Preamble
1. The doctrine of justification was of
central importance for the Lutheran Reformation of the sixteenth century. It was held to
be the "first and chief article"
and
at the same time the "ruler and judge over all other Christian doctrines."
The doctrine of justification was particularly
asserted and defended in its Reformation shape and special valuation over against the
Roman Catholic Church and theology of that time, which in turn asserted and defended a
doctrine of justification of a different character. From the Reformation perspective,
justification was the crux of all the disputes. Doctrinal condemnations were put forward
both in the Lutheran Confessions
and by the
Roman Catholic Church's Council of Trent. These condemnations are still valid today and
thus have a church-dividing effect.
2. For the Lutheran tradition, the doctrine of
justification has retained its special status. Consequently it has also from the beginning
occupied an important place in the official Lutheran-Roman Catholic dialogue.
3. Special attention should be drawn to the following
reports: "The Gospel and the Church" (1972)
and "Church and Justification" (1994)
by the Lutheran-Roman Catholic Joint Commission, "Justification by Faith" (1983) of the Lutheran-Roman Catholic dialogue in the
USA and "The Condemnations of the Reformation Era - Do They Still Divide?"
(1986)
by the Ecumenical Working Group of Protestant and Catholic theologians in
Germany. Some of these dialogue reports have been officially received by the
churches. An important example of such reception is the binding response of
the United Evangelical- Lutheran Church of Germany to the "Condemnations"
study, made in 1994 at the highest possible level of ecclesiastical
recognition together with the other churches of the Evangelical Church in
Germany.
4. In their discussion of the doctrine of justification,
all the dialogue reports as well as the responses show a high degree of agreement in their
approaches and conclusions. The time has therefore come to take stock and to summarize the
results of the dialogues on justification so that our churches may be informed about the
overall results of this dialogue with the necessary accuracy and brevity, and thereby be
enabled to make binding decisions.
5. The present Joint Declaration has this intention:
namely, to show that on the basis of their dialogue the subscribing Lutheran churches and
the Roman Catholic Church are now able to
articulate a common understanding of our justification by God's grace through faith in
Christ. It 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 in its explication are no longer the occasion for doctrinal
condemnations.
6. Our Declaration is not a new, independent presentation alongside the dialogue
reports and documents to date, let alone a replacement of them. Rather, as the appendix of
sources shows, it makes repeated reference to them and their arguments.
7. Like the dialogues themselves, this Joint Declaration rests on the conviction that
in overcoming the earlier controversial questions and doctrinal condemnations, the
churches neither take the condemnations lightly nor do they disavow their own past. On the
contrary, this Declaration is shaped by the conviction that in their respective histories
our churches have come to new insights. Developments have taken place which not only make
possible, but also require the churches to examine the divisive questions and
condemnations and see them in a new light.
1. Biblical Message of Justification
8. Our common way of listening to the word of God in Scripture has led to such new
insights. Together we hear the gospel that "God so loved the world that he gave his
only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal
life" (Jn 3:16). This good news is set forth in Holy Scripture in various ways. In
the Old Testament we listen to God's word about human sinfulness (Ps 51:1-5; Dan 9:5f;
Eccl/Qo 8:9f; Ezra 9:6f) and human disobedience (Gen 3:1-19; Neh 9:16f,26) as well as of
God's "righteousness" (Isa 46:13; 51:5-8; 56:1 [cf. 53:11]; Jer 9:24) and
"judgment" (Eccl/Qo 12:14; Ps 9:5f; 76:7-9).
9. In the New Testament diverse treatments of "righteousness" and
"justification" are found in the writings of Matthew (5:10; 6:33; 21:32), John
(16:8-11), Hebrews (5:3; 10:37f), and James (2:14-26).
In Paul's letters also, the gift of salvation is described in various ways, among others:
"for freedom Christ has set us free" (Gal 5:1-13; cf. Rom 6:7), "reconciled
to God" (2 Cor 5:18-21; cf. Rom 5:11), "peace with God" (Rom 5:1),
"new creation" (2 Cor 5:17), "alive to God in Christ Jesus" (Rom
6:11,23), or "sanctified in Christ Jesus" (cf. 1 Cor 1:2; 1:30; 2 Cor 1:1).
Chief among these is the "justification" of sinful human beings by God's grace
through faith (Rom 3:23-25), which came into particular prominence in the Reformation
period.
10. Paul sets forth the gospel as the power of God for salvation of the person who has
fallen under the power of sin, as the message that proclaims that "the righteousness
of God is revealed through faith for faith" (Rom 1:16f) and that grants
"justification" (Rom 3:21-31). He proclaims Christ as "our
righteousness" (1 Cor 1:30), applying to the risen Lord what Jeremiah proclaimed
about God himself (Jer 23:6). In Christ's death and resurrection all dimensions of his
saving work have their roots for he is "our Lord, who was put to death for our
trespasses and raised for our justification" (Rom 4:25). All human beings are in need
of God's righteousness, "since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of
God" (Rom 3:23; cf. Rom 1:18- 3:20; 11:32; Gal 3:22). In Galatians (3:6) and Romans
(4:3-9), Paul understands Abraham's faith (Gen 15:6) as faith in the God who justifies the
sinner (Rom 4:5) and calls upon the testimony of the Old Testament to undergird his gospel
that this righteousness will be reckoned to all who, like Abraham, trust in God's promise.
"For the righteous will live by faith (Hab 2:4; cf. Gal 3:11; Rom 1:17). In Paul's
letters, God's righteousness is also God's power for those who have faith (Rom 1:16f; 2
Cor 5:21). In Christ he makes it our righteousness (2 Cor 5:21). Justification becomes
ours through Christ Jesus "whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his
blood, effective through faith" (Rom 3:25; see 3:21-28). "For by grace you have
been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God - not the
result of works" (Eph 2:8f).
11. Justification is the forgiveness of sins (cf. Rom 3:23-25; Acts 13:39; Lk 18:14),
liberation from the dominating power of sin and death (Rom 5:12-21) and from the curse of
the law (Gal 3:10-14). It is acceptance into communion with God: already now, but then
fully in God's coming kingdom (Rom 5:1f). It unites with Christ and with his death and
resurrection (Rom 6:5). It occurs in the reception of the Holy Spirit in baptism and
incorporation into the one body (Rom 8:1f, 9f; I Cor 12:12f). All this is from God alone,
for Christ's sake, by grace, through faith in "the gospel of God's Son" (Rom 1:1-3).
12. The justified live by faith that comes from the Word of Christ (Rom 10:17) and is
active through love (Gal 5:6), the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22f). But since the
justified are assailed from within and without by powers and desires (Rom 8:35-39; Gal
5:16-21) and fall into sin (1 Jn 1:8,10), they must constantly hear God's promises anew,
confess their sins (1 Jn 1:9), participate in Christ's body and blood, and be exhorted to
live righteously in accord with the will of God. That is why the Apostle says to the
justified: "Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is
at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure" (Phil
2:12f). But the good news remains: "there is now no condemnation for those who
are in Christ Jesus" (Rom 8:1), and in whom Christ lives (Gal 2:20). Christ's
"act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all" (Rom 5:18).
13. Opposing interpretations and applications of the biblical message of justification
were in the sixteenth century a principal cause of the division of the Western church and
led as well to doctrinal condemnations. A common understanding of justification is
therefore fundamental and indispensable to overcoming that division. By appropriating
insights of recent biblical studies and drawing on modern investigations of the history of
theology and dogma, the post-Vatican II ecumenical dialogue has led to a notable
convergence concerning justification, with the result that this Joint Declaration is able
to formulate a consensus on basic truths concerning the doctrine of justification. In
light of this consensus, the corresponding doctrinal condemnations of the sixteenth
century do not apply to today's partner.
3. The Common Understanding of Justification
14. The Lutheran churches and the Roman Catholic Church have together listened to the
good news proclaimed in Holy Scripture. This common listening, together with the
theological conversations of recent years, has led to a shared understanding of
justification. This encompasses a consensus in the basic truths; the differing
explications in particular statements are compatible with it.
15. In faith we together hold the conviction that justification is the work of the
triune God. The Father sent his Son into the world to save sinners. The foundation and
presupposition of justification is the incarnation, death, and resurrection of Christ.
Justification thus means that Christ himself is our righteousness, in which we share
through the Holy Spirit in accord with the will of the Father. Together we confess: 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 and
calling us to good works.
16. All people are called by God to salvation in Christ. Through Christ alone are we
justified, when we receive this salvation in faith. Faith is itself God's gift through the
Holy Spirit who works through word and sacrament in the community of believers and who, at
the same time, leads believers into that renewal of life which God will bring to
completion in eternal life.
17. We also share the conviction that the message of justification directs us in a
special way towards the heart of the New Testament witness to God's saving action in
Christ: it tells us that as sinners our new life is solely due to the forgiving and
renewing mercy that God imparts as a gift and we receive in faith, and never can merit in
any way.
18. Therefore the doctrine of justification, which takes up this message and explicates
it, is more than just one part of Christian doctrine. It stands in an essential relation
to all truths of faith, which are to be seen as internally related to each other. It is an
indispensable criterion which constantly serves to orient all the teaching and practice of
our churches to Christ. When Lutherans emphasize the unique significance of this
criterion, they do not deny the interrelation and significance of all truths of faith.
When Catholics see themselves as bound by several criteria, they do not deny the special
function of the message of justification. Lutherans and Catholics share the goal of
confessing Christ in all things, who alone is to be trusted above all things as the one
Mediator (1 Tim 2:5f) through whom God in the Holy Spirit gives himself and pours out his
renewing gifts. [cf. Sources for section 3].4. Explicating the Common Understanding of
Justification.
4.1 Human Powerlessness and Sin in Relation to Justification
19. We confess together that all persons depend completely on the saving grace of God
for their salvation. The freedom they possess in relation to persons and the things of
this world is no freedom in relation to salvation, for as sinners they stand under God's
judgment and are incapable of turning by themselves to God to seek deliverance, of
meriting their justification before God, or of attaining salvation by their own abilities.
Justification takes place solely by God's grace. Because Catholics and Lutherans confess
this together, it is true to say:
20. When Catholics say that persons "cooperate" in preparing for and
accepting justification by consenting to God's justifying action, they see such personal
consent as itself an effect of grace, not as an action arising from innate human
abilities.
21. According to Lutheran teaching, human beings are incapable of cooperating in their
salvation, because as sinners they actively oppose God and his saving action. Lutherans do
not deny that a person can reject the working of grace. When they emphasize that a person
can only receive (mere passive) justification, they mean thereby to exclude any
possibility of contributing to one's own justification, but do not deny that believers are
fully involved personally in their faith, which is effected by God's Word. [cf. Sources
for 4.1].
4.2 Justification as Forgiveness of Sins and Making Righteous
22. We confess together that God forgives sin by grace and at the same time frees human
beings from sin's enslaving power and imparts the gift of new life in Christ. When persons
come by faith to share in Christ, God no longer imputes to them their sin and through the
Holy Spirit effects in them an active love. These two aspects of God's gracious action are
not to be separated, for persons are by faith united with Christ, who in his person is our
righteousness (1 Cor 1:30): both the forgiveness of sin and the saving presence of God
himself. Because Catholics and Lutherans confess this together, it is true to say that:
23. When Lutherans emphasize that the righteousness of Christ is our righteousness,
their intention is above all to insist that the sinner is granted righteousness before God
in Christ through the declaration of forgiveness and that only in union with Christ is
one's life renewed. When they stress that God's grace is forgiving love ("the favor
of God"), they do not thereby deny the
renewal of the Christian's life. They intend rather to express that justification remains
free from human cooperation and is not dependent on the life-renewing effects of grace in
human beings.
24. When Catholics emphasize the renewal of the interior person through the reception
of grace imparted as a gift to the believer,
they wish to insist that God's forgiving grace always brings with it a gift of new life,
which in the Holy Spirit becomes effective in active love. They do not thereby deny that
God's gift of grace in justification remains independent of human cooperation. [cf.
Sources for section 4.2]. 4.3 Justification by Faith and through Grace
25. We confess together that sinners are justified by faith in the saving action of God
in Christ. By the action of the Holy Spirit in baptism, they are granted the gift of
salvation, which lays the basis for the whole Christian life. They place their trust in
God's gracious promise by justifying faith, which includes hope in God and love for him.
Such a faith is active in love and thus the Christian cannot and should not remain without
works. But whatever in the justified precedes or follows the free gift of faith is neither
the basis of justification nor merits it.
26. According to Lutheran understanding, God justifies sinners in faith alone (sola
fide). In faith they place their trust wholly in their Creator and Redeemer and thus live
in communion with him. God himself effects faith as he brings forth such trust by his
creative word. Because God's act is a new creation, it affects all dimensions of the
person and leads to a life in hope and love. In the doctrine of "justification by
faith alone," a distinction but not a separation is made between justification itself
and the renewal of one's way of life that necessarily follows from justification and
without which faith does not exist. Thereby the basis is indicated from which the renewal
of life proceeds, for it comes forth from the love of God imparted to the person in
justification. Justification and renewal are joined in Christ, who is present in faith.
27. The Catholic understanding also sees faith as fundamental in justification. For
without faith, no justification can take place. Persons are justified through baptism as
hearers of the word and believers in it. The justification of sinners is forgiveness of
sins and being made righteous by justifying grace, which makes us children of God. In
justification the righteous receive from Christ faith, hope, and love and are thereby
taken into communion with him. This new
personal relation to God is grounded totally on God's graciousness and remains constantly
dependent on the salvific and creative working of this gracious God, who remains true to
himself, so that one can rely upon him. Thus justifying grace never becomes a human
possession to which one could appeal over against God. While Catholic teaching emphasizes
the renewal of life by justifying grace, this renewal in faith, hope, and love is always
dependent on God's unfathomable grace and contributes nothing to justification about which
one could boast before God (Rom 3:27). [See Sources for section 4.3].
4.4 The Justified as Sinner
28. We confess together that in baptism the Holy Spirit unites one with Christ,
justifies, and truly renews the person. But the justified must all through life constantly
look to God's unconditional justifying grace. They also are continuously exposed to the
power of sin still pressing its attacks (cf. Rom 6:12-14) and are not exempt from a
lifelong struggle against the contradiction to God within the selfish desires of the old
Adam (cf. Gal 5:16; Rom 7:7-10). The justified also must ask God daily for forgiveness as
in the Lord's Prayer (Mt. 6:12; 1 Jn 1:9), are ever again called to conversion and
penance, and are ever again granted forgiveness.
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 also totally sinners. Sin still
lives in them (1 Jn 1:8; Rom 7:17,20), for they repeatedly turn to false gods and do not
love God with that undivided love which God requires as their Creator (Deut 6:5; Mt
22:36-40 pr.). This contradiction to God is as such truly sin. Nevertheless, the enslaving
power of sin is broken on the basis of the merit of Christ. It no longer is a sin that
"rules" the Christian for it is itself "ruled" by Christ with whom the
justified are bound in faith. In this life, then, Christians can in part lead a just life.
Despite sin, the Christian is no longer separated from God, because in the daily return to
baptism, the person who has been born anew by baptism and the Holy Spirit has this sin
forgiven. Thus this sin no longer brings damnation and eternal death. Thus, when 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 sin is a "ruled" sin. In
these affirmations, they are in agreement with Roman Catholics, despite the difference in
understanding sin in the justified.
30. Catholics hold that the grace of Jesus Christ imparted in baptism takes away all
that is sin "in the proper sense" and that is "worthy of damnation"
(Rom 8:1) . There does, however, remain in
the person an inclination (concupiscence) which comes from sin and presses toward sin.
Since, according to Catholic conviction, human sins always involve a personal element and
since this element is lacking in this inclination, Catholics do not see this inclination
as sin in an authentic sense. They do not thereby deny that this inclination does not
correspond to God's original design for humanity and that it is objectively in
contradiction to God and remains one's enemy in lifelong struggle. Grateful for
deliverance by Christ, they underscore that this inclination in contradiction to God does
not merit the punishment of eternal death
and does not separate the justified person from God. But when individuals voluntarily
separate themselves from God, it is not enough to return to observing the commandments,
for they must receive pardon and peace in the Sacrament of Reconciliation through the word
of forgiveness imparted to them in virtue of God's reconciling work in Christ. [See
Sources for section 4.4].
4.5 Law and Gospel
31. We confess together that persons are justified by faith in the gospel "apart
from works prescribed by the law" (Rom 3:28). Christ has fulfilled the law and by his
death and resurrection has overcome it as a way to salvation. We also confess that God's
commandments retain their validity for the justified and that Christ has by his teaching
and example expressed God's will which is a standard for the conduct of the justified
also.
32. Lutherans state that the distinction and right ordering of law and gospel is
essential for the understanding of justification. In its theological use, the law is
demand and accusation. Throughout their lives, all persons, Christians also, in that they
are sinners, stand under this accusation which uncovers their sin so that, in faith in the
gospel, they will turn unreservedly to the mercy of God in Christ, which alone justifies
them.
33. Because the law as a way to salvation has been fulfilled and overcome through the
gospel, Catholics can say that Christ is not a lawgiver in the manner of Moses. When
Catholics emphasize that the righteous are bound to observe God's commandments, they do
not thereby deny that through Jesus Christ God has mercifully promised to his children the
grace of eternal life. [See Sources for
section 4.5].
4.6 Assurance of Salvation
34. We confess together that the faithful can rely on the mercy and promises of God. In
spite of their own weakness and the manifold threats to their faith, on the strength of
Christ's death and resurrection they can build on the effective promise of God's grace in
Word and Sacrament and so be sure of this grace.
35. This was emphasized in a particular way by the Reformers: in the midst of
temptation, believers should not look to themselves but look solely to Christ and trust
only him. In trust in God's promise they are assured of their salvation, but are never
secure looking at themselves.
36. Catholics can share the concern of the Reformers to ground faith in the objective
reality of Christ's promise, to look away from one's own experience, and to trust in
Christ's forgiving word alone (cf. Mt 16:19; 18:18). With the Second Vatican Council,
Catholics state: to have faith is to entrust oneself totally to God, who liberates us from the darkness of sin and death
and awakens us to eternal life. In this
sense, one cannot believe in God and at the same time consider the divine promise
untrustworthy. No one may doubt God's mercy and Christ's merit. Every person, however, may
be concerned about his salvation when he looks upon his own weaknesses and shortcomings.
Recognizing his own failures, however, the believer may yet be certain that God intends
his salvation. [See Sources for section 4.6].
4.7 The Good Works of the Justified
37. We confess together that good works - a Christian life lived in faith, hope and
love - follow justification and are its fruits. When the justified live in Christ and act
in the grace they receive, they bring forth, in biblical terms, good fruit. Since
Christians struggle against sin their entire lives, this consequence of justification is
also for them an obligation they must fulfill. Thus both Jesus and the apostolic
Scriptures admonish Christians to bring forth the works of love.
38. According to Catholic understanding, good works, made possible by grace and the
working of the Holy Spirit, contribute to growth in grace, so that the righteousness that
comes from God is preserved and communion with Christ is deepened. When Catholics affirm
the "meritorious" character of good works, they wish to say that, according to
the biblical witness, a reward in heaven is promised to these works. Their intention is to
emphasize the responsibility of persons for their actions, not to contest the character of
those works as gifts, or far less to deny that justification always remains the unmerited
gift of grace.
39. The concept of a preservation of grace and a growth in grace and faith is also held
by Lutherans. They do emphasize that righteousness as acceptance by God and sharing in the
righteousness of Christ is always complete. At the same time, they state that there can be
growth in its effects in Christian living. When they view the good works of Christians as
the fruits and signs of justification and not as one's own "merits", they
nevertheless also understand eternal life in accord with the New Testament as unmerited
"reward" in the sense of the fulfillment of God's promise to the believer. [See
Sources for section 4.7].
5. The Significance and Scope of the Consensus Reached
40. The understanding of the doctrine of justification set forth in this Declaration
shows that a consensus in basic truths of the doctrine of justification exists between
Lutherans and Catholics. In light of this consensus the remaining differences of language,
theological elaboration, and emphasis in the understanding of justification described in
paras. 18 to 39 are acceptable. Therefore the Lutheran and the Catholic explications of
justification are in their difference open to one another and do not destroy the consensus
regarding the basic truths.
41. Thus the doctrinal condemnations of the 16th century, in so far as they relate 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. The condemnations in the Lutheran Confessions do not apply to the
teaching of the Roman Catholic Church presented in this Declaration.
42. Nothing is thereby taken away from the seriousness of the condemnations related to
the doctrine of justification. Some were not simply pointless. They remain for us
"salutary warnings" to which we must attend in our teaching and practice.
43. Our consensus in basic truths of the doctrine of justification must come to
influence the life and teachings of our churches. Here it must prove itself. In this respect, there are still questions of varying importance which need further
clarification. These include, among other topics, the relationship between the Word
of God and church doctrine, as well as ecclesiology, ecclesial authority, church unity,
ministry, the sacraments, and the relation between justification and social ethics. We are convinced that the consensus we have reached offers a solid basis for this
clarification. The Lutheran churches and the Roman Catholic Church will continue to
strive together to deepen this common understanding of justification and to make it bear
fruit in the life and teaching of the churches.
44. We give thanks to the Lord for this
decisive step forward on the way to overcoming the division of the church. We ask
the Holy Spirit to lead us further toward that visible unity which is Christ's will.
Footnotes:
The Smalcald Articles, II,1; Book of
Concord, 292.
"Rector et judex super omnia genera doctrinarum," Weimar Edition of Luther's
Works (WA), 39, I, 205.
It should be noted
that some Lutheran churches include only the Augsburg Confession and Luther's Small
Catechism among their binding confessions.
These texts contain no condemnations about justification in relation to the Roman Catholic
Church.
Report of the Joint
Lutheran-Roman Catholic Study Commission, published in Growth in Agreement (New
York: Geneva, 1984), pages 168-189.
Published by the Lutheran
World Federation (Geneva, 1994).
Lutherans
and Catholics in Dialogue VII (Minneapolis, 1985).
Minneapolis,
1990.
"Gemeinsame
Stellungnahme der Arnoldshainer Konferenz, der Vereinigten Kirche und des Deutschen
Nationalkomitees des Lutherischen Weltbundes zum Dokument 'Lehrverurteilungen--
kirchentrennend?'," Okumenische Rundschau 44 (1995): 99-102; See also
the position papers which underlie this resolution, in Lehrverurteilungen im Gesprach,
Die ersten offiziellen Stellungnahmen aus den evangelischen Kirchen in Deutschland
(Gottingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1993).
The word,
"church" is used in this Declaration to reflect the self-understandings of
the participating churches, without intending to resolve all the
ecclesiological issues related to this term.
Cf. "Malta
Report," paras. 26-30; Justification by Faith, paras. 122-147. At the request
of the U.S. dialogue on justification, the non-Pauline New Testament texts were addressed
in Righteousness in the New Testament, by John Reumann, with responses by Joseph A.
Fitzmyer and Jerome D. Quinn (Philadelphia; New York: 1982), pages 124-180. The results of
this study were summarized in the dialogue report Justification by Faith in paras.
139-143.
"All Under
One Christ," para. 14, in Growth in Agreement, 241-247.
Cf. WA
8:106; American Edition 32:227.
Cf. DS
1528.
Cf. DS
1530.
Cf. Apology
II:38-45; Book of Concord, 105f.
Cf.
DS 1515.
Cf. DS
1515.
Cf. DS
1545.
Cf. DV 5.
Cf. DV 5
Condemnations of the Reformation Era, 27. |
