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To: Between the Lines
In Catholicism, the Second Vatican Council (1962-65) declared that persons who do not know the Christian gospel but sincerely seek God “can attain to everlasting salvation.” The church decided that requiring explicit Christian faith was too pessimistic, said U.S. theologian Cardinal Avery Dulles, writing in First Things magazine.

That is a misrepresentation of Catholic doctrine and of the Second Vatican Council's teaching. It's probably a misrepresentation of Dulles as well.

The Church teaches that God alone grants salvation and He grants it to whomever it pleases Him to grant it to. The Church reaffirmed in the document Dominus Iesus the Scriptural essential that Jesus alone is the Way, the Truth and the Life.

3 posted on 06/21/2006 8:10:12 AM PDT by wideawake
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To: wideawake
The Church reaffirmed in the document Dominus Iesus the Scriptural essential that Jesus alone is the Way, the Truth and the Life.

As an evangelical protestant I am very glad to hear that. I had gotten the wrong impression by reading things that apparently are not true. If there is some other way to attain salvation besides faith in Jesus Christ, then He left His home with the Father and Holy Spirit in heaven, came into the world via the virgin birth, and died on a cruel Roman cross needlessly.

Now if the document would have added; "no man cometh to the Father but by me" I would be even gladder. But even so, the part of the verse that you quoted states the truth well enough.
(is gladder a real word?)

121 posted on 06/23/2006 8:29:26 PM PDT by epow
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