Rebuttal: Catholics believe in Apostolic succession and the interpretation of scripture through sacred tradition (oral and written)

What the Bible Says

• 2 Peter 1:19-20 – “Moreover, we possess the prophetic message that is altogether reliable. You will do well to be attentive to it, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Know this first of all, that there is no prophecy of scripture that is a matter of personal interpretation,"
• Mt 16:17-19 – "Jesus said to him in reply, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood* has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven.* Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
• John 21:15-17 – “When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter,* “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?”* He said to him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Feed my lambs.”  He then said to him a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” He said to him, “Tend my sheep.” He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was distressed that he had said to him a third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” [Jesus] said to him, “Feed my sheep."
• Eph 2:20 – “Built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the capstone."
• Eph 4:12-16 – Paul says, “To equip the holy ones for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the extent of the full stature of Christ, so that we may no longer be infants, tossed by waves and swept along by every wind of teaching arising from human trickery, from their cunning in the interests of deceitful scheming. Rather, living the truth in love, we should grow in every way into him who is the head, Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, with the proper functioning of each part, brings about the body’s growth and builds itself up in love."
• Rev 21:14 – “The wall of the city had twelve courses of stones as its foundation, on which were inscribed the twelve names of the twelve apostles* of the Lamb."

Other Scripture to Consider

• 1 Cor 11:2 – Paul says, “Hold fast to the traditions I handed on to you.”
• 2 Thess 3:6 – Paul says, “Shun those acting not according to tradition.” I wonder where the apostles got this idea from. It was from Jesus Christ himself. 
• Mk 6:7-8 – “He summoned the Twelve, and began to send them out two by two and gave them authority over unclean spirits. He instructed them to take nothing for the journey but a walking stick—no food, no sack, no money in their belts.”
• 1 Cor 11:23 – Tradition of the Institution: “For I (Paul) received from the Lord what I also handed on to you (sacred tradition), of the braking of the bread."
  • This is not man’s tradition, but God’s Holy Tradition, the Blessed Sacrament of the Altar. I have no doubt! The Catholic Church is THE Church Jesus Christ built upon the foundation of His Apostles! That is how I can believe it to be true. That’s why I believe what they tell me.

​What the Church Teaches

• CCC 894: “The bishops, as vicars and legates of Christ, govern the particular Churches assigned to them by their counsels, exhortations, and example, but over and above that also by the authority and sacred power” which indeed they ought to exercise so as to edify, in the spirit of service which is that of their Master.
• CCC 895: “The power which they exercise personally in the name of Christ is proper, ordinary, and immediate, although its exercise is ultimately controlled by the supreme authority of the Church.” But the bishops should not be thought of as vicars of the Pope. His ordinary and immediate authority over the whole Church does not annul, but on the contrary confirms and defends that of the bishops. Their authority must be exercised in communion with the whole Church under the guidance of the Pope.”
• CCC 896: "The Good Shepherd ought to be the model and “form” of the bishop’s pastoral office. Conscious of his own weaknesses, “the bishop... can have compassion for those who are ignorant and erring. He should not refuse to listen to his subjects whose welfare he promotes as of his very own children....The faithful... should be closely attached to the bishop as the Church is to Jesus Christ, and as Jesus Christ is to the Father. Let all follow the bishop, as Jesus Christ follows his Father, and the college of presbyters as the apostles; respect the deacons as you do God’s law. Let no one do anything concerning the Church in separation from the bishop.”

In Other Words    
Here, I am taking Jesus at his word, that means I take him at all of his words, not just the ones that sit comfortable with my interpretations. Jesus left us men of God, which he instructed and guided by with the Holy Spirit before any word was written down.  Because the word was not yet written, they taught with words, these words are the Oral Traditions of the Catholic Church.  It was not until later these words of traditions were written, copied and circulated among the churches throughout the regions.                  
                 
Let me draw you a parallel with scripture. Mt 16:16-19 is a direct reference back to Isaiah 22:22, where the prophet Isaiah recognizes Eliakim as the steward of the royal House of David. The steward was the prime minister of the kingdom. The keys of the kingdom were the sign of his personal authority delegated by the king himself”. In much the same way, Peter (the first Pope) was charged by Christ with the authority of his Church, when He gave to Peter the keys to the kingdom of God, which means shepherding Jesus’ entire flock. Peter passed that authority down to other bishops who sit in his Chair, which is still linked to the chair of Moses. Remember the prayer Jesus instructed us to pray, “Thy kingdom come, Thy Will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven.” The Catholic Church is the representation of the throne of God, here on earth. This is a Catholic's authority.

So who is the authority of the accusers? If they say “The Bible,” or “Jesus,” then obviously they have read it through the eyes of their own authority, since the Bible cannot interpret itself. If you say "It’s the Holy Spirit which guides me to understand the Bible," how do you know for sure you are understanding correctly? When a question with scripture is posed, who does a protestant turn to for the answer? How can they be confident that the answer they find is true?
 
Jesus prayed that we should be one unified Church (“Catholic” means “universal”). The devil wants to separate and divide. Thus, there are tremendous divisions among Christians. The United States alone has more than 30,000 “non denominational” denominations. For me the question becomes, “How can you consider it right to pick and choose, out of context, what scripture to use so that your personal points of view are supported?” This is what every deviating member of the Church has done – claiming to be “the authority.” YOU HAVE NO AUTHORITY, and NEITHER DO I.  I thank God for the Church, who has preserve for me the truth of the scriptures. In my personal study of the Bible, I have a vast amount of resources for checks and balances in the proper authorities in the Church to guide me in truth.

Catholics are practicing Christians because we trust and believe the teachings of Jesus Christ - no matter how radical they may seem. He built his Church upon his chosen. His chosen, with the guidance of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, gave authority to others through the laying on of hands - transferring the anointing and the authority. "The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. [Jesus] said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.”  And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them. “Receive the holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained”( John 20:20). I follow them as the authority of Christ, end of story.

To claim that Catholics do not read the Bible is pure ignorance. Again, one of the reasons Jesus created his Church was to protect the authenticity of His Father’s word. How can you trust that the “Bible” you are reading is the Word of God?  You say you trust the Bible to be "The Word," yet you do not trust the very body of people (church) that was divinely inspired, fasted, prayed and assembled the book [the cannon] over 1600 years ago. The men who decided on what books to include in the Bible were Catholic bishops. this is historically documented. Your Bible is not the full version. Study the history of the Church and the early Church fathers, for yourself. Study them with the mind and intention of searching for the fullness of truth. Please do not study with a hardened heart; but, truly ask the Holy Spirit for guidance so that you may find truth in His fullness.
 
You might be saying, “Well that’s what I do already;” however, you must take your own (2 Peter 1:20) interpretation out and redirect the interpretative authority to the authorities of scriptures [the first bishops of the Church]. Martin Luther, the so called reformer (more like a rebel in my opinion) added in his version of the Bible the word “alone.” He added this word to give credence to his idea of sola fide, which is belief in ‘faith alone’ sufficing for salvation. In a letter written by James, an original apostle of the Savior of the World, wrote, “A man is justified by works and not by faith alone,” (James 2:14-24).  Protestants claim the Bible alone, as the authority and yet they don't believe the Bible when is says scripture is NOT a matter of one's own private interpretation? I am sure you can agree that Jesus said, “Not to add or take away one word,” Rev 22; 19. Is that not written in your “bible” too? Did you pass up that scripture verse? Do you not believe in what Jesus is saying? Furthermore, it is most logical, to trust the Church and its traditions (consistent for over 2000 years) than to trust any Joe Blow who thinks that they have a better handle on Divine Revelation. David Duke thought he had a handle on what was “right.”  To answer this question of authority for yourself, read the Apostolic Succession.       

• Apostolic Succession: Acts 15:22-29 – “Then the apostles and presbyters, in agreement with the whole church, decided to choose representatives and to send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. The ones chosen were Judas, who was called Barabbas, and Silas, leaders among the brothers. This is the letter delivered by them: “The apostles and the presbyters, your brothers, to the brothers in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia of Gentile origin: greetings. Since we have heard that some of our number [who went out] without any mandate from us have upset you with their teachings and disturbed your peace of mind, we have with one accord decided to choose representatives and to send them to you along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, who have dedicated their lives to the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. So we are sending Judas and Silas who will also convey this same message by word of mouth: ‘It is the decision of the holy Spirit and of us not to place on you any burden beyond these necessities, namely, to abstain from meat sacrificed to idols, from blood, from meats of strangled animals, and from unlawful marriage. If you keep free of these, you will be doing what is right. Farewell.”