Its starting point is human need and the gratuity of grace, not an independent ability to earn reconciliation. Preparation and response are made possible by God's action. The council nevertheless affirms that the person truly responds; the will is not described as a purely passive object whose activity has no significance.
Justification includes remission of sins and sanctification. Faith is indispensable, while hope and charity belong to the living state described by the decree. The Catholic disagreement with some formulations of faith alone concerns what is included in saving faith and justification, not whether believing God's revelation is optional.
The treatment of good works presupposes this state of grace and the continuing influence of Christ. Catholic merit cannot be understood as a claim that an unaided creature places God under an obligation independent of his promise and gift. Equally, the Christian is not invited to regard obedience as irrelevant after an initial profession.
For historical use, three questions should be kept distinct: what the council actually defined; how particular preachers explained it; and how faithfully particular Christians lived it. Defective teaching or conduct may be evidence of a pastoral failure without establishing that the conciliar doctrine contained the defect.
The internal reader opens Session VI itself. Its chapters and canons should be considered together, followed by the related sacramental decrees. This permits an assessment of the Catholic position on its own terms before comparing it with the different positions advanced by the Reformers.