SALVATION
OUTSIDE THE CATHOLIC CHURCH
By
A Catholic Religious Brother
December 2012
TABLE OF
CONTENTS
LIST OF
ABBREVIATIONS…………………………………………………………
GENERAL
INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………….
CHAPTER
ONE
THE INSTITUTION OF THE CHURCH
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………...
1.1
Who is the founder of
the Catholic Church? ………………………………………
1.2 Why
was it instituted? ……………………………………………………………..
Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………..
CHAPTER TWO
THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………....
2.1 The
mission of the Apostles………………………………………………………..
2.1.1 Mission of St. Peter………………………………………………………
2.2 The
mission of the Saints…………………………………………………………..
Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………..
CHAPTER THREE
SALVATION OUTSIDE THE CATHOLIC CHURCH
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………..
3.1 In Church
teachings……………………………………………………………….
3.1.1 Elements of sanctification and
truth outside the Church………………..
3.1.1.1 Valid sacraments
and apostolic succession……………………
3.1.1.2 Valid
Baptism…………………………………………………
3.1.1.3 Certain other
aspects as a preparation of the Gospel…………..
3.1.2 Obstacles to salvation outside
the Church……………………………….
3.1.3 Fullness of the means of
salvation only in the Church…………………..
3.1.3.1 No salvation
through anyone else than Jesus…………………..
3.1.3.2 Complete
salvific mystery given to the Church………………..
3.1.3.3 Church is the
mystical body…………………………………….
3.1.3.4 Ecclesiastical
unity and the Magisterium……………………….
3.1.3.5 Full development
of life in Christ……………………………….
3.1.3.6 Life of Saints -
The Proof……………………………………….
3.1.4 Church is necessary for
salvation………………………………………….
3.1.4.1 Church is not
one way along with others………………………..
3.1.4.2 No salvation
outside the Catholic Church……………………….
3.1.4.3 Salvation for
the ignorant………………………………………..
3.2 According to the Church Fathers…………………………………………………….
3.2.1 St. Augustine………………………………………………………………
3.2.2 St. Jerome…………………………………………………………………
3.2.3 Origen……………………………………………………………………..
Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………….
GENERAL
CONCLUSION……………………………………………………………..
BIBLIOGRAPHY……………………………………………………………………….
ABBREVIATIONS
AG Ad Gentes Divinitus, Decree on the
Church’s Missionary Activity
CCC Catechism
of the Catholic Church
DI Dominus Iesus,
Declaration on the Unicity and Salvific Universality of Jesus Christ and the Church
LG Lumen Gentium,
Dogmatic Constitution on the Church
UR Unitatis Redintegratio, Decree on
Ecumenism
GENERAL
INTRODUCTION
Christianity is a religion of
salvation.[1]
Salvation according to the oxford dictionary is, “Deliverance from sin and it
consequences, believed by Christians to be brought about by faith in
Christ.” The Catholic Church teaches
that, to attain salvation means, to be in heaven with God after our life on
Earth. Therefore to be not saved means to be damned.[2]
Damnation is to be condemned to hell where there will be unimaginable
suffering, “where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.”[3]
Bl. John Paul II says, “To save means to liberate from radical evil. An even
radical evil is God’s rejection of man, that is, eternal damnation as the
consequence of man’s rejection of God.”[4]
So man’s greatest loss is not the loss of temporal things like money, property,
or the loss of good health, but the loss of heaven or the loss of God, as Jesus
himself asks, “What profit is there for one to gain the whole world yet lose or
forfeit himself ?”[5]
From
the beginning of Christianity the question of who will be saved is there.
Whether Catholics alone will be saved and the others damned? Or in other words,
“Is there salvation outside the Catholic Church?” This is a question which is
repeating in our own times. The Church and the Saints have given the answer in
various ways, but especially during the Second Vatican Council, this question
was again taken up and answered through its various documents. But it seems
that after the Second Vatican Council, there has been a certain confusion
regarding salvation outside the Church. And it has developed into religious
pluralism. The consequence is that, if man can be saved in all other forms of
religion, as it is possible through the Catholic Church, then there is no need
of evangelization or missionary work.
If
salvation can be attained through any religion, then other questions arise. Did
Christ die in vain? Did the apostles and martyrs who shed their blood for
Christ and his Church shed their blood in vain? Did the religious Orders in the
Catholic Church, which were founded specially for spreading the Catholic faith,
for example, the Order of Preachers (Dominicans), were founded in vain?
Therefore
the aim of this work is to clarify this question of salvation outside the
Catholic Church, and on that basis, to find a justification for the missionary
activity of the Church.
The
general scheme of this work will be as follows. First the purpose of the
incarnation of Christ and the institution of the Church will be explained. Then
the mission of the Church, as regards the mission of the apostles and the
saints will be explained, and lastly the question of salvation as expounded by
the Church and her saints through various councils and writings will be
detailed.
The
end of this work is not to give any theological conclusion, but to shed light
upon many points of thought which will be useful for further and deeper
meditation and research on this topic of salvation outside the Catholic Church.
CHAPTER ONE
THE INSTITUTION OF THE CHURCH
Christianity is the religion with
the highest number of adherents in the world. And the Catholic Church has the
highest number among all the Christian denominations. Even though at present we
have more than 20,000 Christian denominations or “churches”, in the beginning
there was only one Church.[6]
This is the Church which the apostles spread.
1.1 Who is the founder of the Catholic Church?
This
Church which the apostles spread has just one founder, who is Jesus Christ, the
Saviour of the world, who is the second person of the triune God. “Jesus gives
us to understand that he himself is the Lord. To confess that Jesus is Lord is
distinctive of Christian faith.”[7] The Church through the Lateran Council IV
says, “...we believe and confess without reservation that there is only one
true God, eternal, infinite and unchangeable, incomprehensible, almighty and
ineffable, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, three person indeed, but
one essence, substance or nature entirely simple.”[8]
In the Bible we read, “Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For
I am God, and there is no other... To me every knee shall bow, every tongue
shall swear, ‘Only in the Lord, it shall be said of me, are righteousness and
strength’ ”[9]
The coming of Jesus Christ was foretold by many prophets over the centuries.
And finally, He, who was God, was born of the Virgin Mary, being conceived by
the Holy Spirit. This Jesus lived the ordinary life of a man, as son of a
carpenter till age thirty, and then started his mission publicly, entrusted to
him by God the Father. And during this time He gathered twelve apostles, and
after his death and resurrection, entrusted the apostles with the task of
spreading his message, as he said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all
nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the
Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” [10]
The
Church is born primarily of Christ's total self-giving for our salvation,
anticipated in the institution of the Eucharist and fulfilled on the cross. The
origin and growth of the Church are symbolized by the blood and water which
flowed from the open side of the crucified Jesus. For it was from the side of
Christ as he slept the sleep of death upon the cross that there came forth the
wondrous sacrament of the whole Church. As Eve was formed from the sleeping
Adam's side, so the Church was born from the pierced heart of Christ hanging
dead on the cross.[11]
1.2 Why was it instituted?
God
created the whole universe out of nothing. He created the human beings in his
image.[12]
In the beginning Adam and eve was in perfect harmony with God, with themselves
and the nature. But deceived by the serpent, our first parents commits sin, and
at that moment, humans loose the friendship with God, and the perfect harmony
among themselves and with the nature.[13]
From that time onwards humans became inclined to all sorts of sin and
disharmony. As the world population increased, sin also increased. Then God
came in the life of Abraham and his descendants, that is, the Israel. God
protected them in a special way and finally Joseph who was a descendant of
Abraham, became the husband of the Virgin Mary, mother of Jesus. In the mean
time God had promised Israel through various prophets, that a Messiah would
come, who will take away their sins and pardon their offences.[14]
Jesus
lived just thirty three years on this earth, after which he ascended into
heaven. Therefore, in order to continue his mission and to gather all those
whom he gained and will gain through his disciples, he founded the Church.
When the work which the Father gave the
Son to do on earth was accomplished, the Holy Spirit was sent on the day of
Pentecost in order that he might continually sanctify the Church. Then the
Church was openly displayed to the crowds and the spread of the Gospel among
the nations, through preaching, was begun. As the convocation of all men for
salvation, the Church in her very nature is missionary, sent by Christ to all
the nations to make disciples of them.[15]
The Church, in Christ, is like a
sacrament - a sign and instrument, that is, of communion with God and of unity
among all men. The Church's first purpose is to be the sacrament of the inner
union of men with God. Because men's communion with one another is rooted in
that union with God, the Church is also the sacrament of the unity of the human
race. In her, this unity is already begun, since she gathers men from every
nation, from all tribes and peoples and tongues; at the same time, the Church
is the sign and instrument of the full realization of the unity yet to come.[16]
As sacrament, the Church is Christ's
instrument. She is taken up by him also as the instrument for the salvation of
all, the universal sacrament of salvation, by which Christ is at once
manifesting and actualizing the mystery of God's love for men. The Church is
the visible plan of God's love for humanity, because God desires that the whole
human race may become one People of God, form one Body of Christ, and be built
up into one temple of the Holy Spirit.[17]
Conclusion
It
can be concluded that, “The Church is both visible and spiritual, a
hierarchical society and the Mystical Body of Christ. She is one, yet formed of
two components, human and divine. That is her mystery, which only faith can
accept.”[18]
The
Church is both the means and the goal of God's plan: prefigured in creation,
prepared for in the Old Covenant, founded by the words and actions of Jesus
Christ, fulfilled by his redeeming cross and his Resurrection, the Church has
been manifested as the mystery of salvation by the outpouring of the Holy
Spirit. She will be perfected in the glory of heaven as the assembly of all the
redeemed of the earth.[19]
“The
Church in this world is the sacrament of salvation, the sign and the instrument
of the communion of God and men.”[20]
“The Church is the Bride of Christ: he loved her and handed himself over for
her. He has purified her by his blood and made her the fruitful mother of all
God's children.”[21]
One enters into the People of God by faith and Baptism. All men are called to
belong to the new People of God, so that, in Christ, men may form one family
and one People of God.”[22]
CHAPTER II
THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH
Introduction
Jesus after the resurrection appeared to his disciples
and said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in
the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them
to observe all that I have commanded you and Lo, I am with you always, until
the close of the age.”[23]
“Having been divinely sent to the nations that she might be the universal
sacrament of salvation, the Church, in obedience to the command of her founder
and because it is demanded by her own essential universality, strives to preach
the Gospel to all men”[24]
“The Church on earth is by her nature missionary since, according to the plan
of the Father, she has as her origin the mission of the Son and the Holy
Spirit.”[25]
God wills the salvation of everyone through the
knowledge of the truth. Salvation is found in the truth. Those who obey the prompting
of the Spirit of truth are already on the way of salvation. But the Church, to
whom this truth has been entrusted, must go out to meet their desire, so as to
bring them the truth. Because she believes in God's universal plan of
salvation, the Church must be missionary.[26]
2.1 The mission of the Apostles
The
Church is apostolic because she is founded on the apostles. She was and remains
built on the foundation of the apostles.[27]
Jesus is the Father's Emissary. From the beginning of his ministry,
he called to him those whom he desired; ....and he appointed twelve, whom also
he named apostles, to be with him, and to be sent out to preach. From then on,
they would also be his emissaries (Greek apostoloi). In them, Christ continues
his own mission: ‘As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.’ The apostles'
ministry is the continuation of his mission; Jesus said to the Twelve: ‘he who
receives you receives me.’[28]
2.1.1 The mission of St. Peter
Among the apostles, Jesus chose Simon Peter to be the head of the
Church, “And so I say to you, you are Peter and upon this rock I will build my
Church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will
give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be
bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven”[29]
And thus St. Peter became the first pope of the Church.
After the ascension of Jesus, the festival of the
Pentecost was approaching and Jews from many places were gathered in Jerusalem.
At that time Peter and the other apostles were also gathered there and while
they were there, the Holy Spirit descended upon them.[30]
“Then Peter stood up with the eleven, raised his voice and proclaimed to them
...”[31]
“Therefore let the whole house of Israel know for certain that God has made him
both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified.”[32]
“Peter said to them, ‘Repent and be baptized, every one of you in the name of
Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of
the Holy Spirit’.”[33]
“He testified with many other arguments, and was exhorting them, ‘Save
yourselves from this corrupt generation.’ Those who accepted the message were
baptized, and about three thousand persons were added that day.”[34]
Peter stayed in Jerusalem for many years, and often
visited Samaria, to open the doors of salvation to the Samaritans.[35]
And later he travelled to Joppa,[36]
where he stayed until called by God to visit Caesarea. There he admitted the
first Gentile convert into the Church- Cornelius, the Roman centurion. Peter
then travelled to Antioch,[37]
to Rome, to Asia Minor,[38]
Corinth and many other places, and established the Church in these places.
Therefore St. Peter, the apostle who was specially chosen
by Jesus to be the first head of the visible Church, thought that it was
necessary for the Jews and Gentiles to convert to Christianity. St. Peter, we
know, in the end was crucified upside down for the faith. Similarly most of the
apostles were martyred for the same reason, that is, for spreading the
Christian faith.
2.2 The mission of the Saints
All saints were not missionaries in the strict sense. Some saints
never left their religious houses, other were at home taking care of their
families, some served in Churches as parish priests, and some worked among the
poor and the sick, and so on. But the Church, we can say, is build upon the
blood of the martyr saints. There were saints like St. Francis of Assisi, the
founder of the Order of Friars Minor (Franciscans), who went for a mission to
convert the Muslims. St. Ignatius and St. Francis Xavier, who were the
cofounders of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), were great missionaries. St.
Francis Xavier converted people in India to the Catholic faith. St. Dominic de
Guzman, the founder of the Order of Preachers (Dominicans), brought back
albigensians to the Catholic faith.
Conclusion
If Judaism, Islam, the pagan
religions and other forms of Christianity were as good as the Catholic faith in
all aspects, then why did St. Peter the first pope, the other apostles, St.
Paul, and many other saints help people get converted to the Catholic faith.
CHAPTER III
SALVATION
OUTSIDE THE CATHOLIC CHURCH
Introduction
The
Church, through various encyclicals of the popes, catechisms and the councils
has many times spoken about this question of salvation. The fathers of the
Church also have extensively commented on this topic.
3.1
In Church teachings
The
Church from the very beginnings has defended itself. And still the Church is
doing it. The Church teaches that it has a special position in the mystery of
salvation. The Church acknowledges that salvation is accessible to people of
other communities and religions, but with certain conditions and limitations.
3.1.1 Elements of sanctification
and truth outside the Church
The
Church boldly proclaims that it is the ‘one and only Church of God’.
Nevertheless the Church recognises various elements of sanctification outside
it. The Church acknowledges that other religions also have some truth in them.
3.1.1.1 Valid sacraments and
apostolic succession
The Church
acknowledges that the Orthodox churches have valid sacraments. They have valid
episcopate received through apostolic succession, and have devotion to the
Virgin Mary. “...there is furthermore a sharing in prayer and spiritual
benefits; these Christians are indeed in some real way joined to us in the Holy
Spirit for, by his gifts and graces, his sanctifying power is also active in
them...”[39]
3.1.1.2 Valid Baptism
Regarding the
Protestants and communities taking root in Protestantism, the Church says, “the ecclesial communities which
have not preserved the valid Episcopate and the genuine and integral substance
of the Eucharistic mystery, are not Churches in the proper sense;
however, those who are baptized in these communities are, by Baptism,
incorporated in Christ and thus are in a certain communion, albeit imperfect,
with the Church.”[40] “The
daily Christian life of these brethren is nourished by their faith in Christ
and strengthened by the grace of Baptism and by hearing the word of God. This
shows itself in their private prayer, their meditation on the Bible, in their
Christian family life, and in the worship of a community gathered together to
praise God.”[41]
3.1.1.3 Certain other aspects as a
preparation of the Gospel
The Church
speaking of the non- Christian religions says, “The Catholic Church recognizes
in other religions that search, among shadows and images, for the God who is
unknown yet near since he gives life and breath and all things and wants all
men to be saved. Thus, the Church considers all goodness and truth found in
these religions as a preparation for the Gospel and given by him who enlightens
all men that they may at length have life.”[42]
3.1.2 Obstacles to salvation
outside the Church
“...many
Christians understand the moral teaching of the Gospel differently from
Catholics, and do not accept the same solutions to the more difficult problems
of modern society...”[43]
And
about the non- Christians, the Church says, “In their religious behaviour,
however, men also display the limits and errors that disfigure the image of God
in them: Very often, deceived by the Evil One, men have become vain in their
reasoning, and have exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and served the
creature rather than the Creator. Or else, living and dying in this world
without God, they are exposed to ultimate despair.”[44]
3.1.3 Fullness of the means of
salvation only in the Church
Even
though, “...very many of the significant elements and endowments which together
go to build up and give life to the Church itself, can exist outside the
visible boundaries of the Catholic Church... it is only through Christ's
Catholic Church, which is the all-embracing means of salvation, that they can
benefit fully from the means of salvation.”[45]
This is explained as follows.
3.1.3.1 No salvation through anyone
else than Jesus
“Then
Peter filled with the Holy Spirit, answered them ... There is no salvation
through anyone else, nor is there any other name under heaven given to the
human race by which we are to be saved.”[46]
“Although participated forms of
mediation of different kinds and degrees are not excluded, they acquire meaning
and value only from Christ's own
mediation, and they cannot be understood as parallel or complementary to his.
Hence, those solutions that propose a salvific action of God beyond the unique
mediation of Christ would be contrary to Christian and Catholic faith.”[47]
3.1.3.2 Complete salvific mystery
given to the Church
...the theory of
the limited, incomplete, or imperfect character of the revelation of Jesus
Christ, which would be complementary to that found in other religions, is
contrary to the Church's faith. Such a position would claim to be based on the
notion that the truth about God cannot be grasped and manifested in its
globality and completeness by any historical religion, neither by Christianity
nor by Jesus Christ. Such a position is in radical contradiction with the
foregoing statements of Catholic faith according to which the full and complete
revelation of the salvific mystery of God is given in Jesus Christ. Therefore,
the words, deeds, and entire historical event of Jesus, though limited as human
realities, have nevertheless the divine Person of the Incarnate Word, true God
and true man as their subject. For this reason, they possess in themselves the
definitiveness and completeness of the revelation of God's salvific ways, even
if the depth of the divine mystery in itself remains transcendent and
inexhaustible.... Thus,
faith requires us to profess… that the Holy Spirit, who is Christ's Spirit,
will teach this entire truth (Jn
16:13) to the Apostles and, through them, to the whole Church.[48]
3.1.3.3 Church is the mystical body
Church is the
mystical body of Christ, and Christ is the head of this body. All the members
of her body are linked to each other in the communion of saints. That is, the
saints in heaven, the souls in purgatory, and the Church currently living on
earth are linked to each other. The living ones intercede with the saints in
heaven and also pray for the souls in purgatory. Also there is a sharing in
spiritual benefits among the ones who are living on earth by way of
satisfactory prayers.
The
persons living can gain indulgences because they are part of this mystical body
and hence they are freed from the debt of punishment which they owe to God for
their sins, through the merits of the saints in heaven.[49]
3.1.3.4 Ecclesiastical unity and
the Magisterium
...our separated
brethren, whether considered as individuals or as Communities and churches, are
not blessed with that unity which Jesus Christ wished to bestow on all those
who through Him were born again into one body, and with Him quickened to
newness of life - that unity which the Holy Scriptures and the ancient
Tradition of the Church proclaim... We believe that Our Lord entrusted all the
blessings of the New Covenant to the apostolic college alone, of which Peter is
the head, in order to establish the one Body of Christ on earth to which all
should be fully incorporated who belong in any way to the people of God.[50]
"In
order that the full and living Gospel might always be preserved in the Church
the apostles left bishops as their successors. They gave them their own
position of teaching authority. Indeed, the apostolic preaching, which is
expressed in a special way in the inspired books, was to be preserved in a
continuous line of succession until the end of time."[51]
The task of giving an authentic
interpretation of the Word of God, whether in its written form or in the form
of Tradition, has been entrusted to the living teaching office of the Church
alone. Its authority in this matter is exercised in the name of Jesus Christ.
This means that the task of interpretation has been entrusted to the bishops in
communion with the successor of Peter, the Bishop of Rome.[52]
3.1.3.5 Full development of life in
Christ
After the fall
of man, all humans are born into original sin. Through the sacrament of Baptism
man is freed from this original sin. But we can see that there remains that
sinful nature in man and man indeed sins after the baptism. To heal man Jesus
thus instituted not just one sacrament but seven. When man participates in
these sacraments with the right dispositions and along with it does prayer and
penance for his sins, man is slowly, but truly, restored into his original
likeness of God. And thus man is transformed into another Christ. This we call
the perfection of Charity or in others words we can say, ordinary men become
saints.
...the new life received in Christian
initiation has not abolished the frailty and weakness of human nature, nor the
inclination to sin that tradition calls concupiscence, which remains in the
baptized such that with the help of the grace of Christ they may prove
themselves in the struggle of Christian life. This is the struggle of
conversion directed toward holiness and eternal life to which the Lord never ceases
to call us.[53]
3.1.3.6 Life of Saints - The Proof
And
thus,
It is in the Church, in communion with
all the baptized, that the Christian fulfils his vocation. From the Church he
receives the Word of God containing the teachings of the law of Christ. From
the Church he receives the grace of the sacraments that sustains him on the
way. From the Church he learns the example of holiness and recognizes its model
and source in the all-holy Virgin Mary; he discerns it in the authentic witness
of those who live it; he discovers it in the spiritual tradition and long
history of the saints who have gone before him and whom the liturgy celebrates
in the rhythms of the sanctoral cycle.[54]
The
life of the saints in the Catholic Church is the greatest proof that it is possible
to lead a life of holiness and intimate union with God, if we belong to the
Catholic Church. Certain aspects of their life were, extraordinary(heroic)
virtue, the grace to perform miracles like raising the dead, healing the sick,
casting out demons, multiplying food and money etc. Many saints of the Catholic
Church were incorrupt even after centuries after their death. Many saints had
God given signs of their holiness and friendship with God like stigmata,
bilocation, levitation, invisibility, aerial flight, miraculous knowledge etc.
3.1.4 Church is necessary for
salvation
Jesus himself
said to his disciples, “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to
every creature. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does
not believe will be condemned.”[55]
Above all else, it must be firmly believed that the Church, a
pilgrim now on earth, is necessary for salvation: the one Christ is the
mediator and the way of salvation; he is present to us in his body which is the
Church. He himself explicitly asserted the necessity of faith and baptism (cf. Mk 16:16; Jn 3:5), and thereby affirmed at the same time the necessity of the
Church which men enter through baptism as through a door.[56]
3.1.4.1 Church is not one way along
with others
...it would be contrary to the faith
to consider the Church as one way of
salvation alongside those constituted by the other religions, seen as
complementary to the Church or substantially equivalent to her, even if these
are said to be converging with the Church toward the eschatological kingdom of
God. Certainly, the various religious traditions contain and offer religious
elements which come from God, and which are part of what the Spirit brings
about in human hearts and in the history of peoples, in cultures, and
religions. Indeed, some prayers and rituals of the other religions may assume a
role of preparation for the Gospel, in that they are occasions or pedagogical
helps in which the human heart is prompted to be open to the action of God. One
cannot attribute to these, however, a divine origin or an ex opere operato salvific efficacy, which is proper to the
Christian sacraments.[57]
3.1.4.2 No salvation outside the
Catholic Church
“Whosoever,
therefore, knowing that the Catholic Church was made necessary by Christ, would
refuse to enter or to remain in it, could not be saved.”[58]
3.1.4.3 Salvation for the ignorant
Those also can attain to salvation who
through no fault of their own do not know the Gospel of Christ or His Church,
yet sincerely seek God and moved by grace strive by their deeds to do His will
as it is known to them through the dictates of conscience. Nor does Divine
Providence deny the helps necessary for salvation to those who, without blame
on their part, have not yet arrived at an explicit knowledge of God and with
His grace strive to live a good life.[59]
3.2
According to the Church Fathers
Many of the early Church fathers have written extensively on
this topic. Some of them are quoted below.
3.2.1
St. Augustine
We believe
also in the holy Church, that is, the Catholic Church. For heretics violate the
faith itself by a false opinion about God; schismatics, however, withdraw from
fraternal love by hostile separations, although they believe the same things we
do. Consequently, neither heretics nor schismatics belong to the Catholic
Church; not heretics, because the Church loves God; and not schismatics,
because the Church loves neighbour (Faith and the Creed 10:21 [A.D.
393]).
[J]ust as
baptism is of no profit to the man who renounces the world in words and not in
deeds, so it is of no profit to him who is baptized in heresy or schism; but
each of them, when he amends his ways, begins to receive profit from that which
before was not profitable, but was yet already in him (On Baptism, Against
the Donatists 4:4[6] [A.D. 400]).
I do not
hesitate to put the Catholic catechumen, burning with divine love, before a
baptized heretic. Even within the Catholic Church herself we put the good
catechumen ahead of the wicked baptized person . . . For Cornelius, even before
his baptism, was filled up with the Holy Spirit [Acts 10:44–48], while Simon
[Magus], even after his baptism, was puffed up with an unclean spirit [Acts
8:13–19] (ibid., 4:21[28]).
The
apostle Paul said, ‘As for a man that is a heretic, after admonishing him once
or twice, have nothing more to do with him’ [Titus 3:10]. But those who
maintain their own opinion, however false and perverted, without obstinate ill
will, especially those who have not originated the error of bold presumption, but
have received it from parents who had been led astray and had lapsed . . .
those who seek the truth with careful industry and are ready to be corrected
when they have found it, are not to be rated among heretics (Letters 43:1
[A.D. 412]).
Whoever is
separated from this Catholic Church, by this single sin of being separated from
the unity of Christ, no matter how estimable a life he may imagine he is
living, shall not have life, but the wrath of God rests upon him (ibid.,
141:5).
3.2.2
St. Jerome
Heretics
bring sentence upon themselves since they by their own choice withdraw from the
Church, a withdrawal which, since they are aware of it, constitutes damnation.
Between heresy and schism there is this difference: that heresy involves
perverse doctrine, while schism separates one from the Church on account of
disagreement with the bishop. Nevertheless, there is no schism which does not
trump up a heresy to justify its departure from the Church (Commentary on
Titus 3:10–11 [A.D. 386]).
3.2.3
Origen
[T]here was
never a time when God did not want men to be just; he was always concerned
about that. Indeed, he always provided beings endowed with reason with
occasions for practicing virtue and doing what is right. In every generation
the wisdom of God descended into those souls which he found holy and made them
to be prophets and friends of God (Against Celsus 4:7 [A.D.
248]).
If someone
from this people wants to be saved, let him come into this house so that he may
be able to attain his salvation. . . . Let no one, then, be persuaded
otherwise, nor let anyone deceive himself: Outside of this house, that is,
outside of the Church, no one is saved; for, if anyone should go out of it, he
is guilty of his own death (Homilies on Joshua 3:5 [A.D.
250]).
Conclusion
Thus the Church
is necessary for salvation, and it is only the Catholic Church which posses the
fullness of the means of salvation.
Therefore, there exists a single
Church of Christ, which subsists in the Catholic Church, governed by the
Successor of Peter and by the Bishops in communion with him... The Christian
faithful are therefore not permitted to imagine that the Church of Christ is
nothing more than a collection divided, yet in some way one of Churches and
ecclesial communities; nor are they free to hold that today the Church of
Christ nowhere really exists, and must be considered only as a goal which all
Churches and ecclesial communities must strive to reach. In fact, the elements
of this already-given Church exist, joined together in their fullness in the
Catholic Church and, without this fullness, in the other communities.
Therefore, these separated Churches and communities as such, though we believe
they suffer from defects, have by no means been deprived of significance and
importance in the mystery of salvation. For the spirit of Christ has not
refrained from using them as means of salvation which derive their efficacy
from the very fullness of grace and truth entrusted to the Catholic Church.[60]
GENERAL
CONCLUSION
The conclusion is the Church’s own
beautiful words as given in the declaration of the Congregation For The
Doctrine Of The Faith, DOMINUS IESUS, On The Unicity And Salvific Universality
Of Jesus Christ And The Church.
With the
coming of the Saviour Jesus Christ, God has willed that the Church founded by
him be the instrument for the salvation of all
humanity (cf. Acts 17:30-31). This
truth of faith does not lessen the sincere respect which the Church has for the
religions of the world, but at the same time, it rules out, in a radical way,
that mentality of indifferentism characterized by a religious relativism which
leads to the belief that one religion is as good as another. If it is true that
the followers of other religions can receive divine grace, it is also certain
that objectively speaking they are in
a gravely deficient situation in comparison with those who, in the Church, have
the fullness of the means of salvation. However, all the children of the Church
should nevertheless remember that their exalted condition results, not from
their own merits, but from the grace of Christ. If they fail to respond in
thought, word, and deed to that grace, not only shall they not be saved, but
they shall be more severely judged. One understands then that, following the
Lord's command (cf. Mt 28:19-20) and
as a requirement of her love for all people, the Church proclaims and is in
duty bound to proclaim without fail, Christ who is the way, the truth, and the
life (Jn 14:6). In him, in whom God
reconciled all things to himself (cf. 2
Cor 5:18-19), men find the fullness of their religious life. Indeed, God
desires all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth' (1 Tim 2:4); that is, God wills the
salvation of everyone through the knowledge of the truth. Salvation is found in
the truth. Those who obey the promptings of the Spirit of truth are already on
the way of salvation. But the Church, to whom this truth has been entrusted,
must go out to meet their desire, so as to bring them the truth. Because she
believes in God's universal plan of salvation, the Church must be missionary.[61]
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Bible
New
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Catechism of the Catholic Church. Delhi: TPI,
2000.
Code of Canon Law. Bangalore:
TPI,1983.
Congregation
for the Doctrine of Faith. Dominus Iesus,
Declaration on the Unicity and Salvific Universality of Jesus Christ and the
Church. Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2000.
Pope
John Paul II. Redemptoris Missio,
Encyclical on The Permanent Validity of the Church’s Missionary Mandate.
Bombay: St. Paul Publications, 1992.
Pope
Paul VI. Evangelii Nuntiandi,
Apostolic Exhortation on Evangelization in the Modern World. Austin Flannery,
ed. Vatican Council II, Vol 2.
Bombay: St. Paul Publications, 1988.
Second
Vatican council. Ad Gentes Divinitus,
Decree on the Church’s Missionary Activity. Austin Flannery, ed. Vatican Council II. Bombay: St. Paul
Publications, 1989.
Second
Vatican Council. Lumen Gentium, Dogmatic
Constitution on the Church. Austin Flannery, ed. Vatican Council II. Bombay: St. Paul Publications, 1989.
Second
Vatican Council. Nostra Aetate,
Declaration on the Relation of the Church to Non- Christian Religions. Austin
Flannery, ed. Vatican Council II.
Bombay: St. Paul Publications, 1989.
Second
Vatican council. Unitatis Redintegratio,
Decree on Ecumenism. Austin Flannery, ed. Vatican
Council II. Bombay: St. Paul Publications, 1989.
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Aquinas,
Saint Thomas. The Summa Theologica. Trans. Father Laurence Shapcote. Great books of the
Western World, Vol. 17 & 18. Chicago: Encyclopedia Britannica Inc.,
1994.
John
Paul II, Crossing the threshold of hope. New York: Alfred A. Knopf,
1994.
Ray,
Stephen K. Crossing the Tiber:
Evangelical Protestants Discover the Historical Church, Indian Edition.
Mumbai: Family of Faith Foundation, 2010.
_______.
Upon This Rock: St. Peter and the Primacy
of Rome in Scripture and the Early Church, Indian Edition. Mumbai: Family
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Vicaire,
M. H. Saint Dominic And His Times. Trans.
Kathleen Pond. Wisconsin: Alt Publishing Company, 1964.
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Kundukulam,
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Light of Truth. Jun 16-30, 2012.
[1] Pope John Paul II, Crossing
the threshold of hope (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1994), 73.
[2] Ibid., 70.
[3] Mt
22:13, All the scriptural
references in this study are taken from the New American Bible, Indian Edition
(Bangalore: NBCLC, 2003), unless otherwise mentioned.
[4] Pope John Paul II, Crossing
the threshold of hope, 70.
[5] Lk
9:25
[6] Cf. Pope John Paul II, Crossing
the threshold of hope, 70.
[7] CCC 202.
[8] Cf. CCC 202.
[9] Is 45: 22- 24.
[10] Mt 28: 18- 20.
[11] CCC 766.
[12] Gn 1: 1-31.
[13] Gn 3: 1-24.
[14] Is 53: 12.
[15] CCC 767.
[16] CCC 775.
[17] CCC 776.
[18] CCC 779.
[19] CCC 778.
[20] CCC 780.
[21] CCC 808.
[22] CCC 804.
[23] Mt 28: 19-20.
[24] CCC 849.
[25] AG 2.
[26] CCC 851.
[27] Eph 2: 20.
[28] CCC 858.
[29] Mt 16: 18-19.
[30] Acts 2: 1-13.
[31] Acts 2: 14.
[32] Acts 2: 36.
[34] Acts 2: 40-41.
[35] Acts 8: 4-25.
[36] Acts 9: 32-43.
[37] Gal 2: 11:21.
[38] 1Pt 1: 1.
[39]
LG 15.
[40]
DI 17.
[41]
UR 23.
[42]
CCC 843.
[43]
UR 23.
[44]
CCC 844.
[45]
UR 3.
[46]
Acts 4: 8, 11.
[47]
DI 14.
[48]
DI 6.
[49]
CCC 1471-1479.
[50]
UR 3.
[51]
CCC 77.
[52]
CCC 85.
[53]
CCC 1426.
[54]
CCC 2030.
[55]
Mk 16: 15-16.
[56]
DI 20.
[57]
DI 21.
[58]
LG 14.
[59]
LG 16.
[60]
DI 17.
[61]
DI 22.
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