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ROMAN
CATHOLICISM |
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What Does the
Roman Catholic Church Teach About the Doctrine of Justification? --
Part Four
by Dr. John
Ankerberg and Dr. John Weldon |
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The information we have seen so far
leads us to the conclusion that the Council of Trent establishes one of
the most subtle forms of justification by works ever devised. This
subtlety may explain why some Catholics actively encourage Protestants
to read the decrees of Trent—to "prove" that Catholicism does not teach
a form of salvation by works. But if Catholics think that Trent teaches
what the Reformation taught on justification, they aren’t reading very
carefully. We do indeed think that every Protestant should read these
decrees carefully and then determine whether or not the gospel of
grace has been rejected. In fact, because Roman
Catholic teaching denies that justification is the past and completed
declaration of God the Judge by which He pronounces a sinner righteous,
it thoroughly undermines a believer’s certainty of salvation. If "to
justify" means to make a person righteous, a person is left to
his own subjective condition as the basis of his acceptance before God.
This explains why Catholic justification fluctuates in the life of a
believer. It is not a completed act of God. Rather, it is based
on the grace-empowered works of sinful people for its maintenance. Thus,
it can hardly provide any sense of security of salvation.
Since the Catholic Church teaches that justification
can be lost by mortal sin, a person can only know he retains
his justification if he is certain he has not committed mortal sin. But
in Catholic teaching, such knowledge is problematic. Mortal sin is not
always clearly defined 26
and so certain knowledge of
having committed such a sin is not possible. Here is what Keating says:
Mortal sin is much more prevalent than we suspect,... For a sin to
be mortal three requirements must be met. First, it must involve a
serious matter. Second, there must be sufficient reflection on its
seriousness. And third, there must be full consent in the committing
of it. What is a serious matter? Many sins listed in the Ten
Commandments or contrary to Scripture or the moral teachings of the
Church could qualify: murder, envy, abortion, artificial birth
control, thievery, adultery, sodomy, fornication—to list only some of
the serious sins...." 27
But to die in a state of mortal sin is to go straight
to hell:
What is the difference between mortal and venial sins? Mortal sins
are the sins of great offense that can send the soul directly to hell.
If you die in a state of unconfessed mortal sin, according to Roman
Catholic theology, you go immediately to hell, since you have not
confessed that sin, received absolution, or said an act of contrition
prior to your death.... According to the Roman Catholic doctrine, you
must assume that one has passed from spiritual death to life and back
again to death if one commits a mortal sin. Even if you admit (as
Catholics will not) that you can be "saved" right now, they maintain
that should you commit sin, you could be lost; that is, if you died in
a state of mortal sin. 28
This is why Roman Catholicism teaches that it is not possible for a
person’s faith to give confidence that one’s sins are forgiven. "As far
as the content of justifying faith is concerned, the so-called fiducial
faith [the faith, as personal trust in Christ, that gives confidence
once sins are forgiven] does not suffice." 29
In essence, all this is why Catholic theological texts continue to
cite Trent as authoritative and continue to reject the biblical teaching
on justification by faith alone. Therefore, to say agreement now exists
between Lutherans or Evangelicals on the one hand and Catholics on the
other is premature, to say the least. Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma
asserts, "It would be incompatible with the veracity and the
sanctity of God that he should declare the sinner to be justified, if he
remains in reality sinful." 30
But again, this is the very essence of what the Bible teaches: it
is the sinner himself (the one who remains sinful—1 John 1:8-10)—who
is declared righteous (Romans 5:6-11).
Perhaps nothing reveals the strong emphasis upon works
salvation in the Catholic concept of justification more clearly than an
examination of the order of salvation itself:
1. Baptism and Regeneration—In
Roman Catholicism, the first step in salvation is baptism which forgives
original sin and produces regeneration. Baptism makes it possible for a
person to cooperate with God’s saving grace which is why it is
considered essential to salvation. It does not automatically save, but
it makes salvation possible because of regeneration. This enables a
person to have faith which he may then exercise in good works. In
effect, he begins the process of justification.
2. Justification—After
becoming truly righteous, the person is declared righteous or
"justified" by God as long as he does not forsake his
justification through mortal sin. In other words, Catholic theology
teaches that there are many people who are spiritually reborn who
are not justified.
3. The Sacraments—However,
because justification can be lost through the commission of mortal sin,
the sacrament of penance is instituted by which a person may regain
justification. (Again, mortal sins are so evil that they are believed to
destroy the sanctifying grace that is present in the soul of the
individual Catholic. In essence, they destroy salvation and require
penance so that one may be "rejustified.") It is almost as if the person
is regenerated a second time, but it is perhaps more accurate to say
this involves a second justification.
31
Thus, it is not incorrect to say that justification is
a lifelong process that occurs primarily by means of the
individual Catholic participating in the sacraments and performance of
good works:
Infused into the very essence of the soul, sanctifying grace is a
certain supernatural quality granted by God, without which we are not
sanctified or assured justification and salvation…. Sanctifying grace
is lost through mortal sin; it is increased through good acts done for
and through God, and particularly through the reception of the
sacraments. 32
Thus, in addition to penance, other sacraments help
retain justification/salvation in the life of the believer—and these
clearly constitute works of individual merit.
What all this means is that in the end, salvation is a
function of God’s grace, individual faith and works, and the Roman
Catholic system of sacraments. This is why the Church has traditionally
taught that there is only one true Church—Rome—and that those outside of
the Church cannot be saved.
In conclusion, the Roman Catholic Church has always
taught and continues to teach that the biblical doctrine of
justification is false. Although it maintains that it defends the
biblical teaching on justification, a study of biblical teaching itself
refutes this assertion.
Of course, this is not to say that Protestantism has
no problems at this point. Liberal Protestantism also rejects the
forensic nature of justification by faith. And even some Evangelicals
are no longer such staunch supporters of this teaching.
One of the great modern popular defenders of the
doctrine of justification by faith alone is theologian James I. Packer.
In such works as God’s Words, The Evangelical Dictionary of Theology,
and Evangelical Affirmations he has consistently upheld
biblical teaching. In the latter book, Packer discusses the importance
of the doctrine of justification, noting that even Evangelicals have
recently been amiss in defending this cardinal truth.
Conservative Evangelicalism has in recent years tended to stop
short at proclaiming present forgiveness of sins and a personal
relationship with Jesus, as modern Roman Catholicism also does, and to
neglect the larger implications about the believer’s relationship with
God that the doctrine of justification carries. Recently the
Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission was given the topic
of justification by faith to explore; they... came up with a report...
in which the key issues of the Reformation debate, namely the formal
cause of justification and the content of Christian assurance, were
ignored entirely; and few noticed the omission. 33
Packer proceeds to note that current theological speculation over
universalism by some Evangelicals would virtually destroy the doctrine
of justification by faith as the Reformers understood it and thus, "I
make no apology for arguing polemically against them." 34
We agree. No apology whatever should be made for
arguing against those who undermine the biblical teaching on
justification.
NOTES:
26. Robert C. Broderick, ed., The Catholic
Encyclopedia, revised and updated (NY: Thomas Nelson Publishers,
1987), p. 402.
27. Karl Keating, What Catholics Really
Believe—Setting the Record Straight (Ann Arbor, MI: Servant,
1992), pp. 66-67.
28. Walter Martin, The Roman Catholic Church in
History (Livingston, NJ: Christian Research Institute, Inc.,
1960), pp. 64-65.
29. Ibid., p. 253.
30. Ludwig Ott, Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma
(Rockford, IL: Tan Books and Publishers, 1974), p. 251.
31. R. C. Sproul, "The Sacraments of Rome," trans.
of tape, nd., npp., pp. 2, 9-10.
32. Broderick, ed., pp. 541.
33. J. I. Packer, "Evangelicals and the Way of
Salvation" in Kenneth S. Kantzer and Carl F. H. Henry, Evangelical
Affirmations (Grand Rapids, MI: Academic Books, 1990), pp.
126-127.
34. Ibid., p. 127.
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ANKERBERG SHOW |
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DR. JOHN ANKERBERG'S RESPONSE TO CREATION QUESTIONS
Dr. John Ankerberg answers your
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Does Scientific Evidence Today Show
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Copyright 2006, Ankerberg Theological Research Institute
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