Quote:
Originally Posted by moondweller
The crux of the problem is that Catholicism has no concept of the word "saved" (a completed act of God).
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The crux of the problem is that Calvinism has no concept of the word LOVE.
Faith alone doesn't save. Love does. If you love Christ, you will do what?
"Ah," you will say, "but if you have faith you will do the works because they were prepared beforehand."
What if I refuse to do them?
"Then you don't have faith."
Already you have admitted that faith alone doesn't save. But let's take it further. Why is it that I cannot choose to have faith but do not do works? "Because you were predestined to either be saved, and so have faith, or to not be saved and so not have faith."
So you have something other than faith--predestination--that is the actual alleged cause of salvation. Faith, like works, is just a side effect in your theory. So when you say salvation is by faith alone, you are not being forthright. If you were honest you would say that salvation is by predestination alone. But then you'd have to explain why you are wasting so much time and ink here on CAF trying to "evangelize." In Calvinism, peoples' salvation is determined before they even exist. Faith, works, love, and anything that happens in life is totally irrelevant, and thus, so is all of your work here.
But let's take it a bit farther.
If faith is really an infallible marker of salvation, what about the unborn victims of abortion? The mentally infirm? Children below the age of reason who meet a premature end? All of these are not even capable of having faith as you define it. Does that mean they all go to hell?
No. And I will tell you why.
No one is predestined to damnation. And no, faith is not only not the sole cause of salvation, it is not even a valid indicator of who is saved.
Love is.