Isn't the Pope just an Emperor with a crucifix?
Just think, he lives in a palace, within a walled independent state/country within Rome called "The Vatican", he sits on a throne, gives orders within "the church" and people venerate him as the "closet living thing to God", just as Kings/Queens are seen or were seen.
Religion & Spirituality - 5 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
Emperor's require empires I am not certain the RCC qualifies.
2 :
You mean The Emperor? http://media.ebaumsworld.com/picture/ryanposhusta/PopePalpatine.png http://ontheverge.files.wordpress.com/2007/07/9958184_1d3029f0e7_m.jpg
3 :
its politics of the church. the Catholics have so many idols and icons they don't know what or who to believe. imagine him with diarrhea on the potty and the image blurs
4 :
No. The Pope is a servant of the Church, not its emperor. The hierarchy of the Catholic Church looks like this. 1. God 2. The Church, the People of God love and serve the Lord 3. Religious sisters (nuns) and brothers (monks) serve God and the People of God 4. Deacons serve God and the People of God (including religious) 5. Priests serve God and the People of God (including religious and deacons) 6. Bishops serve God, the local Church (the diocese, the People of God including religious, deacons, and priests) 7. The Pope serves God and the entire Church (the People of God including religious, deacons, priests, and bishops). This is why the Pope is called the servant of the servants of God. Men who become Pope serve in lower and lower roles until they are the servants of everyone. The hierarchy of ordained ministers in the Catholic Church mirrors how Jesus and the Apostles set up the original Christian Church. There are three levels of Holy Orders, Deacon, Priest, and Bishop. Deacons serve the Church by assisting the bishop and priests in the celebration of the Eucharist, in the distribution of Holy Communion, in assisting at and blessing marriages, in the proclamation of the Gospel and preaching, in presiding over funerals, and in dedicating themselves to the various ministries of charity. Priests serve the Church as co-workers of the bishops and can lead a parish. A special title for a priest is monsignor. Priests are called presbyters in the Bible. Bishops are the Apostles of today. Each bishop serves the Church by leading a diocese which a group of parishes centered around a large city. Special types of bishop are archbishop, cardinal, and pope (who leads the whole Church). For more information, see the Catechism of the Catholic Church: http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt2sect2chpt3.shtml#iii With love in Christ.
5 :
The vatican is not a palace, and the pope only has a small apartment therein. My apartment is actually bigger than his. The Vatican could HARDLY be called an empire, since it holds no governance in the way that an empire does. The pope does not have a throne, he has a cathedros, or "chair". A throne is an item for royalty, a chair is the seat of the bishopry. In other words, the pope is not royalty, but is rather considered the servant of the servants of God. The pope is not "the closest living thing to God." He is no closer to God than you or I. The pope is, however, given a divine grace by virtue of his office such that he cannot teach a fallible doctrine. This is, again, not to say that the pope is closer to God than others, since each person is possessed of graces from God, but merely to state that the office of the papacy enjoys a uniquely different grace from others.
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