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Letters Twenty-Fourth
Sunday in Ordinary Time |
The Catholic Telegraph
September 15, 2000The relationship between faith and good works has been an issue in the Church more than once. It was one of the main questions at the time of the Protestant revolt in the sixteenth century. It was the principal item of contention when St. Augustine opposed the Pelagians in the fifth century. There are those who say that the New Testament itself gives evidence of differences of approach to faith and works in apostolic times. They cite, for example, Ephesians 2.8-9 ("By grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you; it is the gift of God; it is not from works, so no one may boast.") against James 2.20-24 which concludes, "a person is justified by works and not by faith alone."
This Sunday’s reading is the classic exposition of one side of this question, but it also gives us the wherewithal to see how the issue is to be dealt with.
The author is quite clear about where he stands. Right from the beginning he says that faith without works is no good to anybody. It cannot save. Then we have another little drama in which the person of faith closes his heart to the person in need. What good is that kind of faith? If faith doesn’t result in good works, it’s lifeless and of no worth to the one who has it. Nor does it make any sense, the author says, to claim that faith and good works are divisible, and that some people have faith while others have works. The person without good works has no means to demonstrate his faith. It’s as good as non-existent. The person with good works, on the other hand, shows the existence of his faith by the works it produces.
It is not clear whether the author of James is trying to correct a Pauline teaching that had been taken out of context and misrepresented, as some scholars think. It is clear that both Paul and James held that there is no such thing as self-redemption. But in dealing with redemption, they emphasize different aspects and use terms in different ways. In the final analysis they both say more or less the same thing, and in the process offer us precious teaching.
For Paul and his followers, "good works" meant works of the Jewish law, things like circumcision and the observance of dietary restrictions. For James, "good works" meant works of mercy, things like taking care of the poor man we hear about in our reading.
When James talks about faith, he means the intellectual acceptance of certain truths. Just after the conclusion of our reading, he will speak about the demons who also "believe" the truth of God’s oneness, and adds that such belief, of itself, merely causes them to tremble. When Paul and his school talk about faith, they mean full commitment of one’s person to the Lord, the full gift of ourselves to God. Later theological development will call the first kind of faith fides quae (content faith) and the second kind fides qua (commitment faith). Obviously both kinds of faith have to be part of our relationship with God. It doesn’t make much sense just to commit ourselves to God if we don’t have any clear concepts about who and what God is and what God has done, nor does it make sense to give conceptual assent to everything the Church teaches if that assent is not accompanied by real personal dedication to Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Given these distinctions, it’s easier to understand the relationship between faith and good works. First of all, works of the Jewish law have been superseded by the redemptive life and death of Christ, and so they are no longer either required or efficacious for salvation. What is required is commitment to God and the acceptance of His gratuitous offer of salvation in Christ. Works of mercy, however, are natural consequences or outcomes of our dedication to God. If we love God, we will necessarily love our neighbor. If there are no works of love for our neighbor in us, it is clear that there is also no living faith. Believing the truth of what God has revealed is important, but it is only one aspect of the faith that God offers us. "Content faith" is necessary but not sufficient. In fact, it can be a lifeless ornament in our relationship with God if it does not result in works of love for our neighbor.
Good works are not the cause of God’s life in us (i.e., justification/salvation). But God’s life in us is the cause of good works. As James says later in chapter 2 (v. 22) when he is talking about the faith of Abraham, "Faith was active along with his works and faith was completed by the works."
All this is not just a matter of theological distinctions. It is a matter of knowing what’s real and important in our relationship with God. We need to have faith (both content faith and commitment faith). That faith is not earned or caused by our good works, but, if it is real, should result in works of love and mercy. There is no such thing as real faith without good works. There are no real good works that are unconnected with faith. Faith activates the works. Works complete the faith.
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Conversation Questions
What kind of faith do I have?
What is the source and purpose of my good works?
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