Salvation
Ephesians 2:8-10
For by grace you are saved through faith, and that not of yourselves, for it is the gift of God; Not of works, that no man may glory. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus in good works, which God hath prepared that we should walk in them.
Context of the passage
Paul explains to the Ephesians, former pagans, that their salvation is entirely God's gracious initiative, not human achievement.
Catholic reading
Catholics fully affirm salvation is by grace, unearned and initiated by God alone; yet verse 10 immediately affirms that this grace is ordered toward good works, which are the fruit and expression, not the cause, of a living faith.
Common objection
This passage proves salvation is by faith alone, excluding any role for works whatsoever.
Response
Paul excludes only works as a means of boasting or earning salvation prior to grace, not the necessary role of grace-empowered works afterward, as verse 10 states we are 'created... unto good works' that God prepared for us to walk in.