Joint Declaration with the Lutherans on Justification Exposed

Source: vaticancatholic.com

"...the holy ecumenical and general synod of Trent lawfully assembled in the Holy Spirit... cardinals of the Holy Roman Church and apostolic legates a latere, presiding therein in the name of our Most Holy Father and Lord in Christ, Paul, the third Pope by the providence of God, for the praise and glory of Almighty God, for the tranquility of the Church and the salvation of souls, purpose to expound to all the faithful of Christ the true and salutary doctrine of justification, which the "son of justice" (Mal. 4:2), Christ Jesus, "the author and finisher of our faith" (Heb. 12:2) taught, the apostles transmitted and the Catholic Church, under the instigation of the Holy Spirit, has always retained, strictly forbidding that anyone henceforth may presume to believe, preach or teach, otherwise than is defined and declared by this present decree."[1] (Council of Trent, Session 6, On Justification)

On October 31, 1999, the Vatican under John Paul II approved a common statement with the Lutherans on the doctrine of justification. The idea that Catholics could agree to a joint declaration with Lutherans on the doctrine of justification should immediately strike a Catholic as absurd. Catholics are required to believe in the dogmatic teaching of the Council of Trent, while Lutherans reject the dogmatic teaching of the Council of Trent.

Pope Paul III, Council of Trent, Session 6, Chap. 16: "After this Catholic doctrine of justification - which, unless he faithfully and firmly accepts, no one can be justified- it seemed good to the holy Synod to add these canons, so that all may know, not only what they must hold and follow, but also what they ought to shun and avoid."[2]

Obviously, the only agreement that could be reached is one where the Lutherans rejected their heresy and accepted Catholic dogma.  However, this was not what the Joint Declaration with the Lutherans – which has been approved by John Paul II and Benedict XVI – was about.  In fact, it was just the opposite.

The Joint Declaration with the Lutherans on the Doctrine of Justification is so heretical that there are almost no words to describe how much of an affront to Catholic dogma it really is.  It completely repudiates the Council of Trent.  Since some of the defenders of the Vatican II sect and even some of the “traditionalists” have offered some of the most ridiculous and dishonest attempts to defend this agreement, I will briefly review why this document is heretical, why it is a complete repudiation of the Council of Trent, and why it actually constitutes an official declaration by John Paul II and Benedict XVI themselves that their sect is, in reality, a non-Catholic, Protestant “Church.”

►1) Joint Declaration With Lutherans on Justification: “# 5.  THE PRESENT JOINT DECLARATION… does not cover all that either church teaches about justification; it does encompass a consensus on basic truths of the doctrine of justification and SHOWS THAT THE REMAINING DIFFERENCES ARE NO LONGER THE OCCASION FOR DOCTRINAL CONDEMNATIONS.”[3]

This means that the remaining differences between Lutherans and Catholics on Justification – for example, the fact that Lutherans don’t accept the Council of Trent’s Decree on Justification as dogmatic – are no longer the occasion for doctrinal condemnations.  This is blatantly HERETICAL.  The very fact that the Lutherans don’t accept the Council of Trent’s Decree on Justification as dogmatic is an occasion for their doctrinal condemnation, as we just saw above.

► (2) Joint Declaration With the Lutherans on Justification: "41. Thus the doctrinal condemnations of the 16th century [i.e., the Council of Trent], in so far as they are related to the doctrine of justification, appear in a new light: The teaching of the Lutheran churches presented in this Declaration does not fall under the condemnations from the Council of Trent."[4]

This means that none of the teaching of the Lutherans in the Joint Declaration (JD) is condemned by the Council of Trent!  But in the JD, besides the other heresies taught by the Lutherans (as we will see), the Lutheran churches teach the heresy of justification by “faith alone,” which was condemned by the Council of Trent approximately 13 times!

►Joint Declaration with the Lutherans on Justification: "26. According to Lutheran understanding, God justifies sinners in faith alone (sola fide)."[5]

Pope Paul III, Council of Trent, Session 6, Chap. 10, ex cathedra : "'You see, that by works a man is justified and not by faith alone' (Jas. 2:24)."6]

Thus, the statement in #41 of the JD means that the “Catholic” side agrees that all the dogmatic canons and decrees in Trent condemning faith alone are overturned, and that faith alone is no longer contrary to or condemned by Trent.  It is not possible for heresy to be any more formal than this.

►3) Joint Declaration With the Lutherans on Justification: “# 13.  IN LIGHT OF THIS CONSENSUS, THE CORRESPONDING DOCTRINAL CONDEMNATIONS OF THE 16TH CENTURY [the Council of Trent] DO NOT APPLY TO TODAY’S PARTNER.”[7]

This again means that the fact that the Lutherans don’t accept the Council of Trent’s Decree on Justification in totality is not heretical, which is a denial of the Council of Trent.  The Council of Trent condemned as heretical anyone who does not accept all of its teaching, as we saw above.

So, don’t be misled by those liars who try to convince people that the JD didn’t really deny the Council of Trent, or that “it’s much more complicated than that.”  These people are used by the Devil to defend the apostate Vatican II sect.  The Joint Declaration with the Lutherans on the Doctrine of Justification completely rejects the dogmatic Council of Trent.  Anyone who denies this is simply a liar.

SOME OTHER HERESIES IN THE JOINT DECLARATION

In fact, besides “faith alone,” there are hordes of other heresies in the JD which were specifically condemned by Trent.  (See the longer article on our website on the Joint Declaration with the Lutherans on Justification if you want all the gory details.)  The JD has heresy spilling out of it.  Here are just a few of the heresies in it:

►Joint Declaration with Lutherans: "21. According to the Lutheran teaching, human beings are incapable of cooperating in their salvation, because as sinners they actively oppose God and his saving action."[8] –THIS IS HERESY CONDEMNED BY TRENT!

•Pope Paul III, Council of Trent, Session 6, Can. 4: "If anyone shall say that man's free will moved and aroused by God does not cooperate by assenting to God who rouses and calls, whereby it disposes and prepares itself to obtain the grace of justification, and that it cannot dissent, if it wishes, but that like something inanimate it does nothing at all and is merely in a passive state: let him be anathema."[9]

►Joint Declaration with Lutherans: "23. …Lutherans... intend rather to express that justification remains free from human cooperation and is not dependent upon the life-renewing effects of grace in human beings." – THIS IS HERESY CONDEMNED BY TRENT!

•Pope Paul III, Council of Trent, Session 6, Can. 1: “If anyone shall say that man can be justified before God by his own works which are done either by his own natural powers, or through the teaching of the Law, and without divine grace through Christ Jesus: let him be anathema.”[10]

►Joint Declaration with Lutherans: “29. Lutherans understand this condition of the Christian as a being 'at the same time righteous and sinner'. Believers are totally righteous, in that God forgives their sins through Word and Sacrament and grants the righteousness of Christ which they appropriate in faith. In Christ, they are made just before God. Looking at themselves through the law, however, they recognize that they remain totally sinners.”[11] – THIS IS HERESY CONDEMNED BY TRENT!

This heresy is also called “simul justus et peccator” (at the same time just and sinner) and was one of Martin Luther’s favorites.  It was vigorously condemned by Trent in the following two passages.

•Pope Paul III, Council of Trent, Session 5: "If anyone denies that by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is conferred in baptism, the guilt of original sin is remitted, or even asserts that the whole of that which has the true and proper nature of sin is not taken away, but says that it is only touched in person or is not imputed, let him be anathema."[12]

Pope Paul III, Council of Trent, Session 5: "For in those who are born again [Justified], God hates nothing, because 'there is no condemnation, to those who are truly buried together with Christ by baptism unto death' (Rom. 6:4), who do not 'walk according to the flesh' (Rom. 8:1), but putting off 'the old man' and putting on the 'new, who is created according to God' (Eph. 4:22 ff.; Col. 3:9), are made innocent, immaculate, pure, guiltless, and beloved sons of God, 'heirs indeed of God, but co-heirs with Christ' (Rom. 8:17), so that there is nothing whatever to retard their entrance into heaven."[13]

►Joint Declaration with Lutherans: "29... Lutherans say that justified persons are also sinners and that their opposition to God is truly sin, they do not deny that, despite this sin, they are not separated from God and that this is a 'ruled' sin. “[14] – THIS IS HERESY CONDEMNED BY TRENT

Pope Paul III, Council of Trent, Session 6, Chap. 15: "... the doctrine of divine law which excludes from the kingdom of God not only the unbelievers, but also the faithful who are fornicators, adulterers, effeminate, liers with mankind, thieves, covetous, drunkards, railers, extortioners (1 Cor. 6:9), and all others who commit deadly sins, from which with the assistance of divine grace they can refrain and for which they are separated from the grace of God."[15]

Remember, all of these teachings of the Lutherans in the Joint Declaration – which are blatantly heretical and clearly condemned by the Council of Trent – are declared to be not condemned by Trent in #41 of the Joint Declaration!

I could go on, but what has been covered above is sufficient to establish the point.  Some of the false teachers who have tried to belittle the significance of the JD have tried to deceive their readers and listeners by saying that the two other documents which go along with the JD actually clarify everything.  THIS IS PURE HOGWASH!  The two other documents that go along with the JD: 1) The Official Common Statement by the Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church and 2) the Annex to the Official Common Statement not only confirm the JD, but in fact, the Annex to the Official Common Statement professes belief in justification by faith alone.

►Annex to the Official Common Statement, #2, C [“Catholic” side and Lutheran side together]: "Justification takes place by grace alone, by faith alone, the person is justified apart from works."[16]

Please understand: this “Annex” is the part of the Joint Declaration which the defenders of the Vatican II sect say clarifies everything!  In other words, they say the Annex makes everything in the JD completely conformable to Catholic teaching.  That is completely untrue, of course, because the Annex confirms what is in the JD without contradicting it at all; and, as we can see, it declares that the “Catholics” don’t merely accept faith alone as not contrary to Trent (as the JD says) but believe in faith alone themselves!

But, as said above, even if the Annex didn’t assert this abominable heresy, it wouldn’t matter because all of the heresies catalogued above – whether on the Lutheran side or the “Catholic” side of the JD – are accepted as not condemned by the Council of Trent.  Furthermore, as proven above, the JD specifically says that the Lutherans’ remaining differences with Catholics on Justification are not an occasion for doctrinal condemnations.  So don’t be fooled by those liars who tell you that “yeah, there are problems with the JD, but none of the heresies appear on the Catholic side, just on the Lutheran side.”  It is simply not true and, more importantly, it doesn’t make a difference because all the heresies on either side are said to be not condemned by Trent.

The Vatican II sect, including John Paul II, Benedict XVI and the official Vatican newspaper all approve of the Joint Declaration.  This proves that they are manifest heretics.

John Paul II, Jan. 19, 2004, At a Meeting with Lutherans From Finland: “… I wish to express my gratitude for the ecumenical progress made between Catholics and Lutherans in the five years since the signing of the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification.”[17]

Benedict XVI, Address to Protestants at World Youth Day, August 19, 2005: “… the important Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification (1999) …”[18]

Benedict XVI, Address to Methodists, Dec. 9, 2005: “I have been encouraged by the initiative which would bring the member churches of the World Methodist Council into association with the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification, signed by the Catholic Church and the Lutheran World Federation in 1999.  Should the World Methodist Council express its intent to associate itself with the Joint Declaration, it would assist in contributing to the healing and reconciliation we ardently desire, and would be a significant step towards the stated goal of full visible unity in faith… I invoke God’s abundant Blessings upon all of you and on Methodists throughout the world.”[19]

Mons. John A. Radano, Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity: “This latter meeting [between Baptists and “Catholics”] , 5-6 December, at the suggestion of the Baptists focused one day on the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification (JD) signed by the Catholic Churchand the Lutheran World Federation in 1999…”[20]

This means that the Vatican II sect and its antipopes officially accept the Joint Declaration with the Lutherans on the Doctrine of Justification and reject the Council of Trent.  The Catholic Church, on the other hand, retains and will always retain the Council of Trent’s Doctrine on Justification, which was delivered by Christ to the Apostles.

Pope Paul III, Council of Trent, Sess. 6, On Justification, Introduction: "...the holy ecumenical and general synod of Trent lawfully assembled in the Holy Spirit... cardinals of the Holy Roman Church and apostolic legates a latere, presiding therein in the name of our Most Holy Father and Lord in Christ, Paul, the third Pope by the providence of God, for the praise and glory of Almighty God, for the tranquility of the Church and the salvation of souls, purpose to expound to all the faithful of Christ the true and salutary doctrine of justification, which the "son of justice" (Mal. 4:2), Christ Jesus, "the author and finisher of our faith" (Heb. 12:2) taught, the apostles transmitted and the Catholic Church, under the instigation of the Holy Spirit, has always retained..." [21]

Thus, the “Church” of John Paul II is not the Catholic Church, and those who are aware of these facts and then affirm communion with it are simply affirming communion with manifest heretics and are sinning against the Faith.