Why did the practice of selling indulgences trouble many Catholics?

Answer 1

Selling indulgences is a serious sin called simony. Simony I believe would involve an automatic excommunication, so it would certainly trouble a Catholic. However, indulgences have always been issued for the performance of one of the works of penance, i.e. fasting, prayer, and almsgiving. Receiving an indulgence in return for giving alms under the usual conditions is not a sin, and never happened in the Catholic Church. There was one point in the early 16th century when Martin Luther accused the Bishops and the Pope of "selling" indulgences but all of the evidence we have for this can be traced back to Martin Luther and his questionable writings. There is no proof that indulgences were ever "sold".

Answer 2

Selling indulgences is a serious sin called simony. Simony I believe would involve an automatic excommunication, so it would certainly trouble a Catholic. However, indulgences have always been issued for the performance of one of the works of penance, i.e. fasting, prayer, and almsgiving. Receiving an indulgence in return for giving alms under the usual conditions is not a sin, and never happened in the Catholic Church. There was one point in the early 16th century when Martin Luther accused the Bishops and the Pope of "selling" indulgences but all of the evidence we have for this can be traced back to Martin Luther and his questionable writings. There is no proof that indulgences were ever "sold".