We have now concluded this long historical examination of the different theories of salvation that have followed one another over the centuries. If any reader has managed to avoid getting lost in the meanders of the history of this fundamental doctrine, he or she might have realised that the answer to our initial question, what does “Christ died for us” mean, is by no means obvious or trivial. There are many theories and ideas on the subject, that have given rise to an extremely complex body of doctrine, in which various hypotheses have blended and changed to take forms that are sometimes far removed from the original conceptions. Nor should we underestimate the influence exerted over the centuries by foreign religions and philosophies that have often contaminated Christian thought, leaving clearly visible traces and substantially distorting essential aspects of the doctrine. To conclude, we would like to provide a brief overview of the theories of salvation adopted by the different Christian denominations to date.
1. Theories of salvation adopted
Roman Catholic Church: the theory of Satisfaction, in the form elaborated by Thomas Aquinas, is the reference theory for the Roman Catholic Church. Christ, by his act of sacrificial love, satisfied God for the sins of all mankind and deserved superabundant grace. He did not suffer punishment for sin but offered to God a sacrifice of love that was more pleasing to the Father than the sins of all men of all times displeased Him; and so, He gave satisfaction for our sins. However, it is only possible to receive the grace of forgiveness through the sacraments, especially baptism, in which we are united to Christ and conformed to his death. At baptism, original sin and all past sins are forgiven, but not future sins, since we retain the ability to commit mortal sins that would nullify grace. Therefore, only through the sacrament of confession and penance can we amend our further sins committed after baptism. Penance can consist of prayers, fasting, good deeds, and almsgiving. It follows that the cancellation of the debt generated by sin is accomplished both through the satisfaction of Christ's sacrifice, by which grace is merited universally, and individually through the sacraments, by which we are called to give individual satisfaction. There are an estimated 1.3-1.4 billion Catholics in the world.229
Protestant (Lutheran) Churches: since the Protestant churches do not have a unified doctrine as in the case of the Catholic Church, there can be different interpretations among the various denominations. A distinction can be made between conservative orthodox approaches, which refer to Penal Substitution, and more liberal positions which in various forms reject this approach. However, in general, the theory of Penal Substitution is considered the theory of salvation for the majority of Protestant Christians. Jesus bore the punishment for sin that was due to sinners, paying the debt and thus making forgiveness from God possible. Jesus underwent judgement against sin, satisfying God's justice and holiness and freeing those who believed in him from the curse of the law. Mankind's sin was imputed to Christ on the cross, while Jesus' righteousness is imputed to the believer when he exercises saving faith. Based on this imputation, the believer is declared righteous before God, because he is clothed with the righteousness of Christ. Salvation is accomplished by Jesus alone, and the believer is only required to have faith in His finished work. Any form of individual satisfaction is excluded. About 70-90 million believers worldwide belong to Lutheran denominations.
Reformed Church (Calvinist): the Reformed conception of the atonement is not very different from the Lutheran one, however it differs in the predestination of the elects and in the emphasis on the satisfaction of God's wrath. In the passion and death of Christ, God the Father poured out all his wrath for the sins of the elects on Jesus, who bore the punishment they would have deserved. This is what it means that Christ became sin and a curse; God transferred all the sins (past, present and future) of all the elects onto his Son, condemned and punished him in their place, thus satisfying his own wrath. Believers in the Calvinist Reformed Church are estimated at between 60 and 80 million.
Pentecostal Church: the Penal Substitution of Reformed origin is supplemented, and strongly emphasised, by the vision of Christus Victor, Christ's triumph over the evil one, sin and death. In some cases, the theory of the Ransom, paid by Jesus to free men from the slavery of sin, is also taken into account. It is the fastest-growing Christian denomination in the world and now numbers some 280 million believers.
Baptist Church: shares the theory of Penal Substitution in the Reformed Calvinist form. About 100 million believers belong to the Baptist Church.
Anglican Church: the Anglican Church does not have a real official doctrinal body, which presents itself as a collection of both Catholic and Protestant orders, although the latter predominates. However, reference is made to the Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion of 1571, which form the basis of the doctrine of the Church of England. The position, as far as salvation is concerned, is in line with the principle of Christ's vicarious sacrifice, in a territory between the theory of Satisfaction and that of Penal Substitution: “The Offering of Christ once made is that perfect redemption, propitiation, and satisfaction, for all the sins of the whole world, both original and actual; and there is none other satisfaction for sin, but that alone.”230 “We are accounted righteous before God, only for the merit of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ by Faith, and not for our own works or deservings.”231 About 110 million believers are members of the Anglican Church.
Methodist Church: originally, the Methodist Church embraced a wide range of options; Satisfaction Theory, Christus Victor and Penal Substitution. Subsequently, the American component moved towards Governmental theory, while the European component remained committed to Penal Substitution. In recent times, some progressive currents have preferred to move in the direction of the Moral Influence or Moral Transformation theory, while the conservative components have remained faithful to the line of Christ's vicarious sacrifice. The Methodist Church comprises some 60-80 million believers.
Adventist Church: the Adventist Church upholds the idea of Jesus performing a priestly ministry of atonement through his blood in the heavenly sanctuary, restoring mankind to God's favour. At the conclusion of his ministry, he will determine the destiny of every soul. This view would therefore be assimilated to the Satisfaction theory and is inspired by the Jewish conception of the service of the High Priest and the atonement sacrifice, which we will see in the second section of the book. About 20 million believers belong to the Adventist Church.
Orthodox Church and Oriental Churches: the Orthodox Church and the Eastern Churches, following the division of the Eastern from the Western Roman Empire, developed completely separately. It is fair to assume that the salvation theory adopted by these Churches is closer to what was originally professed by the early Church. In fact, the theory refers to Irenaeus' Recapitulation and Athanasius' idea of union with Christ. The Recapitulation agrees with the Latin theories only on the fact that God had to deal with man's sin: man is separated from God because of the fall and, left to himself, would be unable to return to him. However, the Recapitulation sees the pattern through which God dealt with man's sin more as a “hospital” rather than a “court”. Christ became human to heal humanity, perfectly merging human nature with divine nature in his person and thereby uniting it with God. This allows all those who are willing to say yes to God to be perfectly united to the Trinity through the person of Christ. Having become one with the living God, we have life through Jesus, true God and true man, who took upon himself our dying nature, conquered death and rose again, so that all who are united with him may rise with him. Today, the Orthodox Church counts about 220 million believers and the Eastern Churches about 60 million.