Catholics, for ages, have claimed that their Pope “sits in the seat of Peter.” Mormons say no, it is their leader they call "the Prophet" who is "the Lord's mouthpiece to man." Let’s examine:
Nowhere in the Bible do we find the word “Pope” or “Pontiff.” Nowhere in the Bible do we find the word “Cardinal.” We do find the word “Bishop” five times in the New Testament, but nowhere in the Old Testament.
The word “apostle,” however, is found 77 times in the Bible, used in reference to those Jesus called as directors and leaders of his gospel. It is a term virtually unused in Catholicism.
According to Luke, Jesus also organized “the seventy” who were trained by the Apostles and sent out two by two to teach the world. In fact they had quite an impact upon the masses:
1 After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come.
17 ¶And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name.
Neither “the Seventy,” nor “the Apostles,” play a role in Catholicism. Mormons do have a “Quorum of Seventy” and “twelve Apostles,” yes; however they, like the potentates of Catholicism, are rarely seen mingling among the people bearing little resemblance of Jesus' original organization. Jesus was truly in the public's face, daily.
One justification for potentate-obscurity is for security reasons but yet the Master himself was a common man among men and suffered at the hands of any injustice to encounter him. He did not seclude himself in a granite fortress. Jesus’ teaching and ministry was “as he passed by.” His teaching was not from pre-written speeches delivered just on solemn occasions.
Could we, in any stretch of the imagination, envision Jesus hold up in a large Vatican-type palace, and coming out to wave at the populace on special occasions? Could we ever imagine that he wore decorative robes, or a crown of any type or even the red or white velvet zucchetto cap?
Likewise, even if living in today's world, can we imagine Jesus in a $600 suit and tie such as in Mormonism and most the Christian world. Would he touch up his aging face with a dash of make up when addressing the masses. No. Rather, he was as common as any other man, and his ministry was as he passed by.
Can we imagine Jesus promoting a best-seller book with his picture prominent on the cover? He went to great lengths trying to 'not' leave a written legacy. His example was in how he lived not in what he said.
Perhaps the only resemblance to the original church--among Catholics, Mormons and general Christianity--is that they have created and promulgated a religion ‘about’ Jesus. But how much relevance do they resemble the religion OF Jesus.
Another stark contrast … neither Jesus nor his Apostles are known in the Bible accounts to have expected or exacted funds from the people. They were on a plane equal to any other and when funds were tight they took a break and went fishing for their funds. Contrast that with today’s religions. It is said, “the biggest business on the planted today is religion.”
Jesus’ mantra was "he that wholeheartedly believes in me shall have life and have it more abundantly." The Catholic Church, the Mormons--and for that matter the whole of Christianity--has a mantra that essentially says, ‘come to our buildings of worship and for your money we will promise you relief from guilt and blessings from God.’
Two great examples of Christ-like service and a ministry which does emulate the original are Mother Teresa and Mahatma Gandhi. Both are rooted from India. It is ironic the Urantia Book’s accounting of Jesus’ influence on the Indian culture through his two-year association with a wealthy merchant, Gonod and his son Ganid.
Gonod had hired Jesus as a guide and a tutor for is inquisitive son in their business travels through the Middle East regions. This experience, according to the Urantia Book, had a lasting influence on the whole of India's subsequent history.
There is a great article posted by Mo Siegel--the owner of Celestial Seasonings Natural Teas, and who is also the President of the Urantia Foundation--regarding their re-visiting the journeys of Jesus, Gonod and Ganid.
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