What follows are excerpts from the
famous correspondence between Jeremiah II, Patriarch of Constantinople, and the
Lutheran scholars in Tübingen, Germany regarding their "Augsburg
Confession."
*Throughout the letter, I placed Scripture
quotes in italics, and the author’s points of importance regarding the debate in
Bold.
The Reply of Patriarch Jeremiah II to
the Lutheran Tübingen Theologians, Concerning the Augsburg
Confession[1].
The sixth [article of the Augsburg Confession-
The New Obedience] gives the assurance that it is necessary to do good works
but not to be dependent on them according to the passage:
"Enter not into judgment with
thy servant"
[Ps 143:2].
With regard to this we say
That faith precedes, and then the
works follow and are necessary according to the commandment of God.
The one who fulfills them, as he
must, receives reward and honor in everlasting life.
Indeed, good works are not separate
from, but necessary for, true faith.
One should not trust in works nor be
boastful in a Pharisaic manner. And even if we have fulfilled everything,
according to the word of the Lord,
"We are unworthy servants" [Lk 17:10].
All things should be referred to the
righteousness of God because those things which have been offered by us are
small or nothing at all. According to Chrysostom, it has been established that
God does not lead those of us who are idle into His kingdom.
The Lord "opposes the proud, but
he gives grace to the humble" [1 Pet 5:5; see Jas 4:6; Pr 3:24].
One should not boast about works. But
to do and fulfill them is most necessary.
For without divine works it is
impossible to be saved.
If, then, we will be convinced by the
Lord who says,
"If you know these things,
blessed are you if you do them" [Jn 13:17],
It shall be to our benefit. It is
necessary to join our good works together with the mercy from above.
If we excuse ourselves because of our
weakness or the goodness of God and do not add something of our own, there will
be no benefit to us.
How can we invoke mercy for the cure
of our iniquities if it, no way have we done anything to appease the Divine
One?
Let us hear how Chrysostom explained
[the words of] Psalm 129: 1-2.
"Out of the depths I cry to
thee, O Lord. Lord, hear my voice"
'From this (verse) we learn two things:
That one cannot simply expect
something from God if nothing from us is forthcoming,'
Because first it says,
'I cry,' and then follows, 'hear my
voice.'
Furthermore, lengthy prayer, full of
tears (a Work), has more power to convince God to hearken
to that which has been asked.
But so no one may say that, since he is a sinner and full of thousands of
evils, 'I cannot come before and pray, and call upon God, 'He takes away all
doubt by saying:
'If thou, O Lord, shouldst mark
iniquities, Lord, who could stand?' [Ps 129:3].
Here the word 'who' should be replaced by the word 'no one,' because
there is no one, no one who, according to a strict account of his works, could
ever attain mercy and benevolence. If you withdraw mercy and God justly imposes
the penalty of the sentence and metes out punishments for sins, who will be
able to bear the judgment? Of necessity all would have to submit to
destruction. And we say these things not to draw down souls into carelessness,
but rather to console those who have fallen into despair. Because who can boast
that he has a pure heart? Or who can proclaim that he is free from sins?
And what can I say of others? For if I bring Saint Paul
Furthermore, was not Peter, the chief
[Apostle], who after thousands of miracles and such, reproved in council for
his grievous fall? If, then, He shall not judge by mercy and compassion but
will pronounce an accurate judgment, then [the Lord] will find all of us guilty.
Therefore, the Apostle Paul said:
'I am not aware of anything against
myself, but I am not thereby acquitted. It is the Lord who judges me' [I Cor 4:4].
And the Prophet said:
'If thou, O Lord, shouldst mark
iniquities, Lord, who could stand?' [Ps 129:3].
And the doubling [of the word Lord,]
is not simply said, but [the Prophet] was amazed at, and surprised by, the
greatness of God's mercy, His boundless majesty, and the fathomless sea of His
goodness. He knew, and knew clearly, that we are responsible to God for many
debts, and that even the smallest of sins are deserving of great punishment.
'For with thee is forgiveness' [Ps 129:3].
This means that escape from eternal
punishment does not depend on our achievements but on Thy goodness... If we do not
enjoy Thy mercy, our achievements alone do not suffice to snatch us from the
future wrath. But now You have mercy and justice united together, and You
prefer to use the former rather than the latter. And the Lord has plainly said
this through the Prophet:
I am He who blots out your
transgressions' [Is
43:25].
That is, this is of me, it is of my
goodness because those things which are yours, even though they are good, will
never be sufficient to free you from punishment if the work of my mercy were
not added. And [the Lord] also [said]:
'I will carry you' [Is 46:4].
Indeed atonement rightfully belongs
to God, He who is truly merciful. Therefore, He examines sparingly.
'For Thy name's sake I have waited
for Thee, O Lord'
[Ps 129:5].
Because of Thy name, which is
merciful, I have waited for salvation. When I was looking to matters of myself,
I would again despair as in former times; but now, attending to Thy law and
fulfilling Thy words, I have high expectations. Thou are He who said,
'As the heaven is distant from the
earth' [Is 55:9], 'so my counsels are not as your counsels,
nor are my ways as your ways' [Is 55:8].
And again:
'As the heaven is high above the
earth, so the Lord has increased His mercy toward those who fear Him' [Ps 102:11];
That is, not only have I [God] saved
those who accomplish [good] things, but I also have spared the sinners, and
amid your iniquities I have demonstrated my guardianship. In Ezekiel He says:
'I do not do this, except for the
sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations' [Ezek 36:22].
This passage says that we are not
worthy to be saved, nor did we have any hope because of what we had done, but
we look forward to being saved for His name's sake.
This is the hope of salvation and the
sacred anchor which has been left for us, who repent in order to be granted His
mercy.
If we are obedient, we shall eat the
good of the land [cf.
Is 1:19] and we shall inherit the promise.
It is necessary, therefore, to hope
in God, even if myriads oppress us and drive us to despair and threaten [us
with] death. For Him all things are easy; and for the impossible, He can find a
way. For with Him is the fountain of redemption, the sea of salvation, the
treasure of mercy which springs up eternally [see Ps 36:910; Mt 18:21 f].
Where there is mercy, there also is
redemption, and not only a little, but much, for the sea of mercy knows no
bounds. If, then, we are bound up by our sins, it is not necessary to fall
again, nor to be despondent. For wherever there is mercy and charity, there is
no strict reckoning of iniquities by the one who judges. Because of His great
mercy and inclination toward charity, many sins are overlooked.
Being such a judge, God grants mercy
without ceasing and grants pardon; He is compassionate and loves mankind and
imparts salvation to all who have repented and who, according to their ability,
perform the good. For truly He is good and abundantly pours forth everywhere
the greatness of His mercy, and from Him is that which is truly mercy; it is very
clear that He will save His own people, not punish them. Let us then offer
those things we have done with all exactitude and wisdom, and let us cherish
everything that is from Him, who possesses untold mercy.
Wisdom comes first [to indicate] that
a praiseworthy life is one that is cleansed by God rather than one that is
deposed. The persons who are without remorse, walking in sin, inclining toward
the baser things and are gluttonous, wallowing in the slime, never look to
heaven, do not wish to be pitied; for they do not realize how grievously they
suffer. It is better for someone to be polluted with unclean mud than with
sins.
Those who have fallen in the pit of
sin will perish utterly unless they cleanse their defilement not with water,
but with great toil and time and sincere repentance, with tears, with wailings,
and with the customary spiritual cleansing.
These are the true satisfactions, and
not those made through bribes, which arouse the anger of God against those who
take them. And, thus, they are subject to myriads of evil things; and every
misfortune sent by God comes to them.
There is no forgiveness of sins
possible for such persons because zeal is directed toward their own personal
gain.
External filth can be dusted off very
rapidly, but that which is carried around within is not readily washed away.
"For out of the heart come evil
thoughts, fornication, adultery," [Mt 15:19]
And the like. For this reason the
Prophet also said:
"Create in me a clean heart, O
God" [Ps
50:10].
And another:
"Cleanse your heart from
wickedness, O Jerusalem
And do you see here what pertains to
us and what pertains to God? And again:
"Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they shall see God" [Mt 5:8].
Let us become cleansed as far as our
minds can comprehend and as much as we are capable of becoming. How can this be
done?
"Wash yourselves; make
yourselves clean; remove your evils from your souls before my eyes" [Is 1:16].
He says:
"Do not become like whitewashed
tombs" [Mt
23:27],
Appearing to be guiltless; but, thus,
remove [evils from your souls] as being seen by God.
"Though your sins are like
purple, I will make them white as snow" [Is 1:18].
Do you not see that we have to clean
ourselves first, and then God will make us white as snow? For this reason no
one, not even those who sink down to the lowest evil, should despair.
Even if it becomes a habit for
someone and he has almost arrived to the nature of evil in itself, let him not
be afraid. For even colors which do not fade and have almost become one with
the material, nevertheless, are transformed into the opposite condition and
become white as snow. Thus, He grants us good hope. Let us seriously try as
much as we can to become clean.
Let us pursue good works. Let us not
seek the speck that is in the eye of another, but let us see the log that is in
our own [cf. Mt 7:3]. And, thus, with the grace of God, we shall be able to
attain worthily the good things to come.
Therefore, the power of works is
great; and even when they commit sins, God cleanses them through repentance.
One should not boast of them nor
depend on them, for that would be sinful; but as much as you are able, fulfill
the works which are the result of faith and are necessary. For if those who
have cast out demons and who have prophesied are rejected, and have not lived a
comparable life, how much more [shall we be rejected] if we are negligent and
do not fulfill the commandments? Christ will say to such persons:
"I never knew you" [Mt 7:23; cf. Lk 13:27].
We believe correctly to glorify Him
and we live the good life to glorify Him, for there is no benefit of one
without the other. And furthermore,
When, perchance, we praise Him
rightly but do not live properly according to the commandment, then we greatly
insult Him. And although we give Him the title of Master and Teacher, we,
nevertheless, scorn Him and do not fear His awesome judgment.
The fact that the pagan Greeks lived
an impure life is no surprise, nor are they deserving of such great
condemnation. However, being Christians, who participate in so many sacraments,
[and] who enjoy such glory yet live impurely is much worse and intolerable and
beyond all compassion.
If, as the saying goes, we were to
look earnestly toward the great and infinite compassion of God and His
extraordinarily great gifts, and imagine that we will be saved by grace alone
in the manner of the ingrates, we cannot hope to benefit.
And besides, our own deeds, even if
they may approach perfection, are nothing in comparison, except that they are
supplementary and demonstrate our disposition—namely, that we are thankful,
that we obey the commandments and perform good and virtuous deeds so that we
may not be placed into paradise like insensible creatures, which absolutely is
not done but, by our preference, through the grace of God.
If we prefer to incline toward sin,
we shall appear insensible as paying attention to non-existing things. Indeed,
we must avoid it [sin] and detest it since it places us far away from God. And
when we intend to commit a sin, then we must conjecture and imagine the dread
and intolerable court of Christ in which the judge is sitting on a high and
elevated throne to judge those who have lived. All creation is present and
trembling at His glorious appearance.
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