What does a Catholic take on Ephesians 2:8-9?

Answer 1

Ephesians 2:8-9 is certainly in my Bibles (I have several), and this is also what the Church teaches:

"Since it belongs to the supernatural order, grace escapes our experience and cannot be known except by faith. We cannot therefore rely on our feelings or our works to conclude that we are justified and saved." (Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 2005).

The fondness some have for the accusation that the Church "preaches a gospel of works" is misapplied; by "works" they refer mainly to the sacraments which, of course, have been either eliminated entirely or reduced to symbolic ordinances in Protestant traditions.

Our "take" on this verse is that it's rather straightforward and unambiguous, and therefore we believe it. On the other hand, we don't base the entire teaching of salvation upon just one snippet of Scripture (nor does Scripture itself). And so we also heed Philippians 2:11-13 as well as many other places in the N.T. which speak of the works which are the fruits of our faith and also made possible by grace. But just as "faith without works (or action, in some translations) is dead", works without faith through grace are empty. Galatians 2:20-21.

Answer 2

Ah-that is the $64,000 question.

And what is written there IS the TRUTH!

Ephesians 2:8-9 (King James Version)

8For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

9Not of works, lest any man should boast.

Answer 3

I'm assuming the same as any other Christian, that we are saved by the Grace of God. But now I want to ask, what good is that Grace if we don't share it with our fellow men, isn't that works? Or are we to be greedy and keep it all to ourselves? Didn't Jesus share the Grace?
By the way, I'm Catholic and it's in MY Bible. Catholics did not exclude anything from the Bible. You're confusing us with faiths that came later and then excluded books from THEIR bibles (sic: KJV) because it didn't fit what they wanted to believe.

Answer 4

When St. Peter confessed that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, Jesus declared to him that this revelation did not come "from flesh and blood", but from "my Father who is in heaven". Faith is a gift of God, a supernatural virtue infused by him. "Before this faith can be exercised, man must have the grace of God to move and assist him; he must have the interior helps of the Holy Spirit, who moves the heart and converts it to God, who opens the eyes of the mind and 'makes it easy for all to accept and believe the truth.
10] For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them

Answer 5

Here is the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification by Catholics (1999), Lutherans (1999), and Methodists (2006):

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, who renews our hearts while equipping us and calling us to good works.

http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/chrstuni/documents/rc_pc_chrstuni_doc_31101999_cath-luth-joint-declaration_en.html

With love in Christ.

Answer 6

8For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

9Not of works, lest any man should boast.

It says we are saved by grace which is a Catholic teaching


Catholic Christian

Answer 7

Catholics don't include that particular book in their Bible.

Answer 8

It must not be the word of God