JudaicChristian
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The Catholic Church claims they can trace their beginning to Peter. A great many saints have died because of the (Vati-can.)
Join For His Glory for a discussion on how
https://christianforums.net/threads/a-vessel-of-honor.110278/
https://christianforums.net/threads/psalm-70-1-save-me-o-god-lord-help-me-now.108509/
Read through the following study by Tenchi for more on this topic
https://christianforums.net/threads/without-the-holy-spirit-we-can-do-nothing.109419/
Join Sola Scriptura for a discussion on the subject
https://christianforums.net/threads/anointed-preaching-teaching.109331/#post-1912042
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brakelite said:No, rather it is simply a fact of recent Christian history that many have proffered many names , organisations, etc as candidates for the title 'antichrist'. Fiction books and movies add to plethora of confusion as to who it is or might be. By overlooking the testimony of all the reformers and the facts of medieval history in particular and continuing to claim that the antichrist is still future you are adding to the confusion.
I never claimed that the Roman Empire was Christian. Certainly, by the time of Constantine, I am aware that many historians claim that at least half of the empire had converted to Christianity, and I have no reason to argue with that. Which prompted Constantine to his pretended conversion and his subsequent tolerance toward the new religion. Constantine himself however never gave up his sun worship.
The true faith was persecuted relentlessly in Rome by the pagan power, yes, but when Constantine moved his capital to the east and left the secular seat vacant, the church was corrupted over a period of time and apostacised when she accepted the secular role of the pontiffs of Rome. The Roman official church which later became the papacy then turned its persecuting powers against those Christians who chose not to side with the corrupted branch, and fled to the wilderness. (See Rev.12) The pagan beliefs never fully disappeared, they were continued in the compromised dogmas and doctrines of the Roman church. In Christmas, in Easter, in Sunday, and many others. All remnants of the old pagan worship system that survived in a 'baptised' form. The iron continued in those beliefs, and in the penchant for persecuting and ridding itself of dissent.
The ten horned beast of Revelation 13 is the antichrist. And as can be seen it is a beast that comprises all of the 4 previous beasts depicted in Daniel 7. Interesting that John , as he describes the beast, goes backwards in chronological order. Working back he describes the iron teeth, the leopard body, the bears feet, and lions mouth. Naturally he couldn't name Rome as his writings would have been immediately confiscated by his captors. The ten horns of that beast however are a different ten, coming up as he did after 476ad and the already established ten horns of the beast of Daniel 7. The seven heads are significant also, but that is for another study.
The popes of Rome claimed universal authority over all Christians everywhere it could cast its tentacles. The Celtic church held out for many years, but was eventually overcome greatly through political manouverings and the threat of war. The same way the Roman church held sway in many parts of Europe by using Catholic kings to implement Roman dogma. Clovis of the Franks is one early example. Augustine was the first Catholic in Britain, but by no means the last. A 1000 years of war and politics followed, and today there is still a battle going on in Britain for the hearts and minds of her people. I would hesitate to claim the the Roman church had only a small role in European history. It dominated the area for over a thousand years, deposing kings at will and putting fear into the hearts of anyone who would dare to claim independence.
Sorry, Veteran, but 'better than anyone to date' doesn't cut it. Prophecy demand complete fulfilment, or it's not worth contemplating. Antiochus did not fulfill every requirement of the prophecy. Thus he cannot be considered as any type of antichrist, real or shadow.
No wonder you are confused. You are claiming that Antiochus is a fulfilment of a prophecy Jesus gave nearly 200 years after Antiochus disappeared from the scene. Huh?
First, the legs of iron are attached to the feet. No gap. Second, I will show from history in coming posts that the papacy fits the demands of the prophecy exactly. I will show that the church of Rome rose among the ten nations which were established before 476 ad, that she uprooted 3 of them, that she ruled as a church/state union thus continueiong the role of pagan Rome mixed with the church (iron/clay) and that she fulfilled at least 7 or 8 other characteristics of the little horn as well, excepting none. To claim that there is still a future entity aside from the RCC is to utterly ignore history.Evidence of all this is in the pipeline and I will post as time ( and answering your challenges) permits.
I agree. And I will explain how the papacy suffered a deadly head wound as per the picture in Revealtion and is now today recovering from that. Current events declare that she is gaining power in Europe. But Europe is not her goal. She aims far wider than that. She craves global power, as recent papal encyclicals have revealed.
brakelight said:My contention is exactly that, yes. Much of western 'Christianity' has indeed been fake. Or as the Bible put it, apostate. The real gospel was in the west though, but in the wilderness. Hidden in the caves and mountains where they had been chased and harried by the Roman church. Again, see Rev. 12.
brakelite said:Veteran, I am not sure we actually disagree on very much as far as history is concerned, it only the application of that history to the Bible prophecies. We both see a concurrent Christian parallel, apostate and true, running throughout history in many parts of the world. One the monstrosity based in Rome, the other in the wilderness in the Italian alps (the Waldenses), in France, (the Huguenots), the Celtic church in Britain and many others. All represented by the woman in the wilderness. But this isn't a discussion on rev 12, but on whether the RCC is an accurate fulfillment of the little horn of Daniel 7. You claim no, me yes. Allow me to continue to present my evidence before you so adamantly claim otherwise.
As I gave in a previous post, there are at least 11 distinct characteristics which identify the little horn. I will deal here with
The first characteristic is
1) The little horn arises from the fourth beast (Daniel 7:8). The fourth beast represents Rome, so the little horn must be a Roman power.
Remember the image of Daniel 2? The legs were of iron, but the feet were of iron and clay. What does the clay represent? We know the iron represents pagan Rome. In fact, throughout history Rome has been recognized as the ‘Iron Kingdom’ or Empire. But what of the clay that is in union with the iron, but unable to cleave to one another?
There is only one viable candidate that answers to the description. There is only one church power that grew out of Rome, there is only one church/state union that grew out of the Roman Empire, and continues to the present time. And that is the Roman Catholic Church.
The religion of Rome was adopted by the church. It is well known that Constantine the Great brought all sorts of pagan practices into the church. This is recognized by both secular and church historians. In fact, the name “Supreme Pontiff†(Pontifex Maximus) was used by the pagan Roman emperors. After the Edict of Milan was signed in the year 312 A. D., Christians were restored as bona fide citizens of the Roman empire.
This might well be the time to speak of the mysterious “restrainer†that the Apostle Paul refers to in II Thessalonians 2. The early church Fathers were practically unanimous in the opinion that the “restrainer†was a reference to the Roman empire in general and the emperors in particular. Paul indicates that the Church at Thessalonica knew who the restrainer was. And yet Paul speaks in veiled language...
So without doubt the Roman Catholic church rose out of Rome, inherited much of the pagan religion of Rome, and is in fact a mere continuation of the Roman Empire, only in another form. A further affirmation of this is in Daniel 8:9,10 which horn represents the whole Roman epoch both pagan and papal,we see a change in direction. Whereas at first its conquests are on a horizontal plane, in verse 11 it changes direction and focus and adopts a vertical focus, toward heaven.
brakelite said:“The historian Machiavel, without the slightest reference to this prophecy, gives the following list of the nations which occupied the territory of the Western Empire at the time of the fall of Romulus Augustulus [476 A. D], the last emperor of Rome: The Lombards, the Franks, the Burgundians, the Ostrogoths, the Visigoths, the Vandals, the Heruli, the Sueves, the Huns, and the Saxons: ten in all.†(H. Grattan Guinness, The Divine Program of the World’s History, p. 318).â€
“Even the Romanists themselves admit that the Roman Empire was, by means of the incursions of the northern nations, dismembered into ten kingdoms (Calmet on Revelation 13:1; and he refers likewise to Berangaud, Bossuet, and DuPin. See Newton, p. 209); and Machiavelli (‘History of Florence,’ 1.i) with no design of furnishing an illustration of this prophecy, and probably with no recollection of it, has mentioned these names: 1. The Ostrogoths in Moesia; 2. The Visigoths in Pannonia; 3. The Sueves and Alans in Gascoign and Spain; 4. The Vandals in Africa; 5. The Franks in France; 6. The Burgundians in Burgundy; 7. The Heruli and Turingi in Italy; 8. The Saxons and Angles in Britain; 9. The Huns in Hungary; 10. The Lombards at first upon the Danube, afterwards in Italy.â€
(Albert Barnes, Notes on the Book of Daniel, p. 322.)â€
I like your post, they show that you are well studied in scripture and history. Perhaps we can get together some day and talk.brakelite said:This might well be the time to speak of the mysterious “restrainer†that the Apostle Paul refers to in II Thessalonians 2. The early church Fathers were practically unanimous in the opinion that the “restrainer†was a reference to the Roman empire in general and the emperors in particular. Paul indicates that the Church at Thessalonica knew who the restrainer was. And yet Paul speaks in veiled language. And why would this be? Simply because Paul could not speak openly about the empire which was governing in his day. If he had publicly stated that the Roman empire was going to be taken out of the way, the emperors would have had grounds to accuse Paul of sedition. So Paul had to be cautious in his comments. If the restrainer was the Holy Spirit, as many futurists believe, then why was Paul so cautious? It is clear that Paul could not define the “restrainer†openly. It was not necessary to do so because the Thessalonians knew what he was talking about.
So without doubt the Roman Catholic church rose out of Rome, inherited much of the pagan religion of Rome, and is in fact a mere continuation of the Roman Empire, only in another form. A further affirmation of this is in Daniel 8:9,10 which horn represents the whole Roman epoch both pagan and papal,we see a change in direction. Whereas at first its conquests are on a horizontal plane, in verse 11 it changes direction and focus and adopts a vertical focus, toward heaven.
Gibbon mentioned in the footnote that he used “iron monarchy†as a specific reference to Daniel 2:31-40. So rather than the Roman Empire becoming known as the iron monarchy, this was simply an example of Christian commentary in action.brakelite said:The dragon beast represents the Roman empire (168 B. C. - 476 A. D.). This empire came to be known as the “iron monarchy of Rome†(Edward Gibbon, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, vol. 4, p. 161).
As in my previous post, there seems to be, yet again, another disconnect between what the religious commentator claimed, and what the historian actually wrote.brakelite said:“The ten horns represent the ten kingdoms into which the Roman Empire was divided when it fell apart. These ten kingdoms, according to Edward Gibbon, were: The Alemanni, the Franks, the Burgundians, the Vandals, the Suevi, the Visigoths, the Saxons, the Ostrogoths, the Lombards and the Heruli (see, M. H. Brown, The Sure Word of Prophecy, pp. 54, 55).
The truth is, Gibbon didn’t mention ten kingdoms in 476AD, and neither did Machiavelli; and Guinness, Barnes, and Brown (who were not historians) had to manipulate Machiavelli and Gibbon’s lists in order to find ten...and even their lists didn't agree.brakelite said:3) The little horn rises after the ten horns (7:24). According to historians, the ten horns were complete in the year 476 A. D., so this must mean that the little horn was to arise to power sometime after 476 A. D.
So which barbarian kingdoms did the papacy pluck up, and what historical evidence do you have for this claim?brakelite said:4) The little horn was to pluck up three of the first [ten] horns by the roots (7:8). This means that these three nations would be uprooted from history. Daniel 7:20-21 explains that three of the first horns would fall before the little horn, and Daniel 7:24 tells us that the little horn would subdue three horns. In other words, three of the first ten nations would disappear from history!!
So which three barbarian kingdoms did the papacy pluck up, and what historical evidence do you have for this claim?brakelite said:4) The little horn was to pluck up three of the first [ten] horns by the roots (7:8). This means that these three nations would be uprooted from history. Daniel 7:20-21 explains that three of the first horns would fall before the little horn, and Daniel 7:24 tells us that the little horn would subdue three horns. In other words, three of the first ten nations would disappear from history!!
I'm not sure but I think it may have been the Goths, Heruli, and the Vandals.Acts6:5 said:So which three barbarian kingdoms did the papacy pluck up, and what historical evidence do you have for this claim?brakelite said:4) The little horn was to pluck up three of the first [ten] horns by the roots (7:8). This means that these three nations would be uprooted from history. Daniel 7:20-21 explains that three of the first horns would fall before the little horn, and Daniel 7:24 tells us that the little horn would subdue three horns. In other words, three of the first ten nations would disappear from history!!
In Christ,
Acts6:5
Ok. But do you know of any historical evidence crediting the papacy with the uprooting of those specific tribes?mdo757 said:I'm not sure but I think it may have been the Goths, Heruli, and the Vandals.Acts6:5 said:So which three barbarian kingdoms did the papacy pluck up, and what historical evidence do you have for this claim?brakelite said:4) The little horn was to pluck up three of the first [ten] horns by the roots (7:8). This means that these three nations would be uprooted from history. Daniel 7:20-21 explains that three of the first horns would fall before the little horn, and Daniel 7:24 tells us that the little horn would subdue three horns. In other words, three of the first ten nations would disappear from history!!
In Christ,
Acts6:5
[/quote:dsw2j6rs]Acts6:5 said:[quote="Acts6:5":dsw2j6rs]So which three barbarian kingdoms did the papacy pluck up, and what historical evidence do you have for this claim?brakelite said:4) The little horn was to pluck up three of the first [ten] horns by the roots (7:8). This means that these three nations would be uprooted from history. Daniel 7:20-21 explains that three of the first horns would fall before the little horn, and Daniel 7:24 tells us that the little horn would subdue three horns. In other words, three of the first ten nations would disappear from history!!
In Christ,
Ok. But do you know of any historical evidence crediting the papacy with the uprooting of those specific tribes?
In Christ,
Acts6:5
Those differences were pretty substantial. If you think that the Roman See and the Byzantine government were of one accord between the rise of Odoacer in 476AD and the fall of the Ostrogoths then you are greatly mistaken. There is simply no justification in claiming that the Bishops of Rome should be credited with the military exploits of the Eastern emperors unless you can provide historical evidence. It would be just as ridiculous to claim that the Patriarch of Constantinople was responsible for Emperor Justinian's war with the Sassanids in the 6th Century.mdo757 said:There was no distinction between Rome and the Vatican in those days, other than Eastern and Western Rome.
Not in the 5th-6th Centuries. Emperor Valentinian III moved the seat of imperial power from Rome to Ravenna during his reign. The seat of power remained in Ravenna after Odoacer's coup and Theodoric's invasion, and when Justinian re-established direct imperial authority over the penninsula in 554AD, he created the Exarchate of Ravenna as the seat of his government in Italy. Rome was certainly the seat of the papacy, but not of Roman power.mdo757 said:(The two legs of the statue) The Vatican was the Roman seat of power until 1798 AD.[/size]
Sure, but how much of that info credits the papacy with the destruction of the Heruli, Vandals, and Ostrogoths? Can you proivde examples? I don't believe that the Wikipedia entries for those tribes credit the Roman See with their demise, and the only sources on the net that blame the papacy seem to be Adventists/historicists. I certainly do not know of any contemporary Roman sources that state that the papacy uprooted those three tribes. In fact, the Heruli tribe converted to Catholicism early in the 6th Century after their king, Gretes, was baptized with Justinian's blessing in Constantinople after 527AD, and the Heruls fought beside the Byzantines throughout the conflicts against the Vandals and Ostrogoths.mdo757 said:There is some info on the Internet and also Wikipedia. See: Goths, Heruli, and the Vandals.
So where are those tribes today? They are gone. Throughout history the Vatican has operated through other governments / kingdoms. There are many twist and turns throughout history for which I'm not interested in arguing about.Acts6:5 said:Sure, but how much of that info credits the papacy with the destruction of the Heruli, Vandals, and Ostrogoths? Can you proivde examples? I don't believe that the Wikipedia entries for those tribes credit the Roman See with their demise, and the only sources on the net that blame the papacy seem to be Adventists/historicists. I certainly do not know of any contemporary Roman sources that state that the papacy uprooted those three tribes. In fact, the Heruli tribe converted to Catholicism early in the 6th Century after their king, Gretes, was baptized with Justinian's blessing in Constantinople after 527AD, and the Heruls fought beside the Byzantines throughout the conflicts against the Vandals and Ostrogoths.
Acts6:5
mdo757 said:So where are those tribes today? They are gone.
But you can’t merely assume that in the cases of the Heruli, Vandals, and Ostrogoths, the papacy was operating through the Byzantine government. All I’ve seen so far are assumptions; what is the historical evidence?mdo757 said:Throughout history the Vatican has operated through other governments / kingdoms.
So does that mean you do not know of any evidence that credits the papacy with the disappearance of the three tribes?mdo757 said:There are many twist and turns throughout history for which I'm not interested in arguing about.