Christian theology Christian theology is the theology – the systematic study of the divine and religion – of Christianity, Christian belief and practice. It concentrates primarily upon the texts of the Old Testament and of the New Testament, as well as on Ch ...

, "legalism" (or "nomism") is a

pejorative A pejorative word, phrase, slur, or derogatory term is a word or grammatical form expressing a negative or disrespectful connotation, a low opinion, or a lack of respect toward someone or something. It is also used to express criticism, hosti ...

term applied to the idea that "by doing good works or by obeying the law, a person earns and merits salvation." The term has been criticized by certain Christian traditions, such as Conservative Anabaptists who have said that being a disciple of Jesus means being obedient to New Testament commands (such as the holy kiss,

baptism Baptism (from ) is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by aspersion, sprinkling or affusion, pouring water on the head, or by immersion baptism, immersing in water eit ...

, communion, headcovering, and feet washing), and the same is "crucial evidence that an individual has repented, believed, and yielded to Christ."

Overview

The ''Encyclopedia of Christianity in the United States'' defines ''legalism'' as a pejorative descriptor for "the direct or indirect attachment of behaviors, disciplines, and practices to the belief in order to achieve

salvation Salvation (from Latin: ''salvatio'', from ''salva'', 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, ''salvation'' generally refers to the deliverance of the soul from sin and its c ...

and right standing before God", emphasizing a need "to perform certain deeds in order to gain salvation" (works). Additionally, ''legalism'' pejoratively refers to the view that Christians should not engage in social practices perceived as contrary to a Christian witness, such as

gambling Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of Value (economics), value ("the stakes") on a Event (probability theory), random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy (ga ...

, dancing, consuming alcohol, enjoying secular entertainment, or wearing immodest clothing; abstinence from these things is found among fundamental Baptist, Conservative Anabaptist and Conservative Holiness denominations. What is viewed as "legalistic" may depend on the Christian denomination; in contrast to

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

theology that revolves around the doctrine of justification by faith, Christians of the

Anabaptist Anabaptism (from Neo-Latin , from the Greek language, Greek : 're-' and 'baptism'; , earlier also )Since the middle of the 20th century, the German-speaking world no longer uses the term (translation: "Re-baptizers"), considering it biased. ...

tradition (who teach salvation by "faith that works") have argued that being a disciple of Jesus by careful obedience to New Testament commands (such as the holy kiss,

, communion, headcovering, and feet washing), is "crucial evidence that an individual has repented, believed, and yielded to Christ." The Anabaptist theologian Menno Simons rebuffed the Lutheran charge of legalism by referencing : Reformed commentator Anna Grace Wood stated, "If in 1 Corinthians 11, God commands the wearing of fabric head coverings in worship and we reject this teaching, we are in sin because we are rejecting the Word of God." The Christian expositor Tony Cooke, citing , has stated that the term "legalist" has been often applied incorrectly to those following biblical directives "that pertain to holiness, obedience, and living godly lives", concluding that "God's grace leads us into obedience, not away from it." In the same vein, the theologian Leonard Ravenhill summated: "When there is something in the Bible that churches don't like, they call it 'legalism'." The

Pharisees The Pharisees (; ) were a Jews, Jewish social movement and school of thought in the Levant during the time of Second Temple Judaism. Following the Siege of Jerusalem (AD 70), destruction of the Second Temple in 70 AD, Pharisaic beliefs became ...

and

Sadducees The Sadducees (; ) were a sect of Jews active in Judea during the Second Temple period, from the second century BCE to the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE. The Sadducees are described in contemporary literary sources in contrast to ...

, as described in the Gospels, are often regarded in general by Christians as legalists. Historically, many Christian

New Testament The New Testament (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, as well as events relating to Christianity in the 1st century, first-century Christianit ...

scholars attacked

Judaism Judaism () is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic, Monotheism, monotheistic, ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jews, Jewish people. Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of o ...

for supposedly being "legalistic"; this accusation has been rebutted by other scholars, such as E. P. Sanders, who identify this criticism as inaccurate and ahistorical. Antinomianism is often regarded as the opposite of legalism,Joseph F. Fletcher, ''Situation Ethics: The New Morality'' ( Westminster John Knox Press, 1966), p. 17. with situational ethics as a third possible position. In 1921, Ernest De Witt Burton stated that in , the Greek word was "evidently used ... in its legalistic sense, denoting divine law viewed as a purely legalistic system made up of statutes, on the basis of obedience or disobedience to which individuals are approved or condemned as a matter of debt without grace. This is divine law as the legalist defined it."

References

External links

*
Legalism: Its Fruits and the True Grace of God - Emanuel Lapp (Ephrata Christian Fellowship)
Anabaptist perspective {{DEFAULTSORT:Legalism (Theology) Normative ethics Christian ethics Theories of law Judaism in the New Testament Christian terminology Christian law Christian theology Pejorative terms Ethical theories

Overview

See also

References

External links