Many of the
teachings of the Roman Catholic Church have been introduced
over a period of time. The Roman Catholic Church can
trace its roots back to 300 A.D. but not any earlier than
that. Here is a brief timeline of the traditional doctrines
that were adopted by the Church of Rome.
A.D. 300 -
Prayers for the dead
A.D. 300 - Genuflecting (making the sign of the cross)
A.D. 375 - Worship of saints and angels
A.D. 394 - Mass first instituted
A.D. 431 - Worship of Mary begun
A.D. 500 - Priests began dressing differently than laypeople
A.D. 592 - Doctrine of purgatory introduced
A.D. 600 - Prayers directed to Mary
A.D. 709 - Kissing the Pope's foot
A.D. 850 - First use of "holy water"
A.D. 995 - Canonization of dead saints
A.D. 1079 - Celibacy of priesthood
A.D. 1090 - Prayer beads introduced
A.D. 1229 - Bible forbidden to laypeople
A.D. 1439 - Doctrine of purgatory decreed
A.D. 1439 - Doctrine of seven sacraments affirmed
A.D. 1545 - Catholic Tradition granted equal authority with
Bible
A.D. 1546 - Apocryphal books put into Bible
A.D. 1854 - Immaculate conception of Mary
A.D. 1870 - Infallibility of the Pope declared
