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Faith In The Middle Ages

Decent Essays

GRADING EXERCISE: Paper 4

The Middle Ages saw an increased reliance on faith and the church. Individuals were increasingly concerned with the devil, their sin, and where they would spend life after death. The Catholic Church was a large landowner causing their influence in law and taxation to increase. As the practices of the church grew to what he believed to be high corrupt, Martin Luther began advocating for reform in the Catholic Church. In response to Catholic Church teachings regarding indulgences, Luther advocates for reform by arguing for a salvation by faith alone and the place of good works in the lives of individuals. To understand this clearly, first I will explain Catholic teaching about sin and indulgences, then I will explain Luther's ideas about faith and works by examining his salvation by faith alone and the good works that come from it.
Gabriel Biel argues that humans, by their nature, have some aptitude for good. Human nature, for Biel, is possession of right reason. Human beings are good and can come to it naturally because human nature is relatively intact after the fall and can still know Good. This is a grace of creation which points to the fact that humanity doesn't need grace alone.
While humans have some aptitude for good, God's grace …show more content…

To address the issue, Luther examines the question of the reliance solely on faith to live life. By our nature, we are outward beings that interact with others. Because we aren't wholly inner and perfectly spiritual beings, we are called to these good works. This harkens back to Luther's earlier reference to 1 Corinthians 1:19, "'For though I am free from all men, I have made myself a slave to all,' and in Romans 13:8, 'Owe no one anything, except to love one another.'" Thus drawing on Paul, Luther says while we are free to do what we want, our faith also calls us to love and serve our neighbors. These beliefs draw works back into play in our faith

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