THE TREASURY OF MERIT

In the teaching of the Catholic Church, there is a sort of spiritual “bank” called the Treasury of Merit.  In it are the merits (good works, righteousness) of Christ and of Mary and of the “saints.”  These merits are obtained through something called indulgences, which can only be granted through the authority of the pope (CCC 1478), and are offered to man so that all who partake of them might be “set free from sin and attain communion with the Father.” 

In other words, the Treasury of Merit exists to help people by applying its contents toward their salvation, i.e., to pay for their sins.

The Catechism

The Catechism of the Catholic Church says:

“We also call these spiritual goods of the communion of saints ‘the Church’s treasury’, which is not the sum total of the material goods which have accumulated during the course of the centuries.  On the contrary the ‘treasury of the Church’ is the infinite value, which can never be exhausted, which Christ’s merits have before God.  They were offered so that the whole of mankind could be set free from sin and attain communion with the Father.  In Christ, the Redeemer himself, the satisfactions and merits of his Redemption exist and find their efficacy.” (CCC 1476)

Furthermore, it says:

“This treasury includes, as well, the prayers and good works of the Blessed Virgin Mary.  They are truly immense, unfathomable, and even pristine in their value before God.  In the treasury, too, are the prayers and good works of all the saints, all those who have followed in the footsteps of Christ the Lord… In this way they attained their own salvation and at the same time cooperated in saving their brothers in the unity of the Mystical Body.” (CCC 1477)

The New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia

First of all, is this an authoritative teaching of the Catholic Church?  Indeed, according to the New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia, the Treasury of Merit is a dogmatic teaching, and therefore, an “infallible” doctrine of the Catholic Church.  See here:

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07783a.htm

This same link admits that Christ’s satisfaction / payment for sins is “infinite”:

“Since the satisfaction of Christ is infinite, it constitutes an inexhaustible fund which is more than sufficient to cover the indebtedness contracted by sin.”

Yet, the Catholic Church adds the “merits” of Mary and the “saints” to this treasury, as well.  But if Christ’s merits are infinite, why add the merits of anyone else?  If they are adding anything, they must not really believe that His merits are “more than sufficient,” after all.  So, is there something lacking in the work of the Savior on the cross so that the merits of others must be added?  It would seem so in the Catholic system of salvation.

Nowhere does Scripture describe or even imply a “treasury” in which human merit is mixed with the merit of Jesus Christ to bring about justification / salvation.  The Catholic Treasury of Merit offers a false hope.  Salvation cannot be purchased with money, human merit, or good works.  It comes only from a surrender to Jesus Christ and trusting in His work on the cross, which results in a changed heart.

The Great Insult

Imagine that you owed someone a hundred million dollars (in other words, an impossible debt).  But a generous billionaire felt sorry for you and offered to fully pay that debt for you.  But let’s say that you wanted to “chip in” and you added five cents to the billionaire’s payment, then you went around bragging to your friends that you “participated” in paying your incredibly enormous debt.  But this would be an awful insult to the billionaire, whose ample wealth more than covered your debt, and he (not you) had every reason to boast (Ephesians 2:8-9).

It is the same thing with salvation.  Trying to add human merits (even from the “saints” or from Mary) to the perfect and completely sufficient merit of Jesus’ work on the cross is an incredible insult to God.  It would be poisoning the pure and infinite well of salvation that Jesus provided.

No Mixture Allowed

If anyone appears before God on Judgment Day with the hope of such mixed merit, he will be rejected!  Only the pure merit of Jesus Christ will be sufficient to allow us to enter glory, and He needed no help from anyone to do it.

If you attempt to add anything (any work, any merit) to the cross, you bring upon yourself the curse of the Judaizers (Acts 15:1, 5; Galatians 1:8-9).  See this link:

https://theresurrectionstillspeaks.blogspot.com/2014/10/the-curse-of-judaizers.html

A Catholic Objection

But the Catholic may say, “But there are two types of punishments for sins:  One is eternal punishment (which has to do with the guilt of sin – CCC 1472, 1473).  In this case, a person is forgiven the guilt, yet still requires work, effort, or suffering by the sinner.  That is, he is still required to satisfy some temporal punishment (CCC 1471, 1472, and 1473), which is satisfied either by suffering and / or good deeds done here in this life, or suffering in Purgatory.  This Treasury of Merit is to provide remission (forgiveness) only for the temporal punishments for sin.”

But isn’t this Treasury supposed to contain Christ’s merits?  And isn’t His merit “inexhaustible” and “more than sufficient to cover the indebtedness contracted by sin”?  So why would this “treasury” not be enough to take care of ALL punishment for sin, both temporal and eternal?

 

Again, the following are the phrases that the Catholic Church itself uses in describing the contents of the Treasury of Merit:  Its merits supposedly “set [a person] free from sin,” they “attain communion with the Father,” they are “truly immense, unfathomable, and even pristine in their value,” they are “an inexhaustible fund which is more than sufficient to cover the indebtedness contracted by sin,” and they consist of Christ’s merits, which are “the infinite value, which can never be exhausted.” 

All this, yet this treasury’s merits can only satisfy the so-called temporal punishments of sin?!!!  The best we can say is that it is only partially effective in setting one “free from [his] sin.”  The Catholic Church speaks highly of this treasury’s “efficacy,” but apparently, it is not effective against the eternal penalty for sins, i.e., it is not enough to satisfy one’s guilt.  Therefore, it cannot be of Christ (John 1:29; 19:30; 1 John 2:2; 4:10).

There is a great contradiction here!

Conclusion

One last thing.  Note that CCC 1477 above says that Mary and the “saints,” through their own merits, have not only attained their own salvation, but have merit left over to apply to others in need of merit.  This would mean that they were able to obtain for themselves excess righteousness!  They were able to earn more than enough to be saved!  This is an absurd and absolutely unbiblical concept.  According to Scripture, we can’t pay for our own salvation (Romans chapters 3 and 4; Galatians 2:16; Titus 3:5), and if we can’t even pay for our own, then how in the world could we get “extra” merit to pay for others?!!!  If anyone could merit salvation for himself, then Jesus came and died for nothing! (Galatians 2:21) 

This concept of the Treasury of Merit totally nullifies the sufficiency of the Savior’s suffering and work on the cross.  And not only that, according to Indulgentiarum Doctrina (an Apostolic Constitution of Pope Paul VI – Chapter 4, Section 8) the Catholic Church threatens an anathema (condemnation) for anyone who says that indulgences are useless, or for anyone who denies the power of the Catholic Church to grant them.  So the Catholic is obligated to believe in this false “treasury.”

It is obvious that the Treasury of Merit is part of a system designed to make its members totally dependent on a man-centered, works-based salvation… which is no salvation at all.

See also this article on indulgences: 

https://www.gty.org/library/blog/B171030/the-obscenity-of-indulgences

THE FALSE DOCTRINE OF PURGATORY (Part 1)

Purgatory… the name brings to mind creepy images of dark caves filled with suffering souls in smoke and fire.  There is much speculation, even from the “experts,” about how it actually works, and the degree of suffering, or how long one stays there.  But is Purgatory real?  Is it another place or state of being somewhere between Heaven and Hell?  Is it something that Christians should be concerned about?  And most importantly, does the Bible teach this concept?

Official Catholic Teaching

The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches:

“1030 All who die in God's grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven. 

1031 The Church gives the name Purgatory to this final purification of the elect, which is entirely different from the punishment of the damned. The Church formulated her doctrine of faith on Purgatory especially at the Councils of Florence and Trent. The tradition of the Church, by reference to certain texts of Scripture, speaks of a cleansing fire: 

As for certain lesser faults, we must believe that, before the Final Judgment, there is a purifying fire. He who is truth says that whoever utters blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will be pardoned neither in this age nor in the age to come. From this sentence we understand that certain offenses can be forgiven in this age, but certain others in the age to come.

1032 This teaching is also based on the practice of prayer for the dead, already mentioned in Sacred Scripture: "Therefore [Judas Maccabeus] made atonement for the dead, that they might be delivered from their sin." From the beginning the Church has honored the memory of the dead and offered prayers in suffrage for them, above all the Eucharistic sacrifice, so that, thus purified, they may attain the beatific vision of God. The Church also commends almsgiving, indulgences, and works of penance undertaken on behalf of the dead: 

Let us help and commemorate them. If Job's sons were purified by their father's sacrifice, why would we doubt that our offerings for the dead bring them some consolation? Let us not hesitate to help those who have died and to offer our prayers for them.”

So, according to this, when most people die, they may not be “fully purified” and ready to enter Heaven, since nothing unclean can enter it (Revelation 21:27).  According to the Catechism, we should pray for the souls in Purgatory and offer “works of penance” on their behalf, apparently, to lessen their pain and to help get them out sooner than “scheduled.”  But this is not the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Works-Based

What is offensive to the gospel is not so much the possibility of having “another place or state” besides Heaven and Hell, but the idea that a mere human can pay for sins, whether his own or someone else’s.

First and foremost, we reject the concept of Purgatory (as all Christians should) because it involves a works-based salvation (Romans 4:4-5, Ephesians 2:8-9).  That is, Purgatory involves a sinner having to work or to endure some sort of suffering for his sins, and this work or suffering supposedly helps to atone for those sins.  But according to Scripture, this is impossible.  Atonement for sins involves the death of a PERFECT substitute (Hebrews 7:25-28; 10:14), and we know that there is only one Person who fits in that category, the Lord Jesus Christ.  No sinner can atone for his own sins, because he is tainted.  So, no one is qualified but Jesus, and we can do nothing to add to His work on the cross.  See also this article:

http://theresurrectionstillspeaks.blogspot.com/2014/10/the-curse-of-judaizers.html

Other Problems

Ok, so what about the time of the Rapture / Resurrection? (1 Corinthians 15:50-52)  Those who are still alive when the Resurrection happens will not have time to go to Purgatory because Paul says that when it happens, “So shall we ever be with the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 4:17).  Wouldn’t it be unfair that those who rise on that day (still having imperfections in their life) won’t have to endure the pains of Purgatory, like all those who died before them?
   

But Catholic apologists may say, “Punishment in Purgatory does not have to be months, years, or centuries long. Their purification could possibly last just one second!  We just don’t know ‘how time operates’ in the next life.”  Maybe so, but the doctrine of Purgatory has more serious problems to work out than “how time operates in the afterlife.” 

Anyway, concerning the length of time it takes to be “purged” and ready for Heaven, we believe that we will be changed instantly after death.  If our bodies are changed and perfected in the “twinkling of an eye” in the Resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:52), then why can’t our soul and spirit be changed in like manner when we die?  We see no biblical reason to believe otherwise.

Temporal Punishment

The Sixth Session of the Council of Trent says:

"If any one saith, that, after the grace of Justification has been received, to every penitent sinner the guilt is remitted, and the debt of eternal punishment is blotted out in such wise, that there remains not any debt of temporal punishment to be discharged either in this world, or in the next in Purgatory, before the entrance to the kingdom of heaven can be opened (to him); let him be anathema." (CANON XXX)

Purgatory is largely based on the concept of “temporal punishments.”  According to Trent, the sinner destined for Purgatory is forgiven the guilt and the eternal punishment of his sins, but he still has “temporal punishment” to pay. 

   

According to the online New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia, (under Purgatory, subheading “Temporal Punishment”) it is “clearly the teaching of Scripture” that temporal punishment is due (to be paid) even after a sin is pardoned by God.  It goes on to give examples, like Adam being given the power to govern all things, yet he still had to work the ground which was cursed.  Moses was forgiven for striking the rock twice, yet he was not allowed to go into the Promised Land (Canaan).  David was forgiven for his sin with Bathsheba, yet their child still died.  Again, through these examples, the New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia is attempting to prove that the concept of “temporal punishment” in Purgatory is biblical.  But these examples were earthly punishments!  These are consequences that happen here on earth, not in the afterlife.

 

To use another example, if someone who is married commits adultery, there can certainly be “temporal consequences” for his / her actions.  The two involved in the sin may be forgiven by God, but there are still possible consequences to their sin.  That is, 1) there is always the threat of a venereal disease, 2) one offended spouse could want a divorce, 3) the offended spouse could be violently jealous, or 4) a pregnancy could result from the adulterous affair.   Again, these are all earthly consequences.  But according to Scripture, there is no punishment, temporal or otherwise, for the Christian in the next life.  The only after-death punishment that the Bible speaks of under the New Covenant is Hell, and ultimately, the Lake of Fire… but that is only for the UNbeliever.

Are We Forgiven…Or Not?

One popular Catholic priest said in a debate that the idea of Purgatory is “Pay now, or pay later,” in the sense of working out a debt.  But that is certainly not the gospel (good news) of Jesus Christ.  The simple truth is, if we are “forgiven” for a sin but there is STILL some kind of punishment for us to pay, then we are not really forgiven, are we?  And it must follow that the work of Jesus on the cross was not really enough to pay the full penalty for your sins after all (1 John 1:7-9).  But would any real Christian dare say that?  That’s blasphemy!  If HIS payment was not enough for your sins, there will NEVER be enough payment for them.  But thank God that His suffering on Calvary is totally sufficient. 

Catholic apologists will say, “But Purgatory is how redemption is actually applied to us.  It is the “final push” of the sanctification process.  This was God’s plan all along.”  

No, this was not God’s plan.  God plainly tells us, over and over, that redemption is “applied” BY FAITH, TRUSTING, BELIEVING in HIS work and suffering, not ours.  See also this link:

http://answeringcatholicclaims.blogspot.com/2010/01/faith-alone-part-1.html#comment-form

Conclusion

To make matters worse, our Catholic friends are obligated to believe this false doctrine under penalty of anathema (condemnation), as noted in the Council of Trent quote above.  But there is absolutely nothing in Scripture to indicate that there will be additional punishment after death for those who are forgiven.  Otherwise, the word “forgiven” is meaningless.

Purgatory is a denial of the sufficiency of Jesus’ work and suffering at Calvary.  But proud and fallen man likes to think that he can work or earn his way into Heaven.  He doesn’t like it when people point to the cross, and that alone, for salvation. 

  

Next month, we will conclude this series by taking a look at the Scriptures that Catholics (and others) use to try and support the doctrine of Purgatory.  Stay tuned…