Q: When did Catholicism begin and where can I find a book to read about the beginnings of Catholicism?

A: I am not sure that you are aware that you have asked your question at a site dedicated to the teachings of The Urantia Book…? The Urantia Book is the most recent revelation of God to mankind—the previous revelation of this magnitude was the mortal incarnation, life, and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, over 2000 years ago. The Urantia Book includes in Part IV a complete restatement of the life and teachings of Jesus—perhaps that is how you came to believe that you could get your questioned answered, since our site is also dedicated to spreading the good news of Jesus’ gospel…? I just want you to be aware that The Urantia Book is not connected to either the Catholic Church, or any other church. It is not a religion, in and of itself, but it does underscore the religion of personal spiritual experience, which is the religion that Jesus established when he was on earth, and the religion that he practiced. This religion differs in some fundamental ways from traditional Christian, or Catholic beliefs. But The Urantia Book is quite clear on Jesus’ Divinity, so it is consistent in belief with all traditional churches in that regard.

The Catholic Church dates its beginnings to the confession of Peter—the occasion upon which Jesus asked the apostles “Who say you that I am?” to which Peter replied, “You are the Deliverer, the Son of the living God.” Following this declaration by Peter, the other eleven apostles agreed that Peter had spoken for all of them.

It was supposedly said by Jesus that “Upon this rock [Peter] I will build my church,” making Peter the first “Pope,” according to Catholic dogma. And so, throughout all of these centuries, every pope of the Catholic Church is said to be the representative of Peter, and the leader of the Church.

Since you have asked this question about the Catholic church at our site, I feel it might be of interest to you to know the differences between the Catholic Church, which is a religion ABOUT Jesus, and the actual religion OF Jesus, as presented in The Urantia Book. Please bear with me, if you will. I hope your mind is open enough to entertain some new information.

In The Urantia Book, we are given a detailed, almost day-by-day account of the life of Jesus. And this account includes the story of this conversation with Peter and the apostles. It was a very important occasion, as it was the first time that the apostles finally understood, and openly declared, that Jesus was not only a great teacher and a holy man (the Son of man), but that he was in truth, the actual Son of God as well, God-made-flesh.

I am providing a link HERE, so that you can read for yourself the account of this momentous occasion in The Urantia Book. Jesus established that day, not a church, but a living spiritual reality called the kingdom of heaven.

The Urantia Book teaches us that Jesus did not come to earth to establish a formalized church, even though many churches did spring up in his name following his death and resurrection. Instead, Jesus came to proclaim the Fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man; he came to establish the kingdom of heaven in the very hearts of mankind, so that man could know for certain that God is his Father, and so that every human being can have personal spiritual relations with that loving Father, as Jesus himself did.

Many churches claim that theirs is the “one, true church.” Catholicism is one of them. One feature of any such church is dogma—theological teachings that must be embraced and rules that must be adhered to, lest a person suffer damnation, supposedly at the hands of a judgmental and jealous God. Jesus himself was raised in orthodox Judaism, and was also taught that he must adhere to Jewish dogma, principles and rituals so that he would stand in favor with God. As you know, he rebelled against that very strict upbringing.

Jesus preached against the establishment of any religion that would try to imprison the Truth and he became a great threat to the authority of the church leaders, who had him killed for his original and life-saving ideas. Jesus taught us that there is a true freedom of religious expression that can only be found through personal relations with God, who dwells within every man. It is through progressive and willing identification with this indwelling Spirit that man is able to achieve communion with the Father. Jesus was not in favor of any priest, rabbi, or other supposed “holy men” standing between man and God. He taught that we can live lives of spiritual freedom and originality with only our inner Spirit as our infallible guide.

Since you came upon our site, and took the time to ask a question of us, I hope that you will stay awhile, and read a bit more from The Urantia Book.

The Urantia Book clearly states that:

One of the most important things in human living is to find out what Jesus believed, to discover his ideals, and to strive for the achievement of his exalted life purpose. Of all human knowledge, that which is of greatest value is to know the religious life of Jesus and how he lived it. (196:1.3)

Please go HERE to our web page dedicated to Jesus, which contains many Urantia Book links, including a link to the story of Jesus’ life and teachings (at the top of the page), as well as beautiful videos that you might enjoy.

And HERE to read about the beginnings of the Christian church, which bears Jesus’ name.

As for books about the beginnings of Catholicism, I am sure you could find a wealth of selections at Amazon.com. They frequently have second-hand books at a great savings.

Thanks for hanging in with me this far. I don’t know why you chose to ask your question of us, but I am glad that you did. Please write back any time…I hope you will take this gentle nudge, given in the spirit of brotherhood, to expand your knowledge and understanding of Jesus as presented in The Urantia Book. It is a book like no other, and a revelation of God whose only equal is that of the Master, Jesus of Nazareth himself.