Speak Against God

Speaks Against God!

LIST OF HERESIES

And human inventions adopted and perpetuated by the Roman Catholic Church in the course of 1600 years.

(Complied by Rev. Stephen L. Testa)

These dates are in many cases approximate. Many of these heresies had been present in the church years before, but only when they were officially adopted by a church council and proclaimed by the pope as dogma of faith, did they become binding on Catholics. At the Reformation (sixteenth century) these heresies were repudiated as having no part in Christianity as the New Testament teaches.

	Heresy	Date
1	Of all the human inventions taught and practiced by the Roman Catholic church that are contrary to the Bible, the most ancient are the prayers for the dead and the sign of the Cross. Both began 300 years after Christ, in	310
2	Wax candles were introduced in church about…	320
	Tampering with the law of God (Ex. 20:3-17) began in… For more information	321
3	Veneration of angels and dead saints began about…	375
4	The Mass, as a daily celebration, was adopted in…	394
5	The worship of Mary, the mother of Jesus, and the use of the term “Mother of God,” as applied to her, originated in the Council of Ephesus in…	431
6	Priests began to dress different from the laity in…	500
7	The doctrine of purgatory was first established by Gregory the Great about the year…	593
8	The Latin language as the language of prayer and worship in churches was also imposed by Pope Gregory I, in… The Word of God, however, forbids teaching in an unknown tongue (1 Cor. 14:9).	600
9	The Bible teaches that we pray to God alone. In the primitive church, never were prayers directed to Mary or to dead saints (Matt. 11:28; Luke 1:46; Acts 10:25-26; 14:14-18). This practice began in the Roman church about…	600
10	The papacy is of pagan origin. The title pope, or “universal bishop,” was first given to the bishop of Rome by the wicked emperor Phocas in the year…. This he did to spite Bishop Ciriacus of Constantinople, who had justly excommunicated him for having caused the assassination of his predecessor, emperor Mauritius. Gregory I, then bishop of Rome, refused the title, but his successor, Boniface III, first assumed the title pope. Jesus did not appoint Peter to the headship of the apostles, and He forbade any such notion (Luke 22:24-26, Eph. 1:22-23, Col. 1:18, 1 Cor. 3:11). Note: There is no mention in Scripture, nor in history, that Peter ever was in Rome, much less that he was pope there for twenty-five years. Clement, third bishop of Rome, remarks that there is no real first century evidence that Peter was ever in Rome.	610
11	The kissing of the pope’s feet began in… It had been a pagan custom to kiss the feet of emperors. The Word of God forbids such a practice (Acts 10:25-26; Rev. 19:10; 22:9).	709
12	The Temporal power of the Popes… When Pepin, the usurper of the throne of France, descended into Italy, called by Pope Stephen II, to war against the Italian Lombards, he defeated them and gave the city of Rome and surrounding territory to the pope. Jesus expressly forbade such a thing, and He himself refused worldly kingship. (Matt. 4:8-9; 20:25-26; John 18:38).	750
13	Worship of the cross, images and relics was authorized… This was by order of Dowager Empress Irene of Constantinople, who first caused to pluck the eyes of her own son, Constantine VI, and then called a church council at the request of Hadrian I, pope of Rome at that time. Such practice is called simply IDOLATRY in the Bible, and is severely condemned. (Ex. 20:4; 3:17; Deut. 27:15; Psalm 115). (see http://www.roman-empire.net/constant/constantinople.html)	788
14	Holy Water, mixed with a pinch of salt and blessed by the priest, was authorized…	850
15	The veneration of St. Joseph began…	890
16	The baptism of bells was instituted by Pope John XIV…	965
17	Canonization of dead saints, first by Pope John XV… Every believer and follower of Christ is called saint in the Bible. (Rom. 1:7; 1 Cor. 1:2).	995
18	Fasting on Fridays and during Lent were imposed… Imposed by popes said to be interested in the commerce of fish. (Bull, or permit to eat meat), some authorities say, began in the year 700. This is against the plain teaching of the Bible. (Matt. 15:10; 1 Cor. 10:25; I Tim. 4:1-3).	998
19	The Mass was developed gradually as a sacrifice; attendance made obligatory in the 11th century. The Bible teaches that the sacrifice of Christ was offered once and for all, and is not to be repeated, but only commemorated in the Lord's Supper. (Heb. 7:27; 9:26-28; 10:10-14).
20	The celibacy of the priesthood was decreed by Pope Hildebrand, Boniface VII… Jesus imposed no such rule, nor did any of the apostles. On the contrary, St. Peter was a married man, and St. Paul says that bishops were to have wife and children. (1 Tim. 3:2,5,12; Matt. 8:14-15).	1079
21	The Rosary, or prayer beads was introduced by Peter the Hermit, in the year 1090. Copied from Hindus and Mohammedans… The counting of prayers is a pagan practice and is expressly condemned by Christ. (Matt. 6:5-13).	1090
22	The Inquisition of heretics was instituted by the Council of Verona in the year 1184. Jesus never taught the use of force to spread His religion… On the contrary, He said love them, pray for them, be good to them and to bless them. He also said to feed them. (Matt. 5:44, Luke 6:27, 35)	1184
23	The sale of Indulgences, commonly regarded as a purchase of forgiveness and a permit to indulge in sin… Christianity, as taught in the Bible, condemns such a traffic and it was the protest against this traffic that brought on the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century.	1190
24	The dogma of Transubstantiation was decreed by Pope Innocent III, in the year… By this doctrine the priest pretends to perform a daily miracle by changing a wafer into the body of Christ, and then he pretends to eat Him alive in the presence of his people during Mass. The Bible condemns such absurdities; for the Lord's Supper is simply a memorial of the sacrifice of Christ. The spiritual presence of Christ is implied in the Lord's Supper. (Luke 22:19-20; John 6:35; 1 Cor. 11:26).	1215
25	Confession of sin to the priest at least once a year was instituted by Pope Innocent III., in the Lateran Council The Bible commands us to confess our sins direct to God. (Psa. 51:1-10; Luke 7:48; 15:21; 1 John 1:8-9).	1215
26	The adoration of the wafer (Host), was decreed by Pope Honorius.. So the Roman Church worships a God made by human hands. This is plain idolatry and absolutely contrary to the spirit of the Gospel. (John 4:24).	1220
27	The Bible forbidden to laymen and placed in the Index of forbidden books by the Council of Valencia… Jesus commanded that the Scriptures should be read by all. (John 5:39; I Tim. 3:15-17).	1229
28	The Scapular was invented by Simon Stock, and English monk… It is a piece of brown cloth, with the picture of the Virgin and supposed to contain supernatural virtue to protect from all dangers those who wear it on naked skin. This is fetishism.	1287
29	The Roman Church forbade the cup to the laity, by instituting the communion of one kind in the Council of Constance in the year… The Bible commands us to celebrate the Lord's Supper with unleavened bread and the fruit of the vine. (Matt. 26:27; 1 Cor. 11:26-29).	1414
30	The doctrine of Purgatory was proclaimed as a dogma of faith by Council of Florence… There is not one word in the Bible that would teach the purgatory of priests. The blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth us from all sins. (1 John 1:7-9; 2:1-2; John 5:24; Rom. 8:1).	1438
31	The doctrine of 7 Sacraments affirmed… The Bible says that Christ instituted only two ordinances, Baptism and the Lord's Supper. (Matt. 28:19-20; 26:26-28).	1439
32	The Ave Maria, part of the last…. It was completed 50 years afterward and finally approved by Pope Sixtus V, at the end of the 16th century.	1508
33	The Council of Trent, held in the year 1545, declared that Tradition is of equal authority with the Bible…. By tradition is meant human teachings. The Pharisees believed the same way, and Jesus bitterly condemned them, for by teaching human tradition, they nullified the commandments of God. (Mark 7:7-13; Col. 2:8; Rev. 22:18).	1545
34	The apocryphal books were added to the Bible also by the Council of Trent… These books were not recognized as canonical by the Jewish Church. (Rev. 22:8-9).	1546
35	The Creed of Pope Pius IV was imposed as the official creed 1560 years after Christ and the apostles… True Christians retain the Holy Scriptures as their creed. Hence their creed is 1500 years older than the creed of Roman Catholics. (Gal. 1:8).	1560
36	The Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary was proclaimed by Pope Pius IX… The Bible states that all men, with the sole exception of Christ, are sinners. Mary herself had need of a Savior. (Rom. 3:23; 5:12; Psa. 51:5; Luke 1:30,46,47).	1854
37	In the year 1870 after Christ, Pope Pius IX proclaimed the dogma of Papal Infallibility… This is a blasphemy and the sign of the apostasy and of the anti-christ predicted by St. Paul. (II Thess. 2:2-12; Rev. 17:1-9; 13:5-8,18). Many Bible students see the number of the beast (Rev. 13:18), 666 in the Roman letters of the Pope's title: "VICARIUS FILII DEI." – V=5, I=1, C=100, A=0, R=0, I=1, U=5, S=0; F=0, I=1, L=50, I=1, I=1; D=500, E=0, I=l -- Total, 666. (For more Information)	1870
38	Pope Plus X, in the year 1907, condemned together with "Modernism", all the discoveries of modern science which are not approved by the Church…. Pius IX had done the same thing in the Syllabus of 1864.	1907
39	In the year 1930 Pius XI, condemned the Public Schools…	1930
40	In the year 1931 the same pope Pius XI, reaffirmed the doctrine that Mary is "the Mother of God"…. This doctrine was first invented by the Council of Ephesus in the year 431. This is a heresy contrary by Mary's own words. (Luke 1:46-49; John 2: 1-5).	1931
41	In the year 1950 the last dogma was proclaimed by Pope Pins XII, the Assumption of the Virgin Mary	1950

What will be the next invention? The Roman church says it never changes: yet, it has done nothing else but invent new doctrines, which are contrary to the Bible, and it has practiced rites and ceremonies taken from paganism. Some scholar has found that seventy-five percent of the rites and ceremonies of the Roman church are of pagan origin.

Note: Cardinal Newman in his book The Development of the Christian Religion admits that “…temples, incense, oil lamps, votive offerings, holy water, holidays and season of devotions, processions, blessings of fields, sacerdotal vestments, the tonsure (of priest, monks and nuns), images…are all of pagan origin…” (Page 359).

The above chronological list of human inventions disproves the claim of the priests of the Roman church that their religion was taught by Christ, and that the popes have been faithful custodians of that religion.

“Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues” (Rev. 18:4). All true Christians will remain faithful to Christ as taught in the Bible.

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