July 2023 Print


Lexicon of the Crisis: “Redemption”

By Fr. Paul Robinson, SSPX

Old Meaning
 		 New Meaning
 
What is Redemption? What is Redemption?

Redemption is the act by which Our Lord Jesus Christ, dying on the cross for love of us as an offering to God the Father, makes complete satisfaction for the sins of mankind and delivers it from slavery to sin and the devil.

Redemption is the revelation of God’s unchanging love toward man by Our Lord Jesus Christ, showing man that, in spite of sin, he has an eternal Covenant with God the Father which has never been destroyed.
So Redemption is an act of love?1 So Redemption is an act of love?1

No. It is an act of justice, whose motive is love, as follows:

  • Its essence is a payment for sin, hence the word “Redemption” or “buying back.”
  • Its obstacle was Original Sin, which demanded infinite payment that no mere man could give.
  • Its accomplishment in eternity is God’s will to satisfy His justice through Our Lord’s death and in time is Our Lord’s fulfillment of the Father’s will.
  • Its principal act is Our Lord’s death on the Cross, wherein He made infinite payment for sin.
  • It is universal in that it objectively satisfies for all sin, but it is particular in that only some men have the fruits of Redemption applied to them by their faith in Christ.
  • Its effect is the deliverance of the human race from bondage to sin and the devil and the eternal salvation of some.
    		•

    Yes. It is an act of love, whose motive is love, as follows:

  • Its essence is a message to men concerning God’s unchanging love for them.
  • Its obstacle was man’s lack of understanding of his dignity.
  • Its accomplishment in eternity is God’s undying love for man and in time is man’s awareness of that love through the revelation made by Our Lord.
  • Its principal acts are Our Lord’s Resurrection and Ascension, because they show forth God the Father’s unconditional love.
  • It is universal in that God the Father loves all men, which love applies to all men, whether they know it or not, whether they want it or not. It is particular in that only some men come to understand their dignity as revealed by Jesus Christ.
  • Its effect is man’s deeper awareness of his dignity and peace and solidarity for mankind through this awareness.
    		•
    How is this notion of the Redemption shown forth in Catholic practice? How is this notion of the Redemption shown forth in Catholic practice?

    It is shown forth in the attitude of Catholics toward:

  • Our Lord – He is the only one who can pay for sin in justice and thus is the sole mediator with God. Without Him, Catholics are nothing.
  • Sin – it is a terrible evil that takes away from the honor due to God and requires payment. Catholics must confess their sins to a priest, do penance for them, and also make reparation for the sins of mankind.
  • The Cross – Far be it from Catholics to glory in anything but the Cross, which is their sole hope. Catholics place crucifixes everywhere.
  • Society – Pope St. Pius X sought to lead society back to submission to God by restoring all things in Christ.2
    		•

    It is shown forth in the attitude of Catholics toward:

  • Our Lord – Once Our Lord has delivered His message concerning God’s love, Catholics no longer need their messenger. They become their own Redeemers.
  • Sin – no sin can destroy God’s unchanging love and so Catholics need worry about sin only in relation to man. They go to Confession to reconcile themselves with the Church, their fellow men and their own dignity.
  • The Cross – Far be it from Catholics to glory in the Cross, which is not the focus of their Redemption. Catholics put “Resurrexifixes” everywhere.
  • Society – Pope John Paul II sought to create in society a civilization of love by making men aware of their dignity.3
    		•
    How is this notion of Redemption shown forth in the Mass?4 How is this notion of Redemption shown forth in the Mass?4
  • The prayers of the Mass make frequent references to punishment due to sin and the need to appease God’s anger.
  • The satisfaction made by Christ and His mediation in prayer are often referred to in the Mass, e.g., the frequent use of per Christum Dominum nostrum
  • The Mass realizes perfectly the four purposes of prayer, but emphasizes adoration and reparation above petition and thanksgiving.
    		•
  • The prayers of the Mass do not ask God to remit punishments due to sin, do not seek to appease His anger for sin, and do not make reference to God punishing sin.
  • The Mass contains very few references to the mediation of Our Lord, e.g., only one obligatory per Christum Dominum nostrum is present.
  • The Mass, by and large, does not seek to adore God nor make reparation for sins, but only thanks Him and makes requests of Him.
    		•
    What quotations support this notion of Redemption?5 What quotations support this notion of Redemption?

    There are many Catholic texts that support this notion:

  • Trent – It refers to the one mediator Jesus Christ “who in His blood has reconciled us with God made unto us justice and sanctification and redemption (I Cor. 1:30)” Dz 790. It also says that Jesus Christ “by His most holy Passion on the Cross offered satisfaction for us to God the Father” Dz 799.
  • Pope Pius XII – “The notion of original sin, without consideration of the definitions of the Council of Trent, is perverted, and at the same time the notion of sin in general as an offense against God, and likewise the concept of the satisfaction made by Christ for us” Humani Generis Dz 2318
  • Isaias – “Surely he hath borne our infirmities and carried our sorrows … he was wounded for our iniquities, he was bruised for our sins: the chastisement of our peace was upon him, and by his bruises we are healed” (53:4-6)
  • Our Lord – “This is my blood of the New Testament, which shall be shed for many unto the remission of sins” (Mt. 26:28)
  • St. Paul – “I delivered unto you first of all, which I also received: how that Christ died for our sins, according to the scriptures” (I Cor. 15:3)
  • St. John the Evangelist – “In this is charity: not as though we had loved God, but because he hath first loved us, and sent his Son to be a propitiation for our sins” (I John 4:10)
  • St. John the Baptist – “The next day, John saw Jesus coming to him, and he saith: Behold the Lamb of God, behold him who taketh away the sin of the world” (John 1:29)
  • First Sunday of Advent Collect – “Stir up Thy might, we beseech Thee, O Lord, and come, that from the threatening dangers of our sins we may be rescued by Thy protection and saved by Thy deliverance. Who livest and reignest with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end.”

    • There are many Catholic texts that support this notion:

  • Vatican II – “The truth is that only in the mystery of the Incarnate Word does the mystery of man take on light … Christ the new Adam, in the very revelation of the mystery of the Father and of his love, fully reveals man to himself and brings to light his most high calling.” Gaudium et Spes, 22.
  • Our Lord – “For God so loved the world, as to give his only begotten Son” (John 3:16) … (that whosoever believeth in him, may not perish, but may have life everlasting)
  • Pope John Paul II – “Making the Father present as love and mercy is, in Christ’s own consciousness, the fundamental touchstone of His mission as the Messiah” Dives in Misericordia, 20. “In reality, the name for that deep amazement at man’s worth and dignity is the Gospel, that is to say: the Good News. It is also called Christianity” Redemptor Hominis, 26, and passim.
  • Pope Benedict XVI – “The human being needs unconditional love … If this absolute love exists, with its absolute certainty, then—only then—is man ‘redeemed,’ whatever should happen to him in his particular circumstances. This is what it means to say: Jesus Christ has ‘redeemed’ us.” Spe Salvi, 26.
  • International Theological Commission6 – “The death of Jesus is not the act of a merciless God glorifying supreme sacrifice; it is not the ‘price of redemption’ paid to some repressive alien power. It is the time and place where a God who is love and who loves us, is made visible. Jesus crucified declares how God loves us.” Dec. 8, 1994
  • First Sunday of Advent Collect – “Father in heaven, our hearts desire the warmth of your love and our minds are searching for the light of your Word. Increase our longing for Christ our Savior and give us the strength to grow in love, that the dawn of his coming may find us rejoicing in his presence and welcoming the light of his truth. We ask this in the name of Jesus the Lord.”
    		•
    What does this notion of Redemption serve? What does this notion of Redemption serve?

    It serves reality, the divine order, and divine revelation.

    It serves the world, Freemasonry, and humanism by making human dignity the center of Redemption, and it serves ecumenism by opening the door for universal salvation.
    What are the major differences between these two notions of Redemption?

    The one on the left considers God as both merciful and just, while the one on the right only considers Him as merciful. In the one on the left, Redemption is objective (a payment), while for the notion on the right, it is subjective (an awareness). On the left, God becomes man, while on the right, man becomes God.

     

    Endnotes

    1 cf. Dörmann, Johannes, Pope John Paul II’s Theological Journey (Angelus Press, 1996), part II, vol. I, pp. 101-141; Thomas Pègues, Catechism of the Summa, III, q. 20.

    2 cf. E Supremi Apostolatus, October 4, 1903, §8.

    3 cf. de la Rocque, Patrick, Doubts about a Beatification (Angelus Press, 2011), pp. 43-55

    4 cf. Society of St. Pius X, The Problem of the Liturgical Reform (Angelus Press, 2001), §§56-65, 103-105.

    5 cf. Ott, Ludwig, Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma (Tan Books: Rockford, Illinois, 1974), pp. 185-86.

    6 The International Theological Commission is a group of theologians whose role is to help the Holy See and primarily the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith in examining doctrinal questions of major importance.

    TITLE IMAGE: Crucifixion Diptych—also known as Philadelphia Diptych, Calvary Diptych, Christ on the Cross with the Virgin and St. John, or The Crucifixion with the Virgin and Saint John the Evangelist Mourning—is a diptych by the Early Netherlandish artist Rogier van der Weyden, completed c. 1460, Philadelphia Museum of Art.

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