Catholics do NOT believe in Justification by purely human works, preceding the grace of God. (That is, the heresy of Pelagianism is denied, as noted in the Council of Orange.)
James 2:14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? 15 If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill,” and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? 17 So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.
James 2:18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my faith. 19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder. 20 Do you want to be shown, you senseless person, that faith apart from works is barren? 21 Was not our ancestor Abraham justified by works when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was brought to completion by the works. 23 Thus the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness,” and he was called the friend of God.
James 2:24 You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25 Likewise, was not Rahab the prostitute also justified by works when she welcomed the messengers and sent them out by another road? 26 For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead.
I have no problem whatsoever with accepting what James wrote about faith and works. Do you accept what Paul wrote about us being saved by faith and not by works in Ephesians 2 and Titus 3, or do you consider them somehow corruptions in God’s Word?
And since you say that you believe works acceptable to God are being done out of faith, but works outside of faith don’t save people, why do you consider faith and works two separate things then? So then, do you consider faith and works to be two separate things?
In the Protestant view, if you really have faith, then you’ll have to do good works.