Protestant revolution was not the origin of protestantism.The first protestant church was the apostolic church. (the church depicted in new testament do not pray to "saints" or use statues\images in prayer worship.) Thus it was protestant in essence.
Later in 4th century Constantine the then roman emperor gave Christianity a special status in his empire.Through the edict of milan, thessalonica and council of nicae what they did was not toleration for christianity,but to create a new fake religion in the name of Jesus,in which they integrated the ancient roman idolatry as the practice of intercession to saints.Many christians at that time were against this.Some of them were arian christians who rejected this idolatrous practice of intercession to saints.Most of the germanic people except the franks initially accepted true arian christianity instead of catholicism which was corrupted by idolatry.It was 100s of years after that these groups became catholics.
Romans at that time gave special previlages to franks for accepting the corrupted catholic religion.But soon other germanic people goths,vandals conquered Italy spain etc and spread true christianity in those regions.It was the eastern goths(ostrogoths) who founded the nation of Italy as a true gothic arian christian nation.But through the council of nicae roman catholics spread lies about arian christians,claiming that they believed Jesus was a created being and branded them heretics,when in reality they only taught that God the father was superior to son Jesus which is infact 100% biblical.This caused the decline of true christianity.In the same fashion catholics branded other groups as heretics like donatists,manichaens,paulicians,bogomils,cathars,waldensians and finally protestants.
When Constantine gave chritianity a special status in his empire, majority in his empire was still pagan and they found it hard to forgo of their old idolatrous practices. So they changed the names of their old idols to "christian" ones and started praying to them . This came to be known as "intercession to saints" and is still practiced by catholic and orthodox "christians".True christians like gothic arian christians,donatists(n.africa,s.europe),manichaens(middle east,,central asia) opposed this practice,but catholics branded them heretics and massacred them.Iconoclastic movement of (7th-8th century) century was against this practice, later protestant revolution (15-16th century) was waged mainly against this practice.
Thus when constantine gave christianity special status in his empire,idolatry also entered along with it in the unsuspecting name of "intercession to saints".This soon spread to most of the church,because such was the influence of roman empire at that time.But few like followers of mani ~ Manichean's (mani was a 2nd century apostle of jesus whose followers spread from persia to balkans in the west and to china in the east,before falling into oblivion probably because of islamic conquest) remained true to the gospel of christ.
Later they spread to turkey and balkans where they were called paulicians and bogomils respectively.They were behind the iconoclastic movement of 7-8th century.Both these groups came under heavy persecution from catholics because they dared to expose the truth of christ to them.Finally they were wiped out by catholic crusaders,en route to capture Jerusalem by a secret directive from vatican in 12th century,perhaps the real intention of antichristians(catholics) for taking up crusades was to wipe out true christian like paulcians and bogomils who exposed their idolatry and lies.
But almost simultaneously,the spirit of God started 2 new christian movements in heart of catholicism itself~in italy and france . In italy they were called waldensians and in france they were called cathars .Cathars were wiped out in the 12th centutry by catholic crusaders~a mass murder popularly called as cathar/albinesian crusade (catholic church still take great pride in these crusades) .But italian waldensians continued inspite of severe catholic persecution and they remain to this day .
By 15th century printing was invented and bible became available to masses . They came to know about truth that catholic church was doing idolatry in the name of god . They revolted and it came to be known as protestant revolution and were led by many great leaders like jan hus,jan zizka,martin luther,ulrich zwigli,john calvin,john knox,john wesley and many others .Today protestants number more than 800 million .
In future (after the soon coming WW3) they will unite as single god's church and all people living on earth will be it's members.The 3rd temple will be rebuilt in jerusalem and it shall be called "the house of prayer for people of all nations" exactly as Jesus predicted nearly 2000 years ago.Animal and other sacrifices will be offered there in the rememberance of the ultimate sacrifice ofJesus Christ on the cross,just as it symbolized the coming sacrifice of christ in the old testament period.This will remain till coming of christ ( rapture) .
In rapture believers will be taken and hypocrites left behind to face great tribulation(such as never happened before or never will in the future) which will last for 7 years.The first half of this tribulation will be very prosperous, making people of earth deluded,it will be like a strong "wine' of delusion sent by god to people who rejected him.In the half of this 7 year period antichrist will break his agreement with jews and put up the awful horror inthe holy temple.He will require all to have number 666 imprinted on them to buy or sell.Those who get this mark of 666 are damned for eternal hell.So anybody who happens to be in tribulation period,want salvation he/she has to die as martyrs or get the mark of christ(144,000 people).
I understand catholics will be angered by this, but their anger is in vain because this is the truth and truth will triumph.Also note that throughout the centuries catholics branded(and still branding) all these groups as dualistic pagans heretics who need to be wiped out from face of earth... such brandings were less effective against prots,inorder to fulfill the prophecy of Jesus-"You are peter(petros-masculine noun in greek, meaning a small stone) and i shall build my church(non feminist protestantism) on this rock(petra-feminine noun in greek, meaning a large mass of rock,not the degrading dead body of peter buried under vatican as catholics claim/believe)and gates of hell(catholicism and oter false religions/ideologies) will not prevail over it".
The Roman Catholic Church interprets Jesus here to say, "You are Peter, and upon you, Peter, I will build My church." Peter would be the rock upon which the Church would be built . He would be the "prince of all the apostles and visible head of the whole church."
There are several problems with this interpretation. The first is that someone reading Matthew’s Gospel in Greek, the original language of the New Testament, would not have immediately concluded that Peter was the rock. In the Gospel of Matthew, when Jesus said to Simon, "You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church" (Matthew 16:18), His choice of words was significant. Though Peter’s name means rock (petros), Jesus did not say, "You are Peter (Petros), and upon this rock (petros) I will build my church." What He said was, "You are Peter (Petros), and upon this rock (petra) I will build My church."
The word Jesus chose to use for rock, petra, is a feminine noun that refers to a mass of rock. The New Testament uses this word in Matthew 7:24,25 to refer to the bedrock upon which a wise man built his house. Petra is also found later in Matthew’s Gospel with reference to Jesus’ tomb, which workers had carved out of solid rock (Matthew 27:60).
Peter’s name, Petros, on the other hand, is masculine in gender and refers to a boulder or a detached stone. Greek literature also uses it of a small stone that might be picked up and thrown.
What Jesus said to Peter could be translated, "You are Stone, and upon this bedrock I will build My church." His choice of words would indicate that the rock on which the church would be built was something other than Peter.
Anyone reading the Gospel of Matthew in the original Greek language would have noticed the difference. The reader would have had to pause and decide what was meant by "upon this rock" (Matthew 16:18). The reader would not immediately have equated the rock (petra) with Peter (Petros), because the words are different.
To determine the best interpretation, the reader would have had to look more closely at the context. This is the second and greatest weakness with the Roman Catholic interpretation: It fails to give proper emphasis to the context.
The context of Matthew 16:13-20 is not about Peter; it is about Jesus. It starts with a question that Jesus raises about His identity: "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" (Matthew 16:13). It reaches a climax with Peter’s declaration: "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Matthew 16:16). It concludes with the Lord warning His disciples "that they should tell no one that He was the Christ" (Matthew 16:20).
When Peter correctly answered Jesus’ question as to His identity, the Lord remarked, "Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven" (Matthew 16:17). Peter’s insight into Jesus’ true identity was a revelation from God. In this context, Jesus, making a play on words, says, "You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church" (Matthew 16:18).
The context argues for interpreting "this rock" as referring back to the revelation and its content. In other words, the Lord Jesus as "the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Matthew 16:16) would be the solid rock upon which the Christian faith would rest. Every doctrine and practice would be founded upon Him. Every true believer would hold to a common conviction: Jesus is "the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Matthew 16:16).
The cultural context of the passage also supports interpreting "this rock" as referring to Jesus in His identity as the Son of God. Matthew wrote his Gospel for a Jewish audience. He expected his readers to be familiar with Old Testament imagery.
How would a Jewish reader interpret "upon this rock"? G. Campbell Morgan answers, "If we trace the figurative use of the word rock through Hebrew Scriptures, we find that it is never used symbolically of man, but always of God." For example:
There is no one holy like the Lord; Indeed, there is no one besides Thee, Nor is there any rock like our God. —1 Samuel 2:2
For who is God, but the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God? —Psalm 18:31
Is there any God besides Me, Or is there any other Rock? I know of none. —Isaiah 44:8
The wider context of the New Testament also confirms that Jesus, not Peter, is the rock. For example, Peter himself wrote of Christ as a rock (petra):
For this is contained in Scripture: "Behold I lay in Zion a choice stone, a precious corner stone, and he who believes in Him shall not be disappointed." This precious value, then, is for you who believe. But for those who disbelieve, "The stone which the builders rejected, this became the very corner stone," and, "A stone of stumbling and a rock (petra) of offense." —1 Peter 2:6-8
Paul also refers to Christ by the Greek word petra. In Romans he wrote of Christ as "a rock (petra) of offense" (Romans 9:33) over which the Jews had stumbled. In First Corinthians he wrote of a spiritual rock encountered by Israel in the wilderness. He identified that rock, saying, "...and the rock (petra) was Christ" (1 Corinthians 10:4).
Interpreting Christ as the rock upon which the church would be built also harmonizes well with other statements in Scripture. Paul warned, "No man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 3:11). Here he emphasizes that Christ is the foundation upon which the church is built. In Ephesians, Paul speaks of the church as "having been built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone" (Ephesians 2:20). Here Paul pictures Christ as the principal stone and the apostles and prophets as secondary stones.Also in prophet Daniel's dream interpretation of babylonan king nebuchadnezzar-"34 While you were watching, a rock was cut out(Jesus Christ), but not by human hands(born of a virgin by the power of the holy spirit). It struck the statue on its feet of iron and clay and smashed them. 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver and the gold were all broken to pieces and became like chaff on a threshing floor in the summer. The wind swept them away without leaving a trace. But the rock that struck the statue became a huge mountain and filled the whole earth( a symbolic depiction of God's church-non feminist protestantism,christ's millenial rule and eternity-new heavens, new earth)."
Roman Catholic proponents, aware that Matthew’s use of the word petra in the phrase "upon this rock" does not help their cause, counter by arguing that Jesus taught in Aramaic, not Greek. They claim that when Jesus spoke the words recorded in Matthew 16:18, He did not change His words but repeated Peter’s Aramaic name Kepha. What Christ said, they claim, was: "You are Kepha, and upon this kepha I will build my Church." And so, they say, it is clear that Peter was to be the foundation upon which the Church would be built.
What is clear is that Rome’s interpretation of Matthew 16:18 cannot bear the scrutiny of close examination. Consequently, Roman Catholic defenders must move the discussion off the inspired page and onto the field of speculation.
The inspired New Testament Scriptures were written in Greek, not Aramaic. What Jesus might have said in Aramaic is conjecture. Furthermore, if, as some contend, the Aramaic is clear but the Greek inadequate or confusing, why did not the Holy Spirit simply import the Aramaic words? There are many such examples in the New Testament. There are even nine places where the Scriptures refer to Peter as Cephas, the Aramaic form of his name. Or why did not the Holy Spirit just repeat the word petros, as Catholic defenders speculate He did in the Aramaic? Then Matthew 16:18 would read, "You are Peter (Petros), and upon this rock (petros) I will build My church."
But rather than speculate, why not let the passage speak for itself? When the Holy Spirit inspired the Greek text of the New Testament, He made a distinction between Peter (Petros) and the rock (petra). The reason for the difference is clear from the context.
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