Papal Indulgences, Two Ways: Easy and Hard

The New York Times ^ | December 5, 2007 | Mike Nizza

[armydoc]

You are missing the entire point of penance... The Church is not going to eliminate it without some sort of penitential action on the part of the person. Penance and purgation will occur either here or in the next life.

The fact that the Church teaches that indulgences can be applied to the dead via prayers of the living contradicts your statement that "penitential action on the part of the person" is required. Also, does the Pope not have the power to define the "penitential action"; could he not define it to be a sincere prayer for forgiveness?

[jo kus]

The fact that the Church teaches that indulgences can be applied to the dead via prayers of the living contradicts your statement that "penitential action on the part of the person" is required.

Not at all. The amount of penitential actions that are sufficient in God's eyes for a particular sin are unknown to us. Since God is offended, it is He who determines "how much" penitential action is sufficient. Many of us bring insufficient penance to the table. Thus, the Body of Christ, the rest of the Church, can make up for this lack of penance. As long as SOME penance is there, some sorrow, God can choose to hear the prayers of other members of the Body so that THEIR prayers are vicarious for the purposes of the less penitent person. Thus, WE participate in the redemptive act of Christ as part of His Body. However, this person must have SOME sorrow. God does not forgive sins unless that person asks for forgiveness.

does the Pope not have the power to define the "penitential action"; could he not define it to be a sincere prayer for forgiveness?

What is a "sincere prayer"? Each person's definition is obviously going to be different, because that is a subjective concept dependent upon the person. That was Luther's problem - worrying that he wasn't "doing enough" to be forgiven of sin. If he would have understood better the work of the Body of Christ and the Communion of Saints, perhaps he would have been more at ease to accept God's forgiveness of sin, and that temporal punishments do not effect that forgiveness ALREADY given.

Regards