What came first, the Church or the Book?
If you can't have an infallible interpreter for an infallible Book, the Book is worthless. There is only ONE truth, and it is not open to personal interpretation, otherwise you get 30000 Proddie denominations.
The Church isn't some invisible and ambiguous body of believers. Christ gave us a Church and He gave it leaders that appointed and left successors. The Church is an institution, we can see councils taking place in Scripture.
>(Matthew 16:18): Now I say to you that you are Peter (which means ‘rock’), and upon this rock I will build my church, and all the powers of hell will not conquer it. I will give you the keys of 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.
>(Matthew 18:15-18): If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."
We have historical records of every single one of St. Peter's successors. The Early Church fathers mention the Catholic Church and the primacy of Rome.
Sola scriptura is false and a logical fallacy. There was no biblical cannon until the 3rd century. The Catholic Church compiled the Bible and decided which books were and weren't divinely inspired. Tradition is as important as Scripture.
>(2 Thessalonians 2:15): So then, brothers, stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us, either by our spoken word or by our letter.
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