The Protestant theologian Dr Leonardo
De Chirico from Rome gave many
invaluable insights into the differences
between the Protestant and Catholic
understanding of salvation. Leonardo
showed how in Catholicism salvation is
seen as a cooperative effort between
God and man.
According to Leonardo, in Catholicism:
“Grace doesn’t abolish nature but perfects
it… There is no sense of tragic reality
of sin in Catholicism… Grace does not
create a new reality but elevates what
nature is already in itself… The human
beings are capable in themselves to
be elevated.”
Dr Leonardo
De Chirico,
Protestant theologian
Dr Leonardo
De Chirico
This is a very different view from
Luther’s who found the Bible truth that
man can be made righteous by his faith
on the finished work of Jesus alone.
Malcolm Duncan, the leader of
Gold Hill Baptist Church in Chalfont
St Peter, spoke on the need for new
reformation today. He recounted how,
when he became a Christian, the first
thing he did was to read the Bible from
cover to cover again, and how this
deep knowledge of the Bible has
been instrumental to his ministry.
In Martin Luther’s days, even the
priests were often banned from studying
the Bible, but it was Martin’s thorough
and intense studying of the Bible that
brought the Reformation and the Bible
translations in native languages, making
the Bible accessible for laypeople.
Malcolm Duncan ,
leader of Gold Hill
Baptist Church in
Chalfont St Peter
Bruce Atkinson ,
Associate Pastor of
Kensington Temple
Associate Pastor Bruce Atkinson
taught about the legacy of the
Reformation. To Luther, the most
important thing was what the Scripture
said, rather than the pope or any other
religious authority. Bruce said on Luther,
“I don’t think that he realised that day
when he nailed his ninety-five theses to
the Wittenberg church door that within
five hundred years there would be one
billion Protestants on earth today.” ➜
Revival Times November 2017 17