The Council of Trent clarified ambiguities that plagued the early Catholic church through the Middle Ages, including: The precise number and nature of the sacraments; The veneration of saints and relics; Purgatory; The authority of the pope; and The use of indulgences. The 'either/or' doctrines of the Protestant reformers-justification by faith alone, the authority of Scripture alone-were rejected in favor of a 'both/and' doctrine of justification by both faith and works on the basis of the authority of both Scripture and tradition.