text: So what?  We never disagreed with the Protestant reformers that we are saved by Grace alone. We also always agreed that justification (at least the initial work of justification) is not due to merit on our part but rather due to God's gratuity. That document just explained in modern terms what we have always believed--but may have been misunderstood by the Protestants. The disagreement is in whether God's Grace is operative in human works.  It is also in whether Christ's righteousness is infused vs. imputed. 
  
  Pope Benedict, likewise reflected in his speech what has always been believed by the Church but, again, has been misunderstood and misinterpreted by Protestants and Catholics alike.  Novenas, indulgences, miraculous medals and the like are all venerable tools of prayer---but not essential or central to Catholic spirituality. 
  
  Anyone who has taken a basic theology class would know this---unless of course they went to a Jesuit university.