Valentine Obienyem

What prompted this was Mr. Mike ikem Umealo’s article titled: “Certaminum Christianorum vetus est non est novum.” The phrase is attributed to St. Augustine of Hippo in his “De civitate De” (The City of God). It reflects Augustine’s understanding that the struggles and challenges faced by Christians are part of a long-standing tradition of faith and perseverance, rather than new or unique issues. What we do in Christianity is not new. Is there anything the Church has not witnessed in its over 2,000 years since being founded by Christ?

The article in question can be summarised as follows: what Dr. Abel Damina is doing today is parallel to Martin Luther’s 16th-century Reformation and the current state of Nigerian Christianity. Just as Luther challenged the Catholic Church’s practices, particularly the sale of indulgences, Dr. Damina critiques the modern Church’s focus on tithes, offerings, and the selling of religious items as a means to secure divine favour. He argues that true worship involves inner spiritual change and that salvation is a gift from God, not something that can be bought. Mike calls on Nigerian Protestant and Evangelical leaders to unite and establish clear, Christ-centred doctrines, warning that the current doctrinal confusion is leading many Christians astray. Ultimately, he emphasises that there is only one truth in Christ, and the Church must return to this truth to guide the faithful effectively.

This article is truly commendable for its enlightening and educational value. It is the kind of thoughtful writing that not only informs but also inspires meaningful dialogue. I have chosen to engage in a discussion on indulgence.

First of all, kindly note that Luther who warred against indulgence was also a Catholic priest. It is important to recognise that, even today, the teaching on indulgence still stands within the Catholic Church.

Martin Luther was not the first to advocate for the reformation of the Church. In fact, the major push for that came from a man named Erasmus. If you read his “ In Praise of Folly” you would understand why he is often accused of laying the eggs that Luther later hatched. While Erasmus, who strongly believed in the divine foundation of the Church, acknowledged that although the Church is divine, it was being led by some disreputable men who brought it into disrepute. He called for reformation from within, and Luther with figures like Melanchthon initially joined him. At that time, Luther pledged to submit to the Pope as the representative of Christ. It was only when Luther felt confident in his support base that he started accusing the Pope of being the “anti-Christ.” When his certainty of support grew, he broke away from the Church and founded the Lutheran Church. One of his major accusations against the Church was the “sale” of indulgence.

Now, what is indulgence? It is the remission of the temporal punishment (penance) due to sin after the sin itself has been forgiven through confession. The concept is rooted in the belief that sin has both eternal consequences, which are forgiven through the sacrament of confession, and temporal consequences, which may require further purification. Indulgences can be partial or plenary.

To gain an indulgence, a person must be in a state of grace, have the intention of gaining the indulgence, and fulfil certain conditions set by the Church (e.g., prayers, almsgiving, pilgrimage, or other specific acts of piety).

You might even liken it to restitution. For instance, if you confess to having stolen someone’s bicycle, the priest might require you to return the bicycle as a condition for the final remission of your sin.

Regarding the sale of indulgences, the truth is that the Church never officially endorsed this practice. As an institution founded by Christ and vested with the power to forgive or retain sins (as stated in Matthew 16:19), the Church, like the apostles, inherited certain traditions specific to it as the true apostolic successors. We can only challenge this tradition from outside the Christian Church.

When discussing the sale of indulgences, it is essential to be objective about the circumstances. The Church acknowledged that Fr. Johann Tetzel was wrong in certain aspects of his teaching on indulgences. This prompted the Pope to send a higher ecclesiastical authority, Cardinal Cajetan, to correct Tetzel’s erroneous teachings.

In recognising that the Church, though divine, is managed by fallible men susceptible to mistakes, the Church adheres to the principle of “Ecclesia semper reformanda”, a Latin phrase meaning “the Church must always be reforming.” This phrase expresses the idea that the Church, while guided by divine truth, is composed of fallible human beings and must therefore continually seek to renew and reform itself to remain faithful to its mission and teachings.

In its ongoing effort for reformation, the Church has convened 21 ecumenical councils, following the example of the Council of Jerusalem described in Acts 15, demonstrating that when difficulties arise, the Church assembles the best ecclesiastical minds for interpretation. You cannot be wiser than the assemblage of the best minds of any age!

In light of the above, the Council of Trent (1545–1563) condemned the abuses related to indulgences and reaffirmed the Catholic Church’s teaching on their legitimacy and efficacy. The council maintained that indulgences were a valid expression of the Church’s authority to bind and loose sins (as conferred by Christ to the apostles), and they could help remit the temporal punishment due to sin.

I assure you that, in terms of completeness in all aspects of Christian teaching, the Catholic Church is unparalleled. What has occurred since 1517 has been a series of cathartic reactions from individuals who selectively adopted aspects of Catholic teachings rooted in the Bible and apostolic tradition. However, for the fullness of teaching, one cannot overlook the Catholic Church.