Catholics, Protestants often say, believe in salvation by good works. ย This engenders the reply from thoughtful Catholics, no we donโt! ย You have to have grace. ย In fact, we even believe in justification by faith, just like you Lutherans do, as proven by the accord we signed with liberal Lutherans. ย Since there is now no real disagreement, there is no need for the Reformation divisions. ย You can come back to Rome and enjoy being under Pope Francis.
If youโre a Christian who exploits people, leads a double life or manages a โdirtyโ business, perhaps itโs better not to call yourself a believer, Pope Francis suggested in a homily on Thursday in Rome.
โSo many Christians are like this, and these people scandalize others,โ Francis said during morning Mass at Casa Santa Marta, according to Vatican Radio. โHow many times have we heard โ all of us, around the neighborhood and elsewhere โ โBut to be a Catholic like that, itโs better to be an atheist.โ It is that: scandal.โ. . .While many of this Popeโs pronouncements are often assumed to be novel interpretations of Christian doctrines, Francis was also touching on an ancient debate: If you believe but donโt behave, can you get into heaven?No, the Pope suggested, in characteristically blunt language.He imagined a wealthy Christian knocking at the gates of heaven and saying, โHere I am, Lord! โฆ I went to Church, I was close to you, I belong to this association, I did thisโฆ Donโt you remember all the offerings I made?โTo which Jesus may reply, according to the Pope:โYes, I remember. The offerings, I remember them: All dirty. All stolen from the poor. I donโt know you.โ That will be Jesusโ response to these scandalous people who live a double life.โThursdayโs sermon is far from the first time Francis has targeted Christian hypocrites. In a sermon last February, the outspoken Pope called out the โfakenessโ of Christians who talk piously, but do little to help others.โTo be a Christian means to do: to do the will of God โ and on the last day โ because all of us we will have one โ that day what shall the Lord ask us? Will He say: โWhat you have said about me?โ No. He shall ask us about the things we did.โIt isnโt the first time the Pope has mentioned atheists, either. In 2013, he raised questions for saying that heaven is open, potentially, to all people.โThe Lord has redeemed all of us, all of us, with the Blood of Christ: all of us, not just Catholics. Everyone. โโFather, the atheists?โ Even the atheists. Everyone!โFrancis continued, โWe must meet one another doing good. โBut I donโt believe, Father, I am an atheist!โ But do good: we will meet one another there.โThe Vatican later issued a note clarifying that the Pope was simply saying that Godโs grace is free to all, even atheists, and urging Christians and non-believers to work together.
โNot everyone who says to me, โLord, Lord,โ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, โLord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?โ ย And then will I declare to them, โI never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.โ ย (Matthew 7:21-23)
Arenโt the people being rejected here are the ones who did โmany mighty works in your nameโ? ย And yet, Jesus and the miracle workers didnโt โknowโ each other. ย There was no relationship of faith.
In the Popeโs version, the damned one will say, โI was close to you.โ ย But he lacked โmighty works.โ ย The works that he did are โdirty,โ so they were not good enough.
I know that a living faith results in good works, particularly the good works of love and service to our neighbors in our multiple vocations. ย And there is a judgment of thoseย works. ย But it seems that the Pope is minimizing the source of those works, namely, the heart changed by faith.