1. Can I learn how to save my soul just by reading the Bible?
No, I cannot easily learn how to save my soul just by reading the Bible because certain things in the Bible can be misunderstood and because, moreover, the Bible does not contain everything God has taught; there is also Tradition.
“No prophecy of Scripture is made by private interpretation … certain things are hard to be understood, which the unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other Scriptures, to their own destruction” (2nd Peter 1:20, 3:16).
2. What did Jesus do to make sure that His teaching would never be misunderstood?
To make sure that His teaching would never be misunderstood, Jesus established a Church.
“The House of God, which is the Church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the Truth” (1st Timothy 3:15).
3. How many Churches did Jesus establish?
Jesus established only one Church.
Jesus said to St. Peter: “Thou art Peter; and upon this rock, I will build My Church” (Matthew 16:18).
He also said: “There shall be one-fold and one Shepherd (John 10:16).
4. When did Jesus establish His Church?
Jesus established His Church nearly two thousand years ago.
5. How long did Jesus want His Church to last?
Jesus wanted His Church to last until the end of the world.
“Behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world” (Matthew 28:20).
6. How did Jesus establish His Church?
Jesus established His Church by giving to His twelve Apostles the authority to rule and to teach in His name.
“And Jesus coming, spoke to them, saying: All power is given to Me in heaven and in earth. Going therefore, teach ye all nations; baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:18, 20).
7. What is authority?
Authority is the power to command another to do something.
Examples of authority: parents, police, judges, governors, the President.
8. Can authority be handed over to another?
Yes, authority can be handed over to another.
Examples: Parents hand over authority over their children to a baby-sitter or a teacher; a sheriff gives authority to deputies.
9. Does Jesus have authority?
Yes, Jesus has authority over everyone, because He is God, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity; to disobey Him is a sin.
“He was teaching them as one having power, and not as the scribes and Pharisees” (Matthew 7:29).
“All power is given to Me in heaven and in earth” (Matthew 28:18).
10. Does the Bible say that Jesus gave His authority to the 12 Apostles?
Yes, the Bible very clearly shows that Jesus gave His 12 Apostles the authority to teach and rule. “Going therefore, teach ye all nations” (Matthew 28:19).
“Amen I say to you, whatsoever you shall bind upon earth, shall be bound also in heaven; and whatsoever you shall loose upon earth, shall be loosed also in heaven” (Matthew (18:18).
11. Did the people who listened to the Apostles have to obey them?
Yes, the people who listened to the Apostles had an obligation to obey them, because they spoke with authority of Jesus, to disobey them was a sin.
“He that receiveth you, receiveth Me: and he that receiveth Me, receiveth Him that sent Me” (Matthew 10:40).
“He that heareth you, heareth Me; and he that despiseth you despiseth Me; and be that despiseth Me, despiseth Him that sent Me” (Luke 10:16).
12. When the Apostles died, did their authority die with them?
No, the authority of the Apostles did not die with them, because they handed the authority down to others.
Some of the men who received the authority from the Apostles were: Matthias (Acts 1:24), Paul and Barnabas (Acts 13:2), Timothy, Silas, Sylvanus, Titus, Luke, Mark (Acts 17:14; 2nd Corinthians 1:19; 2nd Timothy 14:11).
13. Why did the Apostles have to hand their authority down to others?
The Apostles had to hand their authority to others because Jesus wanted His Church to last until the end of the world and to be spread all over the world.
“Going therefore, teach all nations. … Behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world” (Matthew 18:18, 20).
14. Which Church today has this same authority?
The Catholic Church alone has this authority, because it is the only church established by Jesus.
15. How do I know that the Catholic Church is the only true Church?
I know that the Catholic Church is the only true Church because it is the only Church established by Jesus Himself.
16. Do people who are not Catholic admit that the Catholic Church is the oldest Christian Church?
Yes, educated non-Catholics admit that the Catholic Church is the oldest Christian Church.
Standard history books and encyclopedia all state that the Catholic Church is the first and oldest of all churches which call themselves Christian.
17. Where did the Protestant churches come from?
The first Protestant churches were established by men who broke away from the Catholic Church.
18. Who started the first Protestant church?
The first Protestant church was established less than 500 years ago by Martin Luther, in 1520, in Germany.
19. Name the founders of some of the other protestant churches.
| Name of Church | Founder | Date Founded | Where Founded |
| Episcopalian | King Henry 8th | 1534 | England |
| Presbyterian | John Knox | 1560 | Scotland |
| Congregationalist | Robert Browne | 1583 | England |
| Baptist | John Smith | 1600 | Holland |
| Methodist | John Wesley | 1739 | England |
| Adventist | William Miller | 1831 | New York |
| Christian Scientist | Mary Baker Eddy | 1879 | Massachusetts |
20. Did any of these men have any authority to establish churches?
None of the men who established the Protestant churches had any authority whatsoever to start churches of their own, because Jesus wanted only one Church.
“There shall be one fold and one Shepherd” (John 10:16).
21. Does everyone have to obey the Catholic Church?
Yes, everyone has an obligation to obey the Catholic Church because the Catholic Church alone has the authority of Jesus to rule and to teach; to disobey the Catholic Church knowingly is a sin, just as much as disobeying Jesus or His Apostles.
“And if he will not bear the church, let him be to thee as the heathen and publican” (Matthew 18:17).
See also: 1st Cor. 5:9, and 2nd Thessalonians 3:14.
22. Is the Catholic Church, then, the only true Church?
Yes, the Catholic Church is the only true Church established by Jesus Christ, while the 200 or so different kinds of Protestant churches are false, man-made churches.