In mid the nineteenth century, Lord Acton one of the greatest Roman Catholic historians 

of described the Papacy as “the fiend skulking behind the Crucifix.”1 Acton, famous for his saying, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely,” clearly pinpointed Papal Rome as the academic and legal cause of the more than six hundred years of the Inquisition and other atrocities such as the St. Bartholomew’s Massacre, which began in Paris August 24 1572, and spread throughout France.

As Joseph Ratzinger is elected as the new Pope more relevant than ever is the question, “Who is the Vicar of Christ?” The article I have written not only answers this question but it shows how serious it is to attempt to substitute a man for the office distinctively that of the Holy Spirit.

Scott Hahn, a former Presbyterian pastor, is currently being touted as a hero in the Roman Catholic world. The text critiqued in this article is the transcript of his conversion story, “The Scott Hahn Conversion Story: Protestant Minister Becomes Catholic” as it appears in the Catholic Adult Education on Video Program, prominently featured on the Coming Home Network.