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0 " ~~ o\~..~I ~~ /I.L4,/)/L~~~ ~e.-, ~~Essay 1: topic 3 . "- .Alex Sheppard . ft- L t- JJ\A-' .::tt-\L -:;ti:t~~For almost five hundred years, the debate has raged among Christians over thenature of spiritual salvation. Ever since Martin Luther made his stand that salvation/ comes only from faith, and that human works cannot restore the relationship to Godshattered by sin, and the Catholic church re-emphasized its stance that salvation is/ through faith alive in works, and that works can bring us closer to God, the controversyiJ9' j has shattered the once unified body of believers. While it is true that the differences~ &:\./ (between the two stances are substantial, I maintain that Luther's stance is not nearly so~ ,~different from that of the Council of Trent as many believe.#owever I also hope to show¥ ~ that where the two positions differ the Catholic position is the closer position'to scripture.First the definition of justification and the effect it has on the relationship between Godand man, second on the state of those who have been justified and the nature of theirworks, and fmany the nature of faith itself. While it is certainly not possible tocompletely overthrow a point of view that has existed and thrived for five centuries, I dohope to cast some doubt on its correctness. ~-t L C,r"\.LfL- ~-Probably most central to the whole dispute is the different view Protestants andCatholics take on the definition of Justification. Two parties can certainly not beexpected to agree on the nature of something if they can not agree on its definition. TheCouncil of Trent states that "Justification of the impious is indicated, -as being atranslation from that state wherein man is born a child of the first Adam, to the state of-grace" (32 Trent, ses. 6, ch. 4) and also "... by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, which--is conferred in baptism, the guiJ--c;r original sin is remitted.. . the whole of that which has.:1-~e true and proper nature of sin is '" taken away" (23 Trent ses. 5 par. 5). This differs~~ ~ from Luther's position that even after baptism man is still inherently corrupt and~ unpleasing to God, but God chooses to overlook our shortcomings provided we have faith(49 Bainton). The sin is still within us, but God will overlook it for the sake of Christ'sVpassion.oJ-!" "}VV-l( ~ /r r Both sides have some scriptural support. Luther's position can be found inRomans 7:15-12, in which Paul recounts a story of how he was conscious of a conflictwithin himself that kept him from doing the good things he wanted to do, and forced him./to do the bad things (sin) he wanted to avoid. This indicates that he was in fact enslavedto sin and incapable of doing what was truly good and pleasing to God. In fact, when hewould try to do good, evil comes up immediately and is done instead. Also in Romans3: 1 0 where Paul quotes a passage from Psalm 14 stating that no one is just. On theCatholic side is Romans 6:4, which states that in baptism we were died to sin with Christ,..;and by his resurrection we rose to new life, free from sin. He continues to state that weare no longer slaves to sin, and that sin is to have no more power over us. This clearlysupports the Catholic doctrine. The scripture passages for the Lutheran position are muchless applicable though - in both cases he was talking about people prior to justification.He talked about himself in the past tense, before he was converted. When quoting thePsalm, he was also talking about people who have not yet converted. The Council ofTrent agrees that prior to justification man is a slave to sin, but maintains that afterwardsman becomes free and may please God: "...none of those things which precede,justification - whether faith or works - merit the grace itself of justification" (36 Trentses. 6 Ch. 8).Based on these differing views of justification it is not surprising that the twosides have differing views on the nature and role of works after justification. The-I' Council of Trent holds that after Justification good works do have merit that increases theaspect of God's justice within the believer: "If anyone saith, that the justice received isnot preserved and also increased before God through good works; but that said works aremerely the fruits and signs of Justification obtained, but not a cause of the increase (thereof; let him be anathema" (47 Trent Canon XXIV). Also, the Council maintainedthat even if the works were done with an eye towards eternal rewards or avoiding eternalpunishments they are still good. "If anyone saith, that the just ought not to, for their goodworks done in God, to expect and hope for eternal recompense from God, through Hismercy and the merit of Jesus Christ...let him be anathema" (47 Trent Cannon XXVI).This differs from the Lutheran position that to expect a reward for your actions is sinful~. because it is boastful and impinges upon God's sovereignty by attempting to force God todo something, and impinges on the merit of Christ's passion because it provides aseparate offering from Christ's offering for merit.Again both sides have scripture to back them up. The Lutherans use Romans4:27, in which Paul says that there is no room for boasting, especially by works. Theyalso point to the numerous and consistent passages which state that it is the merit ofChrist's suffering that paid our debt to sin, and that therefore our works can have no.~~I~II~C" ', merit. The Catholic position is supported by Romans 2:5-10, in which Paul states thateveryone will be rewarded according to his works, with "eternal life to those who seekI glory, honor, and immortality through perseverance in good works" (Rom 2:7), by 2C"';;. Corinthians 5: 1 0, in which he states that all will "receive recompense, according to whathe did in the body, whether good or evil", and numerous examples from the teachings ofChrist in the Gospel, including a passage familiar to Luther in which Christ is portrayed~ separating people according to their actions: people who have visited the sick and,"~-I I imprisoned, clothed the naked, fed the hungry, and gave drink to the thirsty on one sideand those who did not on the other. .~ +- '2...~ .Regarding thoughts to reward, there is little scriptural evidence for the Protestantside that also contradicts the Catholic side. Romans 4:27 indicates that it is wrong to bo~of your


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Sac State HIST 127 - Study Notes

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