It has been said that “the reformation was mainly a struggle against the doctrine of merit.” Protestants such as Luther and Calvin denied the possibility of merit, whereas the Catholic Church at the Council of Trent taught that believers in a state of grace can merit eternal life, if they persevere in faith until death. […]

Recently a friend reminded me of a common Protestant analogy regarding salvation and merit. The analogy is that sinners have a ‘bank account’ wherewith to ‘pay’ for their eternal salvation. The problem is that man cannot possibly have enough in this account to pay the ‘amount due.’ Faith in Christ is equivalent to having a […]

If God is all powerful, and truly seeks our good, then why does He allow bad things to happen to people? Why does God allow all the suffering we experience in this life, if He loves us and is all-powerful and all-knowing? What does the Catholic Church say about the meaning of suffering?