(This is the same comment that I posted on your original essay of Dogma.)
As a devout Catholic Christian, I feel the need to briefly talk about plenary (or total) indulgences. I don't know if Kevin Smith purposely misrepresents it or if he genuinely misunderstands (to be fair, a lot of people both Catholic and non-Catholic do). This is from an online tract on Catholic Answers (https://www.catholic.com/tract/myths-about-indulgences):
Myth 3: People can "buy forgiveness" with indulgences.
The definition of indulgences presupposes that forgiveness has already taken place: "An indulgence is a remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilt has ALREADY BEEN FORGIVEN (Indulgentarium Doctrinal 1, emphasis added). Indulgences in no way forgives sins. They deal only with punishments left after sins have been forgiven.
(This is the same comment that I posted on your original essay of Dogma.)
As a devout Catholic Christian, I feel the need to briefly talk about plenary (or total) indulgences. I don't know if Kevin Smith purposely misrepresents it or if he genuinely misunderstands (to be fair, a lot of people both Catholic and non-Catholic do). This is from an online tract on Catholic Answers (https://www.catholic.com/tract/myths-about-indulgences):
Myth 3: People can "buy forgiveness" with indulgences.
The definition of indulgences presupposes that forgiveness has already taken place: "An indulgence is a remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilt has ALREADY BEEN FORGIVEN (Indulgentarium Doctrinal 1, emphasis added). Indulgences in no way forgives sins. They deal only with punishments left after sins have been forgiven.