A Guide for the 1689 Reformed Baptist

Understanding Some of
Rome’s Errors

To evangelize effectively, we must represent Rome’s position with such accuracy that they recognize it themselves. We distinguish the Church of Rome from the catholic (universal) church, noting that while Rome claims the title, we hold to the historic, creedal catholicity of the Christian faith.

Scroll to begin

Before You Begin

Foundational Approach

A library of old books suggesting careful theological study
Represent Rome’s Position So Accurately That They Recognize It Themselves

When engaging Roman Catholics, certain principles are essential:

Do not caricature their beliefs. They are highly systematized and historically developed. Rome’s theology has been refined over centuries.

Use their categories (e.g., grace, merit, sacrament, veneration), but define them carefully. Many terms sound similar but differ in meaning.

Distinguish terms that sound the same but differ: “faith,” “grace,” “justification”—these words mean different things in Rome’s system than they do in ours.

Start with Christ, not Mary. Clarify what the Gospel is before critiquing errors.

Part I

The Marian Dogmas &
the Hierarchy of Honor

Rome’s devotion to Mary is not merely “piety”; it is dogmatic. To deny these points, in their view, is to step outside the state of grace. To understand why Roman Catholics do not believe they are “worshipping” Mary, you must understand their categories of honor.

The Categories of Worship and Veneration

Rome makes a technical distinction between the types of honor given to beings, based on the intent of the heart and the nature of the recipient.

Latria

The highest form of worship, reserved for God alone (Father, Son, Holy Spirit). To give latria to a creature is idolatry (CCC 2113).

Dulia

The “veneration” or “honor” given to saints and angels—similar to the honor given to a king or hero, but sanctified because they are in glory.

Hyperdulia

A special category reserved only for Mary. Higher than dulia because of her role as Mother of God (Theotokos), but lower than latria.

Marian devotion is “intrinsically different from the adoration (latria) given to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.”

— Catechism of the Catholic Church, 971

The Four Marian Dogmas

According to Rome, Mary is not just a “blessed sister,” but the “New Eve” who cooperated in the redemption of mankind. Rome binds consciences to four Marian dogmas:

Mother of God (Theotokos)

Confirmed at the Council of Ephesus (431 AD). Because Jesus is God, Mary is truly the Mother of God. This is properly Christological (protecting the unity of Christ’s person), but Rome builds further Marian theology from it.

Perpetual Virginity

Mary remained a virgin before, during, and after the birth of Christ (CCC 499). Supported by Rome through tradition and certain interpretations of Scripture.

Immaculate Conception

Defined by Pope Pius IX (1854). Mary was preserved free from all stain of original sin from the first moment of her conception by a singular grace of God (CCC 491). Rome teaches she was redeemed preemptively by Christ.

The Assumption

Defined by Pope Pius XII (1950). “The Immaculate Mother of God… having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory” (CCC 966).

“What the Catholic faith believes about Mary is based on what it believes about Christ, and what it teaches about Mary illumines in turn its faith in Christ.”

— Catechism of the Catholic Church, 487

Mary’s Role in Salvation & Where the Tension Lies

Rome further teaches that Mary is a “Mediatrix” (in a subordinate sense), that she intercedes for believers, and that she is a spiritual mother of the Church.

Mary’s maternal role… “in no way obscures or diminishes the unique mediation of Christ, but rather shows its power.”

— Catechism of the Catholic Church, 969

Rome explicitly denies that it worships Mary or the saints. It sees practices like prayer to saints as requests for intercession, not divine worship.

⚠ Where the Tension Lies

From a Reformed perspective, prayer is a religious act directed to God alone (cf. Psalm 65:2). Even if Rome distinguishes categories, the practice—invocation, trust, dependence—appears functionally indistinguishable from worship. But in evangelism, you must acknowledge: Rome believes it is honoring, not worshiping.

Part II

Justification:
Infused vs. Imputed

This is the central divide. For the Reformed Baptist, justification is a forensic (legal) declaration. For Rome, justification is a process that includes sanctification—Rome collapses these two categories that the Reformers carefully distinguished.

A gavel and scales of justice suggesting the forensic nature of justification
Forensic Declaration or Transformative Process?

Infused Righteousness (Rome’s View)

Rome rejects the idea that a person is justified by a “legal exchange” alone. Instead, they believe in Infused Righteousness (Council of Trent, Session 6; CCC 1987–2029).

Justification is “not only the remission of sins, but also the sanctification and renewal of the inner man.”

— Council of Trent, Session VI

Initial Justification

Begins at Baptism, the “instrumental cause.” God pours (infuses) His grace into the soul, wiping away original sin and making the person inherently righteous (CCC 1999).

Justification as Growth

Because righteousness is inside you, you can increase your justification through good works and sacraments—and lose it by committing mortal sin.

Faith + Works

Faith is necessary but not sufficient alone. Works done in grace are meritorious—truly pleasing and rewarded by God (CCC 2008).

Merit

Not autonomous but enabled by grace. Still truly rewarded by God. “The merit of man… is due to God’s gratuitous justice” (CCC 2008).

⚠ The Denial of Sola Fide

The Council of Trent (Session VI, Canon IX) explicitly states: “If any one saith, that by faith alone the impious is justified… let him be anathema.” Trent also rejects imputed righteousness alone and denies assurance of salvation in the Reformed sense.

The Sacramental System

In Rome’s view, grace is mediated through the Church’s sacramental system. If you lose the “state of grace” through sin, you are restored through the Sacrament of Penance, which involves confession, absolution, and “works of satisfaction” (fasting, prayer, alms) to pay the temporal punishment of sin.

This is why Rome’s system results in a process-based justification: assurance becomes uncertain, and Christ’s work—though necessary—becomes insufficient in application.

Key Terms Compared

Infused Righteousness

God puts righteousness into you, making you inherently righteous. Grace is not merely favor but a substance-like gift that transforms the soul.

Imputed Righteousness

God credits Christ’s righteousness to your account legally. Your standing is based on Christ’s obedience outside of you (extra nos).

Part III

The Atonement: Satisfaction
vs. Penal Substitution

The Reformed tradition holds to Penal Substitutionary Atonement (PSA): Christ took our punishment to satisfy God’s justice. Rome does not deny substitution entirely, but it rejects penal substitution as the sole or central framework. Its view, while similar in language, differs in its mechanics (CCC 615–618).

A cross silhouetted against dramatic light at dawn
A Storehouse of Merit or a Finished Work?

Rome: Satisfaction Model

Primarily following Aquinas and Anselm, sin is an infinite offense against God’s honor. Christ offered a voluntary sacrifice of such immense value that it “satisfied” the debt of honor owed to God. Christ’s death is a sacrifice, an act of obedience and love, and a meritorious offering that believers must participate in. His work is sufficient for all, but its benefits are applied through sacraments and cooperation.

Reformed: Penal Substitution

Christ bore the full penal wrath of God in the place of specific individuals. His righteousness is imputed alone as the basis of justification. The atonement is forensic and definite—not participatory and transformational. His sacrifice “perfected forever them that are sanctified” (Hebrews 10:14).

What Rome Denies: Rome generally denies that God the Father poured out His wrath on the Son as a punishment. They view the Cross more as a supreme act of love and obedience that outweighs the disobedience of Adam, rather than a legal execution where Christ was “cursed” by God in the place of sinners.

The Treasury of Merit: Christ merited grace for us. This grace is now stored in the “Treasury of Merit” (along with the merits of Mary and the saints) and is distributed by the Church through the sacraments.

⚠ The Critical Difference

By denying the penal nature of the atonement, Rome turns the Cross into a “storehouse of merit” that the Church doles out, rather than a finished work that perfected forever those who are sanctified. The atonement becomes participatory rather than accomplished.

Part IV

The Reformed Response
(Biblical & Confessional)

As 1689 Reformed Baptists, our disagreement with Rome is not over whether we should “honor” Mary or “do good works,” but over the sufficiency of Christ and the authority of Scripture.

1. On Mary and Veneration

Reformed theologians like Francis Turretin and John Owen argued that the distinction between dulia and latria is a distinction without a biblical difference.

Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. — Matthew 4:10

“Religious worship is to be given to God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and to him alone; not to angels, saints, or any other creature.”

— 1689 LBCF 22.2

Even if one calls it hyperdulia, the act of kneeling, praying, and building shrines to Mary is, in practice, the “religious worship” reserved for God. The Greek word used for “serve” in Matthew 4:10 is latreuo, but the command excludes all religious service to creatures.

2. On Justification by Faith Alone (Sola Fide)

The Reformed view is that righteousness is Imputed (credited), not Infused. Our standing before God is based on the perfect obedience and sacrifice of Christ outside of us (extra nos).

“Those whom God effectually calleth, he also freely justifieth… not by infusing righteousness into them, but by pardoning their sins, and by accounting and accepting their persons as righteous; not for anything wrought in them, or done by them, but for Christ’s sake alone.”

— 1689 LBCF 11.1
But to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness. — Romans 4:5
For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. — 2 Corinthians 5:21

As John Calvin argued (Institutes 3.11.2), justification is the “main hinge on which religion turns.” If righteousness is infused, as Rome says, then no one can ever have assurance, because they must constantly look at their own internal state rather than at Christ. John Owen and Herman Bavinck articulated that Christ’s obedience is counted as ours—not infused, but credited.

Faith does not justify as a work; it is the instrument receiving Christ (Ephesians 2:8–9). As Martin Bucer and R.C. Sproul clarified, faith is the instrumental cause—not the meritorious ground—of our justification.

Justification ≠ Sanctification

Justification is a once-for-all legal declaration. Sanctification is an ongoing transformation. Rome collapses these categories, making justification a lifelong process that can be gained and lost. The Reformed confessions carefully distinguish them.

3. On Penal Substitution

We believe Christ was our legal substitute who bore the curse of the law.

Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us. — Galatians 3:13
But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. — Isaiah 53:5

Stephen Charnock, Herman Witsius, John Murray, and J.I. Packer emphasized that God’s justice must be satisfied by the payment of the penalty. Christ did not just “merit” grace; He paid the specific debt of the elect. By denying the penal nature of the atonement, Rome turns the Cross into a “storehouse of merit” that the Church doles out, rather than a finished work that “perfected forever them that are sanctified” (Hebrews 10:14).

Summary

Summary Comparison

Issue Roman Catholic View (Rome) Reformed Baptist View (1689)
Righteousness Infused: grace is poured in; we become inherently righteous. Imputed: Christ’s righteousness is credited to our account.
Justification A lifelong process, infused and transformative; can be lost through mortal sin. A once-for-all forensic (legal) declaration; cannot be lost.
Faith Necessary but not sufficient alone. Alone—the sole instrument receiving Christ.
Works Meritorious when done in grace; increase justification. Evidence of salvation, not the basis of it.
Atonement Satisfaction/sacrifice that merits a “pool” of grace, participatory and sacramental. Penal substitution—Christ bore the actual wrath/punishment for the elect.
Mary Mother of God, sinless, Queen of Heaven; Mediatrix; hyperdulia. Blessed among women, but a sinner saved by grace; no religious honor.
Prayer to Saints Intercession—requests through glorified believers. Reserved for God alone.
Assurance Usually viewed as the sin of “presumption.” The “infallible assurance of faith” (LBCF 18.1).

Conclusion

Pastoral Guidance
for Evangelism

An open Bible in warm light
Start with Christ — Clarify the Gospel Before Critiquing Errors

When evangelizing Roman Catholics:

Start with Christ, not Mary. Clarify what the Gospel is before critiquing errors.

Ask penetrating questions: “On what basis does God declare you righteous?” and “Is Christ’s work sufficient, or must it be completed in you?”

You are not merely debating terminology. Rome’s system results in a process-based justification where assurance becomes uncertain and Christ’s work becomes necessary but not sufficient in application.

Expert Guide Tip

When speaking with a Roman Catholic, focus on the word “Finished.” Ask them: “If Christ’s sacrifice was sufficient to satisfy God’s justice, why is the ‘Sacrifice of the Mass’ and the ‘Sacrament of Penance’ still necessary to deal with your sins?”

The issue is not whether Rome speaks of grace—but whether that grace rests entirely on Christ’s finished work or is mediated through a system that ultimately depends on the sinner’s transformation as the ground of acceptance before God.

This is where the Reformed confessions, following Scripture, draw a decisive and necessary line.