I usually approach Catholicism one doctrine at a time: Where is purgatory in the Bible? Where is confession? Where is the papacy?
Those are fair questions, but I keep coming back to a larger question underneath them. What did Jesus intend to remain after the apostles were gone?
WHAT I AM STUDYING
I am reading Matthew 16 and 18, Luke 22, John 17 and 21, Acts 15, 1 Timothy 3:15, 2 Timothy 2:2, and 2 Thessalonians 2:15.
I am comparing the idea of Scripture as the sole infallible rule with the Catholic claim that Christ established a visible teaching Church.
A FEW THINGS I AM LEARNING
Acts 15 does not look like everyone reading Scripture and choosing an answer independently. The apostles and elders meet, debate, decide, and send that decision to the churches.
The New Testament also speaks about teaching being handed on through people, not only preserved in documents.
WHAT I AM STILL UNSURE ABOUT
A visible Church in the New Testament does not automatically prove the modern Catholic Church. I still have to establish continuity, authority, and why Rome would have a special role.
WHAT I WANT TO LOOK AT NEXT
I want to see what happens to apostolic ministry after the apostles die.