Apologetics for the Masses #483 - Outside the Church There is No Salvation

Unsubscribe/Subscribe

https://www.biblechristiansociety.com/newsletter/unsubscribe - to unsubscribe from this newsletter

https://www.biblechristiansociety.com/newsletter - to subscribe to this newsletter

Topic

Extra Ecclesiam Nulla Salus - Outside the Church There is No Salvation

Articles of Interest

Politics
Politics Without Truth

Pro-Life
Bishop to Biden: Abortion is Wrong

Liturgy
Distinguished Brits Call on Vatican to Preserve the Traditional Latin Mass

The Culture
A Crusade Against Catholics

The Church
Vatican Approves Devotion to Our Lady Mystical Rose

Vatican Excommunicates Archbishop Vigano for Schism

Pope Hopes to Visit Turkey for 1700th Anniversary of Council of Niceae in 2025

Subsidiarity and the Synod on Synodality

Homosexual/Transgender
UK Nurses Sue Over Trans Policy

Planned Parenthood Leads in "Trans" Procedures

Islam
Christian Persecution Under Pakistan's Blasphemy Laws

The Nation
Catholics and the Founding of the Nation

General Comments

Thank you (!!!) to all of you who so generously responded to the semi-annual appeal I sent out a couple of weeks ago. It is only because of your support - both financial and especially through prayer - that this apostolate is able to reach as many people around the world with the truths of the Catholc Faith that we do. (And, it allows me to put food on the table and a roof over my family's heads.) So, again, my family and I thank you.

And, just so you know, I have a couple of projects in the works that I'll be sharing with you in the next few weeks, so stay tuned!

Introduction

In my last newsletter - Apologetics for the Masses #482 - I was clarifying part of my response to Tom ExCatholic4Christ in regard to the various catechisms within the Catholic Church. After the newsletter went out, I received an email from a reader asking for even more clarification, but this time in regard to a statement from Tom ExCatholic4Christ about the Church's supposedly changing position on salvation outside of the Church.

Essentially, the question is: What does the Church teach about salvation outside of the Church and has that teaching changed in the last few hundred years?

So, below I will start with Tom ExCatholic4Christ's statement, give my response from Issue #482, and then the email I received requesting more clarification, to which I then respond.

Challenge/Response

Tom ExCatholic4Christ
"Why does the RCC keep revising its catechism? In 1992, pope John Paul II promulgated yet another version. The 1566 Trent catechism had declared that only Catholics could be saved (see here), but the 1992 catechism reflects Vatican II’s liberal reforms and states that all non-Catholic religionists can also possibly merit Heaven ( CCC paras 846-848). Which is right?"

My Response (from Issue #482)
"The 1992 catechism says the same thing as the 1566 catechism, just re-stated. I mean the sub-title on the page in the 1992 Catechism is: "Outside the Church there is no salvation." When it goes on to talk about the salvation of those who are not Catholic, it says they "may" be saved. Not that they will be saved. "May" be saved. Essentially, what the 1992 Catechism is saying, is that there may be some way, known only to God, by which those outside of the Church "may" be brought into the Church through some extraordinary means other than water baptism. In other words, the Church does not try to tell God who He can or cannot save. The folks who wrote the 1566 Trent catechism would agree with that. So, the Church is absolutely necessary for salvation, but there may be ways to become a member of the Church that we are currently unaware of.

Email From Subscriber Requesting Clarification
"There is still the gnawing belief that centuries ago the Church said non-catholics cannot go to heaven. Now, the popes and new encyclicals definitely say there is salvation that can be found in all Christian religions. If you can focus like a laser on that point that would help a lot.

[Also] On EWTN yesterday some apologist, who is really good by the way, said not all Doctrine is the same. Some doctrine can be changed? Just not infallible doctrine and dogma???? Is that different than what you said

My Response
{Note: Make sure you read past the first 2-3 paragraphs and make sure you read the entire newsletter before you send me any complaints.}

This response is in two parts - the short and simple answer, and then a more involved explanation of the short and simple answer.

Okay, the short and simple answer: Non-Catholics cannot go to Heaven. That is what was taught hundreds of years ago by the Church, and that is what is still taught today, although in not so many words. The Church nowhere teaches that "there is salvation in all Christian religions". And I say non-Catholics cannot go to Heaven because of the Church's teaching that outside of the Church there is no salvation, and the one and only church is the Catholic Church. So, outside of the Catholic Church, there is no salvation. Which means, non-Catholics cannot go to Heaven.

That might be a shocking statement to many folks, but let me put it another way. Often, when I talk to Protestants, they will tell me they do not accept the teaching that outside of the church there is no salvation. When I hear one say that, I'll ask them: "Well, would you agree with me that outside of the Body of Christ there is no salvation?" To which they will always agree. I then point out to them that the New Testament tells us that the church is the Body of Christ. So, to say outside of the Body of Christ there is no salvation is the same thing as saying that outside of the Church there is no salvation. At that point they often say, "Oh...okay...yeah...I can agree with that."

Does re-framing the teaching as outside of the Body of Christ there is no salvation make it a little more palatable...a little more understandable...maybe even a little more reasonable to some of you? And, again, since the Bible tells us that the church is the Body of Christ, then to say that outside of the church there is no salvation is the same thing as saying outside of the Body of Christ there is no salvation. And, again, since the Catholic Church is the one and only church, then that means non-Catholics...those outside of the Church...those outside of the Body of Christ...cannot go to Heaven. That is what the Church has always taught and still teaches to this day, as I will demonstrate below.

Alright, that's the short and simple answer. Now for the more involved explanation of the short and simple answer: Here's the thing, and this is where a lot of folks get confused - we don't necessarily know who is or is not "in" the Church. Let me explain. There is this thing called the "ordinary" means of salvation. The ordinary means of salvation begins with one becoming a member of the Church. How does one become a member of the church? The ordinary way is through Baptism. It is not, as many Protestants believe, by accepting Jesus Christ into your heart as your personal Lord and Savior. While that is a good and noble thing, it is not how one becomes a member of the Church. It is not how one becomes a Christian. One becomes a Christian...a member of the Church...a member of the Body of Christ...through Baptism, period.

Here's what the Bible says on the topic: "For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body..." (1 Cor 12:13). "For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ," (Gal 3:27). "In Him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of flesh in the circumcision of Christ; and you were buried with Him in Baptism, in which you were also raised with Him..." (Col 2:11-12). We become members of the Body of Christ through Baptism, at least, according to the Bible. Nowhere is there a passage that says we become members of the Body of Christ through believing in Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior. Baptism. Period.

So, as I said, Baptism is the "ordinary" means by which one becomes a member of the Body of Christ...becomes a Christian. And, as Jesus told us, Baptism is necessary in order for us to be saved: "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit [baptized], he cannot enter the Kingdom of God," (John 3:5). "Baptism, which corresponds to this [Noah and his family being saved through water], now saves you..." (1 Peter 3:20-21).

Quick recap: Baptism is necessary for entering the Kingdom of God...i.e., for salvation. So, we have to be baptized in order to be saved. That's because when we are baptized, we become members of the Body of Christ. It is by and through the Body of Christ that we are saved. So, there is no salvation outside of the Body of Christ. The Body of Christ is also known as the Church. Which means it is by and through the Church that we are saved. So, there is no salvation outside of the Church. There is only one church...the Catholic Church. So, there is no salvation outside of the Catholic Church.

But, getting back to something I said earlier, we don't necessarily know who is or is not in the Church. "Well," you might say, "that's pretty easy to know, John - everyone who is baptized is in the Church. You just said so yourself." No, that's not what I said. I said it is through Baptism that we become members of the Church, but not every one who has been baptized is a member of the Church. What?! Sin. Particularly mortal sin, separates us from the Body of Christ. We do not believe in a once saved always saved theology. So, when a member of the Church commits mortal sin, they separate themselves from the Church. But, we as individuals, generally have no way of knowing who - other than ourselves - is, or is not, in a state of mortal sin. And, there are times when we aren't even sure if we, personally, are in a state of mortal sin or not. That's because we cannot read the hearts and minds of men, even our own. Only God can do that (Jer 17:10; Rev 2:23).

And, since we cannot read the hearts and minds of men, then we also cannot know if those in other Christian faith traditions, who have been properly baptized, are "in" the Church or not. Everyone who is legitimately baptized, whether they be Baptist, Evangelical, Non-Denominational, Lutheran, Presbyterian, Methodist, etc., is baptized into the Catholic Church. Whether they know it or not (most, if not all, don't), and whether they believe it or not (most, if not all, don't). However, through their rejection of Catholic teaching, they very well may have committed mortal sin (rejecting the authority of Christ and His Church) which has caused them to be separated from the Body of Christ. The thing is, though, that you and I cannot make that judgment. Are they, with full knowledge and full consent of the will, rejecting the Catholic Church and its teachings, or is there some level of ignorance involved in the rejection of the Church's teachings? You and I cannot generally make that determination. So, there may be folks in the various Protestant denominations who have been properly baptized and who are not in a state or mortal sin, due to their rejection of Catholic teaching, because they are making decisions based on less than full knowledge of their intellect. But who are they? And how many are there? So, not only do we not know which Catholics are or are not currently "in" the Church, but we don't know if there are an Protestants who are currently "in" the Church. Only God knows.

Then, there are those who have never been baptized. This is an easy task to know whether or not they're "in" the Church or not, right? Of course they aren't. Which means, when they die, since they've never been baptized, they will go to Hell, right? I mean, outside of the church there is no salvation, right? Well, not so fast. Scripture tells us that God wants all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Tim 2:4). All men. So, if God wants all men to be saved, then, if He is a just God, which He is, He must give all men at least an opportunity by which they can be saved. But, what if someone is invincibly ignorant of God, of Jesus Christ, of the Church, the Sacraments, etc.? The example I often use is that of an Iroquois Indian living in the 14th century in what is now upstate New York. They never had the opportunity to ever hear about Jesus and the Church and Baptism and so on. Are they automatically condemned to Hell? Some Protestants would say yes. The Catholic Church says no, they aren't. The Church says that since God wants all men to be saved, then God will give that 14th century Iroquois Indian some means by which they may be saved. But, what is that means if it isn't through Baptism? If it isn't through the Catholic Church? If it isn't through the Body of Christ?

Well, we don't know. The Church believes that there may be some "extraordinary" means of salvation, known only unto God, by which men can be saved. St. Paul alludes to this possibility in Romans. "For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but the doers of the law who will be justified. When Gentiles who have not the law do by nature what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that what the law requires is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness and their conflicting thoughts accuse, or perhaps excuse, them on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus," (Rom 2:14). So, their conflicting thoughts, their ignorance, could accuse them, or it could excuse them come Judgment Day.

"But, John, what about the Church? What about the Body of Christ? What about outside of the church there is no salvation?!" Isn't what you just said contradicting Church teaching?" Not at all. And here's why: First, everyone who is saved is saved by the grace of God...everyone! No one does it on their own. And, the grace of God is available in the world, to all peoples, only in and through the Church...the Body of Christ. So, anyone who is saved, either through the ordinary means of salvation or through some extraordinary means of salvation, is saved by grace received in a direct or indirect way through the Church.

Second, we are bound by the Sacraments, God is not. Furthermore, all things are possible with God, right? So, can He not then save whomever He wishes to save by whatever means He wishes to save them? Who are we to put limits on what God can or cannot do?

Third, think about this. I'm sure all of you have heard it said that at the moment of your death, your entire life flashes before your eyes. Well, let's say that someone who has never heard of Jesus or the Church - whether they be a 14th century Iroquois or a 21st century Hindu or animist or atheist or whatever - is at the point of death. This person has lived a good life according to the law of God that has been written on their hearts. Could God, at the moment of their death, take them through a whole other lifetime? A whole other life? One where they were given the opportunity to know about Jesus and the Church and they had the opportunity to believe in or deny Jesus? One where they were given the opportunity to be baptized? In other words, God takes them through a different life - in the blink of an eye - where they are able to join the Church if they so choose. So, even though they were never a member of the Church during most of their lifetime, they are given, at the point of death, the extraordinary opportunity to join the Church...to become a member of the Body of Christ. Could God do that?

I believe He could. Now, I'm not saying that that is the "extraordinary" means of salvation that God offers to those who, through no fault of their own, have never heard of Jesus and the Church, but that is how I make sense of it. And this "extraordinary" means of salvation - whatever form it takes - would apply to anyone and everyone who was never baptized. That would include infants who died before they were ever baptized. Babies killed in abortions. Babies who die as a result of miscarriages. And so on. Anyone and everyone who never had the opportunity to be baptized...to know about the Church...to know about Jesus, may, by some extraordinary means of salvation, be saved.

So, when the Church says, "Those who, through no fault of their own, do not know the Gospel of Christ or His Church, but who nevertheless seek God with a sincere heart, and, moved by grace, try in their actions to do His will as they know it through the dictates of their conscience - those to may achieve eternal salvation," (CCC #847) it in no way conflicts with the teaching of outside the church there is no salvation. That is because everyone who is in Heaven is a member of the Body of Christ. The Body of Christ in Heaven is still the Church, the Bride of Christ. So, everyone in Heaven is a member of the Church and they would have become a member of the Church before they died - either by ordinary or extraordinary means. Outside of the Church there is no salvation.

By the way, the operative word in what I just quoted from Paragraph #847 is "may". They "may" achieve salvation. In other words, we believe God, in some extraordinary manner, gives them the opportunity to join His Church, to become a member of the Body of Christ, so that they may be saved. Ignorance does not automatically get one saved. So, don't ever think to yourself, "You know, it would be better if this person doesn't know about Jesus and the Church, that way they can't be held responsible for what they don't know." No. That kind of thinking could condemn folks to eternal damnation.

Outside of the Church there is no salvation. That is what the Church has always taught and continues to teach. The Church acknowledges that there are elements of salvation outside the physical bounds of the Church here on Earth, particularly within Protestantism and Orthodoxy - Baptism, the Scriptures, etc. - but it does not say that salvation is to be found outside of the Church. It says that these elements of salvation that can be found within non-Catholic Christianity help to point members of those faith traditions to salvation in and through the Catholic Church.

I mentioned babies - born and unborn - that die before being baptized. A lot of people believe that since they never sinned, they automatically go to Heaven. Do not assume that. The Church teaches that we cannot know the fate of such children and that we simply leave them to the mercy of God - God Who wants all men to be saved. I have a child that died as a result of miscarriage. I pray for the repose of that child's soul every day.

It all comes down to the fact that we cannot know, in this lifetime, who is, or is not, "in" the Church, whether they've been baptized or not. We will not know, until the end of time, who is or is not saved. People we may think are absolutely in Hell may actually be in Heaven. People we believe were saints on earth and we are sure they are in Heaven...may not be. We cannot judge the hearts and minds of men. We should not pronounce condemnation upon others, nor should we pronounce canonization upon others. Short of an official canonization by the Church, we cannot know who is or is not in Heaven or Hell.

Which is why I believe, and always teach, that questions about who is or is not saved are the wrong questions to ask. The right question to ask, in regard to every single human being who walks the face of this earth, is: "Would this person have a better chance of being saved by being a practicing Catholic...yes or no?" And the answer, every time, is YES! Which makes it incumbent upon us, then, to do what we can to plant seeds of truth with all who are within our spheres of influence. I always tell people: "We have two jobs in life: Get to heaven, and take as many people with you as possible." And the way to do that is to practice your Catholic Faith to the best of your ability, and strive to get others to do the same. And if they aren't currently Catholic, do what you can to remedy that situation. So stop worrying about whether or not this person or that person is saved - we cannot know that in this lifetime. Instead, start getting busy on helping folks have the best chance they can to be saved - by devoutly and regularly partaking in the Sacraments of the Catholic Church.

Finally, to respond to the part of the email about not all doctrine being the same. It's not. There are different levels of doctrine. But that can be a very technical discussion. For 99.9999% of the people in the pews, the fact that there are different levels of doctrine will never come into play in your faith life. However, if you're interested in the various levels of Church teaching, I recommend a book called, "Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma," by Ludwig Ott. The "Introduction" of the book gets into the various theological grades of certainty, theological opinions, classifications of dogmas, and such. It is a very academic discussion.

Generally, what I tell people is this: For all practical purposes, doctrines taught by the Church do not change; however, certain things taught by the Church - known generally as theological opinions - can and do change. For example, the teaching on Limbo. Once very common in the Church. Now, not so much. Limbo has never been officially condemned by the Church, so you can still believe in it, but it simply isn't taught any more. So, the teaching hasn't really changed, it's simply fallen into disfavor. Then there are those who argue that the souls in Purgatory can pray for us. There are those who argue they can't. You can believe either point of view, but if the church ever rules definitively on the matter, then one of those theological opinions will have to change. Some argue the fruit in the Garden of Eden was an actual fruit. Some argue it was simply a metaphor for some prohibition God gave to Adam and Eve. Some say The Flood was world-wide. Some say it was regional to the Middle East (i.e., it encompassed the "world" as known to Noah at the time). If the Church has not ruled definitively on a matter of dispute, then it is open for discussion.

Here are the safe things to do: 1) If a Protestant tells you that the Church has changed its doctrine in the past, just tell them they are wrong. What they will be talking about are things along the lines of what I discussed in this newsletter. The "change in doctrine" that they claim has occurred is nothing more than them not understanding a particular point or two of Church teaching, particularly in regard to doctrine vs. discipline. An example of that is when a Protestant will claim that the Church changed its "doctrinal" teaching on a celibate priesthood. No, it hasn't, because priestly celibacy was never a doctrine, it was, and still is, a discipline. Disciplines can change, doctrines cannot.

2) If you're taking a "Catholic" class taught by a "Catholic," and you hear something that just doesn't sound right...such as Vatican II "changed" this or that teaching...ask for the source of that teaching. If the source isn't a magisterial document - a papal encyclical, the actual documents of a Council, the Catechism, etc. - then take what they're saying with a grain of salt.

Closing Comments

I hope all of you have a great week!

Donations

The Bible Christian Society is a non-profit organization that relies solely on your support to bring the truths of the Catholic Faith to tens of thousands of people throughout the U.S. and all around the world each year. If you would like to help us do what we do, you can donate online at:

https://www.biblechristiansociety.com/donations

or send a check to:

Bible Christian Society

PO Box 424

Pleasant Grove, AL 35127.

Anything you can do is greatly appreciated!

Unsubscribe/Subscribe

https://www.biblechristiansociety.com/newsletter/unsubscribe - to unsubscribe from this newsletter

https://www.biblechristiansociety.com/newsletter - to subscribe to this newsletter