Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Bill Clinton Scandal - SANITY CHECK -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Neocon who wrote (62056)	11/3/1999 12:17:00 PM
From: DMaA	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 67261

Speaking of purgatory and the topic of redemption, a rather important step in healing the 500 year old rift in the body of Christ recently occurred. WSJ took notice of it this morning: By Grace Alone Exactly 482 years after Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the church door in Wittenberg, leaders of the Lutheran and Roman Catholic churches met in Augsburg on Sunday to settle the dispute that formed the core of their schism and that led to the Protestant Reformation and the Thirty Years War. At issue was the concept of "justification"--whether, as Lutherans (and most Protestants) believe, man finds salvation in faith alone, or, as Catholics have long emphasized, a life of good works is an integral part of the path. The doctrine of "works," Luther charged, had the effect of convincing bad people, abetted by the Catholic Church's then practice of selling indulgences, that they could buy their way into heaven. The Catholic Church put an end to indulgences in 1562 at the Council of Trent. But the dispute over justification, and the Catholic Church's official condemnation of Lutheran teaching, persisted until Sunday. The joint declaration issued by the two churches was the product of 30 years of work at doctrinal reconciliation. It effectively concedes the theological debate to Luther: "By grace alone, in faith in Christ's saving work and not because of any merit on our part, we are accepted by God and receive the Holy spirit." But it finds that Catholics have a point too, saying the Holy Spirit "renews our hearts while equipping and calling us to good works." This isn't just another ecumenical fudge. The Catholic Church, notwithstanding the American wing's willingness to let worshipers attend Sunday Mass in T-shirts and jogging suits, is hardly an institution that sways easily with the times. Pope John Paul II has braved much criticism, especially from his own ranks, in holding steadfast to such unfashionable ideas as the sanctity of unborn human life and the church's authority over its own flock. He was among the first to greet Sunday's declaration, saying it marked a "milestone along a difficult path full of joy, union and communion among Christians." Indeed, it is well known that this Pope considers bringing the Christian peoples of the world closer together to be among his special vocations. Unfortunately, ecumenism has acquired a bad name of late. It is easy to minimize the efforts of increasingly secularized churches--especially mainline American Protestant denominations--to find common ground. After all, when you no longer have core principles to betray, there isn't actually much to be ecumenical about. And as much as such churches actually do manage to unite behind substantive goals, they too often seem to be controversial political agendas, almost totally unrelated to the core of what it means to be a Christian. The Anglican Church has even taken to using the image of Che Guevara in an attempt to reach out to the masses. The effect of all this is to dissuade serious people, who might form the core of thriving religious institutions, from ever showing up at church in the first place. But regardless of the tactics of some within the ecumenical movement, there is no question that Christ did not intend his followers to be torn by bitter disagreements and rivalries. The Lutheran-Catholic joint declaration hardly paves the way for an immediate reunification of the churches. The world's nearly one billion Catholics and 61 million Lutherans still disagree over such issues as the papacy and the nature of the Eucharist[My comment: actually, Lutherans, unique among protestants, already agree with the Catholics on this one ]. But the joint declaration nevertheless may be one of the most important ecumenical moments of our century. When two churches say they can finally see eye to eye on a dispute that shaped the history of Europe for nearly half the millennium, it's a big deal. And in an age when some churches feel compelled to market themselves with trendy irrelevancies, it's nice to see that others still care about the central tenet of Christian teaching: that sinners can be saved.