Justification By Faith, The Book of Romans Research Paper

Justification By Faith, The Book of Romans - Research Paper Example The just shall live by faith. The Dominican Monk in charge of the Wittenberg Cathedral, Tetzel, had introduced a shameful doctrine of paying for the forgiveness of sins. He saw this as a powerful strategy towards the construction of a church building. After reading Romans, Luther saw this doctrine, amongst others which he came to reject later, as falsified1. His act ignited a fire in Europe that saw the birth of the Protestant church, which up to today is in constant doctrinal conflict with the Catholics. One of the subjects which draw a lot of argument is the subject of Justification by Faith. Both theologians, philosophers, clergy men and average Christians alike have engaged in this century’s old debate about the nature of justification. Inasmuch as both agree that there is an immortal justification of the mortal soul, the means to this justification seems to draw a significant difference between Catholics and Protestants. Some hold that believes that are justified by faith alone while the rest strongly believe that justification happens due to faith and good works alone. ... g made right with God; the initial step towards Christian living, whereas the other group sees justification as a continuing process, a day by day activity until we reach our final destiny. This paper will attempt to shade some light on the topic of justification by faith as handled by the Apostle Paul in his epistle to the Romans. This Book is the longest Pauline epistle, besides being referred to as the most important theological legacy in history of Christianity. Most scholars have described the Book as Paul’s masterpiece. Wright, N (†¦) calls it â€Å"neither a systematic theology nor summary of Pauls’ lifework, but his master piece, which dwarfs most of his other works, an Alpine peak towering over hills and villages.† The epistle is believed to have been authored by Paul himself when he was in Corinth, probably when he was about to live the city to Jerusalem. There are few objections to this, stating that the letter was authored by his secretary, Terti us, under his direct instruction. Most scholars have agreed that the Books written between 55-56 A.D or 56-57 A.D., a time when Paul was about to leave Corinth for Jerusalem2. However, some scholars have disputed these dates, giving 58 or 55 as possible dates. Ludemann (†¦) argues that the epistle was written in early 51 or 52. Paul was addressing the church in Rome, which was made up of both Jews and Gentiles. The larger Roman population was Jewish; hence they were able to influence a substantial number of Gentile converts. While scholars are in most cases able to determine the style of most New Testament Books, the Book of Romans has proved a challenge to most. They have been unable to agree on whether the Book is a just a letter or an epistle. Deismann (1927) states that a letter is more non-literary, being