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SuzanneG
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| Posted: March 16 2009 at 5:54pm | IP Logged
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Sooooooo, I have a friend from jr. high....cradle Catholic, altar server through college. My dad always thought he'd be a priest. He married a Lutheran, and a couple years into their marriage he stopped going to Mass, and basically became Lutheran. We talk a couple times a year......and have never had a direct conversation about why he left the Church.
I received this email from him today:
Quote:
| I am off on a tangent concerning justification. What do you have in the way of unique resources, i.e. people, books....discussing infused and imputed justification. |
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I have NO IDEA what he's talking about.   Plus, I have a feeling he's a bit "homesick" (Catholicism) from other random comments; I hate to say "I don't know" even though I DON'T! 
Any theologians or apologists out there want to direct me to some resources and/or other goodies?
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Suzanne in ID
Wife to Pete
Mom of 7 (Girls - 14, 12, 11, 9, 7 and Boys - 4, 1)
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Michaela
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| Posted: March 16 2009 at 6:11pm | IP Logged
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Suzanne,
I found this Infused vs. Imputed Justification.
HTH,
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Michaela
Momma to Nicholas 16, Nathan 13, Olivia 13, Teresa 6, & Anthony 3
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JodieLyn
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| Posted: March 16 2009 at 6:18pm | IP Logged
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here's one article
And now that I read enough to figure out what it is I've heard a good bit about this..
It's all about if Jesus actually makes us sinless or hmm and I believe it was Luther that described us as "snow covered dung heaps" that Jesus only covers us doesn't actually clean us.
I think I have a bit of info from Karl Keating's Catholicism and Fundamentalism (typos mine  )
Quote:
The Reformers saw justification as a mere legal act by which God declares the sinner to be meriting heaven even though he remains in fact unjust and sinful. It is not a real eradication of sin, but a covering or nonimputation. It is not an inner renewal and a real sanctification, only an external application of Christ's justice. The Catholic Church, not surpriseingly, understands justification differently. It sees it as a true eradication of sin and a true sanctification and renewal. Teh soul becomes objectively pleasing to God and so merits heaven. It merits heaven because now it is atually good. Scripture conceives of the forgiveness of sins as a real and complete removal of them. The words used are "blot out" (Ps 50:3), "clears away" (Ps 102:12, "blotting out" (Is 43:25), "takes away" (Jn 1:29). The few times the Bible mentions "covering" sins refer not to the forgiveness of sins by God, but to the forgiveness of one man's sins by another. Since we cannot actually forgive one another's sings (that is up to God), the best we can do is overlook them or "cover" them. Fundamentalism's noation that God "covers" our sins, but does not actually remove them, is an unfortunate misreading of the Bible that found its origin in Luther.
On the positive side, the Bible shows that justification is a rebirth. It is a generation of a supernatural life in a former sinner (Jn 3:5; Titus 3:5), a thorough inner renewal (Eph 4:23) and a real santification (1 Cor 6:11). The soul itself becomes beautiful and holy. It is not just an ugly soul hidden under a beautiful cloak. Because it is beautiful and holy, it can be admitted to heaven, where nothing unclean is allowed. |
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Jodie, wife to Dave
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MaryM
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| Posted: March 16 2009 at 9:57pm | IP Logged
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My go-to source, CUF, has a very good Faith Facts tract on justification. I like the analogies they use to explain the difference in understanding.
It uses Psalm 51 and shows how it clearly uses both legal and intrinsic terms to refer to justification. The Catholic teaching understands there is both a legal and intrinsic element. There are places where the Bible speaks of “covering” sin or “imputing” righteousness (both legal terms), but they must be read in the larger context that includes sins being washed away, taken away, removed, purified, sent away and remitted (all intrinsic terms).
Though it does not necessarily use the terms "imputed" and "infused" in the explanations or to make comparisons, the meanings are articulated in the Catechism of the Catholic Church section on justification. This is one paragraph from that:
1999 The grace of Christ is the gratuitous gift that God makes to us of his own life, infused by the Holy Spirit into our soul to heal it of sin and to sanctify it. It is the sanctifying or deifying grace received in Baptism. It is in us the source of the work of sanctification. (emphasis mine)
Catholic Encyclopedia has a comparison between Catholic and Protestant view of justification. I sometimes find the writing harder to follow, so not my favorite source having just tried to read/understand this. I know it's there though . I wouldn't necessarily refer him to that but it might be a helpful overview for you.
Jimmy Akin or Mark Shea are excellent resources for discussion of justification from the Catholic perspective and a look at the imputed/infused differences and who I would recommend for your friend. I'll look for specific resources to post.
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Mary M. in Denver
Our Domestic Church
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SuzanneG
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| Posted: March 17 2009 at 6:03pm | IP Logged
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Thank you SO MUCH! I thought it would be one of those things I'd have to bump in a week, and BEG FOR cuz no one would answer..... 
Y'all are AWESOME!
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Suzanne in ID
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Mom of 7 (Girls - 14, 12, 11, 9, 7 and Boys - 4, 1)
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4Real Forums : Domestic Church
Topic: Help! Imputed vs. Infused Justification
