A Learned Discourse on Justification (Library of Early English Protestantism)
Digital Logos Edition
Overview
The defining doctrine of Protestantism is justification by faith alone—what Martin Luther called “the article by which the church stands or falls.” But does this mean that it is also the article by which salvation stands or falls? Are Roman Catholics heretics for rejecting that doctrine?
In this classic treatise, the great English theologian Richard Hooker tackles this question head-on, seeking to head off two opposite errors: insisting so rigidly on a right articulation of the doctrine that we neglect Christ himself, or minimizing differences over justification as unimportant. In the process, Hooker also offers an excellent blueprint for how to interpret and navigate doctrinal disagreement within the church on any issue.
Centuries on, this remains one of the classic statements of Reformational soteriology, presenting a clear account of what Protestants do and do not believe about the doctrine of justification, along with a careful summary of what their Catholic opponents held. Readers seeking a helmsman who can faithfully guide them through the fog that so often bedevils this crucial conversation need no further.
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- Offers a blueprint for how to interpret and navigate doctrinal disagreement within the church
- Presents a clear account of what Protestants do and do not believe about the doctrine of justification
- Provides a careful summary of what Catholics uphold regarding justification by faith
- The Real Disagreement Between Rome and Protestants
- Could Our Fathers Be Saved?
- What is the Foundation of Faith?
- Can the Elect Deny the Foundation of Faith?
- Does Rome Directly Deny the Foundation of Faith?
As an evangelical theologian who teaches and writes on Roman Catholic theology and practice, I get many questions from evangelicals about their Catholic family members and friends: Are Catholics Christians? Isn’t Roman Catholicism a works-based religion? If Roman Catholicism has an improper understanding of the doctrine of justification—‘not only the remission of sins but also the sanctification and renewal of the interior person’—can Catholics be justified, declared not guilty but righteous instead? This new, highly readable production of Richard Hooker’s book on justification helps us answer those questions in ways that may be surprising!
Dr. Gregg R. Allison, Professor of Christian Theology at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary; Secretary of the Evangelical Theological Society; author of Roman Catholic Theology and Practice: An Evangelical Assessment (with Chris Castaldo) and The Unfinished Reformation: What Unites and Divides Catholics and Protestants after 500 Years
Happy, secure Protestants recognize that we won’t do ourselves, or our spiritual progeny, long-term good by caricaturing Catholicism. There are problems, yes. Significant problems. The Reformation is not over. Good fences remain. And we will do better to love across such boundaries in the name of Jesus than to pretend they don’t matter. But there’s no virtue in distorting truth by exaggerating errors, or losing our capacity to give a holy benefit of the doubt. If we Protestants love the truth, and not just our tradition (ironically), we might give Hooker the hearing he deserves—and help keep young Protestants from future surprises.
David Mathis, Senior Teacher and Executive Editor at desiringGod.org; Pastor at Cities Church, Saint Paul, MN; author of Habits of Grace
Brad Littlejohn and his associates have once again provided an accessible yet loyal version of a work of Richard Hooker that should still be known and valued, and that in a theological world wider than Anglicanism. In this extended and ‘learned’ sermon, Hooker shows that a clear loyalty to the Protestant principle of justification by faith does not necessarily deny salvation to those who erroneously deny the principle. We can and should carefully and accurately assert what we understand to be basic Christian theology and yet understand that those who disagree are not thereby cut off from the salvation that is the essence of the Christian Gospel. And we can delight in the learned rhetorical expression of this unity in diversity.
Rev. Canon W. David Neelands, Dean Emeritus of Divinity at Trinity College, University of Toronto.
- Title: A Learned Discourse on Justification
- Author: Richard Hooker
- Series: Library of Early English Protestantism
- Publisher: The Davenant Institute
- Print Publication Date: 2022
- Pages: 122
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Logos Reader Edition
- ISBNs: 9781949716108, 1949716104
- Resource ID: LLS:LRNDDSCRJSTFCTN
- Resource Type: Monograph
- Metadata Last Updated: 2024-09-11T22:16:27Z