2. REFUTATION OF THE SOLA FIDES THEORY.—The Lutheran theory involves an open rupture with the traditional teaching of the Church and is positively unscriptural. Luther himself felt this, as appears from his interpolation of the word “alone” in Rom. III, 28 and his rejection of the entire canonical Epistle of St. James.(815)
a) The teaching of the Bible in regard to the rôle played by good works in the process of justification may be summarized as follows:
(1) A man may believe all that the Church teaches and yet be lost for want of good works or because he has not the love of God; consequently, faith alone does not justify or insure eternal salvation. Our Divine Saviour Himself declares: “Not every one that saith to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven, he shall enter into the kingdom of heaven.”(816) St. James says: “Do you not see that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only?”(817) And St. Paul: “If I should have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.”(818)
(2) Besides faith, justification requires certain other preparatory or dispositive acts. There is, for example, the fear of divine justice. Cfr. Ecclus. I, 28: “He that is without fear cannot be justified.”(819) Also, hope in God’s mercy. Cfr. Rom. VIII, 24: “For we are saved by hope.”(820) Again, charity. Cfr. Luke VII, 47: “Many sins are forgiven her because she hath loved much.”(821) Furthermore, contrition or penitence. Cfr. Luke XIII, 3: “Unless you shall do penance, you shall all likewise perish.”(822) Finally, good works in general. Cfr. St. James II, 17: “So faith also, if it have not works, is dead in itself.”(823) No one who ponders these and similar texts can maintain, as Calvin and Melanchthon did, that the good works mentioned merely accompany justification, for they are unmistakably described as causes which dispose and prepare the sinner for it.
(3) It is not faith alone that justifies, but faith informed and actuated by charity. Cfr. Gal. V, 6: “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision: but faith that worketh by charity.”(824) The Greek text shows that the word _operatur_ in the Vulgate must be taken passively, so that a more correct translation would be: “... but faith effected or formed by charity.” But even if ἐνεργουμένη were used as a deponent (ἐνεργεῖσθαι=_agere_, _operari_) the meaning would be substantially the same, _i.e._ a dead faith, without charity, avails nothing. Cfr. St. James II, 26: “For even as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead.”(825)