property. Evidently Peter did not connect the same meaning with the
words of Christ about the keys as the Catholics. Christ spoke of this
matter once more, and in terms still plainer, at the meeting on Easter
Eve, and again addressed all the disciples. Again Peter made no
complaint. (John 20.)

It should be noted , moreover, that in this entire text in Matthew the
Lord speaks in the future tense: "I will build," "I will give." The
words do not really confer a grant, but are at best a promise. It is
necessary now that the Catholics find a complement to this text in
Matthew, a text which relates that Christ actually carried out later
what He promised to Peter in Matt. 16, 18. 19. The Lord seems to have
forgotten the fulfilment of His promise, and the matter seems to have
slipped Peter's mind, too; for we are not told that he reminded the Lord
of His promise, though he asked him on another occasion what would be
the reward of his discipleship. (Matt. 19, 27 ff.)

Luther has, furthermore, appealed to the Catholics to prove from the
Scriptures that Peter ever exercised such an authority as they claim for
him. If Peter had been created the prince of the apostles or the visible
head of the Church, we should expect to find evidence in our Bible that
Peter acted as a privileged person and was so regarded by the other
apostles. But we may read through the entire book of Acts and all the
apostolic epistles: they tell us very minutely how the Church was
planted in many lands, how it grew and spread, but there is not even a
faint hint that Peter was regarded as the primate, or Pope, in his day.
When a certain question of doctrine was to be decided in which the
congregations of Paul were interested, Paul did not lay the matter
before Peter to obtain his judgment on it, but referred it to a council
of the Church. At this council many spoke, and it was not Peter's, but
James's speech which finally decided the matter. (Acts 15.) When Philip
had organized congregations in Samaria, the church at Jerusalem sent
Peter and John to visit them. Peter did not assume control of these
churches by his own right, nor had Philip in the first place directed
the Samaritans to Peter as their head. (Acts 8, 14 ff.) We have thirteen
letters of Paul, three of John, besides the Revelation, one of James,
and one of Jude. The state of the Church, its affairs and development,
are the subject-matter of all these writings, but not one of them
reveals the poped