Catholic Scripture

SALVATION

“For we are the aroma of Christ to God
among those who are being saved
and among those who are perishing.
2 Corinthians 2, 15

In the Catholic context, 2 Corinthians 2:15, which states, “for we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved,” can be understood as deeply connected to the concept of justification as an ongoing process. Justification, within Catholic teaching, is understood as a transformative journey rather than a singular event. It embodies the evolving relationship between an individual and God, marking a continuous process of growth in faith and morality. The phrase “being saved” emphasizes that salvation is not merely a past event; rather, it represents an ongoing state of grace that endures throughout a believer’s life. This dynamic state involves regular participation in the sacraments, continual repentance, and a commitment to living out the teachings of Christ. Such an understanding emphasizes the importance of personal cooperation with divine grace, fostering perseverance in good works, and nurturing a deepening relationship with God through prayer and community life.

The phrase “aroma of Christ” signifies the profound way in which believers embody the qualities and teachings of Jesus, acting as a living testimony to others about their faith. This concept suggests that through their actions, heartfelt prayers, and moral choices, Christians not only impact the lives of those around them but also create an inviting atmosphere that draws others closer to God.

As they diligently strive to follow Christ’s example in their daily lives, believers immerse themselves in the transformative grace that justifies them. This grace enables them to grow in holiness and righteousness, accomplished through the sacraments—such as Baptism, the Eucharist, and Reconciliation—as well as through earnest prayer and the cultivation of virtuous habits. By embodying Christ’s love and teachings, Christians become beacons of hope, reflecting the light of their faith into the world and encouraging others to embark on their own spiritual journeys.

Moreover, this ongoing journey of justification necessitates continual repentance —a heartfelt acknowledgment of one’s shortcomings —and a commitment to moral and spiritual growth. It invites Christians to engage in a life of virtue, characterized by acts of love, service to others, and adherence to Christ’s teachings. The interplay of faith and works underlines Catholic belief—the recognition that while faith is foundational, it is the responsive actions of love and obedience that keep believers in a state of grace. This interplay reflects a relationship that is not static but rather one that is flourishing and evolving.

The Catholic understanding recognizes that justification is a process entwined with both faith and works. While faith is indeed the foundation upon which justification is built, it is the active expression of that faith through loving actions—be they acts of charity, participation in community life, or the pursuit of justice—that helps maintain a believer’s state of grace. This synthesis of faith and works serves as a powerful reminder that those who are justified are continually being transformed, growing closer to Christ and increasingly reflecting His love and character in their lives. This integral relationship between faith and works reinforces that justification is about becoming more Christ-like over time, implying a maturation that occurs through intentional decisions and a devotion to living out Gospel values in both private and public spheres.

Therefore, this verse invites Catholics to reflect deeply on their personal journey of faith, recognizing that they are continually called to live out their beliefs in a manner that shares the profound love of God with others. It serves not merely as a theological principle but also as a heartfelt reminder that the Christian life is an action-oriented, dynamic process involving growth, repentance, and an ever-deepening relationship with Christ.

As individuals embrace this ongoing journey, they come to understand that salvation is progressively realized in their lives, allowing them to reflect the “aroma of Christ” to the world around them. They become conduits of divine love and grace, encouraging others to embark on their spiritual journeys while fostering a deeper communal bond within the Body of Christ. This profound interconnectedness ultimately underscores that each believer’s life can be a vibrant testament to the transformative power of God’s grace at work in the world.

Therefore, Paul uses the verb (“being saved”) in the present tense. In koine Greek, we have σωζομένοις (sōzomenois). The apostle addresses those who are “saved or rescued and safeguarded.” Still, when reading the NT in the original Greek, we must consider the author’s vantage point on the action or “being saved” (aspect). Greek verb tenses indicate the writer’s subjective portrayal of that action or state, called aspect. The aspectual tense mark of a Greek verb helps us see the subjective portrayal of the action. Let’s see what Paul says to those who ‘are saved’ and how their salvation might not be without qualifications or conditions.

By doing so, we will discover that Christ has formally saved us all in a collective sense, but instrumentally, our salvation is still something we must “work out” for ourselves and finally attain in a distributive sense. We read in the King James Bible: “Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling” (Phil 2:12). In other words, we must cooperate with our Lord in saving ourselves from drowning (subjective redemption) with his principal help now that he has taken charge of our eternal destiny by his single self-sacrifice (objective redemption).

Writing in the present tense, what Paul has in mind is the ongoing process of being made holy and righteous as opposed to habitually living in the state of sin like those who are “perishing” (Present participle: ἀπολλυμένοις or apollymenois “are destroyed” or “do destroy”) in their obstinacy. Their baptismal commitment marks the next life-long stage of their justification and sanctification. In their journey of faith, the Corinthians who have received the grace of justification and forgiveness in their baptism may merit by right of friendship with God, as a reward, more grace and an increase in sanctification and charity as they grow towards a more perfect image of God in the conduct of their lives through the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

Sanctification is the essence or formal cause of justification. We must be made inherently holy and righteous to be just before God. We couldn’t be the “aroma of Christ” or Christ-like as members of his mystical Body unless our righteousness personally belonged to us by the infusion of sanctifying grace into our souls (2 Cor 13:15). And this requires work on our part in collaboration with the Holy Spirit. We are ultimately responsible for and deserving of the eternal reward or punishment that we receive. Christ does not save each of us personally by his work on the cross alone, though he alone has made it possible for us to be saved by his grace, which he alone has produced for us by his redeeming merits.

To be just in God’s sight is to be intrinsically holy by the power of the Spirit who dwells in our souls. Thus, if we commit a mortal sin (i.e., the act of adultery or bearing false witness against our neighbor), we risk forfeiting the salvation Christ gained for us since our souls would no longer be in the state of sanctifying grace until we confess our sins and make an act of contrition and do penance preferably through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. For this reason, we must repent of our post-baptismal sins and do penance to be fully restored to friendship with God. “We must look to ourselves that we lose not the things which we have wrought (a meritorious increase in grace or bearing fruit) but that we receive a full reward” (1 Jn 2:8). John underscores the importance of cooperating with divine grace to ensure the instrumental application of our own salvation and its attainment by persevering in grace to the end, now that our Lord and Savior has made this possible for everyone by his passion, death, and resurrection.

Certainly, Paul didn’t believe that justification is a static, single event in the lives of Christians that happened in the past and was completed by their baptism through faith in Christ. For him, it was an ongoing process that required human collaboration with the work of God in the Holy Spirit and involved constructive transformations of the soul and daily renewal (2 Cor 3:18; 4:16; Eph 4:22-24; Phil 2:13). Our own salvation is something we must faithfully “work out in fear and trembling” lest we fall from grace and revert to our former sinful ways at the cost of our salvation. We should have no reason to fear eternal condemnation and tremble by the thought of it if all we had to do was simply put our faith in Christ’s redeeming merits and accept Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior. The grace of justification and forgiveness is a gift. This grace is not, however, a license to sin (Rom 6:1).

Thus, all baptized members in the Body of Christ must persevere in faith to their last day. Jesus himself warns us that we must endure to the end if we hope to be saved now that he alone has produced for us at one time the gift of salvation. (Mt 10:22; 24:13; Mk 13:13). We mustn’t allow ourselves to be destroyed or to destroy what Christ has gained for us like those who are perishing.

“And pray ye without ceasing in behalf of other men;
for there is hope of the repentance, that they may attain to God.
For ‘cannot he that falls arise again, and he may attain to God.’”
St. Ignatius of Antioch, To the Ephesians, 10
( A.D. 110)

“But He who raised Him up from the dead will raise up us also, if we do His will,
and walk in His commandments, and love what He loved, keeping ourselves from
all unrighteousness, covetousness, love of money, evil speaking, false witness;
‘not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing,’ or blow for blow, or cursing for
cursing, but being mindful of what the Lord said in His teaching: ‘Judge not, that
ye be not judged; forgive, and it shall be forgiven unto you; be merciful, that ye
may obtain mercy; with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you
again; and once more, “Blessed are the poor, and those that are persecuted for
righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of God.’”
St. Polycarp, To the Philippians, 2
(A.D. 135)

“‘And other sheep there are also,’ saith the Lord, ‘which are not of this fold ‘
deemed worthy of another fold and mansion, in proportion to their faith. ‘But
My sheep hear My voice,’ understanding gnostically the commandments. And
this is to be taken in a magnanimous and worthy acceptation, along with also
the recompense and accompaniment of works. So that when we hear, ‘Thy faith
hath saved thee, we do not understand Him to say absolutely that those who
have believed in any way whatever shall be saved, unless also works follow. But
it was to the Jews alone that He spoke this utterance, who kept the law and lived
blamelessly, who wanted only faith in the Lord. No one, then, can be a believer
and at the same time be licentious; but though he quit the flesh, he must put off
the passions, so as to be capable of reaching his own mansion.”
St. Clement of Alexandria, The Stromata, 6:14
(A.D. 202)

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