This book attempts to answer the following introductory questions:
- Who are the Popes and how does the Roman Catholic Church define their role?
- How could a leadership position in the Christian church come to have such an ‘imperial’ shape?
- Why was Rome so important in that process?
- What was the role of history in the development of the Papacy?
- How did the Protestant Reformers of the sixteenth century and beyond view it?
- What about the present day Popes?
- What is the ecumenical significance of the Papacy and what are its prospects in the global world?
These and other questions form the background to our inquiry into the Biblical, historical, and theological fabric of the Papacy.
Endorsements
Gregg R. Allison
In terms of an introduction to the Catholic Church’s doctrine and exercise of the papacy, this book is unmatched! Read this book and you will gain essential insights into what for many Christians is a mystery, now unpacked by a trusted evangelical theologian and pastor.
William Edgar
With Pope Francis prominently in the news, we are forced to confront the whole idea of the papacy. Many Christians either reject everything about it out of hand, or they romantically embrace individual heroes such as John Paul II. Professor De Chirico investigate the phenomenon of Roman Catholic hierarchy using biblical exegesis, fascinating historical data, and basic theological insights to inform our view. He alerts us to the great dangers involved in the hierarchical model, while at the same time pleading for a proper kind of church unity. Engaging, clearly written, polemical in the best sense, and resolutely Scriptural, this is easily the best shorter guide for those wanting to know how to evaluate the institution of the papacy and related matters.
Geoff Thomas
How readable! How fascinating! How important! This book is a page-turner. I kept thinking, “I have it, to whom can I give it?” People came to mind. We live in days when the current pope is a popular man, even Time magazine’s ‘Man of the Year’ in 2013. What does it do for his spiritual condition day by day to consider himself to be the number one vicarious representative in the cosmos of the Son of God? This book asks, “Is this true?” Then it concludes from examining the history of the papacy that it is not so. Right at the heart of Roman Catholicism there is this giant delusion. You don’t believe me? Then read this fascinating and brief book and think for yourself.