The Church Christ established is "built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone" Eph 2:20. Christ gave the keys to the apostles--men chosen by God to lead and govern the Church on earth. Without leadership Christianity would have gone from Jewish cult to misguided social club in short order. Without the Apostles and their successors, the difficult questions about doctrine and praxis could not have been answered authoritatively. Does Rome "rule the Church"? Not in the same sense as Christ rules the Church, but Rome does govern the largest body of Christians in the world, as the Eastern patriarchates govern their autocephalous churches.

The Church Catholic (not specifically the Roman Catholic Church) is found where the faith once delivered to the saints is taught and practiced by the faithful, that faith "which has been believed everywhere, always and by all. That is truly and properly 'Catholic.'"

Protestantism rejected much of the faith, neglected it, while Rome has added to it in some instances; but Rome still holds and safeguards the Catholic faith that was rejected by the continental reformers, and modern Evangelical groups are even further removed from the Reformed traditions of Luther and Calvin.

A disclaimer: I am not Roman Catholic or Eastern Orthodox. I am a traditional Anglican (i.e. Catholic without Roman additions or Protestant subtractions) with Orthodox (Western Rite) sympathies. Also, this post may not make much sense because I am feeling a bit floopy.