Historically, two doctrines more-or-less defined Protestant theology: sola fide (justification and salvation are “by faith alone”) and sola Scriptura (doctrines are established “by Scripture alone”). But do Protestants today even believe in these doctrines? A fascinating pair of Pew surveys, marking the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, decided to find out by surveying large numbers of Protestants in the U.S. and in eight different Western European countries. The results were fascinating, and we Catholics ought to be paying close attention.
Tag: sola fide
Faith Alone v. Forgiving Trespasses: How the Lord’s Prayer Contradicts the Reformation
Lines from the Lord’s Prayer, in various languages.From the Eucharist Door at the Glory Facade of the Sagrada Família in Barcelona, Spain. It’s Lent in Rome. That means it’s time for one of the great Roman traditions: station churches. Each morning, English-speaking pilgrims walk to a different church for Mass. This morning, on the way to… Continue reading Faith Alone v. Forgiving Trespasses: How the Lord’s Prayer Contradicts the Reformation
Is St. John the Key to Settling the Justification Debate?
Anonymous, The Last Supper (17th c.) Are we saved by faith and works, or by faith alone? This question is, from a traditional Protestant perspective, the single biggest issue dividing Catholics and Protestants. R.C. Sproul has pointed out the historical importance of the question: Luther made his famous comment that the doctrine of justification by… Continue reading Is St. John the Key to Settling the Justification Debate?
What Does the Book of James Say About Justification?
Perhaps no single doctrinal issue has caused more division between Catholics and Protestants than the question of justification, or how we are made righteous before God. Catholic believe that we are justified by faith, but must cultivate this faith through good works done in obedience to God (what St. Paul calls the “obedience of faith,” in… Continue reading What Does the Book of James Say About Justification?
Fr. Most and St. Paul on Justification and OSAS
Fr. William Most wrote a sharp but very insightful piece on Luther, entitled “Luther Writes Obituary of His Own Church.” What makes it worth the read is his use of Luther’s own writings, showing that Luther still clearly struggled with the question that perhaps he was wrong and the Church was right, long after he… Continue reading Fr. Most and St. Paul on Justification and OSAS
How Do We Know Which Traditions Are Apostolic?
In response to my post on the NIV’s skewed translation (namely, that the translate bad paradosis as “tradition” and good paradosis as “teachings,” even though it’s the exact same word), a blogger calling himself “The 27th Comrade” raised a number of arguments. He noted at the beginning of his second comment, “While this comment here may… Continue reading How Do We Know Which Traditions Are Apostolic?
Salvation by Faith Working in Love
Picking up where I left off yesterday, I had been talking about how Pope Benedict has argued that “Luther’s phrase, ‘faith alone’ is true, if it is not opposed to faith in charity, in love.” It’s a provocative argument from the Roman Pontiff, but one not dissimilar to Cardinal Newman’s argument that saving faith and… Continue reading Salvation by Faith Working in Love
An Interesting Sermon on Justification and Sola Fide
I think a lot of the disputes on justification are more smoke than fire — Catholics and Protestants use different terms (or worse, use the same terms, but mean different things), but seem to largely agree on the fundamentals, quite frankly. Given this context, I think it’s best if we just set the Catholic and… Continue reading An Interesting Sermon on Justification and Sola Fide
Is There Salvation Outside of the Church? And Other Questions.
Leon Suprenant was asked the following question on his blog: I have a Protestant friend who has asked me two questions. I was wondering if you could help me with them. Thanks!!! First, the conclusion of the Papal Bull “Unam Sanctam” states: “Further, we declare, say, define, and pronounce it to be altogether necessary for… Continue reading Is There Salvation Outside of the Church? And Other Questions.
St. Paul, Sola Fide, and OSAS
I. Paul on FaithPaul writes a lot on the neccesity of faith for salvation. Most famously, in Romans 3:28, he writes, “For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law.” That’s the NIV translation. The KJV translation says, “Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without… Continue reading St. Paul, Sola Fide, and OSAS