The fundamental reason for the vast gulf between Christianity and Catholicism is our respective authorities:

• Christianity teaches that inspired Scripture is the sole infallible rule of faith (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Not the only rule of faith - as is sometimes erroneously alleged - the only infallible rule of faith
• Catholicism teaches that the Roman Catholic Church's judgment of Scripture and Tradition is the sole infallible rule of faith

This Roman Catholic (and to a lesser, more disorganized degree, Eastern Orthodox) doctrine of Sola Ecclesia has led to many accretions in their religion, which no one reading the Bible, and practicing any meaningful form of exegesis, would ever get from the text.

With Biblical doctrine, one must show a chapter and verse in inspired Scripture that clearly states what they are trying to prove, in context. Allusion isn't good enough. Symbology is not good enough. We build our theology on clear statements, from what we know is God-breathed. That is how we avoid developments (accretions), and heresy.

In contrast, the case for these Roman Catholic doctrines is established on taking a verse of Scripture, which does not at all, in context, state their doctrine, or anything like their doctrine, and then immediately running to the traditions of non-inspired people from centuries after the Apostles, and selectively citing what they said, in order to arrive at the fully fleshed-out Roman Catholic doctrine. Sometimes, a verse of Scripture is not even appealed to, but rather Tradition alone.

To justify this practice, Catholics insist that the traditions which they maintain are directly from the Apostles themselves, and therefore, represent authoritative elements of the faith outside of Scripture. The two major flaws with these assertions are:

• Not everything an Apostle did or taught was correct, or inspired (Galatians 2:11-14, Acts 16:1-3)
• No direct Apostolic link can be established for any of these dogmas

One of the first instances in the history of the Christian Church of someone claiming to have a direct Apostolic basis for a doctrine is Irenaeus (130-202 AD), in his work Against Heresies, stating that Jesus was over 40 years old when He died. No one on earth believes that today. Everyone agrees that he was teaching false doctrine. And, he is one of the earliest Christian writers. "An Apostle told me", isn't good enough.

Further, Roman Catholics freely disregard claimed Apostolic tradition if it doesn't agree with what they already believe. They agree with Pope Victor I (189-199 AD) in his attempt to force the entire Church to celebrate Passover on a single day (in direct violation of Romans 14:4-6), even though a bishop named Polycrates (130-196 AD) cited an Apostolic tradition from the Apostles Philip and John for the day on which he celebrated Passover, when rejecting Victor's judgment (Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History, Book 5, Chapter 24). Do Roman Catholics care? No, they do not, instead siding with Victor against the Apostolic tradition, and the Bible.

And, not even the most basic questions about any of these supposedly Apostolic traditions which Roman Catholics wish to bind to people's consciences can be answered, such as - which Apostle? Who did he tell it to? When did he say it? Where was he? Is the person who he supposedly told it to reliable? Is each person in the chain of transmitters after him reliable? Is the manuscript tradition of the relevant sources robust enough to bind them on the conscience of all Christians? These basic questions, whose answers should be forthcoming if the tradition was legitimate, and binding on the souls of all Christians, cannot be answered for even a single one of any of these traditions.

Therefore, when reading Church history, the writers are to be subject to the same scrutiny that writers today are subject to, namely, "Where in Scripture did they get that from?". Age isn't good enough. There were people teaching lies, and creating false doctrine, while the New Testament itself was being written (John 21:21-23, Acts 20:28-31: 2 Corinthians 2:17, Galatians 1:6-7: 2 Peter 3:16, Revelation 2:15). "We all believe it", isn't good enough. Those who are concerned with the truth should require inspired proof for anything that anyone tries to bind to their (and their family's) conscience.

With that said, the following is a list of Roman Catholic accretions - doctrines which have no basis in Scripture. If there are any verses of Scripture which directly contradict the doctrine, they will be listed below as well:

• Peter was designated to rule all churches in the world, and he can pass this authority on to the Bishop of Rome
  • Luke 22:24-26: 1 Peter 5:1-3: 1 Corinthians 1:11-12 ("Cephas" is Peter)
• Peter was the first Bishop of Rome
  • Romans 11:13 with Galatians 2:8, Romans 16:1-15 (27 names, no mention of Peter)
• The Bishop of Rome is able to issue infallible statements
• The titles used for the Bishop of Rome, taking the place of each Person of the Trinity
  • God the Father - "Holy Father"
    • Matthew 23:9, John 17:11
  • Jesus Christ - "Alter Christus" (Another Christ) - name taken by every priest at their ordination
    • Matthew 24:5, Mark 13:6, Luke 21:8
  • The Holy Spirit - "Vicar of Christ"
    • John 14:16-18, 14:26, 15:26, 16:7
• The doctrine that the Church is beholden to the decrees of councils of bishops convoked by Roman and Byzantine Emperors, or that the Holy Spirit is guaranteed to protect such assemblies from error
• Repeating the same prayers over and over again, i.e., the Rosary
  • Matthew 6:7-8
• Prayers to saints, and angels
  • 1 Timothy 2:5 with Hebrews 4:15-16
  • Matthew 6:9, Luke 11:2
• Veneration of images of Jesus, saints, and angels to honor their prototypes
  • Veneration explicitly forbidden - Acts 10:25-26, Revelation 19:10, 22:8-9
  • Venerative iconography forbidden on the basis that it has no life, which is true of all Catholic and Orthodox iconography - Deuteronomy 4:14-28, Psalm 115:4-8, 135:15-18, Isaiah 44:9, Jeremiah 10:14-15, 51:17-18, Habakkuk 2:18-19
  • Other - Colossians 2:18, Acts 17:29-30, Exodus 20:4-6, 34:14, Deuteronomy 5:8-10, 16:22, 27:15, Judges 17:1-6
• Veneration and enshrinement of relics from the bodies of dead saints, and requiring the use of relics to consecrate a new church (Second Council of Nicaea, 787 AD)
  • Matthew 14:10-12, Mark 6:24-29, Acts 8:2
• Holy adornments, i.e., the Miraculous Medal, the Brown Scapular, the Medal of St. Christopher, etc.
• Transubstantiation, and the Mass as an unbloody propitiatory sacrifice for sin
  • Hebrews 9:9-12, 9:22-28, 10:1-18
• Historically, proclaiming that all those who are not in direct submission to the Bishop of Rome are not in the Body of Christ, and therefore damned (Unam Sanctam, 1302 AD, etc.)
  • Mark 9:38-40, Luke 9:49-50
  • 1 Corinthians 1:11-13
• Historically, restricting the drinking of the wine at Communion to the priest only, under pain of Excommunication (Council of Constance, 1418 AD)
  • Matthew 26:27, Mark 14:23, Luke 22:17: 1 Corinthians 11:25-28
• Historically, mandating that the Mass be in Latin, even in many countries which had no understanding of Latin whatsoever
  • 1 Corinthians 14:7-11, 14:19
• Historically, restricting vernacular Bible reading and ownership from the laity, and not prioritizing the education of the laity, and distribution of the Scriptures to them in their own language for study
  • Matthew 4:4, Luke 4:4, Deuteronomy 8:3
  • 2 Timothy 3:16-17
  • Acts 17:11
• The practice of painting completely nude men and women in church buildings, such as is done in the Sistine Chapel, which children are allowed to tour
• The collection of extremely expensive secular art and artifacts by a church organization, such as the Vatican Museum's ancient bust of Julius Caesar, and marble statue of the Greek goddess Athena and Marsyas, where Marsyas is nude, etc.
  • Matthew 6:19
• The building of extremely opulent and palatial cathedrals, such as Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome, which according to Carlo Fontana (1638-1714 AD), an architect of the cathedral, cost over 46 million ducats, which at 3.5 grams of gold each, would translate to around $14.7 billion in 2025 AD
  • Author R.A. Scotti writes, "Innocent XI commissioned Carlo Fontana to produce an illustrated account of the construction story. In his book, Fontana noted the cost (46,800,052 ducats). Worried that the mention of such a huge price tag would provoke more criticism from the Protestants, the pope suspended publication. The book was issued in 1694 by Innocent XII." (R.A. Scotti - Basilica, Chapter 28)
• Abolishing the death penalty, regardless of circumstances
  • Genesis 9:5-6
  • Romans 13:1-6 with Acts 25:11
  • Numbers 35:30-34 and Deuteronomy 19:11-13 with Revelation 6:9-10
• Purgatory, and prayers for the dead in Purgatory
  • Romans 4:4-8, 5:1, 8:33, etc., etc.
• Indulgences, and the Treasury of Merit
  • Hebrews 9:22, Titus 3:5, Galatians 2:16, etc.
• The classification of sin into Mortal and Venial sin, Mortal Sins being those that make one lose their Salvation
  • Romans 6:23 with James 2:10-11, Galatians 2:16, 3:24, John 6:47, etc., etc.
• A class of "Saints", in distinction from ordinary believers
  • Acts 26:18, Romans 16:15, Ephesians 1:1, Philippians 4:21-22, etc.
• The College of Cardinals, consisting of elevated bishops who will elect the Bishop of Rome
• The office of sacerdotal priest, in distinction from laity, under the authority of a bishop
  • Matthew 27:51, Mark 15:38, Luke 23:45
  • 1 Peter 2:5-9, Revelation 1:6, 5:10, Hebrews 7:23-24
• Teaching that the office of elder is distinct from the office of bishop, and designating the elders to be sacerdotal priests
  • Titus 1:5-7 - Bishop and elder used interchangeably
  • Acts 20:17 with Acts 20:28 - Elders are called what is translated "overseers", the same Greek word translated "bishop" everywhere else
  • 1 Peter 5:1-2 - Elders are exhorted to "exercise oversight" - this is the verb form of bishop
• Auricular confession to a priest as a requirement for forgiveness of sins, and the concept of Penance as atonement
  • Auricular Confession - 1 John 1:9, Matthew 6:9-12, Luke 11:2-4, 18:13-14, Hebrews 4:14-16, Psalm 32:5, 51:1-9, Proverbs 28:13, Ezra 10:11
  • Penance as Atonement - Hebrews 9:22, Hebrews 9:12, 10:14, Acts 20:28, Romans 5:9, Ephesians 1:7, Colossians 1:14: 1 Peter 1:18-19, Revelation 1:5
  • The Catechism of the Catholic Church 1447 admits that the practice of the early Church for dealing with those who committed grave sins was very different to what is practiced today (and much more merciless), with private confession beginning around the 7th century
• Limiting positions of Church leadership only to those who have sworn to celibacy
  • 1 Timothy 3:2, 3:12, 4:3, Titus 1:6, Mark 1:30, Luke 4:38: 1 Corinthians 9:5
• Designating every Friday as penitential, and historically forbidding meat on that day, which is still required during Lent. Also, the prescribed fasting on Ash Wednesday, and Good Friday, on pain of Mortal Sin
  • Romans 14:5-6: 1 Timothy 4:1-3, Colossians 2:14-16, Galatians 4:9-11
  • Ash Wednesday particularly - Matthew 6:16-18
• Designating every Sunday as a Holy Day of Obligation, on which refusing to go to church is a Mortal Sin, and the designation of other such days throughout the year
  • Romans 14:5-6, Galatians 4:9-11
• Mary's Immaculate Conception
  • Luke 1:46-47
  • Luke 2:22-24 with Leviticus 12:6-8
• Mary's Assumption
• Mary's Perpetual Virginity, "even in the act of giving birth" (Catechism of the Catholic Church 499, 510), which fundamentally attacks the Incarnation, as she did not really give birth at all
  • Matthew 1:18 with 1 Corinthians 7:4-5 ("come together" is the same Greek word in both passages), Matthew 1:24-25, Luke 2:7
  • Psalm 69:8-9 with John 7:5 and John 2:17
  • Jesus's siblings explicitly mentioned - Matthew 12:46-50, 13:55-56, Mark 3:31, 6:3, Luke 8:19, John 2:12, 7:3, Acts 1:14: 1 Corinthians 9:5, Galatians 1:19
    • Comparing Matthew 27:56, Mark 15:40, and John 19:25 indicates that it is at least possible that two of the Lord's "brothers" mentioned above were cousins. However, it says nothing of the other 2 named brothers of Jesus, nor of the "sisters" mentioned
• Mary's exalted role as Queen of Heaven, Mediatrix of all graces, etc.
  • Matthew 12:46-50, Mark 3:31-35, Luke 8:19-21, 11:27-28
• Infant baptism
  • Acts 2:41, 8:36-37
• Requiring a months-long, sometimes years-long initiation into Roman Catholic theology (RCIA) before allowing someone to be baptized
  • John 3:22, 4:1-2, Acts 2:37-41, 8:12-13, 8:35-38, 9:17-18, 10:44-48, 16:14-15, 16:30-33, 18:8, 19:1-5
• The way that the priests, bishops, and other clergy dress
  • Mark 12:38-40, Matthew 23:5
• Calling priests, bishops, and others "father", and designating every priest to be an "Alter Christus" (another Christ) at their ordination
  • Matthew 23:9
  • Matthew 24:5, Mark 13:6, Luke 21:8
• Proclaiming that some books from the intertestamental Deuterocanon (Apocrypha) are inspired Scripture
  • Romans 3:1-2, Luke 24:44
  • Matthew 23:35, Luke 11:51

Many of the above are declared to be De Fide - to be believed by all of the faithful, under penalty of Anathema. The Roman Catholic Church has no inspired basis for any of the above doctrines, yet condemns people to Hell if they do not believe them. This is adding to the Gospel, in violation of Galatians 1:6-9, and binding to people's souls something that God never commanded them to believe.

Conclusion

No Christian is bound to believe any unbiblical accretion, regardless of how often those who hold them try to threaten them with Hell. Never allow someone to try to inspire ecclesiastical anxiety in you, by binding burdens to you that Christ never did, and adding to His Word:

Mark 7:6-7

6 He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.
7 Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

Ecclesiastes 12:13

13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.