It's Supernatural

There are over 1 billion Catholics in the world. When you look at it from a dry and rational point of view you have to wonder how on earth it got so big. When you look at the history and any of the scandals that happened- be it the sex abuse scandal or the multiple popes trying to kill one another or the reformation, it defies any normal explanation as to how it still exist and continues to grow and remain constant in it's teaching in spite of itself. The reformation took about 5 million Catholics away from the faith only to have it explode in Mexico with the addition of 6 million. We don't go door to door trying to get converts. Sometimes we make prospective converts jump through hoops to join the Church. It's not an easy religion to stick to. It expect you to be willing to die for it's founder. It does not promise riches in this life. It tells you to leave behind worldly things. It tells you to accept the suffering that life hands out and it tells you do it joyfully.
It preaches against artificial birth control and is counter cultural. It's ability to market itself is awful.

If left completely up to it's human members on earth to run it by themselves, it would have disintegrated before it even began. No empire has lasted as long. The United States is an infant compared to the Catholic Church. So how is it possible that it still exist and has remained constant in it's teaching for 2000 years? No other institution has been persecuted and attacked as much as the Catholic Church. It's had wars raged against it and governments intent on destroying it.

There's only one possible explanation. It's supernatural. Humans by themselves would not be able to maintain it's teaching. By themselves, they would have corrupt it.  It would have ceased in it's propagation and unity without Divine intervention. Even when there were unholy popes, they did not change the teaching. They didn't allow heresies to pass by. The Holy Spirit didn't allow it.

Matthew 16

And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church,  and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.

I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven.  Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."

There is no other religion or institution that compares or has been subjected to the trials that the Catholic Church has endured. It grew and remained constant in it's teaching in spite of persecution, blood shed, ridicule and corruption. The popes didn't preserve it. The clergy and religious and lay people didn't preserve it. Only God has preserved it. He promised that the gates of Hell would not prevail. It's truly one of those miracles that goes under the radar. I never really considered it and took it for granted and when my faith was tested I overlooked this miracle of the Catholic Church. The gates of Hell shall not prevail.