STATEMENT BY THE FREE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH OF ULSTER – 8th May 2025
Our Confessional Standard, the Westminster Confession of Faith, describes the Pope of Rome as, “that Antichrist, that man of sin, and son of perdition, that exalts himself, in the Church, against Christ and all that is called God” (Chapter 25, Section 6).
One of the great heresies of the Roman Catholic Church is their exaltation of a man to the place of Christ. For the purpose of saving His people, our Lord Jesus Christ exercises each of the major Old Testament offices of Prophet, Priest and King. However, the Pope of Rome masquerades at each of these levels and so usurps positions that are the sole prerogative of Christ.
• Invoking the authority of Peter, the Pope or Bishop of Rome claims to speak infallibly on matters of faith or life, placing his own words on the level of the words of Christ. However, the Bible maintains that Christ alone holds this office of Prophet in His church (John 1:1; Hebrews 1:1-2).
• The Pope is also called “Pontifex Maximus,” meaning supreme or great high priest (Leviticus 21:10, Vulgate), but the Bible says our great High Priest is Jesus alone, the Son of God (Hebrews 4:14).
• The Pope assumes the titles “Vicar of Jesus Christ” and “Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church,” meaning that he acts as Christ’s representative, ruling as the supreme head of the church on earth, when in fact Christ is depicted in Colossians 1:18 as, “the head of the body, the church … that in all things He might have the preeminence.”
The Lord Jesus Christ warned that “false Christs, and false prophets” will come (Matthew 24:24). Paul identified one such prominent example as being the “man of sin, the son of perdition” who would exalt himself to the place of God in the temple (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4).
The Westminster divines, responsible for drafting our Confession of Faith, believed that the office of the Papacy (not any one individual Pope) fulfilled these prophecies. We believe the same. Which is why we reject the Pope and all his fake claims, echoing the words of the godly Archbishop Thomas Cranmer: “And as for the pope, I refuse him as Christ’s enemy, and Antichrist, with all his false doctrine.”
