The Catholic Abandonment of Apostolic Succession.

Ayn Rand once famously paraphrased the works of Kant saying ""If the truth shall kill them, let them die" This quote is from Rand, not Kant- but it highlights the way that people attribute them as if Kant had spoken them himself. Kant didn't say the words. Kant never met Rand. They lived 100 years apart, yet the misattribution persists. What does that have to do with anything? Well, nearly any conversation with a Catholic apologist will result in them claiming authority and superiority of the Catholic church in stating that they learned them directly from the Apostles themselves in Apostolic succession. Like the Rand quote being misattributed or a characterisation of what Kant said- it is not accurate to say that the Catholic church has kept the traditions of the Apostles without deviation and many of the claims of apostolic succession are indeed fabrications without authenticity. 
 

 "Many of those who say that they confess Jesus, and are called Christians, eat meats offered to idols, and declare that they are by no means injured in consequence. Confessing themselves to be Christians, and admitting the crucified Jesus to be both Lord and Christ, yet not teaching His doctrines, but those of the spirits of error. ...[They are those who] teach to blaspheme the Maker of all things, and Christ, who was foretold by Him as coming, and the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, with whom we have nothing in common, since we know them to be atheists, impious, unrighteous, and sinful, and confessors of Jesus in name only, instead of worshipers of Him. Yet they style themselves Christians, just as certain among the Gentiles inscribe the name of God upon the works of their own hands, and partake in nefarious and impious rites. Some are called Marcians, and some Valentinians, and some Basilidians, and some Saturnilians, and others by other names; each called after the originator of the individual opinion...the name of the father of the particular doctrine"- Justin Martyr Dialogue with Trypho (Chapters 31-47)

• Marcians- Marcion of Sinope considered himself a follower of Paul the Apostle, whom he believed to have been the only true apostle of Jesus Christ; his doctrine is called Marcionism. Marcion of Syracuse was the first bishop of Syracuse; a disciple of the apostle Peter. He is considered the first bishop of the West Martyred bishop of Syracuse, Italy, called "the First Bishop of the West. Marcion is traditionally believed to have been sent to Syracuse, in Sicily by St. Peter, but documentation places him in the third century. The Jews of Syacuse threw Marcion from a tower. 
• Valentinians -Clement of Alexandria reports that Valentinus was taught by Theudas, a disciple of the apostle Paul
• Basilidians, -A gnostic sect founded by Basilides of Alexandria in the 2nd century. Basilides Claimed to have been taught his doctrines by Glaucus, a disciple of St. Peter
• Saturnilians- Saturninus of Antioch was an early Syrian Gnostic Christian from the 1st centry Simonian school who learned under Simon Magnus and established a school in Antioch.

Why we should heed the warning of Justin Martyr:
For starters, they confirm the words of Paul. 

Acts 20:28-30

28 Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. 29 I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; 30 and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them.

Lets break down the details of some of these men who claim Apostolic succession while in actuality are seeking to draw disciples away from the truth, not sparing the flock, and speaking perverse things. 

Acts 8:9-13
9 Now there was a man named Simon, who formerly was practicing magic in the city and astonishing the people of Samaria, claiming to be someone great; 10 and they all, from smallest to greatest, were giving attention to him, saying, “This man is what is called the Great Power of God.” 11 And they were giving him attention because he had for a long time astonished them with his magic arts. 12 But when they believed Philip preaching the good news about the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were being baptized, men and women alike. 13 Even Simon himself believed; and after being baptized, he continued on with Philip, and as he observed signs and great miracles taking place, he was constantly amazed.

This Simon Magnus that taught magic arts became a believer at the time of the apostles. 

18 Now when Simon saw that the Spirit was bestowed through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money, 19 saying, “Give this authority to me as well, so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.” 20 But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money! 21 You have no part or portion in this matter, for your heart is not right before God. 22 Therefore repent of this wickedness of yours, and pray the Lord that, if possible, the intention of your heart may be forgiven you. 23 For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bondage of iniquity.” 24 But Simon answered and said, “Pray to the Lord for me yourselves, so that nothing of what you have said may come upon me.”

Simon Magnus the sorcerer did not remain a believer, but went on to teach the Saturnilians. Though Justin Martyr would state that Rome built this Simon a statue anyway. Simon had professed to be a believer, teaching those who professed to also be believers as Justin Martyr records- as professing faith in Christ in name only yet each inscribing the name of the Savior on the deeds of their own hands.

Just as early Christians recruited Roman pagans by associating Christmas with the Saturnalia, so too worshippers of the Asheira cult and its offshoots were recruited by the Church sanctioning “Christmas Trees”.  Pagans had long worshipped trees in the forest, or brought them into their homes and decorated them, and this observance was adopted and painted with a Christian veneer by the Church.-  Clement Miles, Christmas Customs and Traditions: Their History and Significance, New York: Dover Publications, 1976, pages 178, 263-271.

Deuteronomy 16:21-22 “You shall not plant for yourself an Asherah of any kind of tree beside the altar of the Lord your God, which you shall make for yourself. 22 You shall not set up for yourself a sacred pillar which the Lord your God hates.   

 
The Marcions either followed the one Marcion that Martyr warns against as a warning of Marcion of Sinope- who claimed to be a follower of Paul and learned directly from him but effectually an atheist by his fruit which disqualifies Sinope as an eyewitness to his impiety... or The Catholic Church claims to have followed in succession Marcion of syracuse which is unlikely to have learned directly from Peter having lived centuries after Peter and a hundred years after Martyr. That is a continuity problem. 

Valentinus was trained in Hellenistic science in Alexandria. Like many other heretical teachers he went to Rome the better, perhaps to disseminate his views. He arrived there during the pontificate of Hyginus and remained until the pontificate of Anicetus. During a sojourn of perhaps fifteen years, though he had in the beginning allied himself with the orthodox community in Rome, he was guilty of attempting to establish his heretical system. His errors led to his excommunication, after which he repaired to Cyprus where he resumed his activities as a teacher and where he died probably about 160 or 161. Valentinus professed to have derived his ideas from Theodas or Theudas, a disciple of St. Paul, but his system is obviously an attempt to amalgamate Greek and Oriental speculations of the most fantastic kind with Christian ideas.

Within one century we have examples of those men who are teaching heresy as if it were established traditions from the Apostles themselves within the Catholic church. He continued to teach these heretical traditions even after removal- but the fact that he was in the Roman church making the false claims and attributing them to Paul in the first place is not an uncommon practice that Paul warned against when the Apostles stated 

Galatians 1:6-17

I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; 7 which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! 9 As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!10 For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ.

Basilides invented prophets for himself named Barcabbas and Barcoph, and claimed to have received verbal instructions from St. Matthias the Apostle and to be a disciple of Glaucias, a disciple of St. Peter. - https://www.bible.ca/trinity/trinity-sects-basilides.htm

Basilides claimed that they received instruction directly from the apostles Matthew and Peter, and yet they deny the crucifixion of Christ 

Referred to by Abdullah Yusuf Ali (Muslim) as "The Basilidans" as proof that early Christian sects believed someone else died in Jesus' place. For Muslims like Ali to call the Basilides a "Christian sect" is as intellectually dishonest as Christians calling the "Bahai faith" a Muslim sect.-

"It was not, however, Christ who suffered, but rather Simon of Cyrene, who was constrained to carry the cross for him, and mistakenly crucified in Christ's stead. Simon having received Jesus' form, Jesus assumed Simon's and thus stood by and laughed at them. Simon was crucified and Jesus returned to His Father.- Bible.ca

They deny the Deity of Christ, they deny the crucifixion, and yet as Justin Martyr records, they professed to be Christians that learned their traditions and doctrines from the apostles themselves.
They lie.

“But the plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place among whom are the Muslims: these profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind’s judge on the last day.”-

Second Vatican Council, Lumen Gentium 16, November 21, 1964

“In our prayers, we always remember the peoples of Africa. The common belief in the Almighty professed by millions calls down upon this continent the graces of his Providence and love, most of all, peace and unity among all its sons. We feel sure that as representatives of Islam, you join in our prayers to the Almighty, that he may grant all African believers the desire for pardon and reconciliation so often commended in the Gospels and in the Qur’an. -Paul VI, address to the Islamic communities of Uganda, August 1, 1969

“I deliberately address you as brothers: that is certainly what we are, because we are members of the same human family, whose efforts, whether people realize it or not, tend toward God and the truth that comes from him. But we are especially brothers in God, who created us and whom we are trying to reach, in our own ways, through faith, prayer and worship, through the keeping of his law and through submission to his designs.- John Paul II, address to representatives of Muslims of the Philippines, February 20, 1981

The catholic church is embracing Islam though they hold to the teachings of the Basilidians. It is professing brotherhood and partnership with those the Bible rejects for denial of Christ. 

Nicolas is a 1st century man that is listed among those selected by the apostles to perform ministry. He however did not remain as such. In 1 John we see this warning about such "apostles" that went out from among them

1 John 2:18-20

18 Children, it is the last hour; and just as you heard that antichrist is coming, even now many antichrists have appeared; from this we know that it is the last hour. 19 They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be shown that they all are not of us. 20 But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you all know. 

Note again that in this passage John affirms that the person who has a relationship with God has anointing. The above passage means that the traditions of men who were ONCE with them, were being taught to others in the church AS authoritative. We can see the Nicolaitans who followed the Apostolic Succession of Nicolas being rebuked by none other than the Savior Himself.     

Revelation 2:1-6 

‘I know your deeds and your toil and perseverance, and that you cannot tolerate evil men, and you put to the test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them to be false; 3 and you have perseverance and have endured for My name’s sake, and have not grown weary. 4 But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. 5 Therefore remember from where you have fallen, and repent and do the deeds you did at first; or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place—unless you repent. 6 Yet this you do have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

Christ calls out the Nicolaitans ALONG WITH the church at Ephesus and Pergamum. Those established churches and people who claim that their deeds and their order stem from men reaching back to the time of Christ- often tend to ignore the fact that Christ rebuked their deeds. 

Revelation 2: 14-16

But I have a few things against you, because you have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit acts of immorality. 15 So you also have some who in the same way hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans. 16 Therefore repent; or else I am coming to you quickly, and I will make war against them with the sword of My mouth.

The exaltation of the clergy up into the seat and position of Christ IS a Nicolaitan doctrine in defiance of Christ order that no man be called teacher or father - for Christ is the head.  

Matthew 23:3-12

 3 therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things and do not do them. 4 They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger. 5 But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments. 6 They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, 7 and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men. 8 But do not be called Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers. 9 Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. 10 Do not be called leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ. 11 But the greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.

Nicolaitanism is the subjugation of the assembly or “the laity” by a hierarchical order who lord it over the assembly as if it were their own possession. 

H.A. Ironside in his book entitled, Lectures on the Book of Revelation, gives a clear statement of the ecclesiastical evil of Nicolaitanism. In close connection with this we have the introduction of wrong principles within—the teaching of the Nicolaitanes.  Others have often pointed out that this is an untranslated Greek word meaning, “Rulers over the people.” Nicolaitanism is really clerisy—the subjugation of those who were contemptuously styled “the laity” by a hierarchical order who lorded it over them as their own possessions, forgetting that it is written, “One is your Master, even Christ, and all ye are brethren.”In the letter to Ephesus the Lord commended them for hating the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, those who, like Diotrephes, loved to have the preeminence among them.  But, in Pergamos letter, we have Nicolaitanism designated as a distinct system of teaching.  It was then that clerisy was accepted as of divine origin, and therefore something that must be bowed to. 2 (emphasis added) W.R. Newell taught that Nicolaitanism is a system where individuals rule over the assembly.Whereas, it seems probable that the name Nicolaitans, as we say elsewhere, holds its own interpretation: —laity-bossing clerisy. 3 (emphasis added) We would in this way find “Nicolaitan” derived from nikao, to conquer; and laos, people; and the meaning, rulers of the laity, indicating that dire clerisy which very early sprang up. 4The well-known Scofield Bible has this note which further confirms the ecclesiastical evil denoted by Nicolaitanism.From nikao, “to conquer,” and laos, “the people,” or “laity.”  There is no ancient authority for a sect of the Nicolaitanes.  If the word is symbolic it refers to the earliest form of the notion of a priestly order, or “clergy,” which later divided an equal brotherhood (Mt. 23. 8), into “priests” and “laity.”  What in Ephesus was “deeds” (2.6) had become in Pergamos a “doctrine” (Revelation 2.15).

The Headship of Christ over the assembly is practically denied, and the superintendence of the Spirit of God is set aside.  The authority of Christ in the midst of His assembly is ignored.  The leading of the Spirit of God in the assembly is called rebellion and schismatic activity by those who follow in the error of Nicolaitanism.In the very long treatise on heresies, a treatise of 252 pages of small type, Irenaeus wrote very little on the Nicolaitanes.  His meager discussion of the Nicolaitanes is as follows,3. The Nicolaitanes are the followers of that Nicolas who was one of the seven first ordained to the diaconate by the apostles.  They lead lives of unrestrained indulgence.  The character of these men is very plainly pointed out in the Apocalypse of John, [when they are represented] as teaching that it is a matter of indifference to practice adultery, and to eat things sacrificed to idols.  Wherefore the Word has also spoken of them thus:

“But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate.” 

It is Revelation 2:14 and writings of Irenaeus and others that provide evidence for the immoral nature of the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes.After the Church’s persecution during the Smyrna era, Pergamos arose, making Christianity respectable in the world.  Bishops and prelates vied for positions of power in the church.  They lorded in ease, and this resulted a low moral state.These leaders engaged in and permitted indulgence in sin. - revealing Christ life

Moreover Justin Martyr states outright that men were eating meats in defiance of scriptural mandate and claiming no injury of conscience and denying its sinful nature 

 "The sect of the Nicolaitans had its apostles' and prophets like the great church. The Apostles were the missionaries. In Ephesus the members of the church had experienced their influence and had driven them out with scorn and shame. In Thyatira a certain woman, who seems to have been particularly dangerous, is attacked as a prophetess.2 John had already given her one warning and granted her time for repentance. Now he threatens her and her followers with judgment of death if they persist in their sinful ways.3 5. This is all the information concerning the Nicolaitans which the Apocalypse of John furnishes. From the writings of the church fathers, however, we gain some further knowledge: (a) Irenaeus of Asia Minor describes them as "a branch of the movement falsely called 'gnosis"' (iii. i i. ), and regards them as forerunners of Cerinthus. This he did not learn from the Apocalypse, but from tradition. Probably he knew more about them and their teaching than he felt it necessary to tell. That they were still existing in his time is implied in i. 26. 3 (cf. also Clement of Alexandria). b) Tertullian also knew more (on the basis of tradition) than he tells. This is evident from the fact that he classes them with the satanic sect of the Cainites (de Praescr. 33.4 Cf. also Adv. Marc. i. 29; de Pudic. 19). In the epistle of Jude, also, the false teachers are described as going "in the way of Cain." c) The gnostic system of the Nicolaitans, which is referred to in the Apocalypse, in Irenaeus, and in Tertullian, is described in its main features by Hippolytus in the Syntagma.s It was a thoroughly dualistic"

 In his treatise ad Miannaeam Hippolytus says further that the Nicolaitans taught that the resurrection had already taken place in faith and baptism, and that there was no resurrection of the flesh; that they laid the greatest stress upon faith and baptism is shown by their particular type of Christianity.2 From Hippolytus' account we see that he must have had in his possession a good fund of knowledge concerning the Nicolaitans. d) Clement of Alexandria, who gives us information concerning the person of Nicolaus which does not appear elsewhere (see the exposition below), says nothing concerning the teaching of the Nicolaitans because the particular connection in which he mentions them gives no occasion to speak of their doctrine (questions of asceticism). However, he does say that these "lascivious goats" justify their wicked actions with a word of their teacher, Nicolaus: "It is proper to abuse the flesh." They no longer existed in his day. e) We have a striking statement from Victorinus of Pettau. He says that the Nicolaitans had taught "that food offered to idols might be exorcized and eaten and that anyone who might be a fornicator might obtain peace on the eighth day." This statement is very untrustworthy because it is an anachronism. Neither a lax person, nor, indeed, any sort of Christian could have made such a statement in the first century. It is suited only to the third century. The confusion may have arisen because in the third century a strict Christian may have compared with the Nicolaitans the lax Catholic party who represented this position.- The Journal of Religion 

All of these made claims of deriving their traditions directly from Apostolic succession in the same manner the Catholics make. All of these based their traditions on claims of imitations of Apostles- rather than the direction of the scriptures. Furthermore, we have  more historical accounts of the Catholic church abandoning the very deeds and customs that the Apostles obeyed and taught. 

The Catholic writer Eusebius recorded that Polycrates of Ephesus, around 195 A.D. wrote the following to the Roman Bishop Victor who, as the previous writing showed, wanted all who professed Christ to change Passover from the 14th of Nisan to Sunday:

We observe the exact day; neither adding, nor taking away. For in Asia also great lights have fallen asleep, which shall rise again on the day of the Lord’s coming, when he shall come with glory from heaven, and shall seek out all the saints. Among these are Philip, one of the twelve apostles, who fell asleep in Hierapolis; and his two aged virgin daughters, and another daughter, who lived in the Holy Spirit and now rests at Ephesus; and, moreover, John, who was both a witness and a teacher, who reclined upon the bosom of the Lord, and, being a priest, wore the sacerdotal plate. He fell asleep at Ephesus. And Polycarp in Smyrna, who was a bishop and martyr; and Thraseas, bishop and martyr from Eumenia, who fell asleep in Smyrna. Why need I mention the bishop and martyr Sagaris who fell asleep in Laodicea, or the blessed Papirius, or Melito, the Eunuch who lived altogether in the Holy Spirit, and who lies in Sardis, awaiting the episcopate from heaven, when he shall rise from the dead? All these observed the fourteenth day of the passover according to the Gospel, deviating in no respect, but following the rule of faith. And I also, Polycrates, the least of you all, do according to the tradition of my relatives, some of whom I have closely followed. For seven of my relatives were bishops; and I am the eighth. And my relatives always observed the day when the people put away the leaven. I, therefore, brethren, who have lived sixty-five years in the Lord, and have met with the brethren throughout the world, and have gone through every Holy Scripture, am not affrighted by terrifying words. For those greater than I have said ’ We ought to obey God rather than man’ (Eusebius. Church History, Book V, Chapter 24. Translated by Arthur Cushman McGiffert. Excerpted from Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series Two, Volume 1. Edited by Philip Schaff and Henry Wace. American Edition, 1890. Online Edition Copyright © 2004 by K. Knight).

Why we should agree with Polycrates over the Catholic Bishops:

Because he gives us the account of the men from scripture who obeyed what the scripture commands. He affirms that these saints are dead in sleep awaiting the resurrection of the Dead He documents that in his day all his family as part of the established order were still keeping the feast of Passover according to the scriptures in defiance of the church seeking to move away from scriptural adherence to something different. He states that Polycarp who was Martyred was a disciple of John and received instructions from the Apostle- contrary to the disagreements of these Bishops that were seeking to remove the Passover and institute Easter in its place. 

 Polycarp visited Rome to discuss differences in the practices of the churches of Anatolia and Rome. Irenaeus states that on certain issues the two speedily came to an understanding, while as to the observance of Easter, each adhered to his own custom without breaking off full communion with the other.[Polycarp followed the Eastern practice of celebrating the feast on the 14th of Nisan, the day of the Jewish Passover, regardless of the day of the week on which it fell, while Anicetus followed the Western practice of celebrating the feast on the first Sunday following the first full moon after the spring equinox.

 When the blessed Polycarp was at Rome in the time of Anicetus, and they disagreed a little about certain other things, they immediately made peace with one another, not caring to quarrel over this matter. For neither could Anicetus persuade Polycarp not to observe what he had always observed with John, the disciple of our Lord, and the other apostles with whom he associated…. Neither could Polycarp persuade Anicetus to observe it.

Polycrates records that Polycarp the Disciple of John tried to stop the alteration of keeping the Passover the way John had kept it. Polycrates fought against the Roman Bishops that sought to erase the apostolic custom the way it is recorded in scripture. Ignatius furthers the rejection of the Apostolic order with the insistence of replacement with the customs and traditions of men.  

If, therefore, those who were brought up in the ancient order of things have come to the possession of a new hope, no longer observing the Sabbath, but living in the observance of the Lord's Day, on which also our life has sprung up again by Him and by His death— whom some deny, by which mystery we have obtained faith, and therefore endure, that we may be found the disciples of Jesus Christ, our only Master— how shall we be able to live apart from Him, whose disciples the prophets themselves in the Spirit did wait for Him as their Teacher? - Ignatius of Antioch 

 For if we still live according to the Jewish law, we acknowledge that we have not received grace.- Ignatius of Antioch 

Why He's wrong: 

Ignatius of Antioch in his demands to replace and alter both the Law and appointed times of God is doing the very attributes we see in Daniel 7:25

Daniel 7:25
He will speak out against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One, and he will intend to make alterations in times and in law; and they will be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time.

Ignatius makes the claim that we are to not keep the Sabbath, the literal 4th commandment of God in the 10 commandments, and states that doing so is an abandonment of the faith. This is not however, what we see in scripture as all the Disciples still kept the Sabbath throughout the book of Acts. In fact, Paul performed sacrifices in Acts 21 for the purpose of refuting people who were saying that Paul was teaching a doctrine along the lines of what Ignatious is presenting. 

Acts 21:18-24
8 And the following day Paul went in with us to James, and all the elders were present. 19 After he had greeted them, he began to relate one by one the things which God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. 20 And when they heard it they began glorifying God; and they said to him, “You see, brother, how many thousands there are among the Jews of those who have believed, and they are all zealous for the Law; 21 and they have been told about you, that you are teaching all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children nor to walk according to the customs. 22 What, then, is to be done? They will certainly hear that you have come. 23 Therefore do this that we tell you. We have four men who are under a vow; 24 take them and purify yourself along with them, and pay their expenses so that they may shave their heads; and all will know that there is nothing to the things which they have been told about you, but that you yourself also walk orderly, keeping the Law. 

And then he does it. 

Acts 21:26
 26 Then Paul took the men, and the next day, purifying himself along with them, went into the temple giving notice of the completion of the days of purification, until the sacrifice was offered for each one of them.

Was Paul a Christian at this point? Yes. Was Paul abandoning the faith by his observance of the things of God? No. 

Acts 24:14
14 But this I admit to you, that according to the Way which they call a sect I do serve the God of our fathers, believing everything that is in accordance with the Law and that is written in the Prophets

Ignatius DISAGREES with Paul and everything written in the Law and the Prophets. Ignatius pits the grace of God against God's law instead of what Paul demonstrates in his letter to Titus, that they work together. 

Titus 2:11-14
11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, 12 instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, 13 looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, 14 who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.

Ignatius claims to be a disciple of John, but is teaching contrary to the teachings of Polycarp who claimed to be a disciple of John. Polycarp's teachings on the Passover and its observance are consistent with scripture but Ignatius' are not. Both are making the claim of apostolic succession while in direct conflict with each other- and one with the the bearings of scripture itself. Furthermore, when Christ states that He is the Lord of the Sabbath- He is not instituting a different day whereas the Sabbath itself is appointed time of God and His assertion is a claim of Deity. 

Matthew 12:8
8 For the Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”

Leviticus 23:1-3

23 The Lord spoke again to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘The Lord’s appointed times which you shall proclaim as holy convocations—My appointed times are these: 3 ‘For six days work may be done, but on the seventh day there is a sabbath of complete rest, a holy convocation. You shall not do any work; it is a sabbath to the Lord in all your dwellings.

Ergo Ignatius decree is at its core Anti-Christ and not consistent with the example OF Christ. 

Luke 4:16
16 And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and as was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and stood up to read.

to make the claim that one has the authority to alter and change God's own appointed time to another time, while claiming that it is a tradition taught by the Apostles- is STILL to ignore the clear example OF Christ.  

The Church of Rome made the following declarations in the city of Laodicea: Council of Laodicea in 363 A.D....

Canon 29: Christians must not judaize by resting on the Sabbath, but must work on that day, rather honoring the Lord's Day [Sunday]; and, if they can, resting then as Christians. But if any shall be found judaizers, let them be anathema (detestable) from Christ.

Canon 37-39: It is not lawful to receive portions sent from the feasts of Jews or heretics, nor to feast together with them. (God’s Holy Days) It is not lawful to receive unleavened bread from the Jews, nor to be partakers of their impiety.Thou shalt not keep feasts with Hebrews or heretics, nor receive festival offerings from them. Light hath no communion with darkness. Therefore no Christian should celebrate a feast with heretics or Jews, neither should he receive anything connected with these feasts such unleavened bread and the like."

Canon 49: During Lent the Bread must not be offered except on the Sabbath Day and on the Lord's Day only.

Here's why that's a problem: 

The Catholic Canon is making an official ruling that we are not to keep the Sabbath of God when God commands us which is in direct conflict with the clear instructions of Christ in Matthew 

Matthew 24:19-21
 19 But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! 20 But pray that your flight will not be in the winter, or on a Sabbath. 21 For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will.

... it is in direct conflict with the decree of the Jerusalem Council in Acts 15 for Gentiles to come hear the commands of God every week that they may grow in obedience having already received salvation by faith through grace as the Titus 2 passage above outlined. 

Acts 15
20 but that we write to them that they abstain from things contaminated by idols and from fornication and from what is strangled and from blood. 21 For Moses from ancient generations has in every city those who preach him, since he is read in the synagogues every Sabbath.”

Lets look deeper at the infusion of Roman customs into the church while rejecting the instructions of Christ and the Apostles. 

Among the topics discussed at the Council of Nicea in 325 was when it was proper to observe the feast of Christ's resurrection (Easter). Two practices were being followed. Christians in the East ended a fast to mark Jesus' crucifixion on the first night of the Jewish Passover, on the 14th day of Nisan according to the Jewish calendar. They would break their fast with a Passover meal to commemorate Jesus' Last Supper. This practice was known as Quartodecimanism from the Latin word for fourteen. Christians in Rome ended their fast on the following Sunday. At issue was whether the Resurrection should be fixed on Sunday or associated with the 14th of Nisan, which since based on a lunar calendar could fall on any day of the week. Also involved was a desire to distinguish Jewish and Christian practices. Here the Emperor Constantine decides in favor of the Roman practice.

Constantinus Augustus to the Churches. . . .
At this meeting [the Council of Nicea] the question concerning the most holy day of the Paschal celebration [of the Resurrection] was discussed, and it was resolved by the united judgment of all present, that this feast ought to be kept by all and in every place on one and the same day [Sunday]. For what can be more becoming or honorable to us than that this feast from which we date our hopes of immortality, should be observed unfailingly by all alike, according to one ascertained order and arrangement? And first of all, it appeared an unworthy thing that in the celebration of this most holy feast we should follow the practice of the Jews, who have impiously defiled their hands with enormous sin, and are, therefore, deservedly afflicted with blindness of soul. For we have it in our power, if we abandon their custom, to prolong the due observance of this ordinance to future ages, by a truer order, which we have preserved from the very day of the Passion until the present time. Let us then have nothing in common with the detestable Jewish crowd; for we have received from our Savior a different way. A course at once legitimate and honorable lies open to our most holy religion. Beloved brethren, let us with one consent adopt this course, and withdraw ourselves from all participation in their baseness. For their boast is absurd indeed, that it is not in our power without instruction from them to observe these things. . . .In brief, that I may express my meaning in as few words as possible, it has been determined by the common judgment of all, that the most holy feast of Easter should be kept on one and the same day [Sunday]. For on the one hand a discrepancy of opinion on so sacred aquestion is unbecoming, and on the other it is surely best to act on a decision which is free from strange folly and error. . . .God preserve you, beloved brethren!

 -Excerpt adapted from Jacob R. Marcus, The Jew in the Medieval World, p. 105.

Here's why Constantine is wrong:

Constantine here is telling us that there is no overlap of the Christian faith and keeping the Passover. Yet here is what Paul writes us telling us to keep the Passover. 

1 Corinthians 5:8
8 Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

It was Paul's instructions to the Gentile Corinthians to celebrate the feast where they remove the leaven. 
It was Paul's example to keep these feasts just as Polycrates in 195 did and Polycarp  was still doing before him according to the Word of God rather than men.

Acts 20:6
6 We sailed from Philippi after the days of Unleavened Bread, and came to them at Troas within five days; and there we stayed seven days.

Acts 20:16
16 For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus so that he would not have to spend time in Asia; for he was hurrying to be in Jerusalem, if possible, on the day of Pentecost.

Paul is still keeping the appointed times of God contrary to what Constantine decreed 300 years later.  

2 Thessalonians 2 
3 Let no one in any way deceive you, for it will not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, 4 who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God. 5 Do you not remember that while I was still with you, I was telling you these things? 6 And you know what restrains him now, so that in his time he will be revealed. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way. 8 Then that lawless one will be revealed whom the Lord will slay with the breath of His mouth and bring to an end by the appearance of His coming; 9 that is, the one whose coming is in accord with the activity of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders, 10 and with all the deception of wickedness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. 11 For this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false, 12 in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness.

I'm not making the case that Constantine is THE Anti-Christ but he absolutely did seat himself above everything and displayed that he had the authority to decree alterations to God's unchanging word. Those that did not love the truth were carried away with the delusions. The Sabbath, Passover, Unleavened bread- these weren't the only things that were altered away from the scripture, Christ, and the examples the Apostles taught. Constantine infused the customs of Pagan worship with the worship of Christ the same way they church did in 2 kings. 

2 Kings 17:33
They feared the Lord and served their own gods according to the custom of the nations from among whom they had been carried away into exile.

Exactly how Justin Martyr depicted. Here are more examples

"Various symbolic elements of the pagan celebration, such as the lighting of candles, evergreen decorations, and the giving of gifts, were adapted to Christian signification. Later as Christianity spread into northern Europe, the Celtic, Teutonic, and Slavic winter festivals contributed holly, mistletoe, the Christmas tree, bonfires, and similar items."The Christian Encyclopedia


"The influence of the Saturnalia upon the celebrations of Christmas and the New Year has been direct. The fact that Christmas was celebrated on the birthday of the unconquered sun (dies solis invicti nati) gave the season a solar background, connected with the kalends of January (January 1, the Roman New Year) when houses were decorated with greenery and lights, and presents were given to children and the poor. Concerning the gift candles, the Romans had a story that an old prophecy bade the earliest inhabitants of Latium send heads to Hades and phota to Saturn. The ancient Latins interpreted this to mean human sacrifices, but, according to legend, Hercules advised using lights (phos means “light” or “man” according to accent) and not human heads." Encyclopedia Britannica 

These all derive their root not from the scriptures, Not from the root of Christ- but from the paganism of Rome, endorsed by the Roman Catholic church as if it were Holy. 

 Just as early Christians recruited Roman pagans by associating Christmas with the Saturnalia, so too worshippers of the Asheira cult and its offshoots were recruited by the Church sanctioning “Christmas Trees”.  Pagans had long worshipped trees in the forest, or brought them into their homes and decorated them, and this observance was adopted and painted with a Christian veneer by the Church.-  Clement Miles, Christmas Customs and Traditions: Their History and Significance, New York: Dover Publications, 1976, pages 178, 263-271.

2 Kings 23:7
He also broke down the houses of the male cult prostitutes which were in the house of the Lord, where the women were weaving hangings for the Asherah

People take the meanings behind God's holy appointed times in Leviticus 23 and they ascribe them to different times, and different customs, of which God has said not to do, learn, or worship Him with. 

Deuteronomy 16:21-22 
“You shall not plant for yourself an Asherah of any kind of tree beside the altar of the Lord your God, which you shall make for yourself. 22 You shall not set up for yourself a sacred pillar which the Lord your God hates.  

God tells us to not set up trees or sacred pillars next to His altar. We shouldn't be engaging in what His word states are pagan customs and saying "this is a feast to the Lord"

Jeremiah 10:2-5
Thus says the Lord,“Do not learn the way of the nations,  And do not be terrified by the signs of the heavens  Although the nations are terrified by them; 3 For the customs of the peoples are delusion;  Because it is wood cut from the forest, The work of the hands of a craftsman with a cutting tool. 4 “They decorate it with silver and with gold;  They fasten it with nails and with hammers  So that it will not totter. 

 Not once anywhere in the New Testament or old do we see God instructing us to worship Him with decorated trees or wreaths, and we specifically see Him telling us that they're pagan customs of the nations. They are not the result of apostolic tradition or succession. They are from the likes of Saturnilians, and the church of Rome did not derive them from the apostles but from those whom in name only say that they're of Christ. In conclusion, The Roman Catholic church when claiming that it's traditions are found directly from the 1st century would only find themselves as the recipient of Christ rebuke of the Pharisees. 

Mark 7:9
7 The Pharisees and some of the scribes gathered around Him when they had come from Jerusalem, 2 and had seen that some of His disciples were eating their bread with impure hands, that is, unwashed. 3 (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they carefully wash their hands, thus observing the traditions of the elders; 4 and when they come from the market place, they do not eat unless they cleanse themselves; and there are many other things which they have received in order to observe, such as the washing of cups and pitchers and copper pots.) 5 The Pharisees and the scribes *asked Him, “Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat their bread with impure hands?” 6 And He said to them, “Rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written:‘This people honors Me with their lips, But their heart is far away from Me.7 ‘But in vain do they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the precepts of men.’8 Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men.” 9 He was also saying to them, “You are experts at setting aside the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition.