The Catholic Church and the Bible

​The damning evidence proving Catholicism is an anti-Christian religion is found within the pages of the Bible itself. The Vatican knew this, and it drove their actions concerning Bible ownership for centuries. Church leaders understood it was critical to conceal the identity of Mystery Babylon, and the easiest way to do so was to restrict access to the Bible itself.

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While most of medieval Europe’s population was illiterate, many were educated. Bibles in circulation before the fifteenth-century invention of the printing press were handwritten manuscripts, making them both expensive and scarce. Despite the high illiteracy rates, the Catholic Church still did what it could to limit Bible access for those who could read them. From the early Middle Ages until the end of the eighteenth century, any Christian found with even the smallest excerpts of scripture risked being beaten or even executed.

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In a January 2, 1080 letter to King Vratislav II of Bohemia, Pope Gregory VII expressed the Catholic Church’s view on Bible censorship, writing, “Not without reason has it pleased Almighty God that Holy Scripture should be a secret in certain places, lost, if it were plainly apparent to all men, perchance it would be little esteemed and be subject to disrespect; or it might be falsely understood by those of mediocre learning, and lead to error.”[i]

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In his 1199 Cum ex Injuncto, Pope Innocent III declared that any layman caught reading the Bible and ministering to others would be stoned to death. Innocent III wrote, “The mysteries of the sacraments of faith should not be explained everywhere to everyone, since they cannot be understood everywhere by everyone, but only to those who can conceive of them by their faithful intellect…Such is the profundity of divine Scripture, that not only simple and illiterate men, but even prudent and learned men do not fully suffice to investigate its wisdom. Because of this Scripture says: ‘They have failed in their search.’ From this it was rightly once established in divine law that the beast which touches the mountain should be stoned; that is, so that no simple and unlearned man presumes to concern himself with the sublimity of sacred Scripture, or to preach it to others.”[ii] The letter was later reinforced when it was codified into canon law by the Catholic Church.

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In 1215, Pope Innocent III criminalized translating scripture or meeting in private gatherings outside of a church, ordering, “They shall be seized for trial and penalties, who engage in the translation of the sacred volumes, or who hold secret conventicles, or who assume the office of preaching without the authority of their superiors; against whom process shall be commenced, without any permission of appeal.”[iii]

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If any uncertainty remained around the Roman Catholic Church’s stance on Bible ownership, the Council of Toulouse removed all doubt with its 1229 decree, stating, “We prohibit also that the laity should be permitted to have the books of the Old and New Testaments; unless anyone from the motives of devotion should wish to have the Psalter or the Breviary for divine offices or the hours of the blessed Virgin; but we most strictly forbid their having any translation of these books.”[iv] Five years later, the Council of Tarragona was called to ratify the decrees of Toulouse. The bishops ruled that anyone who owned copies of the Bible or excerpts of its books had eight days to turn them over to a local bishop to be burned.[v] By the 1300s, possession of a Bible by a layman was a criminal offense punishable by flogging, confiscation of personal property, or burning at the stake.

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Theologian John Wycliffe was the first to translate the New Testament into English. As punishment, he was declared a heretic by the Council of Constance in 1415, thirty-one years after his death. However, the Catholic leaders at the council did not stop there, ordering, “That his body and bones are to be exhumed, if they can be identified among the corpses of the faithful, and to be scattered far from a burial place of the church, in accordance with canonical and lawful sanctions.”[vi] In 1428, Wycliffe’s bones were unearthed and burned before the townspeople. After the flames had waned, his ashes were thrown into the Swift River.[vii]

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Like Wycliffe, William Tyndale translated most of the Bible into English. Before he could complete his work, he was branded a heretic by the Catholic Church and executed by strangulation in Vilvoorde in 1536. Here was a man killed by a supposedly Christian church for the scandalous act of making the Christian scriptures more accessible to English readers. To the Vatican, his execution was not punishment enough for translating the Bible, so his corpse was then ordered burned at the stake.[viii]

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In December 1563, ten rules on prohibited books were adopted at the twenty-fifth session of the Council of Trent. Rule III states, “Versions also of ecclesiastical writings, which have hitherto been set forth by condemned authors, provided they contain nothing against sound doctrine, are permitted. But versions of the books of the Old Testament may be allowed only to learned and pious men at the discretion of the bishop, provided they use such versions as elucidations of the Vulgate to understand the sacred scripture, but not as the sound text. But let versions of the New Testament, made by authors of the first class of this index, be allowed to no one, because but little utility, but very much danger is to flow from their perusal.”[ix] The books of the New Testament—including the gospels and the book of Revelation—were not allowed to be read by the laity due to the risk posed to Catholicism.

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Rule IV went even further. In one of the most heretical abuses of power in its history, the Catholic Church claimed unauthorized readers of banned books were not allowed to be forgiven of their sins. The local bishop would fine the bookseller an amount equal to the book’s price and subject them to any additional penalties that the bishop deemed appropriate. Rule IV read, “But whosoever shall presume to read them without such power, let him not be able to obtain absolution of his sins, unless he has first given back the books to the ordinary. But the booksellers, who shall sell the Bible written in the vulgar tongue, to a person not having the aforesaid power, or shall in any other way grant it, is to lose the price of the books, which shall be converted by the bishop to pious purposes, and they shall be subject to other penalties, according to the quality of the offence, at the discretion of the same bishop. But regulars are not to have the power of reading or buying them, unless they have power to do so from their prelates.”[x]

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These perverse rules from the Council of Trent were considered noble by Catholic leaders at the time. French bishop Richard Du Mans, who spoke prominently at the Council, said, “That the Scriptures had become useless, since the schoolmen had established the truth of all doctrines; and though they were formerly read in the church, for the instruction of the people, and still read in the service, yet they ought not to be made a study, because the Lutherans only gained those who read them.”[xi] This quote is an incredible window into the environment of the day. The people who were finally able to read the Bible quickly realized Catholicism was a pseudo-Christian religion. These people were leaving Catholicism for Protestantism by the thousands—and the Vatican knew it.

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Trent’s rules were designed for two purposes. First, they restricted the availability of the Bible or any other books damaging to the Vatican. Second, they provided the Catholic Church with the means to threaten and punish the laity into submission. Those who failed to comply with Trent’s dictates knew they risked being either tortured or killed for their faith.

The Church’s original application of Rules III and IV permitted bishops to grant exceptions to allow some laypeople to read specific passages of the Bible. However, Clement VIII, whose pontificate lasted from 1592 to 1605, prohibited bishops and their superiors from granting these licenses—a ban enforced by the Inquisition.[xii]

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Like his predecessors, Benedict XIV confirmed the rules of the Council of Trent after becoming pope in 1740. He also mandated that any versions of the Bible in circulation—including those possessed by clergymen—were versions authorized by the Catholic Church.[xiii]

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The Catholic suppression of scripture continued through the end of the eighteenth century. When Pope Pius VI was deposed in February 1798, the papacy’s temporal power over all Christendom was revoked. The weakened Catholic Church no longer held enough civil authority to discipline Bible owners, which opened the door for the Bible Society movement.

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The British and Foreign Bible Society was founded in 1804 to address the lack of affordable Bibles for Welsh speakers. Emboldened by the Catholic Church’s new lack of persecutory power, the desire of the citizenry to have access to affordable Bibles rapidly spread to the other nations of the British Isles, Germany, the United States, and Canada by 1809. Two years later, the Bible Societies of India and Hungary were founded. New organizations in Finland, Russia, the Netherlands, Iceland, Sweden, Switzerland, Prussia, and Denmark joined the effort by 1815. The following year, a Bible Society was founded in Norway. By 1825, Bible Societies had spread as far as Poland, Malta, Greece, Australia, South Africa, and Colombia.[xiv]

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Pius VII, successor to the deposed Pius VI, wrote about the danger Bible Societies posed to the Catholic Church in a June 29, 1816, letter to Ignatius, Archbishop of Gniezno. “We have been truly shocked by this most crafty device by which the very foundations of religion are undermined,” he wrote. “We have, with the utmost care and attention, deliberated upon the measures proper to be adopted by our pontifical authority, in order to remedy and abolish this pestilence as far as possible.” Pius then congratulated Ignatius “upon the singular zeal you have displayed under circumstances so dangerous to Christianity, in having denounced to the apostolic see this defilement of the faith, so eminently dangerous to souls,” and for his actions to “expose the wickedness of this nefarious scheme.”[xv]

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In his letter calling Bible Societies a “defilement of the faith, so eminently dangerous to souls” and a “nefarious scheme,” Pope Pius VII was referring to the desire of Christians to read the Bible—the fundamental religious text of their faith. Believers wanted access to scripture, and the Roman Catholic Church felt so threatened by its portrayal in Revelation 17-18 that it fought to prevent them from reading it.

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The Bible Societies did not stop the Catholic Church’s efforts to suppress scripture. The movement was such a risk to Catholicism that less than eight months after becoming pope in 1823, Leo XII issued his Ubi Primum, which states, “If the sacred Scriptures be every where indiscriminately published, more evil than advantage will arise thence, on account of the rashness of men.”[xvi] On March 26, 1825, Leo XII republished the list of prohibited books from the Council of Trent to remind everyone how dangerous God’s Word was to Catholicism.[xvii]

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In his Inter Praecipuas, an 1844 encyclical letter which was subtitled “On Biblical Societies,” Pope Gregory XVI declared, “We confirm and renew by Our apostolic authority the prescriptions listed and published long ago concerning the publication, dissemination, reading, and possession of vernacular translations of sacred Scriptures…In particular, watch more carefully over those who are assigned to give public readings of holy scripture, so that they function diligently in their office within the comprehension of the audience; under no pretext whatsoever should they dare to explain and interpret the divine writings contrary to the tradition of the Fathers or the interpretation of the Catholic Church.”[xviii]

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As a matter of policy, Catholics were officially discouraged from reading scripture until 1943. Realizing the Vatican’s full-scale war against the spread of the Bible had been lost, Pius XII issued the encyclical Divino Afflante Spiritu. This letter finally encouraged Catholics to read the Bible, saying it should “be read daily with piety and devotion.”[xix] After failing to stop Bible ownership, the Vatican now publishes its own translations. However, it still issues a list of which versions of the Bible are authorized for Catholic readers.[xx]

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There are two methods for translating the Bible—literal and dynamic. A literal translation attempts to preserve the accuracy of the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Koine Greek languages. Literal translations are prized for their precision, even if modern readers may not find the language smooth or easy to comprehend. Dynamic translations are less precise but more easily read in today’s vernacular.

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By the time James I became King of England in 1603, King Henry VIII had separated the country from the Roman Catholic Church. Ritualistically, the nascent Church of England was nearly identical to Catholicism. However, it was fundamentally free of the Vatican’s influence and control. When King James convened the Hampton Court Conference with the intent to create a new translation of the Bible in 1604, he instructed the translators to use the literal translation method.[xxi] For these reasons, the King James Version was used for all verses quoted in this book. It is a literal translation, close to the original language and free from the influence and coercion of the Vatican. The King James Version’s linguists were at liberty to go anywhere the original language took them, to translate the text accurately without parsing words to conceal the Bible’s warnings about the Roman Catholic Church.

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Other Ways the Catholic Church Keeps Catholics from God

Whether or not you believe this interpretation of Mystery Babylon, the Catholic Church certainly does. Over the years, the Vatican has proven that it knew that its church fulfilled the prophecy of Mystery Babylon through its actions. Is there another reason the Catholic Church would conceal the Bible from its parishioners? If the overtly anti-Christian act of preventing people from reading the core text of their faith is not eye-opening enough, there are several other ways the Roman Catholic Church has kept people from God.

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The Roman Catholic Church Is the Gatekeeper of Salvation

In 1964, the Second Vatican Council published a decree on ecumenism entitled Unitatis Redintegratio. This document, which calls for the reunification of all denominations in Christendom, openly proclaims that God passed the “blessings of the New Covenant” to the apostolic college—the apostles Jesus commissioned to spread the gospel after his ascension. The Vatican contends that Peter was the leader of the apostles and that he established “one Body of Christ”—a singular church.

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Unitatis Redintegratio continues, “Nevertheless, our separated brethren, whether considered as individuals or as Communities and Churches, are not blessed with that unity which Jesus Christ wished to bestow on all those who through Him were born again into one body, and with Him quickened to newness of life—that unity which the Holy Scriptures and the ancient Tradition of the Church proclaim.”

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Then, in a remarkable display of heresy and unmerited self-importance, the decree claims, “For it is only through Christ’s Catholic Church, which is ‘the all-embracing means of salvation,’ that they can benefit fully from the means of salvation. We believe that Our Lord entrusted all the blessings of the New Covenant to the apostolic college alone, of which Peter is the head, in order to establish the one Body of Christ on earth to which all should be fully incorporated who belong in any way to the people of God.”[xxii] Such a sacrilegious claim would mean the Catholic Church determines who receives salvation, not God.

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Vatican tradition contends the papacy traces its lineage back to Peter. The suggestion that it was Peter’s duty to establish “the one Body of Christ” implies that the Catholic Church is the only church that qualifies as part of the body of Christ. However, the Catholic priest and editor of the Encyclopedia of Catholicism, Richard McBrien, acknowledged, “Although Catholic tradition regards St. Peter as the first bishop of Rome and therefore as the first pope, there is no evidence that Peter was involved in the initial establishment of the Christian community in Rome…or that he served as Rome’s first bishop. Not until the pontificate of St. Pius I in the middle of the second century (142-155) did the Roman church have one bishop as pastoral leader.”[xxiii]

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In 1967, the Vatican reiterated this claim with its Indulgentiarum Doctrina. The document describes it this way; “For the only-begotten son of God…has won a treasure for the militant Church and has entrusted it to blessed Peter, the keybearer of heaven, and to his successors, Christ’s vicars on earth, that they may distribute it to the faithful for their salvation, applying it mercifully for reasonable causes to all who are repentant and have confessed their sins, at times remitting completely and at times partially the temporal punishment due sin in a general as well as in special ways insofar as they judge it to be fitting in the eyes of the Lord. It is known that the merits of the Blessed Mother of God and of all the elect…add further to this treasure.”[xxiv]

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Indulgentiarum Doctrina reinforced the view that Peter was the “keybearer” of Heaven, meaning he—not God—decided who could enter. The popes, who claim to be Peter’s successors, use a fabricated line of succession called the “Primacy of Peter” to maintain that they are responsible for distributing salvation to Christians—a wholly heretical and sacrilegious belief.

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Salvation Through the Seven Sacraments

The Catholic Church also teaches parishioners that to get to Heaven, one needs to receive salvation through a combination of faith and ritualistic acts called the seven sacraments: baptism, confirmation, the Eucharist, penance, anointing the sick, holy orders, and matrimony.[xxv], [xxvi] While the sacraments are good and honorable ways to display one’s faith publicly, the Bible disagrees on the path to Heaven. John 3:16 and 14:6, Acts 4:12 and 16:31, Ephesians 2:8-9, and Titus 3:5 all proclaim that salvation comes from faith in Jesus.[1] While faith without works is dead,[xxvii] the Bible contains no checklist of works that must be completed to receive salvation.

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The Catholic Church contends that performing the sacraments directly generates a precise supernatural response: salvation. This belief is identical to the recitation of spells in the practice of sorcery and witchcraft. For example, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, number 1128 says, “From the moment that a sacrament is celebrated in accordance with the intention of the Church, the power of Christ and his Spirit acts in and through it.”[xxviii] As Daniel prophesied of the Antichrist, “Through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper.”[xxix]

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The Pope Is the Head of the Church and Has the Authority of Christ

Ephesians 1:22, 5:23, and Colossians 1:18 all name Jesus as the head of the church.[2] Hebrews 7:22-28 explains that there have been countless priests over the years, but Jesus’ priesthood is everlasting. His death and resurrection gave us a “better testament”—a pure, continuous priesthood.[3] Jesus did tell Peter, “Upon this rock I will build my church,”[4] but the phrase was never intended to declare that he was being chosen to lead a new organized religion. Christ’s statement was more likely a reference to the apostle’s strength and determination to spread the gospel than a transfer of authority.

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Pius I is believed to have become the bishop of Rome around 142 AD. The Catholic Church, desperate to legitimize itself as the singular Christian church, contends there were eight other “popes” between Peter and Pius I,[xxx] but history does not support their claims.[xxxi] The Vatican has distorted and misrepresented Jesus’ statement to create a lineage of church leaders linking Peter to the first bishop of Rome so that the papacy could falsely claim to possess Christ’s divine authorization and empowerment.

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The unsubstantiated Catholic contention that the pope is the head of the earthly church directly contradicts the Bible, which assigns the same position to Christ alone. Papal supremacy was contrived to legitimize a church with no more spiritual authority than any other religious organization. It is another deception by Mystery Babylon, as Catholics and other non-Christians believe the pope is God’s representative and the head of Christianity. As Revelation 17:8 predicted, these people look upon the pope “with wonder.”

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Only the Catholic Church Can Interpret Scripture

The Catechism of the Catholic Church claims, “Sacred Scripture must be read and interpreted with the help of the Holy Spirit and under the guidance of the Magisterium of the Church according to three criteria: 1) it must be read with attention to the content and unity of the whole of Scripture; 2) it must be read within the living Tradition of the Church; 3) it must be read with attention to the analogy of faith, that is, the inner harmony which exists among the truths of the faith themselves.”[xxxii]

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For this statement to be spiritually accurate, one must assume that God intended for his believers to require a third party to tell them what to think, what to believe, and how to act. During Jesus’ ministry, he typically reached people in small numbers—one by one, handfuls here and there. The earliest converts to Christianity—the first-century Jews of Judea—determined that Jesus was the Messiah they had been waiting for by thinking for themselves. They considered the earliest Hebrew scriptures and the writings of prophets and concluded Jesus was the Son of God whom they had been promised.

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King David penned his opinion on individual contemplation of scripture in Psalm 119, writing, “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee. Blessed art thou, O Lord: teach me thy statutes.” David did not ask God to help the high priest give him good advice on avoiding sin—he asked God to guide him through the scriptures he had memorized. He continued, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Clearly, David did not believe interpreting God’s Word was a task reserved for the clergy.

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Jesus instructed his followers to “continue in his word,” indicating we should live by his instructions as preserved in scripture.[5] Paul advised both his disciple Timothy and the Christian community in Rome to read scripture.[6] God has empowered today’s Christians to do the same thing. He made us in his image, as individuals equipped with the ability to think critically and make our own decisions. We can read the Bible, ask ourselves the right questions, and find God’s answers without requiring guidance or interpretation from any priest, church, or religious institution.

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Interpretation of the Bible by individual Catholics is what frightened the Vatican the most. Once you realize that the motive for banning the Bible was to censor God’s warnings about their deceptive pagan practices, it is simple to see the intent behind their stance that the Catholic Church must handle all interpretation of scripture. The Vatican’s primary concern is the preservation of the ruse that Catholicism is a Christian religion. If medieval Christians had been allowed to read Revelation, there was a considerable risk that the Roman Catholic Church would have been identified as Mystery Babylon—which is exactly what happened in the sixteenth century.

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After the invention of the printing press facilitated the wider distribution of the Bible, individual Christians started to interpret scripture outside the Catholic Church’s reach. When these observant theologians published their views, the world’s opinion of Roman Catholicism quickly changed. Mystery Babylon was identified, and the Protestant Reformation was sparked.

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Mary as Mediator, Venerating and Praying to Mary and Saints

The Bible irrefutably declares Jesus Christ is the only mediator between God and man in I Timothy 2:5.

 

I Timothy 2:5

5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;

 

Awfully conclusive, is it not? So, why would the Vatican tell us that Mary is actively interceding on our behalf in Heaven? According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, number 969, “This motherhood of Mary in the order of grace continues uninterruptedly from the consent which she loyally gave at the Annunciation and which she sustained without wavering beneath the cross, until the eternal fulfilment of all the elect. Taken up to heaven she did not lay aside this saving office but by her manifold intercession continues to bring us the gifts of eternal salvation…Therefore the Blessed Virgin is invoked in the Church under the titles of Advocate, Helper, Benefactress, and Mediatrix.”[xxxiii] A mediatrix is a female mediator, and in Catholicism, the term is almost exclusively used in reference to Mary. The Catechism of the Catholic Church gave Mary’s fictional role as a mediatrix credit for “bring[ing] us the gifts of eternal salvation.”

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The Bible does not contain the slightest indication of Mary’s intercession on our behalf. The theory is a complete fabrication by the Catholic Church and a corrupt effort to use Mary as a barrier between God and man. After all, if we direct our prayers through Mary or another saint, we are not delivering them to God through our true intercessor, Jesus. As he said in John 14:6, “No man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”[7]

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The book of Hebrews even states that Jesus lived so that he could “make intercession” for us.[8] We cannot pray to God in the name of Mary or other mortal saints. While they were devout, virtuous people called by God to serve him, they were only human beings.

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In the book of Acts, a man named Cornelius began worshipping Peter, who ordered him to stop because he was only a man.[9] Four chapters later, in Acts 14:11-15, a similar event occurred in Lystra. Paul and Barnabas healed a crippled man, and as a result, the pagan priests of Lystra began to sacrifice oxen to them. When Paul and Barnabas heard what the priests were doing, they made it clear they were only men and should not be worshipped.[10]

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For their part, Paul and Timothy directed the church in Philippi to “make their requests known unto God” when praying.[11] Their instructions were not to tell your favorite saint to take your requests before God or to pray to Saint Anthony of Padua to ask the “patron saint of lost things” to help you find your missing keys. Paul and Timothy told us we are to pray directly to God.

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The Christian figures who have been canonized as saints by the Catholic Church should not be prayed to or worshipped as if they were supernatural beings. While these saints should be respected for their piety and godliness, Catholic veneration is based on pagan polytheism. Ancient Romans believed there were many different gods in the spiritual pantheon, but Roman priests also posthumously deified exceptional humans who were then venerated as divine by the people. These new deities—typically deceased emperors—were also prayed to and worshipped as gods.

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The Bible even tells us some supernatural figures, such as angels, cannot be praised. John worshipped angels in Revelation 19:10 and 22:8-9, but they asked him to stop each time. The angels explained that they were servants of God, just as John was.

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Religious Iconography

The Catholic Church prohibits worshipping images, such as those of Jesus, Mary, and other saints. However, the Vatican allows for—and encourages—venerating them and has successfully convinced Catholics that there is some distinction between these two near-synonyms. Many Catholic churches even position benches and votive candles in front of statues to promote prayer through these graven images to the saints they represent.

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God’s mandate against religious iconography originated with the Ten Commandments. Exodus’ version of the Commandments begins this way:

 

Exodus 20:2-6

2 I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.

3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.

4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.

5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;

6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.

 

Most Protestant churches render the first commandment as “Thou shalt have no other gods before me,” and the next as “Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image.” However, the Catechism of the Catholic Church combines those two commandments into one.[xxxiv] This devious change creates a two-part test that Catholics must fail to believe they have violated this commandment. Catholic editions of the Bible also use the more specific “idols” in place of the broader term “graven images.” The Catholic edition of the New Revised Standard Version reads the first commandment as “You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an idol.”[xxxv] This alteration allows Catholics to argue that their graven images must be considered both an idol and a god to break this commandment. This scheme also provides a way to claim that the veneration of graven images—including praying to them—is not idolatry unless Catholics worship the likeness and consider it a god.

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The Catechism of the Catholic Church, number 2132, dishonestly states, “The Christian veneration of images is not contrary to the first commandment which proscribes idols. Indeed, ‘the honor rendered to an image passes to its prototype,’ and ‘whoever venerates an image venerates the person portrayed in it.’ The honor paid to sacred images is a ‘respectful veneration,’ not the adoration due to God alone.”[xxxvi]

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In other words, the Catholic Church would have you believe kneeling in front of a statue or painting and praying to the saint it represents is not idol worship. Sadly, many Catholics bend over backward in defense of veneration of religious icons using this counter-scriptural interpretation of the Bible’s Ten Commandments. Nevertheless, Exodus 20:4-5 forbids not only praying to sculptures, but also to “any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.” Do Catholics not bow their heads in prayer in front of artistic depictions of Jesus, Mary, and saints, as Exodus 20:5 explicitly prohibits?

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In most pagan religions, the participants knew the idols they made were only representations of their gods, yet they prayed to and worshipped their gods through those images. How are these pagan practices different from Catholic veneration of images of Jesus, Mary, and other saints? Do Catholics today not pray to saints through their statues and images?

In the King James Bible, Deuteronomy 5 lists the beginning of the Ten Commandments this way:

 

Deuteronomy 5:6-11

6 I am the Lord thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage.

7 Thou shalt have none other gods before me.

8 Thou shalt not make thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters beneath the earth:

9 Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me,

10 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments.

11 Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain: for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

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The Catholic Church has tried so hard to normalize the practice of idol worship that the widely-used Butler Catechism’s list of the Commandments even leaves out all of Deuteronomy 5:8-10—entirely ignoring God’s ban on graven images and likenesses—stating, “1. I am the Lord thy God; thou shalt not have strange gods before me. 2. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.”

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Combining the first two commandments into one creates a new problem for the Catholic Church. The Ten Commandments would be reduced to only nine, so the Vatican needed to find a tenth commandment. To resolve this issue, the Catholic Church split the final commandment into two. The Butler Catechism concludes the Commandments like this: “9. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife. 10. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s goods.”[xxxvii]

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However, the wording of the passages in both Exodus and Deuteronomy clearly lists one singular commandment against covetous behavior.

 

Exodus 20:17

17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s.

 

Deuteronomy 5:21

21 Neither shalt thou desire thy neighbour’s wife, neither shalt thou covet thy neighbour’s house, his field, or his manservant, or his maidservant, his ox, or his ass, or any thing that is thy neighbour’s.

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The Vatican knows praying to or venerating saints through their images and likenesses is in direct defiance of the Ten Commandments. If Satan was using Catholicism to deceive many who would otherwise be Christian, would persuading them it was acceptable to worship and pray to the idols of mortal men and women not be an effective way to do so?

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The Council of Trent addressed the veneration of relics, saints, and other “sacred images.” In its final session, the council overtly supported idolatry with these words; “Moreover, that the images of Christ, of the Virgin Mother of God, and of the other saints, are to be had and retained particularly in temples, and that due honour and veneration are to be given them; not that any divinity, or virtue, is believed to be in them, on account of which they are to be worshipped; or that anything is to be asked of them; or, that trust is to be reposed in images, as was of old done by the Gentiles who placed their hope in idols; but because the honour which is shown them is referred to the prototypes which those images represent; in such wise that by the images which we kiss, and before which we uncover the head, and prostrate ourselves, we adore Christ; and we venerate the saints, whose similitude they bear: as, by the decrees of Councils, and especially of the second Synod of Nicaea, has been defined against the opponents of images.”[xxxviii]

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The council’s careful wording reveals the Catholic Church was aware that veneration and idol worship were the same. Trent attempted to distinguish between veneration and idolatry because the Reformers began pointing out Catholicism’s hypocrisy on the subject. The Vatican had to try to legitimize veneration to hide its heretical practices. Sadly, the Vatican’s distortion of the Ten Commandments and the prohibition of graven images and likenesses has inspired idolatry within Catholicism.

 

Leviticus 26:1

1 Ye shall make you no idols nor graven image, neither rear you up a standing image, neither shall ye set up any image of stone in your land, to bow down unto it: for I am the Lord your God.

 

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Graven images of Mary in Spain: The Virgin of the Snows, Santa Maria la Blanca, Seville, Spain (left); The Virgin of the Incarnation, Cathedral of Granada, Spain.

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Graven images: The Pietà, Michelangelo, Saint Peter’s Basilica, Vatican City, 1499 (left); The Immaculate Heart of Mary, Vicenç Vilarrúbies, Cathedral of Barcelona, Spain, 1942.

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Graven images in the collection of the Cathedral of Milan, Italy: God the Father, Beltramino de Zutti, 1416-1425 (left); Christ Crucified, Master of Guadalcanal, late seventeenth century.

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Confession of Sin to a Priest Instead of God

Under the Old Covenant, the Jews had to repent of their sins, and if it were significant enough, they would bring the appropriate sacrifice to a priest who would then offer it to God on their behalf. When Jesus was crucified, his death marked the end of the Old Covenant and the beginning of the New Covenant. He became the final sacrifice for our sins, as Gabriel prophesied in Daniel 9. From that point onward, the New Covenant no longer required a priest to act as an intercessor between God and man. Not only is confession and repentance through a priest no longer necessary, but the Bible frequently affirms that all believers are “the new priesthood.”[12]

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The Catholic Church will often cite James 5:16 as the basis for requiring confession to priests. The problem is that James never advises us to confess to priests or clergy—he simply says to confess our sins “to one another.”[13] If James thought we needed to confess to church leaders, he would have said so. Instead, he said we should confess to our brothers and sisters in Christ. James 5:16 is more evidence that Jesus did not intend to start a new formal religion. James wanted us to confess our sins to other Christians so we could act as a support system and hold each other accountable.

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The Vatican will also point to John 20:22-23 to defend confession to priests.[14] There are several problems with their interpretation of those verses. First, the apostles were not priests. Although they were the leaders of the new Christian community, they did not hold an official administrative position in a religion. Second, the apostles were only able to remit sins because they had received the Holy Spirit. Those who do not receive the Holy Spirit, such as the priests of a false church, cannot remit sins.

 

Third, the Catholic Church claims to have religious authority through the supremacy of Peter, but Jesus gave the Holy Spirit to all his apostles equally—without any indication Peter was elevated above the others.

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Lastly, Jesus was only speaking to the apostles in his presence. The verses do not suggest that the ability to forgive sins would be passed to successive priests—especially not to Mystery Babylon’s clergy. Remember, Paul wrote in I Timothy 2:5 that there is no mediator between God and man other than Jesus Christ—not Mary, not saints, and not earthly priests.

The Catholic Church is so dedicated to this belief that the twenty-first constitution of the 1215 AD Fourth Lateran Council stated, “All the faithful of either sex, after they have reached the age of discernment, should individually confess all their sins in a faithful manner to their own priest at least once a year, and let them take care to do what they can to perform the penance imposed on them…Otherwise they shall be barred from entering a church during their lifetime and they shall be denied a Christian burial at death.”[xxxix]

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Oftentimes in confession, Catholics are told to pray the Rosary or repeat a certain number of “Apostles’ Creed,” “Our Father,” or “Hail Mary” prayers to be absolved of their sins. The same parallel between Catholic doctrine and sorcery observed in performing the sacraments is evident here, as Catholics believe reciting these prayers will directly result in the forgiveness of sin. Jesus explicitly forbids this mindless, “vain repetition” of prayers in Matthew 6:7, which reads as if he were speaking directly to Catholics.

 

Matthew 6:7

7 But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.

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Infant Baptism

The Catholic Church only practices baptism when the individual being baptized is an infant. The Bible contains several examples of baptism being the personal choice of a newly converted Christian. In Mark 16:15-16, Jesus told his disciples to go into all the world preaching the gospel, saying, “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved.”[15] How does an infant make the critical and deeply personal decision to believe in Jesus Christ?

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The book of Acts contains two examples of some of these conversions occurring. In Acts 2, the Jews of Jerusalem ask Peter how to receive the Holy Spirit. “Repent,” he answers, “and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.” Not all the Jews followed his instructions, but many did. About three thousand people decided to be baptized into the Christian faith that day.[16] Later, following a sermon by Philip in Acts 8, new Christian converts were baptized “when they believed.”[17] Also, Peter wrote baptism was “the answer of a good conscience toward God,” implying it confirms a willingness to serve God.[18] Since faith in Jesus Christ and repentance are prerequisites for baptism, and baptism is a confirmation of one’s belief, infant baptism is futile—a frightening thought considering Jesus’ words in John 3:5.

 

John 3:5

5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

 

In April 413, Catholic Roman co-emperors Honorius and Theodosius II enacted a decree against the Donatists, a Christian sect that believed adult baptism was necessary for salvation. Anyone convicted of being baptized a second time was sentenced to death under their law, along with the individual who baptized them.[xl] Centuries later, during the Counter-Reformation, the Catholic Church used this ancient law to execute many former Catholics who converted to Protestantism and were baptized the way Jesus had instructed.

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Masses Held in Latin Until the Mid-1960s

If the Catholic Church wanted to teach parishioners about Jesus Christ and ensure they lived their lives in a way that was pleasing to God, why would they require mass to be held in Latin from the time of the Roman Empire until the mid-1960s?[xli] Does it not seem counterintuitive to conduct masses in a defunct language that parishioners cannot understand?

Contrarily, if the Vatican wanted to misrepresent the Bible’s teachings and obscure its warning about a false Roman church, would this motive not lead the church to hold mass in a language virtually no one spoke for fifteen centuries and to declare only Catholic priests can interpret scripture?[xlii], [xliii], [xliv]

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When you carefully analyze the many contradictions between the Biblical text and Catholic dogma, Satan’s efforts to deceive Catholics through a false church become clear. In II Timothy 4:3-4, Paul warned that a time would come when people who believed they were Christians would no longer follow “sound doctrine.” These people would prefer to follow comfortable teachers who tell them what they want to hear rather than what God’s Word says.

 

II Timothy 4:3-4

3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;

4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.

 

For those few who may still be skeptical, think critically; if the Roman Catholic Church was a false church being used by Satan to keep us from God, would they do anything differently?

 

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Summary

Ways the Catholic Church Deceives Would-Be Christians:

• Preventing people from owning or reading the Bible for centuries

• The Roman Catholic Church is the gatekeeper of salvation

• Preaching salvation comes through performing the “seven sacraments”

• The pope claims to be the head of the church and have the authority of Jesus Christ

• Claiming only the Catholic Church can interpret scripture

• The false claim that Mary is a mediator between God and man

• Veneration of Mary and saints

• It encourages prayer to saints rather than God

• The idolatry of religious iconography

• Confession of sin to a priest rather than God

• Forgiveness of sin through penance instead of repentance to God

• Infant baptism, which occurs before a person is old enough to decide to believe in Jesus for themselves

• Masses were conducted in Latin until the 1960s

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[1] John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Acts 4:12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

Acts 16:31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.

Ephesians 2:8-9 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Titus 3:5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

[2] Ephesians 1:22 And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,

Ephesians 5:23 For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body.

Colossians 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.

[3] Hebrews 7:22-28 22 By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament. 23 And they truly were many priests, because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death: 24 But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. 25 Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them. 26 For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; 27 Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people’s: for this he did once, when he offered up himself. 28 For the law maketh men high priests which have infirmity; but the word of the oath, which was since the law, maketh the Son, who is consecrated for evermore.

[4] Matthew 16:18 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.

[5] John 8:31-32 31 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; 32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

[6] II Timothy 3:15-17 15 And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. 16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: 17 That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.

Romans 15:4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

[7] John 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

[8] Hebrews 7:25 Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.

[9] Acts 10:25-26 25 And as Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him, and fell down at his feet, and worshipped him. 26 But Peter took him up, saying, Stand up; I myself also am a man.

[10] Acts 14:11-15 11 And when the people saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in the speech of Lycaonia, The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men. 12 And they called Barnabas, Jupiter; and Paul, Mercurius, because he was the chief speaker. 13 Then the priest of Jupiter, which was before their city, brought oxen and garlands unto the gates, and would have done sacrifice with the people. 14 Which when the apostles, Barnabas and Paul, heard of, they rent their clothes, and ran in among the people, crying out, 15 And saying, Sirs, why do ye these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you that ye should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein:

[11] Philippians 4:6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

[12] I Peter 2:9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light;

Revelation 1:6 And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

Revelation 5:10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

[13] James 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

[14] John 20:22-23 22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost: 23 Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained.

[15] Mark 16:15-16 15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. 16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.

[16] Acts 2:41 Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.

[17] Acts 8:12 But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.

[18] I Peter 3:21 The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:

 

[i] Jenkins, Ferrell. 1960. “English Bible Translations Through 1611 A. D.” In Truth Magazine IV:6, March: 2-5.

[ii] Pope Innocent III. n.d. “CXLI. Universis Christi Fidelibus Tam In Urbe Metensi Quam Ejus Dioecesi Constitutis.” Patrologia Latina Database. Accessed May 21, 2024. https://artflsrv04.uchicago.edu/philologic4.7/PLD/navigate/6007/2/3/143.

[iii] Various Authors. 1838. “The Woman Drunken with the Blood of the Saints.” In Illustrations of Popery, 387. New York: J. P. Callender.

[iv] Peters, Edward, ed. 1980. “Council of Toulouse, 1229.” In Heresy and Authority in Medieval Europe, 194-195. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.

[v] Lortsch, Daniel. 1910. Historie de la Bible en France, 14. Paris: Agence de la Société Biblique Britanique et Etrangère.

[vi] The Roman Catholic Church. 2020. Council of Constance 1414-18. February 20. Accessed March 30, 2023. https://www.papalencyclicals.net/councils/ecum16.htm.

[vii] Christianity Today. 2023. John Wycliffe. March 25. Accessed March 30, 2023. https://www.christianitytoday.com/history/people/moversandshakers/john-wycliffe.html.

[viii] The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. 2023. William Tyndale. March 13. Accessed March 23, 2023. https://www.britannica.com/biography/William-Tyndale.

[ix] Buckley, Theodore Alois. 1851. “Concerning Prohibited Books.” In Canons and Decrees of the Council of Trent, 284-285. London: George Routledge and Co.

[x] Buckley, Theodore Alois. 1851. “Concerning Prohibited Books.” In Canons and Decrees of the Council of Trent, 285-286. London: George Routledge and Co.

[xi] McGavin, William. 1837. “The Protestant No. XXX.” In The Protestant: A Series of Essays on the Principal Points of Controversy Between the Church of Rome and the Reformed, Vol. I, 10th Ed., 234. Glasgow: Blackie & Son.

[xii] Littledale, Richard Frederick. 1912. “Discouragement of the Bible.” In Plain Reasons Against Joining the Church of Rome, 91. London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.

[xiii] Ray, D. B. 1892. “Against the Bible.” In The Papal Controversy Involving the Claim of the Roman Catholic Church to be the Church of God, 479. St. Louis: National Baptist Publishing Company.

[xiv] Gillis, James M. 1907. “Bible Societies.” In Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. II, edited by Charles Herbermann, 544-546. New York: Robert Appleton Company.

[xv] Elliott, Charles. 1842. “Scripture.” In Delineation of Roman Catholicism: Drawn from the Authentic and Acknowledged Standards of the Church of Rome, Vol. I, 63-64. New York: G. Lane & P.P. Sanford.

[xvi] Pope Leo XII. 1824. “Translation.” In The Encyclical Letter of Pope Leo the XII: to his Venerable Brethern, the Patriarchs, Primates, Archbishops and Bishops of the Catholic Church, with an English Translation of the Same, by Pope Leo XII, 16-17. Dublin: Richard Coyne.

[xvii] Blakeney, Richard P. 1875. “Fourth Rule of the Index Obligatory.” In Popery in its Social Aspect: Being a Complete Exposure of the Immorality and Intolerance of Romanism, 136-137. Toronto: The Gospel Witness.

[xviii] Pope Gregory XVI. 1844. Inter Praecipuas. May 8. Accessed April 10, 2023. https://www.papalencyclicals.net/greg16/g16inter.htm.

[xix] Pope Pius XII. 2023. Divino Afflante Spiritu. March 27. Accessed March 30, 2023. https://www.vatican.va/content/pius-xii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-xii_enc_30091943_divino-afflante-spiritu.html.

[xx] United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. 2023. USCCB Approved Translations of the Sacred Scriptures for Private Use and Study by Catholics. July 18. Accessed August 7, 2023. https://www.usccb.org/offices/new-american-bible/approved-translations-bible.

[xxi] Daniell, David. 2003. The Bible in English: Its History and Influence, 439. New Haven: Yale University Press.

[xxii] The Roman Catholic Church. 1964. Decree on Ecumenism: Unitatis Redintegratio: Chapter I.3. November 21. Accessed August 26, 2023. https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_decree_19641121_unitatis-redintegratio_en.html.

[xxiii] McBrien, Richard. 1997. Lives of the Popes: The Pontiffs from St. Peter to John Paul II, 25. San Francisco, CA: HarperCollins.

[xxiv] The Roman Catholic Church. 1967. Indulgentiarum Doctrina: Chapter IV.7. January 1. Accessed August 26, 2023. https://www.vatican.va/content/paul-vi/en/apost_constitutions/documents/hf_p-vi_apc_01011967_indulgentiarum-doctrina.html.

[xxv] United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. 2023. Sacraments and Sacramentals. July 18. Accessed August 8, 2023. https://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/sacraments-and-sacramentals.

[xxvi] Nash, Tom. 2021. How to Get to Heaven. January 14. Accessed August 8, 2023. https://www.catholic.com/qa/how-to-get-to-heaven.

[xxvii] Jam. 2:14-26 (KJV).

[xxviii] The Roman Catholic Church. 1992. Catechism of the Catholic Church. October 11. Accessed November 4, 2023. https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P33.HTM.

[xxix] Dan. 8:25 (KJV).

[xxx] Kirsch, Johann Peter. 1913. “Pope St. Pius I.” In Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol. XII, edited by Charles Herbermann, 126. New York: Robert Appleton Company.

[xxxi] McBrien, Richard. 1997. Lives of the Popes: The Pontiffs from St. Peter to John Paul II, 25. San Francisco, CA: HarperCollins.

[xxxii] The Roman Catholic Church. 2005. The Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Accessed April 13, 2023. https://www.vatican.va/archive/compendium_ccc/documents/archive_2005_compendium-ccc_en.html.

[xxxiii] The Roman Catholic Church. 1993. Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition. Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana.

[xxxiv] The Roman Catholic Church. 1993. Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition. Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana.

[xxxv] Exod. 20:2-4 (NRSVCE).

[xxxvi] The Roman Catholic Church. 1993. Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition. Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana.

[xxxvii] Butler, James. 1846. “Lesson XIV - On the Ten Commandments.” In The Most Rev. Dr. James Butler’s Catechism, by James Butler, 36-37. Dublin: Richard Grace & Sons.

[xxxviii] The Roman Catholic Church. 2020. General Council of Trent: Twenty-Fifth Session. February 20. Accessed August 27, 2023. https://www.papalencyclicals.net/councils/trent/twenty-fifth-session.htm.

[xxxix] The Roman Catholic Church. 2020. The Fourth Lateran Council: 1215 A.D.. February 20. Accessed August 27, 2023. https://www.papalencyclicals.net/councils/ecum12-2.htm.

[xl] Justinian I. 1932. “The Code of Justinian - Book I - Title VI.” In The Civil Law, Vol. XII, by Samuel Parsons Scott, 71. Cincinnati: The Central Trust Company.

[xli] The Roman Catholic Church. 1963. Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy Sacrosanctum Concilium. December 4. Accessed March 4, 2023. https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19631204_sacrosanctum-concilium_en.html.

[xlii] Pope Innocent III. n.d. “CXLI. Universis Christi Fidelibus Tam In Urbe Metensi Quam Ejus Dioecesi Constitutis.” Patrologia Latina Database. Accessed May 21, 2024.

[xliii] Buckley, Theodore Alois. 1851. “Concerning Prohibited Books.” In Canons and Decrees of the Council of Trent, 284-286. London: George Routledge and Co.

[xliv] The Roman Catholic Church. 2005. The Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Accessed April 13, 2023. https://www.vatican.va/archive/compendium_ccc/documents/archive_2005_compendium-ccc_en.html.