Christian theology Christian theology is the theology of Christian belief and practice. Such study concentrates primarily upon the texts of the Old Testament and of the New Testament, as well as on Christian tradition. Christian theologians use biblical exeg ...

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

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

term applied to the idea that "by doing good works or by obeying the law, a person earns and merits salvation." 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 ...

and right standing before God", emphasizing a need "to perform certain deeds in order to gain salvation" (works).Benjamin Espinoza,
Legalism
in '' Encyclopedia of Christianity in the United States'', eds. George Thomas Kurian & Mark A. Lamport (Rowman & Littlefield, 2016), p. 1338. 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 ("the stakes") on a random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy are discounted. Gambling thus requires three ele ...

, dancing, consuming alcohol, enjoying secular entertainment, or wearing immodest clothing; abstinence from these things is found among fundamental Baptist,

Conservative Anabaptist Conservative Anabaptism includes theologically conservative Anabaptist denominations, both in doctrine and practice. Conservative Anabaptists, along with Old Order Anabaptists and mainline Anabaptists, are a subset of the Anabaptist branch of Chri ...

and Conservative Holiness denominations. What is viewed as "legalistic" may depend on the Christian denomination; in contrast to

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice 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 : 're-' and 'baptism', german: Täufer, 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 The kiss of peace is an ancient traditional Christian greeting, sometimes also called the "holy kiss", "brother kiss" (among men), or "sister kiss" (among women). Such greetings signify a wish and blessing that peace be with the recipient, and b ...

, headcovering, and

feet washing Maundy (from Old French ''mandé'', from Latin ''mandatum'' meaning "command"), or Washing of the Saints' Feet, Washing of the Feet, or Pedelavium or Pedilavium, is a religious rite observed by various Christian denominations. The Latin word ...

), 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 : 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 (; he, פְּרוּשִׁים, Pərūšīm) were a Jewish social movement and a school of thought in the Levant during the time of Second Temple Judaism. After the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE, Pharisaic beliefs b ...

and

Sadducees The Sadducees (; he, צְדוּקִים, Ṣədūqīm) were a socio- religious sect of Jewish people who were active in Judea during the Second Temple period, from the second century BCE through the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE. T ...

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

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chris ...

scholars attacked

Judaism Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in th ...

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. E. P. Sanders, "Jesus, Ancient Judaism, and Modern Christianity: The Quest Continues" in ''Jesus, Judaism, and Christian Anti-Judaism: Reading the New Testament After the Holocaust'', eds. Paula Fredriksen &

Adele Reinhartz Adele Reinhartz (born 1953) is a Canadian academic and a specialist in the history and literature of Christianity and Judaism in the Greco-Roman period, the Gospel of John, early Jewish–Christian relations, literary criticism including femini ...

(Westminster John Knox Press, 2002), pp. 48-52.

Antinomianism Antinomianism (Ancient Greek: ἀντί 'anti''"against" and νόμος 'nomos''"law") is any view which rejects laws or legalism and argues against moral, religious or social norms (Latin: mores), or is at least considered to do so. The term ha ...

is often regarded as the opposite of legalism,Joseph F. Fletcher, ''Situation Ethics: The New Morality'' (

Westminster John Knox Press Westminster John Knox Press is an American publisher of Christian books located in Louisville, Kentucky and is part of Presbyterian Publishing Corporation, the publishing arm of the Louisville, Kentucky-based Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) The P ...

, 1966), p. 17. with situational ethics as a third possible position. In 1921,

Ernest De Witt Burton Ernest DeWitt Burton (February 4, 1856 – May 26, 1925) was an American biblical scholar and president of the University of Chicago. Biography Burton was born in Granville, Ohio and graduated from Denison University in 1876. After graduating f ...

stated that in , the Greek word was "evidently used ... in its legalistic sense, denoting

divine law Divine law is any body of law that is perceived as deriving from a transcendent source, such as the will of God or godsin contrast to man-made law or to secular law. According to Angelos Chaniotis and Rudolph F. Peters, divine laws are typicall ...

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."Burton, Ernest De Witt, ''The International Critical Commentary, Galatians'', 1921, p. 120.

References

External links

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

See also

References

External links