The history of the popes, from the close of the middle ages : drawn ...

368 HISTORY OF THE POPES.
that the Holy Scriptures are the exclusive source of faith, is
thus rejected. After having decided which books belong to
the Holy Scriptures, they replied to that other fundamental
principle of Protestantism, the claim for private judgment,
by the decision that no one shall be permitted to oppose his
own opinions to that of the whole Church.^
Thus, in the first dogmatic decrees, the principal question
which divided the old and the new beliefs was touched upon,
in that the differences which divided them lay not only in the
actual dogmas which were accepted or rejected, but much
more in the reason why each article of belief was accepted or
rejected, and in the difference of opinion as to the sources of
faith, and the standpoint which the individual had to take up
w'th regard to them.
But the Council also had to instruct the faithful in the
particular distinctive doctrines, or at least in those which were
most important. Here again attention was directed in the
first place to those errors which formed the foundation of the
doctrinal teaching of the new system of belief, the doctrines
of original sin and justification. This subject was of the
utmost importance, not only for the faith, but also for the
Christian life. Consequences of the most far-reaching importance
might result, should such doctrines make their way
among the masses of the people, as that the will of man is not
free, and is purely passive as regards the m.atter of salvation,
or that good works have no value for salvation. ^ On the
other hand it was by no means easy to give precise and satis-
factory expression, from every point of view, to the principles
living in the consciousness of faith in the Church, as to the
manner of justification. There were no decisions of former
Councils upon which it was possible to lean ;
the older theolo-
gians had made scarcely any pronouncements as to
^ Sess. 4. Cf. Vol. XII. of this work, p. 258 seqq.
^ The Tridentine decree on Justification " ought to be regarded
with gratitude, not only by the pastoral theologian, but also by
anyone who still retains any feeling for moral freedom, aad for
the ideals of human dignity." Swoboda, 91.