DAY 363

CHALLENGE

“There can’t be an ‘unbroken line’ of popes going back to Peter. Look at the vacancies between popes, and at the antipopes.”

DEFENSE

The “unbroken line” claim may be found in the writings of individual Catholics, but it is difficult to find it in any official Church documents. Nevertheless, it expresses a truth: There is a line of popes (bishops of Rome) that we can trace in historical succession, going back to Peter.

The statement that it is unbroken must be understood in the sense that those who make the claim intend, otherwise a straw man will result. This means ...