What is this image? Plainly an image to the Papacy must be some religious authority or federation not organically of the Papacy itself, but adopting papal principles and seeking to enforce these principles by civil power, just as the Papacy has ever done, where possible. This development in likeness of the Papacy was shown the prophet in the latter part of the vision of Revelation 13. He saw the image formed, and in vision witnessed its determined efforts to enforce upon men the mark, or sign, of the Papacy:
"He exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.... And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: and that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast." Rev. 13:12-17.
The Mark, or Sign, of Papal Authority
The Roman Papacy sets forth the Sunday institution as the mark of the authority of the church to substitute ecclesiastical tradition and custom for the Word of God. Thus, Monsignor Ségur, in "Plain Talks about the Protestantism of Today," says:
"The observance of Sunday by Protestants is an homage they pay, in spite of themselves, to the authority of the church."—Page 213.
It was to this change in the Sabbath by tradition, contrary to the plain command of God to keep holy the seventh day, that the famous Council of Trent appealed when it gave Rome's answer to the Reformation cry of "The Bible and the Bible only." The council had long debated the ground of its answer. The historian says:
"Finally, at the last opening on the eighteenth of January, 1562, their last scruple was set aside; the archbishop of Rheggio made a speech in which he openly declared that tradition stood above Scripture. The authority of the church could therefore not be bound to the authority of the Scriptures, because the church had changed Sabbath into Sunday, not by the command of Christ, but by its own authority. With this, to be sure, the last illusion was destroyed, and it was declared that tradition does not signify antiquity, but continual inspiration."—Dr. J.H. Holtzman, "Canon and Tradition," p. 263.
Ever since this memorable council, the Sunday institution has been held forth as the mark of the power of the church to command religious observances. Thus, again, Keenan's "Doctrinal Catechism" says:
"Question.—Have you any other way of proving that the church has power to institute festivals of precept?"
"Answer.—Had she not such power, she could not have done that in which all modern religionists agree with her,—she could not have substituted the observance of Sunday, the first day of the week, for the observance of Saturday, the seventh day, a change for which there is no Scriptural authority."—Page 174.