THE EFFICACY OF THE WORD

The Means of Grace

False Doctrines concerning the Means of Grace

Baptism

Holy Communion

The Sermon

Gregory L. Jackson

Member, Church of the Lutheran Confession

230 S. Brentwood Boulevard

Clayton, Missouri 63105

314-721-3349

I.The Means of Grace, General

Heart of the New Testament 5

Losing Sight of the Means of Grace 5

Luther and the Means of Grace 5

Do the Means of Grace Limit God? 5

Peculiar Glory of the Lutheran Church 6

Power to Work and Strengthen Faith 6

True Treasure 7

All Glory to God 7

God Asked No One's Advice 8

Means of Grace and Victory 9

Word Not a Lifeless Instrument 9

Justification and the Means of Grace 10

Anything Else - Of the Devil 10

Law Not a Means of Grace 10

Opinio Legis 10

Practical Need of Christians 10

II.False Doctrines about the Means of Grace

A. Rome

Rome and Infant Baptism 11

Rome and Limbo 12

Gratia Infusa 12

Papistic Media Gratiae 13

Catholic Church Existed before Bible 13

The Papal Mass

Transubstantiation 13

Mass Theatrics 14

Perversions of the Mass 14

Mass for the Dead 14

Mass as Sacrifice 14

Mass as Sacrifice Condemned 16

Mass and Purgatory 17

The Effective Mass 18

Augustine and Purgatory Help 19

Vatican II and Purgatory 20

Council of Trent and Purgatory 20

Comforting Thoughts of Purgatory 20

Money for Masses 20

Mary as Co-Redeemer 21

B. Enthusiasm

Means of Grace 21

Revivalism and Enthusiasm 22

C. Calvin and Zwingli

Reformed Rationalism 23

Young Calvinist, Old Unitarian 23

Rejection of the Sacraments 23

Denial of Real Presence 24

Rejection Condemned 24

No Means of Grace for Calvinists 24

Calvin Confused about Gospel 25

Word Separate from Spirit 25

Sacraments 26

Calvin and the Means of Grace 27

Calvin and Baptism 27

Calvin Piously Denies Real Presence 28

Calvin and Zwingli 28

Nine Lies to Defend One Lie 29

Zwingli: Bold and Vulgar 29

The Reformed

Reformed Preaching 30

Reformed Not Consistent 31

Contempt for Means of Grace 32

Spiritual Pride 32

Prayer Not a Means of Grace 32

Reformed and the Means of Grace 33

Reformed on Warpath against Means of Grace 33

Self-Deception 33

Karl Barth 34

Hodge and Means of Grace 34

Synergists 34

Heretics' Enmity 34

Indifferentism Out of Place 34

Separate Visible and Invisible Church 35

Weakened Confessionalism 35

Reformed Errors Filtered through Pietism 36

Not Means of Grace but Inward State 36

Pietist True Church, the Conventicle 37

No Need for Divine Means 37

Pietists Avoid Doctrinal Issues 37

III.Baptism

The Anabaptists

Grace in Baptism 38

Anabaptists Condemned 38

Contempt for Baptism 38

But No Children? 38

Baptism Not Useless 38

The Power of Baptism 39

Infant Baptism 40

Baptism Belongs to God 42

IV.Holy Communion

Closed Communion 43

Communion as Medicine 43

Chrysostom 43

Ignatius 44

The Moment and the Synodical Conference 44

God's Honor and Real Presence 44

V.The Sermon

God's Will and the Sermon 44

The Lutheran Sermon 45

Diligent to Hear 45

Real Church Growth 45

God Wills the Word to be Effective 46

Do Not Question Work of Holy Spirit 46

Most Important Act 46

Christ Assures Us: the Word is Effective 46

Efficacy of Judgment 47

Baier: Power of Word 47

Hollazius: Qualities of Word 48

Hulsem: Holy Spirit Never Absent from Word 49

Quensted: Unity of Energy and Operation 50

I. The Means of Grace, General

Heart of the New Testament

"The genuine sacraments, therefore, are Baptism, the Lord's Supper,

and absolution (which is the sacrament of penitence), for these

rites have the commandment of God and the promise of grace, which

is the heart of the New Testament."

Apology of the Augsburg Confession, Article XIII, Number/Use

Sacraments, The Book of Concord, ed., Theodore G. Tappert,

Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1983, p. 211.

Losing Sight of the Means of Grace

"To remain properly humble while firmly rejecting all erroneous

teachings regarding the means of grace, we should remind ourselves

how even Christians who teach and, as a rule, also believe, the

correct doctrine of the means of grace, in their personal practice

very often lose sight of the means of grace. This is done whenever

they base the certainty of grace, or of the forgiveness of sin, on

their feeling of grace or the gratia infusa, instead of on God's

promise in the objective means of grace. All of us are by nature

'enthusiasts.'"

Francis Pieper,

Christian Dogmatics, 3 vol.,

trans., Walter W. F. Albrecht, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing

House, 1953, III, p. 131.

Luther and the Means of Grace

"No other human writer has so forcefully as Luther set forth the

nature of the divinely ordained means of grace, their importance

for faith and life, and the destructive effect of severing grace

from the means of grace. For Luther was trained in the school of

the terrors of conscience for the work of reforming the Church,

while Zwingli's reformation and theology sprang largely from the

soil of Humanism and bears a speculative stamp throughout.

Calvinistic theology from Calvin down to our day teaches not so

much the God who has revealed and given Himself to us in His Word,

but at the critical points substitutes speculations regarding the

absolute God for what the divine Word teaches."

Francis Pieper,

Christian Dogmatics, 3 vol., trans., Walter W. F. Albrecht,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1953, III, p. 137f.

Do the Means of Grace Limit God?

"Scripture binds all knowledge of Christian truth to the Word of

Christ, who says: ean humeis meinete ev tw logw tw emw...gnwsesthe

ten aletheian (John 8:31-32). Faith and regeneration is effected

by the Holy Ghost through the Word (1 Corinthians 2:4-5; 1 Peter

1:23). The Spirit is received through the hearing of faith

(Galatians 3:2, 5). The Word of the Cross (ho logos ho tou

staurou) is the power of God to those who are saved (1 Corinthians

1:18). Hence actually everything that is regarded as brought about

by the Holy Ghost without the Word is factious, 'illusory,'

'self-produced.' The experience one has, or imagines, without the

means of grace is not the product of the Holy Ghost, but is

'man-made.'"

Francis Pieper,

Christian Dogmatics, 3 vol., trans., Walter W. F. Albrecht,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1953, III, p. 136.

"Is it not a limitation of God's sovereignty and power to affirm

that these acts are accomplished only through means? Theology does

not deal with divine possibilities, but with what God has revealed

concerning Himself and His various forms of activity. Not only

have we no promise of His intervention otherwise, but He constantly

turns us away from any expectation of such aid to the simple means,

in and through which He promises to be always found with His entire

efficacy."

Henry Eyster Jacobs,

A Summary of the Christian Faith, Philadelphia: General Council

Publication House, 1913, p. 265.

"But in extraordinary cases, does He not dispense with means?

Even there, means are employed; but in an extraordinary way. At

Pentecost the multitudes were converted through the Word, although

this Word was given under extraordinary conditions and

circumstances, just as the multitudes in the wilderness were

sustained not without bread, but with bread furnished in an

extraordinary manner."

Henry Eyster Jacobs,

A Summary of the Christian Faith, Philadelphia: General Council

Publication House, 1913, p. 266.

Peculiar Glory of the Lutheran Church

"The doctrine of the means of grace is a peculiar glory of Lutheran

theology. To this central teaching it owes its sanity and strong

appeal, its freedom from sectarian tendencies and morbid

fanaticism, its coherence and practicalness, and its adaptation to

men of every race and every degree of culture. The Lutheran

Confessions bring out with great clearness the thought of

the Reformers upon this subject."

"Grace, Means of,"

The Concordia Cyclopedia, L. Fuerbringer, Th. Engelder, P. E.

Kretzmann, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1927,

p. 299.

Power to Work and Strengthen Faith

"We saw before that Scripture ascribes the forgiveness of sins

without reservation to the Word of the Gospel, to Baptism, and to

the Lord's Supper. Therefore all means of grace have the vis

effectiva, the power to work and to strengthen faith." [Note:

Augsburg Confession, V, XIII]

Francis Pieper,

Christian Dogmatics, 3 vol., trans., Walter W. F. Albrecht,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1953, III, p. 108f.

True Treasure

"These means are the true treasure of the church through which

salvation in Christ is offered. They are the objective

proclamation of faith which alone makes man's subjective faith

possible (Augsburg Confession, Article V). The Formula of Concord

(Solid Declaration, Article XI, 76) states expressly that God

alone draws man to Christ and that he does this only through the

means of grace."

Walter G. Tillmanns, "Means of Grace: Use of,"

The Encyclopedia of the Lutheran Church, 3 vol., Julius Bodensieck,

Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1965, II, p. 1505.

"God bestows His saving grace 'only through the Word and with the

external and preceding Word' (nisi per verbum et cum verbo externo

et praecedente, SA-III VIII, 3; Jn 8:31-32; Ro 10:14-17).

Therefore the Bible inculcates faithful adherence to the Gospel and

the Sacraments administered according to Christ's institution (Mt

28:19-20; Jn 8:31-32; Acts 17:11; Titus 1:9). Because of the

strong emphasis on the Word in the Lutheran Confessions,

Holy Scripture has rightly been called the Formal Principle of the

Reformation."

John T. Mueller, "Grace, Means of,"

Lutheran Cyclopedia, Erwin L. Lueker, St. Louis: Concordia

Publishing House, 1975, p. 343. John 8:31; Rom 10:14

"The Holy Spirit works through the Word and the Sacraments, which

only, in the proper sense, are means of grace. Both the Word and

the Sacraments bring a positive grace, which is offered to all who

receive them outwardly, and which is actually imparted to all who

have faith to embrace it."

Charles P. Krauth,

The Conservative Reformation and Its Theology, Philadelphia: The

United Lutheran Publication House, 1871, p. 127.

All Glory to God

"In its teaching on the immutability, unchangeableness, and

permanency of the means of grace, the Lutheran Church gives all

glory to God alone because it teaches that no one, not even a

minister of the Word, can change the means of grace from that which

God instituted."

Edwin E. Pieplow, "The Means of Grace,"

The Abiding Word, ed., Theodore Laetsch, St. Louis: Concordia

Publishing House, 1946, II, p. 333.

"It is God alone who may speak the word of pardon, who can produce

faith, but it is God who is speaking in the Gospel and the

Sacraments (Luke 24:47: 'in His name') and creating faith through

them (Acts 16:14--Lydia; James 1:18; I Thessalonians 2:13). The

word of the Gospel is therefore not a dead letter, nor are the

Sacraments empty symbols, but they are the power of God. The power

of God is inseparably connected with, is inherent in, the means of

grace."

Edwin E. Pieplow, "The Means of Grace,"

The Abiding Word, ed., Theodore Laetsch, St. Louis: Concordia

Publishing House, 1946, II, p. 335. Luke 24:47; Acts 16

Holiness of Church

"The church is recognized, not by external peace but by the Word

and the Sacraments. For wherever you see a small group that has

the true Word and the Sacraments, there the church is if only the

pulpit and the baptismal font are pure. The church does not stand

on the holiness of any one person but solely on the holiness and

righteousness of the Lord Christ, for He has sanctified her by

Word and Sacrament."

Martin Luther,

What Luther Says, An Anthology, 3 vols.,

ed., Ewald Plass, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House,

1959, I, p. 263. Matthew 24:4-7

"From this it follows that they act foolishly, yea, against God's

order and institution, who despise and reject the external Word,

thinking that the Holy Spirit and faith should come to them without

means. It will indeed be a long time before that happens."

Martin Luther,

What Luther Says, An Anthology, 3 vols., ed., Ewald Plass,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1959, II, p. 915.

Foul Errors

"For we can definitely assert that where the Lord's Supper,

Baptism, and the Word are found, Christ, the remission of sins, and

life eternal are found. On the other hand, where these signs of

grace are not found, or where they are despised by men, not only

grace is lacking but also foul errors will follow. Then men will

set up other forms of worship and other signs for themselves."

Martin Luther,

What Luther Says, An Anthology, 3 vols., ed., Ewald Plass,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1959, II, p. 914.

Genesis 4:3

God Asked No One's Advice

"In reconciling the world unto Himself by Christ's substitutionary

satisfaction, God asked no one's advice concerning His singular

method of reconciliation. In like manner, without asking any man's

advice, He ordained the means by which He gives men the infallible

assurance of His gracious will toward them; in other words, He both

confers on men the remission of sins merited by Christ and works

faith in the proffered remission or, where faith already exists,

strengthens it. The Church has appropriately called these

divine ordinances the means of grace, media gratiae, instrumenta

gratiae; Formula of Concord: 'Instrumenta sive media Spiritus

Sancti' (Triglotta, p. 903, Solid Declaration, II, 58). They are

the Word of the Gospel, Baptism, and the Lord's Supper, as will be

shown more fully on the following pages."

Francis Pieper,

Christian Dogmatics, 3 vol., trans., Walter W. F. Albrecht,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1953, III, p. 103.

"It is also taught among us that man possesses some measure of

freedom of the will which enables him to live an outwardly

honorable life and to make choices among the things that reason

comprehends. But without the grace, help, and activity of the Holy

Spirit man is not capable of making himself acceptable to God, of

fearing God and believing in God with his whole heart, or of

expelling inborn evil lusts from his heart. This is accomplished

by the Holy Spirit, who is given through the Word of God, for Paul

says in 1 Corinthians 2:14, 'Natural man does not receive the gifts

of the Spirit of God.'" [cites Augustine, Hypognosticon contra

Palaginos]

Augsburg Confession, Article XVIII, Freedom of the Will,

The Book of Concord, ed., Theodore G. Tappert, Philadelphia:

Fortress Press, 1983, p. 39. German trans. 1 Corinthians 2:14

Means of Grace and Victory

"Wherever the means of grace are present, there the Lord Himself is

present, and where the Lord rules there is victory. The true

doctrine of justification is intimately bound up with the true

doctrine of the means of grace. In order to keep the doctrine of

justification in all its purity, one must ever maintain that the

forgiveness of sins which Christ earned for mankind can never be

appropriated by man through any other means than the Word and the

Sacrament. Therefore, Walther said, the correct doctrine on

justification stands or falls with the correct doctrine concerning

the means of grace."

Edwin E. Pieplow, "The Means of Grace," The Abiding Word,

ed., Theodore Laetsch, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House,

1946, II, p. 327. "peculiar glory" passage follows. See Conc Cyc.

Word Not a Lifeless Instrument

"We are not, then, in any way to represent to ourselves the

relation of the Word and the Spirit as though the Word were merely

the lifeless instrument which the Holy Ghost employed, or as

thought the Spirit, when he wished to operate through the Word,

must always first unite himself with it, as if he were

ordinarily separated from it."

Heinrich Schmid,

The Doctrinal Theology of the Ev. Luth. Church, Charles A. Hay,

Henry E. Jacobs, Philadelphia: Lutheran Publication Society,

1889, p. 505.

Justification and the Means of Grace

"The starting point in presenting the doctrine of the means of

grace must be the universal objective reconciliation or

justification. This is the procedure of Scripture."

Francis Pieper,

Christian Dogmatics, 3 vol., trans., Walter W. F. Albrecht,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1953, III, p. 105.

"For Scripture never calls either Baptism or the Lord's Supper

mysteries or sacraments. Therefore this is an unwritten (agraphos)

appellation."

Martin Chemnitz,

Examination of the Council of Trent, trans., Fred Kramer, St.

Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1986, II, p. 29.

Anything Else - Of the Devil

"Accordingly, we should and must constantly maintain that God will

not deal with us except through his external Word and sacrament.

Whatever is attributed to the Spirit apart from such Word and

sacrament is of the devil."

Smalcald Articles, Part III, Article VIII, Confession,

The Book of Concord, ed., Theodore G. Tappert,

Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1983, p. 313.

Law Not a Means of Grace

"The Law of God, which is also contained in Scripture, must be

excluded from the concept 'means of grace,' because the Law does

not assure those who have transgressed it--and all men have

transgressed it--of the remission of their sins, or God's grace,

but on the contrary proclaims God's wrath and condemnation. For

this reason the Law is expressly called...'the ministry of

condemnation,' whereas the Gospel is...'the ministry of

righteousness' (2 Cor. 3:9)."

Francis Pieper,

Christian Dogmatics, 3 vol., trans., Walter W. F. Albrecht,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1953, III, p. 105.

2 Corinthians 3:9

Opinio Legis

"Native to us is the opinio legis, the religion of the Law. When

we observe virtue in ourselves, we regard God as gracious. When we

discover sin in us and our conscience condemns us because of it, we

fear that God is minded to reject us."

Francis Pieper,

Christian Dogmatics, 3 vol., trans., Walter W. F. Albrecht,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1953, III, p. 131.

Practical Need of Christians

"Also the objection that there is no need of offering and

confirming to Christians one and the same forgiveness of sins in

several ways betrays an astonishing ignorance. Both Scripture and

experience teach that men who feel the weight of their sins find

nothing harder to believe than the forgiveness of their sins.

Hence repetition of the assurance of the forgiveness of sins in

various ways through the means of grace meets a practical need of

Christians."

Francis Pieper,

Christian Dogmatics, 3 vol., trans., Walter W. F. Albrecht, St.

Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1953, III, p. 114.

Holiness of Church

"The church is recognized, not by external peace but by the Word

and the Sacraments. For wherever you see a small group that has

the true Word and the Sacraments, there the church is if only the

pulpit and the baptismal font are pure. The church does not stand

on the holiness of any one person but solely on the holiness and

righteousness of the Lord Christ, for He has sanctified her by

Word and Sacrament."

Martin Luther,

What Luther Says, An Anthology, 3 vols.,

ed., Ewald Plass, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House,

1959, I, p. 263. Matthew 24:4-7

"From this it follows that they act foolishly, yea, against God's

order and institution, who despise and reject the external Word,

thinking that the Holy Spirit and faith should come to them without

means. It will indeed be a long time before that happens."

Martin Luther,

What Luther Says, An Anthology, 3 vols., ed., Ewald Plass,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1959, II, p. 915.

Foul Errors

"For we can definitely assert that where the Lord's Supper,

Baptism, and the Word are found, Christ, the remission of sins, and

life eternal are found. On the other hand, where these signs of

grace are not found, or where they are despised by men, not only

grace is lacking but also foul errors will follow. Then men will

set up other forms of worship and other signs for themselves."

Martin Luther,

What Luther Says, An Anthology, 3 vols., ed., Ewald Plass,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1959, II, p. 914.

Genesis 4:3

II. False Doctrines about the Means of Grace

A. Rome

Rome and Infant Baptism

"Catholic teaching stresses that the faith of the Church supplies

for the child until it is able to make an act of faith on its own."

Kenneth Baker, S.J.,

Fundamentals of Catholicism, 3 vols.,

San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1982, I, p. 112.

"When we say that we acknowledge one Baptism we are giving

affirmation to the infallible teaching of the Church that valid

Baptism imprints on the soul of the recipient an indelible

spiritual mark--called the baptismal 'character'--and

thus cannot be repeated...Thus, Christians validly baptized in an

Orthodox or Protestant church, when they convert to Catholicism,

are not to be rebaptized."

Kenneth Baker, S.J.,

Fundamentals of Catholicism, 3 vols., San Francisco: Ignatius

Press, 1982, I, p. 112.

Rome and Limbo

"Limbo is defined as 'the place or state of infants dying without

the Sacrament of Baptism who suffer the pain of loss but not the

pain of sense.' It may come to you as a surprise to learn that the

Church does not affirm the existence of limbo. Its existence is a

postulate of theologians. The last time limbo was mentioned in a

papal document was by Pius VI in 1794. In that bull he did not

teach the existence of limbo, but rejected the arguments of the

Jansenists against it."

Kenneth Baker, S.J.,

Fundamentals of Catholicism, 3 vols., San Francisco: Ignatius

Press, 1982, II, p. 173.

"The question of limbo is still an unsettled question in Catholic

theology. The Church does not officially endorse the existence of

limbo."

Kenneth Baker, S.J.,

Fundamentals of Catholicism, 3 vols., San Francisco: Ignatius

Press, 1982, II, p. 174.

Gratia Infusa

"But Rome would have us believe that the grace won by Christ moves

God to infuse into man so much grace (gratia infusa), that is,

sanctification and good works--and this, let it be noted, with

man's constant co-operation (Trent, Session VI, canon 4) that he is

enabled truly to merit (vere mereri, Trent, Session VI, canon 32)

justification and salvation, either de congruo (according to

fairness or liberality) or de condigno (by actual merit).

According to Rome, Christ has merited only enough grace to enable

men to merit salvation for themselves."

Francis Pieper,

Christian Dogmatics, 3 vol., trans., Walter W. F. Albrecht,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1953, III, p. 117.

"In other words, according to Roman Catholic doctrine, Christ has

secured for sinners so much grace that they, by divine gracious

assistance (infusion of divine powers), can earn salvation

themselves."

Edwin E. Pieplow, "The Means of Grace," The Abiding Word,

ed., Theodore Laetsch, St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House,

1946, II, p. 336.

Papistic Media Gratiae

"Therefore the media gratiae in the papistic sense are not means

through which God offers to faith the complete forgiveness of sins

and the salvation merited by Christ, and through that offer also

works faith in man or strengthens the faith already present, but

they are means to incite and aid him to such virtuous endeavors,

under Roman direction, as can gradually and in constantly

increasing measure (Trent, Session VI, chapter 16, canon 32) win

God's grace for him."

Francis Pieper,

Christian Dogmatics, 3 vol., trans., Walter W. F. Albrecht,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1953, III, p. 117.

Catholic Church Existed before Bible

"The Catholic Church existed before the Bible; it is possible for

the Catholic Church to exist without the Bible, for the Catholic

Church is altogether independent of the Bible. The Bible does not

give any systematic, complete, and exhaustive treatment of the

doctrine of Christ. In many respects it is, like a stenographer's

notebook, partial and fragmentary, to be supplemented later on in

more elaborate detail by other agencies. Christ never wrote a word

of the Bible. One might naturally expect Him to have set the

example by writing at least some portions of the Bible as if He

intended His followers to take their entire religion from it."

(Thomas F. Coakley, Inside Facts about the Catholic Church,

Catholic Truth Society, p. 21f.

Edwin E. Pieplow, "The Means of Grace,"

The Abiding Word, ed., Theodore Laetsch, St. Louis: Concordia

Publishing House, 1946, II, p. 338.

Ex opere operato

"They [our opponents, the Romanists] imagine that the sacraments

bestow the Holy Spirit ex opere operato without the proper attitude

in the recipient, as though the gift of the Holy Spirit were a

minor matter."

Augsburg Confession, Article IV, Justification,

The Book of Concord, ed., Theodore G. Tappert,

Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1983, p. 115.

The Papal Mass

Transubstantiation

"Transubstantiation is also one of the pillars that support the

papalist kingdom...Rather, it is that they may retain and establish

the sacrifice of the Mass, reservation, carrying about, adoration

of the bread, and all the things which, outside of the divinely

instituted use, have been joined to these things--for this reason

they fight so persistently about transubstantiation."

Martin Chemnitz,

Examination of the Council of Trent, trans., Fred Kramer,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1986, II, p. 253.

Mass Theatrics

"They imagine that by means of these actions, motions, gestures,

and ceremonies, with certain words added about sacrifice, oblation,

and victim, they are sacrificing and offering the body and blood of

Christ, yes, Christ, the Son of God Himself, anew to God the Father

through such a theatrical representation (which is either a comedy

or a tragedy) of Christ's passion."

Martin Chemnitz,

Examination of the Council of Trent, trans., Fred Kramer,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1986, II, p. 446.

Perversions of the Mass

"That it lacks true, firm, and solid grounds in Scripture is,

however, not the only thing we criticize in the papalist Mass; what

we complain about most of all is that it is an abomination,

conflicting with the doctrine of the Word, the sacraments, and

faith--yes, that it is full of abuse against the unique sacrifice

of Christ and against His perpetual priesthood, as this has

been demonstrated at length by the men on our side in fair and

honest writings."

Martin Chemnitz,

Examination of the Council of Trent, trans., Fred Kramer,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1986, II, p. 493.

Mass for the Dead

"In addition there is this perversion, that whereas Christ

instituted the use of His Supper for all who receive it, who take,

eat, and drink, the papalist Mass transfers the use and benefit of

the celebration of the Lord's Supper in our time to the onlookers,

who do not communicate, yes, to those who are absent, and even to

the dead."

Martin Chemnitz,

Examination of the Council of Trent, trans., Fred Kramer,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1986, II, p. 498.

"If anyone says that the canon of the Mass contains errors and

should therefore be abrogated, let him be anathema." [Chapter IV,

Canon VI] Chemnitz: "The power, yes, the substance and as it were

the soul of the papalist sacrifice is the canon of the Mass.

Therefore they labor much more for its retention than about the

canon of Scripture itself, which they are not afraid to corrupt by

mixing in other, noncanonical books."

Martin Chemnitz,

Examination of the Council of Trent, trans., Fred Kramer,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1986, II, p. 508.

Mass as Sacrifice

"And since in this divine sacrifice, which is accomplished in the

Mass, that same Christ is contained and bloodlessly sacrificed who

once, on the altar of the cross, offered Himself a bloody

sacrifice, the holy synod teaches that this sacrifice is truly

propitiatory and that through it comes to pass that, if we approach

God with a true heart and right faith, with fear and reverence,

contrite and penitent, we obtain mercy and find grace in timely

help." [Sixth Session, Chapter II]

Martin Chemnitz,

Examination of the Council of Trent, trans., Fred Kramer,

St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1986, II, p. 440.

"The Mass is a re-presentation now, in an unbloody manner, of the

bloody sacrifice of the Cross over nineteen hundred years ago.

Since it is a re-offering of Jesus on Calvary, the Mass is rightly

referred to as 'the holy Sacrifice of the Mass,' although we do not

hear this expression much today."

Kenneth Baker, S.J.,

Fundamentals of Catholicism, 3 vols., San Francisco: Ignatius

Press, 1982, I, p. 142f.

"As often as the sacrifice of the cross in which 'Christ, our

passover, has been sacrificed' (1 Cor. 5:7) is celebrated on an

altar, the work of our redemption is carried on."

Lumen Gentium, Dogmatic Constitution of the Church, I, 3,