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The general observation is that, as regards the dogma of redemption,
the earlier Protestants erred by excess, whereas the Socinians and
liberal Protestants deviated from the truth by defect, because of
their excessive reaction against the Reformers. For in Luther's
opinion and still more in Calvin's, Christ took upon Himself our
sins as to become hateful to God and was cursed by Him, and on the
cross, or in His descent into hell, He suffered the torments of the
damned, so that He went so far as to be guilty of the sin of despair
in saying: "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken
Me?"[1846] whereas, on the contrary, these words are a
quotation from one of the psalms of the Old Testament, the concluding
words of which express great confidence in God.[1847] The
Reformers concluded from this teaching of theirs, that there is
nothing left for us to do or suffer, for we are saved by faith alone in
Christ's merits.
Going to the other extreme, however, the Socinians and liberal
Protestants fell into the opposite defect, and said that Christ
redeemed us only in a moral sense, in that He saves only by His
doctrine and example, in the same way as the prophets and martyrs did,
although in a higher degree.
Thus the Socinians said that Christ satisfied for us only in the
broad sense and metaphorically, by His heroic preaching and example,
dying like the martyrs, that is, by affixing the seal to His
preaching by the shedding of His blood. Thus His death moves us
morally to perform penitential acts whereby our sins are forgiven;
but, as they say, Christ did not, strictly speaking, die for us,
that is, in our place, by paying the penalty incurred by our sins.
Consequently they deny vicarious satisfaction in the strict sense.
No wonder the Socinians ended in this heresy; for they denied
Christ's divinity. The denial of the mystery of the Incarnation
results in the denial of the mystery of redemption. Pope Paul IV
condemned them, for they: "asserted that there are not three persons
in the omnipotent God..., that our Lord Jesus Christ is not
truly God... and did not undergo a most bitter death on the cross
that He might redeem us from sins and eternal death and reconcile us
with the Father for eternal life."[1848]
This Socinian error stems from another, namely, that, although they
acknowledge that God punishes obstinate sinners, yet they want Him
freely to forgive those that fall again, without demanding any
satisfaction from them, otherwise, so they say, this would not be a
manifestation of His mercy.
Liberal Protestants in our times and Modernists assent to this
concept of redemption, as is evident from the Modernist propositions
condemned by Pius X, one of which reads: "The doctrine of the
sacrificial death of Christ is not evangelical, but originated with
St. Paul."[1849]
Scriptural proof. Sacred Scripture testifies that Christ redeemed
us by paying the price, namely, by shedding His blood. But this
means to satisfy in the strict sense and not merely metaphorically,
namely, by preaching, giving us advice and example, as the apostles
did. In the strict sense He died for us by paying the penalty that is
due for our sins. This is already evident from the above-quoted
scriptural texts[1850] concerning the mystery of redemption
considered in a general way. To these must be added the following
texts: "Behold the Lamb of God, behold Him who taketh away the
sin of the world."[1851] "Even as the Son of man is not come
to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give His life a
redemption for many."[1852] "This is My blood of the new
testament, which shall be shed for many unto remission of
sins."[1853] "For you are bought with a great price. Glorify
and bear God in your body."[1854] "You are bought with a
price; be not made the bond-slaves of men."[1855] "Knowing
that you were not redeemed with corruptible things as gold or
silver..., but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb
unspotted and undefiled."[1856] "He is the propitiation for
our sins, and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole
world."[1857] In a word, as St. Paul says: "Christ died
for our sins."[1858]
Proof from tradition. We have already given the testimony of the
Fathers, and the following patristic texts deserve special mention.
Thus St. John Chrysostom says: "Christ died indeed for all that
He might keep His promise to all in what concerns Him... for He
took away the sins of men and offered them to the Father... that He
might forgive them."[1859] St. Augustine says: "In the
remission of our sins the innocent blood of Christ was shed.... In
this redemption, Christ's blood is given for us as the price....
Christ undertook, though innocent, our punishment, that thereby He
might free us from guilt and also put an end to our
punishment."[1860]
Definitions of the Church. The councils have frequently declared
that Christ died so that the nature lost by Adam might be repaired by
Him;[1861] that He satisfied for the sins of the whole
world;[1862] that the satisfaction is infinite[1863] and
superabundant.[1864] Christ, by His death on the cross,
redeemed us from sins and reconciled us with the Father,[1865]
and this He did because of His love for the human race, and not
through fate.[1866] Hence He is the Redeemer, the Savior,
the Mediator between God and men.[1867]
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