'Supererogation' is Latin for 'paying beyond what is required' — a Reformation theological flashpoint.
The performance of more work than duty requires; doing more than is needed or expected, especially in the context of moral or religious obligation.
From Late Latin supererogatio (a paying out beyond what is required), from Latin supererogare (to pay out beyond), from super- (above, beyond) + erogare (to pay out, to expend). Erogare is composed of e- (out) + rogare (to ask) — literally to pay out what has been asked for. The chain is therefore: to ask → to pay out what is asked → to pay out beyond what is asked. The theological use — performing more good works
The concept of 'works of supererogation' became a major point of contention during the Protestant Reformation. Catholic theology held that saints performed more good works than were required for their own salvation, creating a 'treasury of merit' that the Church could distribute to others (the theological basis for indulgences). Protestant reformers like Martin Luther rejected this entire framework, and the Thirty-Nine Articles of the Church of England (Article XIV)
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