Saint Peter's Successor

Saint Peter's Successor According to the Catholic Church

According to the book of popes, in Latin liber pontificalis, which is the official Catholic record of all the popes, Saint Peter is the first pope, and Linus is his successor. Not Saint Mark the Evangelist, who Peter called his son, and not any other of the Evangelists, Matthew, Luke and John, but Linus, who did not write one word in the New Testament!

The Successors of Saint Linus

The book of popes goes on to list the successor of Linus, and so on, down to the present day, calling each of these men by the title of pope. Some other titles attributed by the Catholic Church to the popes are: holy father and vicar of Christ on earth.

No author of the New Testament is considered by the Catholic Church to be Peter's successor, even though Saint Peter did not mention Linus at all in his two epistles, but named Mark, calling him his son.

Saint Mark the First Evangelist

Saint Mark is generally considered to be the first of the three synoptic Evangelists, followed by Matthew and Luke, who each based their own version of the Gospel on that of Saint Mark. Saint John is the fourth Evangelist, who gives an account of Jesus' mission based on his own personal testimony, and therefore is not part of the synoptic cycle.

Saint Mark was not one of the original twelve disciples, and wrote his version of the Gospel following the testimony that Saint Peter imparted to him. In fact, Mark was Peter's disciple, and the one whom Saint Peter chose as his personal adjutant and successor! Without Mark, Peter could not have made known in writing to later generations that which we commonly know as the Gospel according to Saint Mark.

Peter did not write anything, and relied on Mark to write down his personal testimony of Jesus. For this reason he declared that Mark is his son. Not Linus, whom he never mentioned! Linus may be a saint, he may have been a good man, but according to the New Testament, he is not Peter's successor.

The Popes Unveiled

The line of popes that follows Saint Linus down to the present day, would lose all validity if Saint Mark is universally recognised as the first Evangelist and Saint Peter's son, meaning his successor.

Where would the Christian Church be without the Evangelists? We would have no Church if they had not written down the Word of Jesus and his deeds. The Evangelists, as the New Testament clearly shows, never called themselves by the name of holy father, or used the term pope. Linus did not write one word in the New Testament, and neither did any other of the men who the Catholic Church considers successors of Saint Peter.

Who do you believe is Saint Peter's successor?

Do you believe that the Catholic Church, which started to compile the book of popes many centuries after Saint Peter's apostolic mission, is right in declaring another person as the successor of Saint Peter?

Feel free to leave your comment!

Read on: St. Peter the Apostle chose St. Mark as his successor, not the popes:

celticbritannia.blogspot.com/2011/12/mark-son-of-peter-apostle.html

The meaning of Zion in St. Peter's primacy:

celticbritannia.blogspot.com/2012/01/saint-peters-primacy-from-zion.html

The Kentish origins of the English Church:
celticbritannia.blogspot.com/2011/12/origins-of-english-church.html