Is the Reformation Over?

Ask a Protestant today what is the biggest threat to orthodox Christianity today, and he might mention nominalism, the sexual revolution, or old fashioned liberalism. But if you would have asked a Protestant the same question a hundred years ago, he would have almost certainly mentioned the Roman Catholic Church. Until fairly recently—we are only talking about a few generations—Protestant and Catholics in this country were, if not enemies, then certainly players on opposing teams.

Today, much of that animosity has melted away. And to a large extent, the thaw between Protestants and Catholics has been a good thing. Protestants and Catholics have found themselves to be co-belligerents in the culture war, defending the unborn, upholding traditional marriage, and combating moral relativism and secular humanism. And in an age which discounts doctrine, evangelical Protestants often share more in common theologically with a devout Roman Catholic steeped in historic orthodoxy than they do with liberal members of their own denominations. I personally have benefited from Catholic authors like G.K. Chesterton, Richard John Neuhaus, and Robert George. I have respected the Catholic Church for taking principled, unpopular stands on moral issues.

And yet, the theological gulf between Protestants and Catholics is still wide and in places very deep. If we care about the doctrines that were most precious to the Reformers we must not dare to assert that the “Reformation is over,” as if all the theological hills have been laid low and all the dogmatic valleys made into a plain.

Below are a number of points which still separate Catholics and Protestants. No doubt, many Roman Catholics don’t actually believe (or even know) what Catholic theology states. I am not claiming to know definitely what Catholics think and practice in all these areas. But by seeking to understand official church documents we can get a good idea of what Catholics are supposed to believe. And what they should believe include a number of points sola Scriptura Protestants cannot affirm. Read more