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Hi John,
Thanks for your question.
We are saved by grace from beginning to end, but contrary to what you have learned,
we are saved by faith working in love. St. James tells us:
"Faith
without works is dead." James 2:14-26
In another
question my colleague Eric shows how one has to persevere in obedience to God
until the end, in order to be saved.
Many times, words like salvation, justification, works, merit, and grace, have different meanings between Catholics and other Protestant
denominations. The Catechism of the Catholic Church elaborates on
what we mean by these terms from CCC 1987 to 2011
You said:
- Is this priest's opinion upheld by the rest of the Catholic Church as well?
Yes! This priest's opinion is upheld by the rest of the Catholic
Church. This is a teaching (Outside the Church there is no salvation) which can be found in the Catechism of the
Catholic Church. Many of your questions on this official Church
teaching can be found in this topic area of our web site.
An on-line version of the appropriate parts of the CCC can be found
here:
I would read down through paragraph 856.
The main problem surrounding this teaching is that usually
when it is explained, something critical to an appropriate interpretation of the teaching
is left out. That said:
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
too may achieve eternal salvation. CCC
847
Nevertheless, those who have an initial familiarity with Jesus and
His saving "Good News", like many of us, are called to pray,
learn and study their Christian faith more, including its origins.
If you look into the roots of Christianity, you will find out they
are 100% Catholic. Protestants in the 1517's broke from the True
Church because, although the Church needed reform from within, others
wanted to revolt. They subsequently "protested" many Teachings
dealing with the Church Jesus founded on St. Peter. Despite our many differences,
there are many things we agree on to this day.
Those who know the Catholic Church to be the true Christian Church,
but refuse to enter it, can't be saved. CCC
846
- If Charlie Catholic knows the Catholic Church is the true
Church, but enjoys being a member in the Baptist Church, he cannot
be saved as long as he refuses to return to the Catholic Church.
- If Peter
Protestant knows the Catholic faith is the true faith, but for some
other reason obstinately denies entering, he cannot be saved as long
as he refuses to enter the Catholic Church.
- If Peter Protestant was never taught anything about the Catholic faith or raised to believe is was incorrectly the church of Satan, he can be saved as long as he or she follows where the Holy Spirit leads them and Christian principles; this includes being open to researching the history of the Catholic Church.
- If Arthur Atheist or Amy Agnostic were never taught anything about the Christian faith, they are culpable for what the nature law tells them. The nature law is that thing that internally tells you, this is wrong, or this is right. For example, no balanced person would ever saying shooting any person was good.
That said:
- The Catholic Christian is called to deepen his/her faith because
you can't give to others what you don't know.
- The Protestant Christian is called to be open about looking into the fullness of Christianity, which can only be found in the Catholic
Christian Church.
To be Protestant is to be partially Christian and accept only some of
Our Lord's Teachings.
To be Catholic is to be fully Christian and accept all of Our
Lord's Teachings.
You said:
- And does
the Authority of the Church mean that individual belief in Jesus is not a basis for
reconciliation with the Father?
You can't separate the Lord from His Church. Both individual belief, as well as a community of belief, is required for reconciliation with the Father. Redemption and reconciliation with the Father is an individual and family affair. Why? Because no man or woman exists by themselves; each man and woman has come from a father and a mother's love through the conjugal embrace after marriage.
You said:
- I realize that the Nicene Creed refers to the "one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church"
, but does not "catholic" here, mean universal?
CCC
830 The word "catholic" means "universal," in the sense of "according to the totality" or "in keeping with the whole." The Church is catholic in a double sense:
First, the Church is catholic because Christ is present in her.
"Where there is Christ Jesus, there is the Catholic Church."
St. Ignatius of Antioch in 107 A.D.
In her subsists the fullness of Christ's body united with its head; this implies that she receives from him "the fullness of the means of salvation" which he has willed: correct and complete confession of faith, full sacramental life, and ordained ministry in Apostolic Succession. The Church was, in this fundamental sense, catholic on the day of Pentecost and will always be so until the day of the Parousia.
I hope this helps,
Mike Humphrey
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