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Up until the time of the Emperor Constantine, there was no real Pope as we know this office today. The church was
scattered throughout the world and particularly across the Roman Empire. Each major city looked to its own Bishop.
The Sun Worshipper Constantine, is reported to have seen a vision of a cross and the words "in this sign conquer".
At that time the cross was considered a symbol of Tammuz the founder of Sun Worship; and Constantine used this vision,
real or not, to gather the masses of pagans around his cause. Achieving victory he then began the arduous task
of attempting to unify his empire.
Finding the sect of the Christians a divisive influence and finding many of
them divided themselves, he entered into talks with the Bishop of Rome; Sylvester. He agreed to legalize Christianity
if the Bishop would support him as Emperor. Constantine would support Sylvester as Pontifix Maximus of the Empire, if
Sylvester would support Constantine as the Emperor or temporal leader.
Conferences of Bishops were then called
to standardize teachings and secure the loyalty of the Bishops to Sylvester and Constantine. This was accomplished at
the Councils of Nicea and Laodicea as well as in many smaller meetings. At these meetings the Sun worshipper Constantine
forced the Christians to accept the observation of the "Venerable Day of the Invincible Sun" as a day of rest
and worship; instead of the Biblical Sabbath observed by Jesus Christ and His apostles. Those who refused this change
were forced to flee beyond the borders of the Empire or be turned over to the authorities for punishment and often execution.
That is how Sunday came to be broadly observed instead of the Sabbath commanded by God; which falls on Saturdays.
The observance of Sunday was forced on people by the power of the sword of the state, as a part of the process of unifying
the Empire under one religion. Compromise after compromise was made between the Sun Worshippers and the Christian Church,
until a new organism was born. A new faith, looking nothing like the faith of Christ and the early church. A new
class of Sun Worshippers who accepted the authority of a new Pontifix Maximus over the Empire; who called himself Christian,
but permitted most of their Sun Worshipping activities by simply renaming them Christian. So Astarte's day became
Easter; The Saturnalia became Christmas; the mother goddess Semiramis became equated with the Virgin Mary and on
and on.
Constantine remained a confirmed Sun Worshipper until the day of his death. On his deathbed,
when he was too ill to resist; some water was sprinkled on him and he was pronounced a Christian.
The Roman
Catholic Church and the Papacy; as we know it today, was born in the fourth century. Massive and awesome changes were made
to bring this birth about. The next article will cover the issue of the Authority of Sylvester to make those changes
and the basis of claims of Papal authority today.
Those with a Sabbatarian Church of God background,
should be able to see that these exact same changes began to occur in the Worldwide Church of God; beginning with claims
of absolute authority by the leadership in the early 1970's. No Emperor was involved, but claims of authority
led to profound changes and resulted in the same schisms.
An Authoritarian form of Church Government always results
in great apostasy from the Holy Scriptures, as men begin to decide for themselves instead of standing on the Word of God.
I suggest that those who wish to dispute these findings should do some inquiring and searching into history for
themselves. These findings are certainly NOT unique to me. Take the time to discover the roots of modern Christianity.
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