Subject: When did the catholic church go wrong? |
Bible Note: I believe your question is important. And the answers may not be simple. That the Church was in need of reform was not in dispute. All parties agreed on that. The Church is always in need of reform as are all Christians. The question is how to accomplish the reformation? And today how to we heal the Church and restore its vital unity? I believe history is sadly repeating itself everyday with the continuing fragmentation of the Church. The Spirit and Forms of Protestanism by Louis Bouyer is good book on the subject of where the Reformation was right (primacy of grace and scripture)in it's aspirations as well as what it's flaws (extrinsic justification and abandonment of Church Tradition for private interpretation) were. It is written by a man who was both Protestant and Catholic in his life. It is not polemic and is written with a view to reconciliation. In addition to the book mentioned above, Hilaire Belloc wrote two related books: How the Reformation Happened, and Characters of the Reformation. Belloc is an excellent writer and he also was both Protestant and Catholic during his life. His writings are somewhat polemic, but he does make people and history come alive and is fair even to those whose actions or positions he may disagree with. Some of his books are available in text on the web at a variety of sites. I am sorry my answer did not address your original question. It was really more of a response to another member's comments about Constantine and the corruption of the Church in the fourth century. |