1. When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, “Repent,” he meant that the entire life of believers should be one of repentance.
2. This word cannot be understood as referring to the sacrament of penance, that is, confession and satisfaction, as administered by the clergy.
3. Yes, it does not even mean solely inward repentance; such repentance in itself is worthless, unless it produces various outward mortifications of the flesh.
4. The penalty of sin remains as long as the hatred of self (that is, true inward repentance remains), namely until entrance into the kingdom of heaven.
5. The Pope has no power to remit any guilt, except to declare and confirm that it has been remitted by God; or, to be sure, to remit cases reserved for himself. If he remits any guilt of his own accord, it does not seem to be remitted, except for those cases reserved to himself. God remits guilt to no one unless at the same time he humbles him in all things and makes him submissive in everything to his vicar, the priest.
6. The Pope cannot remit any guilt, except by declaring or attesting to its having been remitted by God; or, to be sure, by pardoning it through the indulgence. If he does otherwise, the guilt remains. Neither does God remit the guilt of anyone to whom the priest refuses forgiveness, whether or not the person has obtained an indulgence.
7. God never remits anyone’s guilt without at the same time subjecting them to the priest, his representative on earth, to be punished or at least to be disciplined.
8. Penitential canons are imposed solely by human tradition, and these are abolished with death for those who are truly dead.
9. Hence the Holy Spirit in the person of the prophet says: “When the wicked man turns from his wickedness...and does what is lawful and right, he shall save his life” [Ezek. 33:19]. That is, from the penalty he has incurred.
10. Priests act unwisely when they reserve special cases to themselves, because they cannot absolve from all cases (even if given the authority to do so) unless their penitents voluntarily submit to themselves.
11. They act more unwisely still when they impose such reserved cases on the dying.
12. When buying indulgences, souls are freely preaching (or thinking themselves free), even though no true freedom at all is gained.
13. They are in fact being enticed to purgatory by such assurances of freedom.
14. For the purchase of indulgences they preach nothing in accordance with the spirit of Christ.
15. When they say that he who buys indulgences is absolved from all punishments and guilt, this seems false for the following reasons.
16. In fact such a claim is an impossibility, even for the Pope.
17. For guilt itself remains, in any instance where someone has truly repented; that is to say, the penalty of eternal punishment remains.
18. The granting of repentance and the remission of guilt, which alone have the power to restore the punished soul, are reserved for God alone.
19. If such a complete release from all punishments exists at all, then it is surely given only to the perfect, that is, to very few individuals.
20. Therefore most people are deceived by this indiscriminate and grandiose promise of release from punishment.
21. There is thus widespread preaching: “The soul goes straight to heaven and flies out through the gates of purgatory.”
22. This is false.
23. As a matter of fact, the preacher of indulgences is no longer in a state of grace than is any other person.
24. It remains true, and quite correct, that Christians must obey the commands of the Pope — but only to the extent that they really are the Pope’s.
25. This is especially true because of excommunications and other ecclesiastical penalties imposed on those who resist him.
26. But Christians must be taught that the Pope’s excommunication itself is not to be feared so greatly, because it only excludes a person from the fellowship of the Church.
27. The true treasure of the Church is the holy Gospel of the glory and grace of God.
28. But this treasure is certainly despised and hated by those who in its place extol indulgences.
29. Moreover, the grace of forgiveness (which is declared through an indulgence) pertains only to the guilt of penalties established by human tradition, and this has been abolished for those who are truly dead.
30. No Christian at all ought to be alarmed by the proclamation of papal pardons, even if the commissioner or preacher of indulgences were to thunder against his teachings.
31. But every Christian ought to be encouraged by the assurance of papal pardons, provided he himself has a wholesome regard for excommunication and does not despise it.
32. If they had truly grasped the power of indulgences, the preachers would be preaching many more benefits about them. For those benefits outweigh everything else.
33. Moreover, they would urge forgiveness even without monetary contributions.
34. Indeed, they would actually be distributing indulgences to the people for nothing.
35. Why does the Pope, whose wealth today surpasses the wealth of the richest Crassus, build the basilica of Saint Peter with the money of wretched believers, rather than with his own money?
36. Why does he not pardon at least some souls from sheer love, for the souls in purgatory, since he pardons so many souls for the sake of filthy lucre?
37. What sort of power in heaven is this, which the Pope purports to sell for money, and which yet will not open heaven to the needy without monetary compensation?
38. Nevertheless pious souls are being lured by those shameless peddlers of indulgences into the purchase of this most worthless indulgence, with this specious promise of a gain without any merit on their part.
39. They will be burdened with eternal condemnation together with their teachers.
40. Let people be on guard against those people who say: “The Pope’s indulgences are the inestimable gift of God, and are necessary for salvation.”
41. For in fact that grace of God is the inestimable gift, which in their proclamations they call the least gift; and grace alone produces salvation.
42. Christians are to be taught that the Pope has no intention at all of remitting any of the punishments they are required to suffer in purgatory.
43. For it is an impossibility for him to do so, even if he wanted to, as already stated.
44. Much less does the preacher of indulgences intend this, even though he talks a lot about plenary forgiveness.
45. Christians are to be taught that they who believe that through indulgences they can make themselves certain of their own salvation, may be assured of nothing except their own damnation.
46. Christians are to be taught that we should not place our trust in the purchase of indulgences, but in the abundant mercy of God.
47. Christians are to be taught that the purchase of indulgences is not to be compared in anyway with works of mercy.
48. Christians are to be taught that, while buying indulgences is not in itself a bad thing, it is not under any circumstances a substitute for works of mercy.
49. Christians are to be taught that a rich person who gives his wealth to the sale of indulgences, instead of devoting it to the support of the poor, gains no reward from the indulgence, but incurs the wrath of God.
50. Christians are to be taught that although the Pope through these indulgences could release one soul from purgatory, he does no right thing; charity would require that the soul suffer until it has paid its debt.
51. Christians are to be taught that the Pope has authority over purgatory only on the basis of this sort of intercession, “for the Pope knows nothing at all about any other sort” [Decree of Clement VI].
52. It is vain for preachers of indulgences to pretend that their pardons have the same efficacy as the forgiveness which Jesus Christ gave by his own suffering.
53. For the forgiveness which Jesus Christ gave was not an external one for the purpose of external works that must be done for our neighbor.
54. In no way does the suffering and death of the holy martyrs belong to the treasure from which the Pope grants indulgences.
55. Moreover, the benefits which the martyrs won for Christians are not being shared with indulgences.
56. The grace that flows to the living through the dead was imparted by Christ alone.
57. Moreover, forgiveness granted to the dying through indulgences is in no way comparable to this grace, because the latter involves the removal of the guilt (which is the root cause of present sorrow).
58. The grace that forgives the punishment to be suffered in purgatory for past guilt in no way involves that grace bestowed by Christ.
59. The assertion that indulgence is so efficacious that it can set a person free from the guilt as well as the punishment for sin, seems erroneous.
60. Especially when it is said that even sins committed in the future can be atoned for by indulgences.
61. When people are told that salvation is easily acquired