That depends on how Catholic you are. For someone who really believes, the infallibility of the pope makes him so close to Jesus as to mean no real difference barring divinity.

The Pope is a good religious figure, set up with all good intentions. It can go awry at times, though.

How do you come to that conclusion?

Both Protestantism and Catholicism are religious systems.

Let's start by examining those.

One of the most obvious differences between Catholicism and Protestantism is our beginnings....the Catholic faith and Church are both established by Christ who gave her His authority and sent her on her mission to make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe ALL that He had commanded and that He would be with her until the end of the world. After being filled with the Holy Spirit on the First Pentecost Day in 33AD, the Church, went out to all nations (read Acts)..and has been fulfilling her Divine mission ever since.

Everything that is peculiar to Protestantism started 16 centuries later. There is no such thing as the Protestant faith...yet their are hundreds of varieties each containing some true things mixed up with it own particular errors depending upon the founder.

As a religious system, I believe all Protestant sects are on the wrong path. I call Protestantism "Easy-Street" religion. After 16 centuries of practicing one faith, one baptism, one body throughout Christendom, the Reformers developed a new startling plan for salvation: there is only one requirement...believing that God has already pardoned all our sins...one who believes is a "believer"...he believes in Christ and is therefore "saved"...saved by his confidence. This Luther labeled "faith" and called his new system of salvation by "faith alone", Sola Fides.

Protestantism disobeys Christ. To bring about his new system of "faith alone", Luther came up with the other pillar of Protestantism, Sola Scripura. In general, it says that Scripture alone, the Holy Bible alone, is the only sufficient guide to salvation, although Scripture itself says that it is not. Belief in Sola Scriptura has resulted in the denial of the Church as well as the teaching authority in faith and morals of the Church both established by Christ....Protestantism has no Holy Mass, doesn't believe in Confession (Penance), Holy Orders, that Baptsim is necessary for salvation, and rejects Purgatory; and some the Blessed Trinity. It's advocates are all over the place in belief in the four last things, death, judgment, heaven, and hell. I could go on. The point is if you give me any doctrine taught by one Protestant Church, I'll produce another Protestant Church that denies it, save perhaps that there is a one true God and the Virgin Birth.

Some may say that Protestantism is not a protest against Christ, but against the Catholic Church, but that doesn't hold water. Christ promised that His Church would not fail..the Protestant Reformers said that it did. Instead of rightfully protesting agasint the bad lives of some Catholics, including priests, they went too far and revolted against the Chruch as such, asserting that Christ had failed to keep His promise concerning it. This was a revolt against Christ who had promised to be with His Church until the end of the world. Protest as much as you like against individuals abuses in the Church (and I do that plenty), but no one has the right to set up a new Church.