matthew 16:18 KJV — And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Response:
If you approached Matthew 16:18 with a fresh perspective, without any denominational lens, the passage doesn’t inherently suggest a line of succession through Peter. In fact, given the immediate context, most readers would naturally interpret it as a straightforward affirmation of Peter’s confession and the foundational truth about Jesus’ identity. Jesus’ response to Peter is clearly tied to Peter’s declaration that Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the living God,” rather than to any notion of institutional authority. The doctrine of apostolic succession, especially as it pertains to the papacy, emerged over centuries as the church grew in structure and authority became more centralized. This interpretation wasn’t developed by simply reading Matthew 16:18 in its context; rather, it was shaped by historical, political, and ecclesiastical developments within the early church, especially as the Roman bishopric sought to establish its primacy. It’s not something that arises naturally from the text itself but is instead a theological conclusion that was shaped over time to support a particular understanding of church authority and hierarchy. This view was retroactively applied to Matthew 16:18 by the medieval church to justify the authority of the papacy. This is the difference between reading out of the text (exegesis) and reading into the text (eisegesis).

The New Testament consistently presents Jesus as the foundation of the Church, not any individual apostle. In 1 Corinthians 3:11, Paul writes, “For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” Ephesians 2:20 describes the Church as “built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone.” These passages suggest that the Church is built on the teaching of the apostles concerning Christ, not on the apostles themselves, with Jesus as the ultimate foundation.

Nothing in Matthew 16:18 or the surrounding context explicitly indicates that Jesus is establishing a line of succession through Peter. Jesus does not speak of successors, future authority, or any continuing office beyond the original apostles. The emphasis is instead on the Church's enduring foundation against the “gates of hell” (the powers of death and evil), which will not prevail against it.

Additionally, in the broader New Testament, there is no evidence that Peter is considered a superior authority among the apostles. While he is often prominent in the early chapters of Acts, the Church's leadership is shared among the apostles, and authority is distributed collectively (Acts 15:1-21). Paul, for example, confronts Peter openly in Galatians 2:11-14, showing that Peter did not hold an unquestioned authority.

In the passage, Jesus gives Peter “the keys of the kingdom of heaven” and the authority to “bind” and “loose.” However, a few chapters later, Jesus extends the same authority to all the disciples, saying, “Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven” (Matthew 18:18). This suggests that the authority to “bind” and “loose” was not unique to Peter but was given to the Church as a whole through the apostles. It implies authority in preaching the gospel, declaring forgiveness of sins, and upholding church discipline rather than the establishment of a unique office.

Objectively reading Matthew 16:18 in its immediate and broader biblical context, it appears that Jesus is affirming Peter’s confession of Him as the Messiah and Son of God. Declaring that this truth—the recognition of Jesus as the Christ—is the foundation upon which He will build His Church. He is reassuring His followers that His Church, founded on the gospel of Christ, will endure and triumph over all opposition. There is no clear indication in the text that Jesus intended to establish Peter as the first in a line of successors with unique authority over the entire Church. Instead, the focus is on the enduring strength of the Church, built on the truth of Jesus' identity and His work.

This passage ultimately calls all believers to recognize Jesus as the cornerstone of the Church. The promise that “the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” reassures us that Christ’s Church, founded on the gospel, will remain steadfast through every challenge, preserved by the power of Jesus Himself.

The Latin phrase Soli Deo Gloria, meaning "Glory to God Alone," was a central tenet of the Protestant Reformation. It emphasized that all glory, honor, and praise belong to God alone, not to any human institution, leader, or saint. This doctrine was a response to the practices in the medieval church, where glory was often directed toward religious figures, relics, or traditions rather than to God. Soli Deo Gloria underscored the Reformers' belief that salvation and every aspect of life are solely by God’s grace, accomplished through Christ, and therefore, all credit and worship should go to Him. This principle fueled the Reformation’s call for a return to worship that was centered on God's sovereignty and majesty, reinforcing the idea that human achievements, no matter how noble, should not detract from the glory that is due to God alone.