thumb|right|The [[Harrowing of Hell as depicted by Fra Angelico]]

In Christian theology, justification is the event or process by which sinners are made or declared to be righteous in the sight of God.

In the 21st century, there is now substantial agreement on justification by most Christian communions. The collective bodies of most of the largest Christian denominations, including Catholic, Lutheran, Reformed, Anglican and Methodist, have affirmed a 1999 Lutheran–Catholic Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification that details this consensus, noting different distinctive emphases that individual communions consider essential to state.

Historically, the difference in theories on the means of justification has often been the theological fault line that divided Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox from the Lutheran, Anglican and Reformed traditions of Protestantism during the Reformation.

Central issues of dispute have revolved around the nature or mechanism of the righteousness given by God when God justifies humans: is it a quasi-legal act of imputation only where the person is not or only subsequently changed (associated with Protestants), or a dynamic transformative process where God's goodness is infused, or a moral and spiritual energy working in humans (associated with Anabaptists), or both imputed and infused (associated with Catholics), or better expressed using concepts such as "adhered" (Newman) or "reputed" (Erasmus)? Also: can justification be lost or re-gained? Can justification be usefully treated apart from sanctification and vice versa? What role does baptism play? Is it a process or event or both?

Overview

Catholic and Orthodox doctrine characteristically have been interested in infused, i.e., God "pours" grace into one's soul or, "fills" one with his grace more and more over time; faith—shown through charity and good works—justifies sinners (fides caritate formata) and less focused on imputed righteousness.

Broadly speaking, Catholics have spoken of justification—which in their view initially occurs at baptism, partaking of the sacraments and the resulting grace of cooperation with God's will (sanctification)—as an organic whole: one act of reconciliation ultimately brought to completeness in glorification.

Orthodox theology similarly teaches that "Salvation is accomplished by grace in response to faith. But that faith cannot be passive; it must express itself by feeding, clothing, visiting and otherwise caring for the "least" of Jesus' brethren (Mt 25)." On sanctification, there is a characteristic emphasis in Byzantine Christianity on theosis.

In the Lutheran and Reformed denominational traditions, this righteousness is portrayed as imputed to the inherently ungodly, by grace, through faith in the voluntary sacrifice and resurrection of Christ. The Reformed, Lutheran and Anglican traditions emphasize that "the observance of the moral law is not necessary either as a prerequisite for obtaining justification or as a means for preserving it." Therefore, a righteousness from God is viewed as being credited to the sinner's account through faith alone, apart from works, being based solely on the "blood of Christ". Growth in personal holiness is considered distinct from justification, belonging rather to sanctification.

In Anabaptist Christianity, the Lutheran doctrine of justification is rejected. Rather than a forensic justification that only gives a legal change of one's status before God, Anabaptists teach that "justification begun a dynamic process by which the believer partook of the nature of Christ and was so enabled to live increasingly like Jesus."

In Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant theology, anyone who has been justified will produce good works as a product of faith, as a result of God's grace in sanctification. Notable exceptions to the idea that sanctification and good works always accompany justification are found in Free Grace Theology held by many Independent Baptist churches.

For Lutherans, justification can be lost with the loss of faith. Lutherans affirm that mortal sin can destroy faith; for Catholics and Orthodox Christians, justification can also be lost by committing a mortal sin. Anabaptists teach that Christians can apostatize, resulting in a loss of salvation, through disobedience to God and indulgence in sin; for Methodists along with other groups belonging to the Holiness Movement, salvation also can be lost with the loss of faith or through sinning (cf. conditional security). The Reformed tradition generally holds that justification can never truly be lost: for those who have been justified by grace, will certainly persevere through faith until the return of Christ himself.

Biblical and patristic references

thumb|[[Andreas de Vega, De iustificatione doctrina universa, 1572]]

Gospels

Jesus used the idea of ransom, or redemption when referring to his work on earth (; ). Christ's death and resurrection (triumph over Satan and death) provide justification for believers before God. His righteousness becomes theirs, and his death becomes an offering to God in their place, to pay for all of their sins. According to Protestants this justification is by faith alone – not through good deeds – and is a gift from God through Christ. According to Catholics and Eastern Orthodox we are justified by God's grace which is a free gift but is received through baptism initially, through the faith that works for love in the continuous life of a Christian and through the sacrament of reconciliation if the grace of justification is lost through grave sin.

James

James discusses justification briefly but significantly, declaring that a faith that is without works, a fruitless faith (cf. ), cannot be a justifying faith, because faith is made perfect or completed by works (, especially ; see also ). Indeed, works are required for justification because "man is justified by works, and not by faith alone" (), though the sense of the word justified in this passage is disputed. The writer of James emphasizes the Jewish belief that faith and deeds go together.

However, in James, it is possible that justification is referring to how believers are to behave as believers, not how an unbeliever becomes a believer (i.e., salvation). Faith without works is counterfeit. The faith must produce good fruit as a sign lest it become the occasion for self-justification.

D. James Kennedy explains this verse:

Paul

It was Paul who developed the term justification in the theology of the church. Justification is a major theme of the epistles to the Romans and to the Galatians in the New Testament, and is also given treatment in many other epistles.

In Romans, Paul develops justification by first speaking of God's just wrath at sin (). Justification is then presented as the solution for God's wrath (, ). One is said to be 'justified by faith apart from works of the Law' (). Further, Paul writes of sin and justification in terms of two men, Adam and Christ (). Through Adam, sin came into the world bringing death; through Jesus, righteousness came into the world, bringing justification unto life (). In this connection, Paul speaks of Adam's sin being 'imputed' or 'accounted' (Greek ελλογειται) and speaks of justification as acting in analogy to sin (; ). In chapter 8, Paul connects justification with predestination and glorification (). He further states that those who are justified cannot be separated from the love of Christ (). Several of these passages are central in the debate between Roman Catholics, and the various streams of Protestantism (while there is broad agreement on justification by faith, there is no complete doctrinal uniformity on justification among all Protestant denominations), who can understand them in quite different ways.

In Galatians, Paul emphatically rejects justification by works of the Law, a rejection sparked apparently by a controversy concerning the necessity of circumcision for salvation (, ; see also and Council of Jerusalem). He also adds that the only thing that counts is the "faith [which] works by love"().

Other New Testament writers

The Epistle to the Hebrews also takes up the theme of justification, declaring that Jesus' death is superior to the Old Testament sacrifices in that it takes away sin once for all (). In Hebrews, faith in Jesus' sacrifice includes steadfast perseverance (, ).

Early church

Justification as a concept is mentioned in the works of early Church Fathers, and in the sermons of John Chrysostom, but it is not developed until Augustine's conflict with Pelagius.

Pelagius taught that one became righteous through the exertion of one's will to follow the example of Jesus' life. Over against this, Augustine taught that we are justified by God, as a work of his grace. Augustine took great pains in his anti-Pelagian works to refute the notion that our works could serve as the proper basis for our justification. Following an appeal from Augustine, Pope Innocent I condemned Pelagius. The accused heretic wrote an appeal of his own, declaring his innocence, which was duly accepted by Innocent's successor, Pope Zosimus. However, the Council of Carthage (418) again renounced Pelagius with papal approval.

Joint Declaration on Doctrine of Justification (1999)

In 1999, Roman Catholics and most Lutherans as represented by most of the Lutheran councils worldwide agreed to the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification (JDDJ): with this, "consensus in basic truths of the doctrine of justification exists between Lutherans and Catholics."

In 2017, the World Communion of Reformed Churches, representing 80 million members of Congregational, Presbyterian, Reformed, United, Uniting and Waldensian churches affirmed the Joint Declaration.

The Lutheran World Federation represents around 77 million Christians. The Catholic Church represents around 1.4 billion Christians. As of 2022, this tallies to about 1.7 billion people associated with communions that have affirmed the Joint Declaration, or 75% of all Christians worldwide.

Other Lutherans, especially Confessional Lutherans, maintain that this agreement fails to properly define the meaning of faith, sin, and other essential terms and thus do not support the Lutheran World Federation's agreement. Likewise, some Catholics affirming real and serious differences between the decrees of the Council of Trent and the normative Lutheran documents collected in the 1580 Book of Concord equally reject the 1999 "JDDJ" as fatally flawed.

Comparison of traditions

Christian traditions answer questions about the nature, function and meaning of justification quite differently. These issues include: Is justification an event occurring instantaneously or is it as an ongoing process? Is justification effected by divine action alone (monergism), by divine and human action together (synergism) or by human action? Is justification permanent or can it be lost? What is the relationship of justification to sanctification, the process whereby sinners become righteous and are enabled by the Holy Spirit to live lives pleasing to God?

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|Tradition

|Process <br />or<br /> Event

|Type <br />of<br /> Action

|Permanence

|Justification <br />and<br /> Sanctification

|- style="background:#ededed;"

|Roman Catholic

|Both event and process

|Synergism

|Can be lost via any mortal sin

|Part of the same process

|-

|Lutheran

|Event that is continuously renewed in Word and Sacrament

|Divine monergism

|Can be lost via loss of faith or mortal sin

|Distinct from and cause of sanctification

|- style="background:#ededed;"

|Methodist

|Event

|Synergism

|Can be lost via loss of faith or willful sin

|Distinct from yet always accompanied by sanctification

|- style="background:#ededed;"

|Eastern Orthodox

|Process

|Synergism

|Can be lost via loss of faith or willful sin

|Part of the same process (theosis)

|-

|Calvinist

|Event

|Divine monergism

|Cannot be lost

|Both are a result of union with Christ

|}

Protestants, Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, and Oriental Orthodox Christians together believe that justification is by grace through faith, though they differ on the relationship between faith, obedience, and justification.

Protestants believe justification is applied through faith alone and that rather than being made personally righteous and obedient, which Protestants generally delegate to sanctification as a distinct reality, justification is a forensic declaration of the believer to possess the righteousness and obedience of Christ.

Catholics and Orthodox Christians believe that the obedience that flows from faith is the cause of increase in justification; holding justification to be an ontological process of being truly made righteous by union and cooperation with Christ and also believe they are justified by God's grace which is a free gift received through baptism initially, through the faith which works by love in the continuous life and growth of the Christian and through the sacrament of reconciliation if the grace of justification is lost through mortal sin. For the Catholic and Orthodox Christian, justification and sanctification are different ways of speaking of the same reality, rather than positing an actual distinction between the two.

Catholic Church

To Catholics, justification is "a translation, from that state wherein man is born a child of the first Adam, to the state of grace, and of the adoption of the sons of God, through the second Adam, Jesus Christ, our Savior", including the transforming of a sinner from the state of unrighteousness to the state of holiness. This transformation is made possible by accessing the merit of Christ, made available in the atonement, through faith and the sacraments. The Catholic Church teaches that "faith without works is dead" and that works perfect faith.

In Catholic theology, all are born in a state of original sin, meaning that the sinful nature of Adam is inherited by all. Following Augustine, the Catholic Church asserts that people are unable to make themselves righteous; instead, they require justification.

Catholic theology holds that the sacrament of baptism, which is closely connected to faith, "purifies, justifies and sanctifies" the sinner; in this sacrament, the sinner is "freed from sin". This is termed initial justification or "being cleansed of sin", the entrance into the Christian life. Catholics use Mark 16:16, John 3:5, Acts 2:38, and 1 Peter 3:21 to support this view in justification by baptism.

As the individual then progresses in his Christian life, he continues to receive God's grace both directly through the Holy Spirit as well as through the sacraments. This has the effect of combating sin in the individual's life, causing him to become more righteous both in heart and in action. If one falls into mortal sin he loses his justification and it can be gained back through the sacrament of confession.

At the Resurrection those believers who died in a state of grace but with some venial sins will have been purged of these excessive creaturely attachments. As part of the following Final Judgment, the saved individual's works will then be evaluated for their reward.

In the Council of Trent, which Catholics believe to be infallible, the Catholic Church declared in the VII session in canon IV (countering the view that sacraments are superfluous and therefore to be eschewed as unnecessary) that, "If anyone says that the sacraments of the New Law are not necessary for salvation but are superfluous, and that without them or without the desire of them men obtain from God through faith alone the grace of justification, though all [sacraments] are not necessary for each one [person], let him be anathema."

Anglican John Henry Newman's 1838 Lectures on the Doctrine of Justification (re-issued as a Catholic in 1879) sought to align the Protestant and Catholic understanding of Justification, writing in terms of the Catholic tradition of "et...et..." (i.e., "both ... and ...") that righteousness was both imputed and infused (he suggested the term "adhered".)

Eastern Christianity

Eastern Christianity, including both Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy, tends to not have a strong emphasis on justification as compared to Catholicism or Protestantism, seeing it as part of the concept of "theosis"; justification is often viewed by Eastern theologians as too highly forensic and they reject it. The Greek term for justification (, dikaiōsis) is not understood by most Eastern theologians to mean simply being pardoned of one's sins. In large part, this de-emphasis on justification is historical. The Eastern church sees humanity as inheriting the disease of sin from Adam, but not his guilt; hence, there is no need in Eastern theology for any forensic justification.

The Orthodox see salvation as a process of theosis, in which the individual is united to Christ and the life of Christ is reproduced within him. Thus, in one sense, justification is an aspect of theosis. However, it is also the case that those who are baptized into the church and experience Chrismation are considered to be cleansed of sin. Hence, the Orthodox concept of justification cannot be reconciled to Protestant concepts, while it is in partial agreement with some Roman Catholic concepts. In the words of one Orthodox Bishop:

"The Holy Spirit effects the vocation, the illumination, the conversion, the justification, the rebirth in Baptism and the sanctification in the Church..."

Anabaptism

Anabaptist theology emphasizes a "faith that works"; Anabaptists teach that "justification [began] a dynamic process by which the believer partook of the nature of Christ and was so enabled to live increasingly like Jesus."

Anabaptist cleric David Griffin writes:

At the time of the Protestant Reformation in England, Thomas Cranmer, the architect who shaped the foundational Anglican formularies—The Thirty-nine Articles of Religion, Books of Homilies and Book of Common Prayer—"fully integrated justification sola fide et sola gratia into the doctrine and worship of the Church of England." Cranmer's "Homily on Salvation", which was regularly read in every parish of the Church of England, "make the [Reformed] Protestant understanding of justification normative for Anglican doctrine (Articles 9-14, 17, 22)." Justification, the establishment of a relationship with God through Christ, and sanctification go hand in hand. Certain Anglican theologians (especially Anglo-Catholics) argue for a faith characterized by faithfulness, where good works and the Sacraments play important roles in the life of the Christian believer. (see New Perspective on Paul)

Arminianism/Methodism

John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, was heavily influenced by the thought of Dutch Reformed theologian Jacob Arminius and Hugo Grotius' governmental theory of the atonement. Hence, he held that God's work in us consisted of prevenient grace, which undoes the effects of sin sufficiently that we may then freely choose to believe. An individual's act of faith then results in becoming part of the body of Christ, which allows one to appropriate Christ's atonement for oneself, erasing the guilt of sin. According to the Articles of Religion in the Book of Discipline of the Methodist Church:

Methodist theology teaches that justification and regeneration occur during the New Birth:|title=Guidebook of the Emmanuel Association of Churches|source= Principles of Faith, Emmanuel Association of Churches

However, once the individual has been so justified, one must then continue in the new life given; if one fails to persevere in the faith and in fact falls away from God in total unbelief, the attachment to Christ – and with it, justification – may be lost.

Restorationism

Latter-day Saints (Mormons)

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) believes that while justification is a gift from God, the recipient must choose it through striving to do good works to the extent possible. The Second Book of Nephi states "...it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do." In LDS theology, justification is not earned through good works, but rather chosen by striving to rid one's life of sin. This allows God to rescue his children from sin while not infringing on their agency.

The New Church (Emanuel Swedenborg)

According to the doctrine of The New Church, as explained by Emanuel Swedenborg, the doctrine of justification by faith alone is a false belief which forms the foundation of much of Protestant theology. "Man must of his own volition justify himself, and yet believe that justification comes from God only. Not only must man believe in God, but must love God with all his strength, and his neighbor as himself." "Inasmuch as man obeys God's commandment to love others, so God conjoins himself to man, and man to God. It is from this that man's belief becomes a living and saving belief." "It is by means of faith from charity, that a man is reformed and justified, and this is done as if from himself, and this proceeds from the Divine Truth which flows in from the Holy Spirit."

Universalists

Universalism became a significant minority view in the 18th century, popularized by thinkers such as John Murray (the American, not the Scot). Universalism holds that Christ's death on the cross has entirely atoned for the sin of humanity; hence, God's wrath is or will be satisfied for all people. Conservative and liberal varieties of universalism then point in different directions. Pluralistic Unitarian Universalism asserts that many different religions all lead to God. Others teach that God's love is sufficient to cover for sins, thus embracing some form of the moral influence theory of Peter Abelard. For some universalists, justification either was accomplished once and for all in the crucifixion, or is altogether unnecessary.

Interactions between various doctrines

Sola fide

Luther's reformulation of justification introduced the phrase sola fide, or "by faith alone". That phrase has been one of the uniting factors among various Protestant denominations; despite the wide variety of doctrines and practices among Protestants, they all agree that one is saved (often meaning "justified") by faith alone.

Anglican bishop N.T. Wright has written extensively on the topic of justification. Some evangelicals concerned with his view of justification worry that he marginalizes the importance of the penal substitutionary transaction that takes place at salvation.

See also

  • Bibliography for Justification (theology)
  • Christian views on the Old Covenant
  • Conditional security
  • Expounding of the Law
  • Imparted righteousness
  • Irresistible grace
  • Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification
  • Justification from eternity
  • Law and Gospel
  • Mortal sin
  • Paul the Apostle and Jewish Christianity
  • Sanctification in Christianity
  • Sacrament of Reconciliation (Catholic Church)
  • Salvation in Christianity

Notes

References

Further reading

  • Phillip Edgecumbe Hughes (1982). Faith and Works: Cranmer and Hooker on Justification. Morehouse-Barlow Co.
  • Robert D. Preus (1997). Justification and Rome. Concordia Academic Press.

Ecumenical

  • Official Common Statement of the Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church
  • Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification by the Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church
  • Annex to the Official Common Statement by the Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church
  • Salvation: Grace, Justification, and Synergy by the Lutheran-Orthodox Joint Commission

Orthodox

  • Salvation in Christ articles at the Orthodox Info site

Catholic

  • Justification Article from Catholic Encyclopedia
  • Catholics United for the Faith article "It 'Works' for Me: The Church's Teaching on Justification"
  • Catechism of the Catholic Church: Grace and Justification
  • Scripture verses on justification
  • The General Council of Trent on Justification

Arminian/Methodist

  • Sermon #5: "Justification by Faith" by John Wesley

Calvinist

  • "Justification as an Eternal and Immanent Act of God" by John Gill
  • "Of Justification by Faith" by John Calvin
  • The Orthodox Presbyterian Church Report on Justification.
  • Aspects of the Doctrine of Justification According to Reformed Theology
  • Justification by Faith by John F. MacArthur

Lutheran

  • Apology of the Augsburg Confession Article IV: Of Justification by Philip Melanchthon
  • Solid Declaration of the Formula of Concord Article III: Concerning the Righteousness of Faith before God
  • Luther's definition of faith

Essays

  • Bouman, H. J. A. "The Doctrine of Justification in the Lutheran Confessions." Concordia Theological Monthly 26 (1955) no. 11:801–819.
  • Klann, Richard. "Contemporary Lutheran Views of Justification ", Concordia Theological Quarterly 45 (1981) no. 4:281–296.
  • Martens, Gottfried. "Agreement and Disagreement on Justification by Faith Alone" Concordia Theological Quarterly 65 (2001) no. 3:195-223. [http://www.ctsfw.edu/library/files/pb/1003]
  • Mueller, Theodore. "Justification: Basic Linguistic Aspects and the Art of Communicating It ." Concordia Theological Quarterly 46 (1982) no. 1:21–38.
  • Preus, Robert D. "Luther and the Doctrine of Justification" Concordia Theological Quarterly 48 (1984) no. 1:1–15.
  • Warth, Martim C. ".Justification through Faith in Article Four of the Apology " Concordia Theological Quarterly 46 (1982) no. 2-3:105–126.

Audio

  • Lectures on Justification by Siegbert Becker
  • The Doctrine of Justification with Rod Rosenbladt
  • The Doctrine of Justification with Mark Mattes

Other

  • Dikaiosyne Theou: The Righteousness of God in Contemporary Biblical Scholarship