Posted on 04/25/2006 8:04:00 AM PDT by churchillbuff
From time to time, some people will suggest that all the world’s religions are of equal value and accomplish the same end. “All roads lead to God,” these folks say. “Whatever name you call him (or her), it’s still the same God,” others proclaim.
I am not among these people. I do not believe that all religions are of equal value, though there is value in most forms of religion, and I do not believe they accomplish the same end. Neither do I believe that, whatever name is used, all names for God refer to the same God.
As an historic, orthodox Christian, I believe that Jesus Christ was telling the truth when he said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6 NIV).
This, of course, is a scandalous statement. Either Jesus was deluded and should be denounced as a madman or he was speaking the truth.
If he was deluded, then Christianity is a farce and 1.5 billion people are ensnared in false hope.
If he spoke the truth, however, then all religions are not of equal value.
Religious pluralism says that “there are many, many ways to God and all of these ways are good.”
But Jesus claimed that he was the way. Not just that his teachings were the way but that he himself was the way to the Father. Not only that, he claimed that, outside of him, there was no other way.
Further, he claimed not only that he taught truth but that he was the truth.
Certainly, all religious faiths contain truth, but Jesus claimed that all truth regarding spiritual matters was found in his own person. If he is the repository of truth and if truth cannot be found outside him, then other religions contain error. And, if one is seeking God, then error can lead one away from, rather than toward, God.
Jesus also declared that he was the life. Much of religion is a search for fullness of life on the earth and a quest for any life that may exist beyond this temporal plane.
In addressing this first consideration, Jesus said, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” (John 10:10 KJV). The reason he came at all was to bring a quality of life never before known or experienced. He also came to insure eternal life for those who would believe and put their trust in him.
As John 3:16-17 states: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved” (NKJV).
But the claim to exclusivity is found in his words, “No one comes to the Father except through me.” That means that the way, the only way, to God is in a relationship with Jesus Christ.
That is offensive and repugnant to some, but it is still what he claimed. If there is a “Plan B,” it is not found in the scriptures.
Christianity makes for itself the claim that the only true path to finding one’s destiny, one’s ultimate plan, in fact the only path to God the Father, is found in Christ.
“So,” someone will ask, “are you saying that Christianity is the only true faith and that all others are wrong?”
That is, in fact, the claim of historic, orthodox Christianity. Christians believe that all that God began in the Book of Genesis and continued in the books of the Old Testament was brought to consummation in the person of Jesus Christ.
Scandalous? Yes. Absurd? So it may seem. Outrageous? Many think so.
A number of years ago, I was looking for a small town in Colorado and became lost. I stopped and asked directions of a man who owned a filling station. The directions he gave described a curvy and treacherous trek over some mountains. I asked if there was a shorter or safer way to get there. “Nope,” he said, “there’s only one way to get there from here.”
The New Living Translation puts it this way: “For if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved” (Romans 10:9-10).
It’s the only way to get there from here.
Amen. God will find a way to save His elect.
You guys can't even agree on the basics of
salvation. Pretty soon you're going to
branch off into 38,000 different denominations. :-)
Thanks
In Mr. Ignorant's case, this isn't a problem. He was baptised.
SD
Rather, because of ignorance some may be excused their ignorance.
If you would, oh I don't know, read the Catechism excerpt, you would find:
Every man who is ignorant of the Gospel of Christ and of his Church, but seeks the truth and does the will of God in accordance with his understanding of it, can be saved.
There is no salvation by sola ignorance. "Seeks the truth and does the will of God" is a mighty high bar.
SD
You ask a reasonable question and there have been some good answers given (and a few not so good). I will tell you this from experience though... most people who ask this question are either:
1. seeking to put God on Trial (as another has already mentioned), or
2. Seeking to find some sort of excuse to get out of following Gods command to spread the Gospel.
You see, I have met people who say "Why should I go tell others about Jesus if God is going to let those who have not heard the gospel get a free ride into heaven?" Many will use this as an excuse to get out of evangelising or get out of funding missionaries.
I don't always agree with Hank Hanagraaf (a.k.a. the Bible Answer Man), but he makes a good point that God has made sure that we are all exposed to some sort of "light" of the Gospel. It is how we respond to that "light" that will determine what happens next. We will either turn toward that light and seek it more, or turn our back to it.
Your person in India may have not heard the Gospel, but he has the evidence of creation surrounding him. How do they respond to it? Will they ask questions and start seeking God, or turn their back on it?
All that matters to me is that I agree with the teachings of the Catholic Church.
Clearly, something like India could easily be the case of an evangelist's message working its way around.
That's why we have missionaries.
Every man who is ignorant of the Gospel of Christ and of his Church, but seeks the truth and does the will of God in accordance with his understanding of it, can be saved.
But you'd want to make sure you don't exercise your own private interpretation of this statement.
Let me point out that the statement doesn't specify that they died without being baptised, without entering the Church. If one were to qualify this statement by stating that such persons had to have entered the Church before death, it would be an accurate statement. However, it seems you may be wishing to be assume something which is not actually stated there, which is this: that those persons had died without actually entering the Church. This would be an assumption on your end, and in fact, an interpretation of that statement based on an assumption of your own which the statement does not itself contain.
So all the prophecy about Jesus in the OT was just lucky guesses?
But the Christians would still be ensnared in false hope. Besides, claiming to be God is the sign of a madman. IMO, or maybe a Democrat.
I don't know if I'm serious about that last statement or not.
If Jesus was "only" an observant Jew as you believe, he wouldn't dare to make himself to be God.
Dueteronomy 13.
Dueteronomy 13:1. If there rise in the midst of thee a prophet or one that saith he hath dreamed a dream, and he foretell a sign and a wonder,
13:2. And that come to pass which he spoke, and he say to thee: Let us go and follow strange gods, which thou knowest not, and let us serve them...
Dueteronomy 13 provides no support for your argument because Jesus never said to follow strange Gods. Remember, you yourself said he was an observant Jew.
You, too.
Let me point out that the statement doesn't specify that they died without being baptised, without entering the Church. If one were to qualify this statement by stating that such persons had to have entered the Church before death, it would be an accurate statement.
It may be supposed that such persons would have desired Baptism explicitly if they had known its necessity."
That's the next sentence. It is clear that the subject is of those who do not know about baptism and never do.
Since you retain for yourself the ability to tell when the Catechism is teaching properly and when it is not, why not simply declare this section to be in error? It would be more intellectually honest than attempting to make nonsense of a passage.
SD
Argue the issues all you want - don't make it personal or suggest that you can read another poster's mind. Thanks.
Already told ya, I don't believe he dared to make himself God. It may help for the purposes of our discusion that you not assume we're operating from the same premise. In my opinion, the NT writings are not inspired.
Dueteronomy 13 provides no support for your argument because Jesus never said to follow strange Gods. Remember, you yourself said he was an observant Jew.
A "strange god" to those Moses was addressing in Deut 13 would be the Triune mystery religion, pagan type of gods that came out of the heavens and incarnated. Which is what the writers claim of Jesus.
There you have it.
A person who studies for months and prays and fasts and awaits baptism at the Easter Vigil, but is killed by a loose steamroller on her way across the street for the service goes to hell automatically?
Give God a little credit.
SD
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