It is "de fide" (of faith), and therefore necessary for all Catholics to
believe...
(1) that the Church has received from Christ the power to grant indulgences
(2) that the use of indulgences is salutary for the faithful.
This fact was taken from the article in the Catholic Encyclopedia (A.D.
1910). Unfortunately, even among Catholics it is sometimes questioned as to
whether it is officially taught by the Church. For the support of those who
are defending this Catholic Doctrine, and to strengthen those who find
themselves weak on it, some excerpts from the article are given below
showing that such a doctrine is of Faith and clearly taught by the
Magisterium of the Church. Listed first are ALL the sub-titles within the
article, but only a few essential excerpts will be given here as the entire
article is too lengthy for this dispatch. The entire article is highly
recommended so as to avoid any misunderstanding.
INDULGENCE: (derivation of word)
1) What an Indulgence is not
1) To facilitate explanation, it may be well to state what an indulgence is
not. It is not a permission to commit sin, nor a pardon of future sin;
neither could be granted by any power. It is not the forgiveness of the
guilt of sin; it supposes that the sin has already been forgiven. It is not
an exemption from any law of duty, and much less from the obligation
consequent on certain kinds of sin, e.g., restitution; on the contrary, it
means a more complete payment of the debt which the sinner owes to God. It
does not confer immunity from temptation or remove the possibility of
subsequent lapses into sin. Least of all is an indulgence the purchase of a
pardon which secures the buyer's salvation...
2) An indulgence is the extra-sacramental remission of the temporal
punishment due, in God's justice, to sin that has been forgiven, which
remission is granted by the Church in the exercise of the power of the
keys, through the application of the superabundant merits of Christ and of
the saints, and for some just and reasonable motive...
3)...
6) AUTHORITATIVE TEACHING OF THE CHURCH.
The Council of Constance condemned among the errors of Wyclif the proposition: "It is foolish to
believe in the indulgences granted by the pope and the bishops" (Sess.
VIII, 4 May, 1415; see Denzinger-Bannwart, "Enchiridion", 622). In the
Bull "Exsurge Domine", 15 June, 1520, Leo X condemned Luther's assertions
that "Indulgences are pious frauds of the faithful"; and that "Indulgences
do not avail those who really gain them for the remission of the penalty
due to actual sin in the sight of God's justice" (Enchiridion, 758, 759).
The Council of Trent (Sess. XXV, 3-4, Dec., 1563) declared: "Since the
power of granting indulgences has been given to the Church by Christ, and
since the Church from the earliest times has made use of this Divinely
given power, the holy synod teaches and ordains that the use of
indulgences, as most salutary to Christians and as approved by the
authority of the councils, shall be retained in the Church; and it further
pronounces anathema against those who either declare that indulgences are
useless or deny that the Church has the power to grant them" (Enchiridion
989). It is therefore of faith (1) that the Church has received from Christ
the power to grant indulgences, and (2) that the use of indulgences is
salutary for the faithful.
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(You will find the complete article on INDULGENCE in the "Catholic
Encyclopedia" on the New Advent web page at http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07783a.htm)
2) What an Indulgence is
3) Various kinds of Indulgences
4) Who can grant Indulgences
5) Dispositions Necessary to gain Indulgences
6) Authoritative Teaching of the Church
7) Basis of the Doctrine
8) The Power to Grant Indulgences
9) Abuses
10) Salutary Effects of Indulgences
4)...
5)...
