In the preceding articles of this series, it has been shown that Spiritualism is essentially antichrist, because it is wholly of the devil, and directly opposed to Christianity. It has been shown by positive testimony that Spiritualism is based upon the theory that man is naturally immortal, and that death does not end his existence. This idea is, in fact, the whole of Spiritualism. But this, we have seen, naturally leads to a denial of God and his moral Government, and makes every man his own judge; in short, it assumes for every man the attributes and prerogatives that belong to God; and since human nature is fallen, and its tendency, when unrestrained by some power outside of itself, is downward, the doctrine of the natural immortality of man is the germ out of which has grown all the evil that has cursed this earth. The claim has been made that no person who holds to that doctrine has any warrant against becoming an avowed Spiritualist, and that however much a person may think himself opposed to Spiritualism, he is essentially a Spiritualist if he believes in the conscious existence of the dead. This claim has been substantiated by many Spiritualistic quotations taken from professedly evangelical publications. The argument, in short, is this: The doctrine of the natural immortality of the soul inevitably leads to Spiritualism, and Spiritualism is from its very nature opposed to God and every vital principle of morality.
But Spiritualism as a distinct system is not the only exhibition of antichrist. By the expressions “that man of sin,” and “the son of perdition” in 2 Thess. 2:3, the apostle makes undoubted reference to the Papacy. Now of that “man of sin” he says that it “opposes and exalts itself above all that is called God or that is worshiped.” Then of course Roman Catholicism must also be a manifestation of the spirit of antichrist. It has already been shown that Catholicism is essentially Spiritualism, in that it teaches that the dead are conscious, and that the living can communicate with them, and that the living and the dead may render assistance to each other; therefore we shall notice only two points that are peculiar to Catholicism, which show it to be antichrist. Both of these points depend wholly on the doctrine of the conscious state of the dead.
The first dogma to be noticed is that of purgatory. In the “Catholic Christian Instructed,” pages 150, 151, that doctrine is thus briefly stated: —
“Some there are, though I fear but few, that have before their death so fully cleared their accounts with the Divine Majesty, and washed away all their stains in the blood of the Lamb, as to go straight to Heaven after death; and such as those stand in no need of our prayers. Others there are, and their numbers are very great, who die in the guilt of deadly sin, and such as these go straight to hell, like the rich glutton in the gospel (Luke 16), and therefore cannot be bettered by our prayers. But, besides these two kinds, there are many Christians, who, when they die, are neither so perfectly pure and clean as to exempt them from the least spot or stain, nor yet so unhappy as to die under the spot of unrepented deadly sin. Now such as these the church believes to be, for a time, in a middle state, which we call purgatory, and these are they who are capable of receiving benefit by our prayers. For though we pray for all that die in the communion of the church, because we do not certainly know the particular state in which each one dies, yet we are sensible that our prayers are available for those only that are in this middle state.”
This is a simple statement of the Catholic Church concerning purgatory. That it is antichristian may be seen from the fact that it is diametrically opposed to the Bible doctrine that the dead are totally unconscious. But the greatest point against it is that it leads directly to a depreciation of the sacrifice of Christ. Dr. Challoner, the author of the “Catholic Christian Instructed,” states the following question and answer: —
“Question: What grounds have you for the belief of a purgatory from reason?”
“Answer: Because reason teaches these two things: 1. That every sin, be it ever so small, is an offense of God; and consequently deserves punishment from the justice of God; and therefore that every person that dies under the guilt of any such offense unrepented, must expect to be punished by the justice of God. 2. That there are small sins, in which a person may happen to die, that are so small, either through the levity of the matter, or for want of a full deliberation in the act, as not to deserve everlasting punishments. From whence it plainly follows that, besides the place of everlasting punishments, which we call hell, there must be also a place of temporal punishment for such as die in those lesser offenses, and this we call purgatory.”
Now mark the following: —
“Question: But does not the blood of Christ sufficiently purify us from all our sins, without any other purgatory?
“Answer: The blood of Christ purifies none that are once come to the use of reason, from any sin without repentance, and therefore such sins as have not been here recalled by repentance, must be punished hereafter, according to their gravity, by the divine justice, either in hell, if the sins be mortal, or if venial, in purgatory.”
David prayed to be cleansed from secret faults. (Psalm 19:2). By secret faults he meant those of which he had no knowledge. This is evident from the verse itself: “Who can understand his errors? Cleanse thou me from secret faults.” He prayed to be cleansed from sins which he committed in ignorance, and which had never come to his knowledge. He knew that he must be cleansed from every sin, if he would be saved. Now Peter testifies that besides the name of Christ there is none other name under Heaven whereby we must be saved. (Acts 4:12). Therefore to say that any person must work out, through punishment in a purgatory, some sins that Christ has not atoned for, and that afterwards he may enter Heaven, is to deny, to that extent, the virtue of Christ’s sacrifice. Thus the doctrine of purgatory is directly opposed to Christ.
But read further what Dr. Challoner says of those who, having died in venial sin, are consigned to purgatory: —
“Question: Are they not, then, capable of relief in that state?”
“Answer: Yes, they are, but not from anything that they can do for themselves, but from the prayers, alms, and other suffrages offered to God for them by the faithful upon earth.”
Thus it appears that the doctrine of purgatory, depending upon conscious existence in death, leads to prayer for the dead, and not only to that, but to indulgences, and the payment of money for the release of souls confined in purgatory. Thus: as the above quotation states, a man in purgatory may be released, and, of course, admitted to Heaven, if some of his friends give money to the church. Who cannot see that this is antichrist? It is allowing that money and good works will buy one’s way into Heaven; it is teaching men to put their trust in Mammon, at least in part, instead of wholly in Christ. Read the scorching words of the apostle Peter, in Acts 8:20-23, to one who thought that the gift of God could be purchased with money.
The doctrine of purgatory leads directly, as has been said, to the doctrine of indulgences. We have no space for lengthy quotations, and so present as a concise statement of this doctrine, the following quotation made in “McClintock and Strong’s Cyclopedia” from the “Treasury of the Church,” by Alexander de Hales: —
“The sufferings and death of Christ not only made a sufficient satisfaction for the sins of men, but also acquired a superabundance of merit. The superfluous merit of Christ is conjoined with that of the martyrs and saints, which is similar in kind, though smaller in degree, for they likewise perform more than the divine law required of them. The sum of these supererogatory merits and good works forms a vast treasure, which is disjoined from the persons who won or performed them, exists objectively, and, having been accumulated by the head members of the church, and intended by them for its use, belongs to the church, and is necessarily placed under the administration of its representatives, especially the Pope, who is supreme. It is therefore competent for the Pope, according to the measure of his insight at the time, to draw from this treasure, and bestow upon those who have no merit of their own, such supplies of it as they require. Indulgences and remissions are made from the supererogatory merits of Christ’s members, but most of all from the superabundance of Christ’s own, the two constituting the church’s spiritual treasure.”
This is the doctrine of indulgences in its best form. Primarily it probably does not contemplate such a thing as granting license for future sin, although this has always naturally followed. If men know that by doing penance, or by almsgiving, they can atone for certain sins, they will not be so careful to guard against those sins. So the doctrine of indulgences does lead directly to looseness of life. No matter what claims may be made, as a matter of fact no real humility is required by indulgences and penance, as there is in accepting Christ as the only Saviour. The individual trusts in himself and his own good works, and not in Christ. But without humility and self-abasement there can be no true godliness; for “his soul that is lifted up is not upright within him” (Hab. 2:4). And the doctrine of the natural immortality of the soul is responsible for this doctrine, which leads to trust in self instead of trust in Christ, and so it appears again as the doctrine of antichrist.
The first cry of the awakened sinner is, “What shall I do to be saved?” When he has been convinced of sin, and feels his utter helplessness, he instinctively looks for something to lean upon. The true minister of the gospel will point him to the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Trusting wholly in him, the sinner can find both pardon and holiness, —cleansing from the guilt of sin, and from the love of it. But right there at that critical moment, the Catholic Church meets him and turns his attention to some “saint” who has accomplished the impossible feat of being better than the Lord wanted him to be, whose extra good works he may get if he will pray or pay for them. Thus men are elevated to a level with Christ, and all in consequence of the theory that death is not an enemy, but a friend.