See the introductory post, New Upcoming Project: Refutation of William Whitaker's Disputation on Holy Scripture on Sola Scriptura.
I am utilizing a copy of the book available at Internet Archive.
Whitaker's words will be in blue. Page numbers will correspond to the above book version.
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The first is contained in his treatise against Faustus the Manichee, Lib. xi. c. 5, where Augustine says that "the scripture is settled upon a certain lofty throne to command the service of every faithful and pious understanding." (p. 353)
Oddly enough, Whitaker omits the context of the citation (Book 11, section 5), which shows clearly that St. Augustine (like a good sola Scriptura Protestant) does not pit Scripture against the Church. Quite the contrary:
The authority of these books has come down to us from the apostles through the successions of bishops and the extension of the Church, and, from a position of lofty supremacy, claims the submission of every faithful and pious mind. [my bolding]
. . . we never said that every thing in scripture is easy, perspicuous, and plain ; that there is nothing obscure, nothing difficult to be understood; but we confess openly that there are many obscure and difficult passages of scripture: and yet these men object to us this, and affirm that we maintain the scriptures to be perfectly easy. . . . But they do us injustice, and openly preach falsehood concerning us, when they affirm us to say that all things in scripture are so plain that they may be understood by any unlearned person, and need no exposition or interpretation. Hence we see, . . . what they say, but falsely say, that we think, that all things are plain in the scriptures, and that they suffice without any interpretation to determine all controversies. Let us now see what our opinion really is. (pp. 359, 361)
This is how perspicuity is generally understood among Protestant thinkers. Note it well, as we must not misrepresent what we oppose, and need to fully understand opposing views before setting out to refute them.
Luther, in his assertion of the articles condemned by Leo X., in the preface, says that the scripture is its own most plain, easy, and certain interpreter, proving, judging, and illustrating all things. This is said by him most truly, if it be candidly understood. The same author, in his book of the Slavery of the Will against the Diatribe of Erasmus, writes almost in the beginning, that in the scriptures there is nothing abstruse, nothing obscure, but that all things are plain. And because this may seem a paradox, he afterwards explains himself thus: he confesses that many places of scripture are obscure, that there are many words and sentences shrouded in difficulty, but he affirms nevertheless that no dogma is obscure; as, for instance, that God is one and three, that Christ hath suffered, and will reign for ever, and so forth. All which is perfectly true: for although there is much obscurity in many words and passages, yet all the articles of faith are plain. (pp. 361-362)
Well, that's fascinating, seeing that baptism, a pretty important doctrine and practice of Christianity, is subject to notoriously different interpretations in protestant camps (all believing in perspicuity). Luther believed in baptismal regeneration, but the Calvinists did not. He and the Calvinists and the Anglicans all believed in infant baptism, but the Anabaptists and Baptists today do not. Wasn't Scripture clear enough? We are told that it is ("all the articles of faith are plain"), yet all the manifest evidence to the contrary in real life and practice, shows otherwise.
According to Whitaker's earlier reasoning in his book, "the other guy" is wrong because he lacks a fuller measure of the Holy Spirit. But of course this is a hopelessly contradictory state of affairs. Who decides who is right in the first place, and who lacks the Holy Spirit? Each one says this about the other. Who decides where the truth lies, and how? All appeal to Scripture, so obviously, Scripture cannot settle the question itself.
The same thing holds for the Eucharist, and many other doctrines. Luther affirmed the Real Presence. The Anabaptists and Calvinists did not, etc. In a 1996 dialogue with anti-Catholics Eric Svendsen and James White about the alleged (by them), "perspicuous apostolic message," I listed 18 major areas where Protestants cannot agree with each other. I asked both men what the apostles thought about each, and they consistently refused to answer (with good reason). We're left with a scenario where Scripture is supposedly plain (without the authoritative aid of the Church), for all major doctrines, yet Protestants can't resolve many such doctrines, and continue to perpetually disagree. It's rather absurd . . . all they can say about each other is that the "other guys" are blind to the plain teachings of Scripture.
But some persons complain greatly of the obscurity of the things also, so that this distinction of Luther's between the things and the signs of the things may seem to be idle. Luther answers that this occurs, not from the obscurity and difficulty of the things themselves, but from our blindness and ignorance. . . . Furthermore he says, that the reason why so many dispute about the things of scripture is to be found in the perversity and depraved desires of men, especially the sophists and schoolmen, who, not content with the simplicity of scripture, have rendered every thing obscure and intricate by their traps and devices; but that the scripture must not be falsely blamed on account of men's abuse of it. (p. 362)
There's the stock answer that has been used ever since. But it is thoroughly problematic and unsatisfactory, for reasons detailed above.
The state of the question, therefore, is not really such as the papists would have it appear; but our fundamental principles are these: First, that the scriptures are sufficiently clear to admit of their being read by the people and the unlearned with some fruit and utility. Secondly, that all things necessary to salvation are propounded in plain words in the scriptures. Meanwhile, we concede that there are many obscure places, and that the scriptures need explication; and that, on this account, God's ministers are to be listened to when they expound the word of God, and the men best skilled in scripture are to be consulted. So far concerning the state of the question. (p. 364)
Both baptism and the Eucharist are necessary to salvation:
Baptism:
Mark 16:16 [disputed manuscript, but still indicates the early Christian, apostolic belief] He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.
Acts 2:38 And Peter said to them, "Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins;"
Acts 22:16 And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on his name.'
Romans 6:3-4 Or don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. (cf. Romans 8:11, 1 Cor 15:20-23, Col 2:11-13)
Titus 3:5 he saved us, not because of deeds done by us in righteousness, but in virtue of his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit,
1 Peter 3:18-21 For Christ also died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit; in which he went and preached to the spirits in prison, who formerly did not obey, when God's patience waited in the days of Noah, during the building of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were saved through water. Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a clear conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,Eucharist:
John 6:48-51 I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that a man may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever; and the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh."
John 6:53-58 So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you; he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me. This is the bread which came down from heaven, not such as the fathers ate and died; he who eats this bread will live for ever."
But Protestants notoriously disagree on both of these things necessary for salvation; therefore, it appears that it is not true that Scripture is plain enough for all to agree on matters concerning salvation. It is much easier to hold that there are false premises somewhere, in cases of contradiction, and to go after those. But it is manifest that people may interpret "plain" Scripture and come up with contradictory conclusions.
We should carefully bear in memory the preceding distinctions drawn by Luther; for they are sufficient to obviate almost all the arguments of the papists in this question. (p. 365)
Right. They haven't "obviated" the argument I just made; nor has any Protestant I have ever met in 20 years of Catholic apologetics come up with a rational rebuttal of it.
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