Can You Earn Your Way Into Heaven? The Catholic Answer

Description

Do Catholics believe we can earn our way into Heaven through good works? No. The Catholic Church teaches that salvation begins with God's grace. Human beings cannot save themselves through their own natural efforts—a belief historically associated with the heresy of Pelagianism. But Catholicism also teaches that God's grace does not eliminate our free will. We are called to cooperate with grace through faith, repentance, the Sacraments, obedience, charity, and perseverance. Good works do not purchase Heaven. They are possible because God's grace is already working within us. Catholicism therefore rejects both extremes: we cannot save ourselves, but neither should we presume that our choices no longer matter. Grace comes first. We cooperate. And we depend upon God for everything. Subscribe to Catholic Voices and Prayers for daily Catholic truth, traditional devotions, the Holy Rosary, and straightforward explanations of Catholic teaching.