Isn't Catholicism depressing because there is no free salvation in Christ?

Question

The Catholic religion states that you have to do enough good works to get yourself to heaven, and there is no guarantee of your salvation, so.... how many works are enough? God says in Romans 10:9, "if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." There is no place in the Bible that states that we have to do good works to aid in our salvation. According to the Bible, all we have to believe is that Jesus is our only Savior, because HIS death and resurrection alone paid for our sins.

Yes, we can do whatever we want. It's not encouraged b/c the Holy Spirit occupies the heart of a Christian and enables them to do good works, but there is no mention of good works aiding in salvation. The only unforgivable sin is rejection of the Holy Spirit (which = rejecting the Father or the Son). Like others have stated, God is the only judge of our salvation, but why don't we look at HIS OWN WORD in it's entirety which is the Bible? For all you Catholics, I'm just curious, who was the first pope?

Yes, Roman Catholic... everyone, please read my point -- "Salvation in Christ alone". I'm talking about salvation here, not just the relationship between faith and works, so don't keep posting the same stuff from James b/c that's not what I'm talking about.

Answer 1

I agree with you wholeheartedly. I have always wondered how Catholics can say that they believe in Christ and yet they do not believe that he finished his work of redeeming us on the cross. I doesn't make sense.
We are saved by grace alone. Recall that in Acts 16:31 the jailer asked Paul and Silas how to be saved. They responded, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved." The jailer believed and immediately became saved.
Close to 200 times in the New Testament salvation is said to be by faith alone - with no works in sight. Consider the following:
John 3:15 tells us that "everyone who believes in him may have eternal life."
John 5:24 says, "I tell you the truth, whoever hears my words and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life."
In John 11:25 Jesus says, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies."
John 23:46 says, "I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness."
John 20:31 says, "But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name."
If salvation were not by faith alone, then Jesus' message in the Gospel of John - manifest in the above quotations - would be deceptive, stating that there is one condition for salvation when there are allegedly two - faith and works.
I must emphasize that we are saved by faith for for works. Works are not the condition of our salvation, but a consequence of it We are saved not by works, but by the kind of faith that produces works.

Eph 2:8-10 God saved you by his special favor when you believed. And you can't take credit for this: It is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

Answer 2

I think you misunderstand Catholicism. Our Catholic brothers and sisters definately DO NOT believe in "earning" salvation. Like the Protestants, they believe that humans are saved by God's grace, as a gift freely given, and needing to be freely recieved.

Once recieved, however, that gift comes with certain responsibilities. It is the "working out" of that gift, salvation, that has some people confused about Catholicism. Catholics believe that people claiming to belong to Jesus Christ should, "ahem", ACT LIKE IT, by doing Godly-type things for other people.

I have actually heard some Protestants claim that since God's salvation cannot be earned--it is a gift--then there is nothing they can do to lose it--including sinning their brains out. This is pure nonsense, and an idea that Catholics oppose. "Show me your faith by what you do," would probably be a good scripture reference here. Remember also the parable of the talents: what happened to the people that put their master's gift to work, and what happened to the guy that buried it?

Think about it.

BTW, I'm Protestant.

Answer 3

James states that "faith without works is dead".
How do you think one can have saving faith and not do works. Salvation may not be "by works", but an individual without works is quite unlikely to have saving faith.

Of course, the Catholic church recognizes that the thief beside Christ did no works after salvation, but those who are saved are not called to a life of leisure. The works aren't what get you saved, even the Catholic Church teaches that. The point is that there are many who might think themselves saved, but again, as James stated... faith without works is dead. Christ said "Do you love me? Feed my sheep".

I don't believe in a Salvation through a prayer and then sloth.

Answer 4

I am glad I converted to Catholicism.

I am always seeking knowledge.

I found this info online as 'additional readings" :


Protestants being thus impious enough to make liars of Jesus Christ, of the Holy Ghost, and of the Apostles, need we wonder if they continually slander Catholics, telling and believing worse absurdities about them than the heathens did? What is more absurd than to preach that Catholics worship stocks and stones for gods; set up pictures of Jesus Christ, of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and other saints, to pray to them, and put their confidence in them; that they adore a god of bread and wine; that their sins are forgiven by the priest, without repentance and amendment of life; that the pope or any other person can give leave to commit sin, or that for a sum of money the forgiveness of sins can be obtained ? To these and similar absurdities and slanders, we simply answer: "Cursed is he who believes in such absurdities and falsehoods, with which Protestants impiously charge the children of the Catholic Church. All those grievous transgressions are another source of their reprobation."

"But what faith can we learn from these false teachers when, in consequence of separating from the Church, they have no rule of faith? ... How often Calvin changed his opinions! And, during his life, Luther was constantly contradicting himself: on the single article of the Eucharist, he fell into thirty-three contradictions! A single contradiction is enough to show that they did not have the Spirit of God. "He cannot deny Himself" (II Timothy 2:13). In a word, take away the authority of the Church, and neither Divine Revelation nor natural reason itself is of any use, for each of them may be interpreted by every individual according to his own caprice ... Do they not see that from this accursed liberty of conscience has arisen the immense variety of heretical and atheistic sects? ... I repeat: if you take away obedience to the Church, there is no error which will not be embraced.

Source(s):

Additional Reading
Against the Reformers

St Alphonsus Mary De Liguori (1696-1787)Bishop and Doctor of the Church

Douay-Rheims Catholic Bible online

Answer 5

James 2:14-23
2:14 Of what benefit is it, my brothers, if a certain one says he has faith but he does not have works? That faith cannot save him, can it? 15 If a brother or a sister is in a naked state and lacking the food sufficient for the day, 16 yet a certain one of YOU says to them: “Go in peace, keep warm and well fed,” but YOU do not give them the necessities for [their] body, of what benefit is it? 17 Thus, too, faith, if it does not have works, is dead in itself.

18 Nevertheless, a certain one will say: “You have faith, and I have works. Show me your faith apart from the works, and I shall show you my faith by my works.” 19 You believe there is one God, do you? You are doing quite well. And yet the demons believe and shudder. 20 But do you care to know, O empty man, that faith apart from works is inactive? 21 Was not Abraham our father declared righteous by works after he had offered up Isaac his son upon the altar? 22 You behold that [his] faith worked along with his works and by [his] works [his] faith was perfected, 23 and the scripture was fulfilled which says: “Abraham put faith in Jehovah, and it was counted to him as righteousness,” and he came to be called “Jehovah’s friend.”

Answer 6

Let me guess, you are Baptist. Where did you find this peace of Canon law that says Catholics can only go to heaven with good works? Anyway, why not? Did you know that Catholics use the same bible you do?
So if we believe in Jesus we go to heaven, no matter what wrongs we do? Think about that for a minute and tell me you really believe it not that it is just convenient for your lifestyle.

Answer 7

By "Catholicism" do you only mean "Roman Catholic"?

There is also Anglican Catholic, Greek Orthodox , Syrian Catholic, Coptic etc.,

Certainly we have salvation in Christ!

Answer 8

I may not be a Catholic, and I am sure looking forward to the day when we all get to heaven. I believe that God leads us to the church where we will best serve Him. Even John had trouble with different Christians.
Luke 9:
49 And John answered and said, Master, we saw one casting out devils in thy name; and we forbade him, because he followeth not with us.

50 And Jesus said unto him, Forbid him not: for he that is not against us is for us.

Answer 9

Isn't it depressing when people ask questions just to put down other religions?

And, while works will not earn your salvation, the Bible DOES say that faith without works is dead.

Answer 10

Catholicism is a beautiful denomination. I've tried about 6 different denominations and I always go back to the Catholic Church.