Catholics believe that the Pope is Christ's representative here on Earth, sort of a stand-in for the almighty. This gives a hierarchal power structure and a sort of chain of command. The Catholic believer should approach his Church, who will then instruct him on the matters at hand. In early times, most people could not read or write, so Church scholars were really the only ones qualified to interpret scripture and so this structure made sense. Whether it does today is a matter of personal opinion.