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Chapter 3—The Roman Church
The apostle Paul, in his second letter to the Thessalonians, fore-
told the great apostasy which would result in the establishment of
the papal power. He declared that the day of Christ should not come,
“except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be re-
vealed, the son of perdition; who opposeth and exalteth himself
above all that is called God, or that is worshiped; so that he as God
sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God.” And
furthermore, the apostle warns his brethren that “the mystery of
iniquity doth already work.” [
2 Thessalonians 2:3, 4, 7
.] Even at
that early date he saw, creeping into the church, errors that would
prepare the way for the development of the papacy.
Little by little, at first in stealth and silence, and then more openly
as it increased in strength and gained control of the minds of men, the
mystery of iniquity carried forward its deceptive and blasphemous
work. Almost imperceptibly the customs of heathenism found their
way into the Christian church. The spirit of compromise and con-
formity was restrained for a time by the fierce persecutions which
the church endured under paganism. But as persecution ceased,
and Christianity entered the courts and palaces of kings, she laid
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aside the humble simplicity of Christ and his apostles for the pomp
and pride of pagan priests and rulers; and in place of the require-
ments of God, she substituted human theories and traditions. The
nominal conversion of Constantine, in the early part of the fourth
century, caused great rejoicing; and the world, arrayed in robes of
righteousness, walked into the church. Now the work of corruption
rapidly progressed. Paganism, while appearing to be vanquished,
became the conqueror. Her spirit controlled the church. Her doc-
trines, ceremonies, and superstitions were incorporated into the faith
and worship of the professed followers of Christ.
This compromise between paganism and Christianity resulted in
the development of the man of sin foretold in prophecy as opposing
and exalting himself above God. That gigantic system of false
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