chiesa
evangelica peschiera
An Evangelical Approach Towards
Understanding Catholicism
In the years following Vatican II (1962-65) Evangelicals
have shown renewed interest in Roman Catholicism. On an international
level this interest has led to a series of meetings on the theme of
Mission, "The Evangelical-Roman Catholic Dialogue on Mission
1977-1984", and has opened the way for an ongoing dialogue between
The World Evangelical Fellowship and the Pontifical Council for Promoting
Christian Unity on the themes of Justification, Scripture and Tradition
(Venice 1995) and the Church (Jerusalem 1997). In 1986 the World Evangelical
Fellowship also published an important document on Catholicism entitled,
"An Evangelical Perspective on Roman Catholicism". In the
United States more controversial documents have been drawn up such
as, "Evangelicals and Catholics Together" (1994) and "The
Gift of Salvation" (1997). Until quite recently it could be said
that the overall evangelical evaluation of Catholicism was invariably
critical. Today this is no longer true. In many areas there are clear
signs of a definite change in the way many Evangelicals perceive the
Catholic Church. The common understanding has given way to a comprehension
which is less certain and often confusing. The following document
is intended to be a contribution to the evangelical understanding
of Catholicism and the criteria which should be used when relating
to it.
The nature of Catholicism
1. Roman Catholicism is a complex reality. A global
view of Catholicism, must take into account its doctrine, culture,
and its institutions. It is a religious worldview which has been promoted
throughout history by the ecclesiastical institution whose centre
is in Rome. Although there is considerable diversity in its forms
of expression, Catholicism is a basically unitary reality whose underlying
tenets can be discerned. Any analysis which does not take in to account
the fact that Catholicism is a system will fall prey to a superficial
and fragmented understanding of the phenomenon.
2. Catholicism's starting point is the Thomist conception of the relationship
between "nature" and "grace" into which is engrafted
the idea of the Church as the extension of the Incarnation of the
Son of God. Both of these themes can be presented with subtle diversity
and with any number of interpretative variations, but by virtue of
the fact that they form Catholicism's ideological framework, they
will always be found to be present. This basic orientation in its
presuppositions explains why Roman Catholicism has no sense of the
tragedy of sin, tends to encourage an optimistic view of man's abilities,
sees salvation as a process in which nature is made more perfect and
justifies the Church's role as a mediator between man and God.
3. The global objective of Catholicism is catholicity. In the Roman
Catholic understanding catholicity has to do simultaneously with unity
and totality. The basic premise is that multiplicity should be brought
into a unity. The Church is seen as an expression, a guarantor and
a promoter of true unity. As long as the institutional structure which
preserves this unity remains intact, everything can and must find
its home somewhere within the kingdom of Catholicism.
4. Given the fundamental presupposition and the main objective of
Catholicism, the method chosen for its realisation is that of integration
(et-et). Roman Catholicism is a master at incorporating into its system
elements which are not only different but contrasting and perhaps
even incompatible. The essential criterion is not that of evangelical
purity or christian authenticity but that of a progressive inclusion
- the insertion of the particular into a broader perspective which
eliminates its specificity by dissolving it in the service of universality.
The strategy behind Catholicism
5. In today's religious panorama it is evident that
Catholicism has a very clear programme in its pursuit of catholicity.
This is particularly noticeable in its ecumenical strategy following
the Second Vatican Council - every opportunity to advance this cause
has been seized upon. The apparent signs of willingness for dialogue
and availability for interaction with evangelicals should make them
ask themselves whether the final goal of the Catholic church is not
in actual fact the extension of its own synthesis so as to include
the evangelicals' ideals within its own horizons. This strategy, however,
does not only include evangelicals, but also extends to all religions
and all religious bodies around the world.
6. An important part of this strategy has been the proclamation of
the year 2000 as a Holy Year, improperly called a 'Jubilee' Year.
The beginning of the new millennium is an event in which the Catholic
Church has heavily invested and carefully prepared for. The year 2000,
as a Holy Year, is an event which clearly reveals the multifaceted
nature of contemporary Catholicism. The Vatican's 'Jubilee' shows
very clearly what the dominant tendencies within Catholicism are today
and its short term goals in the direction of catholicity.
Evangelical Diversity with respect
to Catholicism
7. In seeking to come to a better understanding of Catholicism,
evangelicals must examine their own identity: a proper understanding
of Catholicism also implies a proper understanding of the evangelical
faith. A clear position regarding the one requires a clear position
regarding the other.
8. Although there are many differences between Catholicism and the
evangelical faith at various levels they are all inter-connecting
and in the last analysis stem from a radically different basic orientation.
It is a difference which cannot simply be explained in psychological,
historical or cultural terms, nor does it derive from different doctrinal
emphases which could somehow be complementary. The difference is at
the level of the presuppositions, and this necessarily influences
and determines both the objectives and the methods of the two Confessions.
9. The doctrinal agreement between Catholics and Evangelicals, which
is expressed in a common adherence to the Creeds and Councils of the
first five centuries, is not an adequate basis on which to say that
there is an agreement concerning the essentials of the Gospel. Moreover,
developments within the Catholic Church during the following centuries
give rise to the suspicion that this adherence may be more formal
than substantial. This type of observation might also be true of the
agreements between Evangelicals and Catholics when it comes to ethical
and social issues. There is a similarity of perspective which has
its roots in Common Grace and the influence which Christianity has
generally exercised in the course of history. Since theology and ethics
cannot be separated, however, it is not possible to say that there
is a common ethical understanding - the underlying theologies are
essentially different. As there is no basic agreement concerning the
foundations of the Gospel, even when it comes to ethical questions
where there may be similarities, these affinities are more formal
than substantial.
10. The biblical teaching re-discovered during the 16th Century Reformation
regarding the "sola, solus" as the crucial point of the
Gospel is a crux which an evangelical understanding considers to be
'non-negotiable'. Scripture alone, Christ alone, Grace alone, Faith
alone, to God alone be glory, these together constitute the criteria
for the study of Catholicism and the hermeneutic principle which should
be used in interpreting the dynamics within the Roman Catholic Church.
On the basis of the sola, solus, the distance which separates contemporary
Catholicism from the Evangelical faith is no less than it was at the
time of the Protestant Reformation. In fact, after the First and Second
Vatican Councils, Catholicism continues to add to Scripture the authority
of tradition and magisterial teaching; to Christ it has added the
Church as an extension of the Incarnation; to grace it has added the
necessity of the benefits which come through the sacramental office
of the church; to faith it has added the necessity of good works for
salvation; to the worship of God it has added the veneration of a
host of other figures which detract from the worship of the only true
God. When compared to Roman Catholicism at the time of Trent, the
contrast concerning the important issues is much less sharply defined
today, but no basic change has taken place. The exclusiveness of the
evangelical faith concerning the essential elements of the Gospel
must be seen as an alternative to the Catholic proposal of an all
encompassing catholicity.
11. The current flurry of activity within contemporary Catholicism
(the return to the Bible, liturgical renewal, the valorisation of
the laity, the charismatic movement, etc.) does not indicate, in and
of itself, that there is hope for a reformation within the Catholic
church in an evangelical sense. It will only be as these developments
make changes in the structural elements underlying the nature of Catholicism,
not expanding it further but purifying it in the light of God's Word,
that they can have a truly reforming function. In today's scenario,
these movements, although interesting, seem to promote the project
of Catholicity rather than that of reformation.
Relationships with Catholics
12. What is true of the Catholic Church as a doctrinal
and institutional reality is not necessarily true of individual Catholics.
God's grace is at work in men and women who, although they may consider
themselves Catholics, trust in God alone, and seek to develop a personal
relationship with him, read the Scriptures and lead a Christian life.
These people, however, must be encouraged to think through the issue
of whether their faith is compatible with membership of the Catholic
Church. They must be helped to examine critically residual Catholic
elements in their thinking in the light of God's Word.
13. In the fulfilment of the cultural mandate there may be moments
of interaction in which there is a co-operation and united action
between Evangelicals and Catholics, as in fact may be possible between
Evangelicals and people with other religious orientations and ideologies.
Where common values are at stake in ethical, social, cultural and
political issues, forms of co-belligerence are to be encouraged. These
necessary and inevitable forms of co-operation, however, must not
be perceived as ecumenical initiatives, nor must they be construed
as implying the recovery of a doctrinal consensus.
14. The fulfilment of the missionary mandate demands that its missionaries
come from the community of believers who are united in a common confession
of faith regarding all the fundamental aspects of the Gospel, especially
the crucial points which concern the 5 "sola, solus" of
the Reformation. In this sense, all evangelistic activity, at home
or abroad, in which there is a co-operation between Catholics and
Evangelicals, must be seriously re-examined. A faithful witness to
the Risen One must be given to all men and women everywhere quite
apart from their religious affiliation.
15. Roman Catholicism is a reality which must be seriously studied
and examined. The basic difference between Catholicism and the Evangelical
faith is no reason for Evangelicals to ignore the internal developments
within Catholicism, or to cultivate an arrogant attitude, or to be
excessively polemical. As much as is possible an open, frank and constructive
interaction with Catholicism should be sought, especially when it
concerns the basic orientation of the two Confessions. Even in this
situation, what is currently called 'dialogue' should not be considered
as an ecumenical activity, but simply as an expression of the desire
to understand and to witness.
Istituo di Formazione Evangelica e Documentazione
(IFED) and the Italian Evangelical Alliance, Padua, 1999