Jesus, Peter & the Keys: A Scriptural Handbook on the Papacy

by Scott Butler, Norman Dahlgren, David Hess

Deeply rooted in Scripture, Jesus, Peter and the Keys will increase your understanding in an area of faith that still divides many Christians: The role of the Papacy. This is the first and only book that proves, without doubt, that the Papacy was designed by Jesus and is being carried out as He intended. This landmark work brings together information from Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox sources to give readers of all Christian faiths a clear understanding of the office of St. Peter and his successors. The authors do an excellent job of examining scriptural evidence and historical data and present their case in easy-to-understand terms both scholars and layman can enjoy. Imprimatur.

Genres: Religion, Catholic, Theology

431 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1997

Reviews

[Steven H · Rating 5 out of 5]

A DETAILED APOLOGETICAL STUDY OF THE BIBLICAL AND HISTORICAL BASIS FOR THE PAPACY

The three authors wrote in the Preface to this 1996 book, "In this Scriptural handbook, we have arranged the material for spiritual meditation, fruitful discussion, and apologetic enlightenment... This is not meant to be an exhaustive exegetical or hermeneutical treatments of texts. It is an APOLOGETICAL meditation on the teachings of the Catholic Church, from a biblical perspective...

Interestingly, we have found that certain Protestant theologians, including Martin Luther and John Calvin, support traditional Catholic beliefs, while some Catholic scholars support the Church's critics. In any case, it is imperative that Catholics know the biblical underpinnings of their faith... Catholics are Bible-believing Christians, but many others are not acquainted with this fact." (Pg. xxi)

Topics covered include: The Preeminence of Peter; Analysis of the Greek words Petros and Petra; Use of the Aramaic word Kepha in the Greek New Testament; The Power to Bind and to Loose; The Power of the Keys as Ordained Authority; Peter's Authority in the Early Church; The Roles of Priest, Prophet, and King; The Visible Church and Her Leaders; Infallibility Versus Impeccability; The Conditions of Infallibility, etc.

This book will be of great interest to anyone studying Catholic apologetics.

[Argum · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is very informational, but maybe not informative. It is structured as a series of questions supported by a vast number of Early Fathers, Protestant and Orthodox theologians, or Scriptural foundations. It is in the second half especially just page after page of quotations. This is worsened in ease of reading dimension by the quote style where half of each block is probably the citation information. That said it really does pack a punch. I for instance learned that the idea the Orthodox churches dispute the supremacy of the papacy was part of the original dispute is false, that was a post hoc argument that developed much later. Just very dry and hard to read. Would however make a good reference.