Letter from a Baptist Minister

 

Dear Mr. Gonzales:

 

I have been reading your publication, The Hammer, for  quite a while and would like to present  for  your  consideration an  issue with which I, myself, have been wrestling. You have a reputation for coming right to the point and for not pulling punches. I am, therefore, curious  about how you would, from your strictly Roman Catholic perspective, resolve the following issue.

 

I  believe you will agree that all theology is an  attempt by  man  to rationalize his faith and to make sense out of his experiences. He interprets life in light of what he perceives to be God's "revelation" and then codifies all of this  to better understand God's will and purpose for his creatures.  Underlying this cerebral activity is the principal concern of Everyman  best  expressed  by  the  Philippians  jailer "what must I do to be saved." (Acts 16:30) Unless and until  this  question  is  resolved  the rest  of  our  theology  is  of  little or no consequence.

 

Every religion believes in some form of salvation, i.e., some form of life after death which is a reward for  experiences/conduct  in this life.  Without such a belief life becomes hopeless and without meaning.  It is the ultimate possibility of such a future that gives form and function to life; at least for believers.

 

The unremarkable and quite understandable fact is that all religions with a soteriology (the study of how man is saved) including and in particular  Christianity are quite parochial in  their  outlook  and, of course,  have various levels of  exclusivity.  To be saved one must meet the perceived requirements  of  the  particular  brand of religion he or she espouses.   Furthermore, without  exception  each of these religions believes adamantly  that  their's is the "Only True Faith"; i.e. not only is it necessary to believe and practice a particular  code  of  conduct and religious  exercises  but all  other  religions , whatever their  belief  requirements  for  salvation may be,  are lost because they are outside of the "One True Faith." They are without hope of ever having future blessings, eternal  life or  whatever may be the reward of the "true believer".

 

When one is operating within the framework  of  any one of  the religions of  mankind  it  can  be  very comforting: Here are the rules and regulations; I've met the minimum requirements; hence, I get the brass ring, the ticket to the Great Super  Bowl  in the sky.

 

But what about all of those outside?  From the standpoint of  Christianity that means about 80.6% of humanity has no chance for heaven- the beatific vision- or what have you. That's it.

 

Now it appears to me from reading The Hammer, that  you are quite content with the above scenario.  God has spoken. He has given His clear word on the subject.  Believe and act or - if you will pardon the expression- go to hell.  Being a believer myself, an ordained Baptist Minister, I understand "where you are coming from" but it is a hard thing to digest.

 

If Yahweh  is a God of Love and Justice can we easily accept a theology which  consigns  to hell (or at best limbo) the majority of people on the planet?  How can  one  believe in Someone in whom they have never heard?   Should not all people who ever lived have an equal chance at the best God has to offer?

 

I  believe a  biblically  based  theology should be able to be developed that avoids  universalism (everyone is saved no matter  what) and yet retains a genuine spiritual commitment and which includes  the possibility of salvation  for  everyone-beatific vision and all.

 

I will be interested in your  response.

 

Sincerely,

R. G. Taylor

 

A Response By

Anthony Gonzales

 

Dear Rev. Taylor,

 

Thank you for your well thought out letter. I can see by what you have expressed that you have been wrestling with this question for a while. I hope that I can shed light upon what the Roman Catholic Church teaches regarding this question.  I will also make available to you an article I wrote on this  very  subject  specifically  addressed to Roman Catholics that have been confused by the Modernists regarding salvation.

 

In  order to answer your question properly it is necessary to explore certain necessary  principles  and essential  dogmas  upon which we must agree as Christians. Since you are a member of  a Christian denomination and that denomination adheres to certain fundamental truths revealed by Jesus Christ I will assume that you also agree with  them. It  is upon those truths that I will build my argument.  As I am sure you are aware if  I was debating with  an atheist, agnostic, Modernist,  Jehovah's Witness, Unitarian,  Hindu,  Buddhist or Mormon I would have to build upon a different foundation.

 

The Blessed Trinity

 

First  we must  agree  upon the fact that Jesus Christ was the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity  that took upon Himself a complete human nature.  In  other  words,  Jesus  is  both God and man united in one Divine Person. Consequent to this fact is that as God he came to reveal to us the fullness  of truth necessary to love God as  He deserves to be loved by His creatures. In other words, Jesus came to give us the truth that through our subjective response to that truth we might have faith in Him and His revelation. Now  for  Roman Catholics  faith  is  not  an end in itself  but rather a means to an end.  The purpose that Jesus  revealed the truth was to give us the ability to love because you cannot love what you do not know and you will only love what you know to the degree that you know it.  Therefore, love is the purpose and end  of  faith and in the final  analysis it is upon the principle  of  love that  we  will  ultimately be judged.

 

The point is simply this; God did not leave us to try to figure everything out on our own. He became a man like us in order that as a man He could reveal to us Who He Is and who we are in light of Who He Is.  He revealed his plan of salvation for us and for the entire human race.

 

The Redemption

 

Now, as Christians we not only believe in what Jesus revealed as the fullness of  truth but we also believe that He became human in order to take upon Himself  the punishment which we deserve  by our sins.  The Gates of Paradise had been shut by the sin of Adam and Eve and no one could enter into heaven.  It  was  by  His  death upon the gibbet of  the Cross that Jesus opened the gates of heaven making it possible for men to actually come into the presence of God.  Therefore, if you are Christian you must believe, by virtue of being Christian, that Jesus' redemption was  absolutely necessary for the salvation of  individual men and women and that without his redemption  no one could ever be saved.

 

The Application of Merit

 

If  we agree thus far then the one question that must be answered is how the merits of the redemption Jesus won for humanity on the cross are applied to individual souls in time and space.  It is traditional Roman Catholic teaching that the merits of the Redemption are applied to each individual soul through the reception of the 7 sacraments which Jesus established for that purpose.  Without these sacraments one's soul  remains "lifeless"  that is, God's sanctifying grace does not give life to the souls of those who have not received the merits of Christ's redemption through the application of  the Sacraments.  This means of applying grace is consistent with the same method God used in the Old Covenant.

 

Now as a Protestant, to be consistent with your religious foundations, you must  accept the premise that the merits  of  the redemption  are applied to the individual  soul  through  an act of faith.  The Protestant principle "We are saved by faith alone!" Is the first foundational principle of classical Protestantism.  The point being that even within  your  own tradition salvation comes through the blood of the cross and through faith in Jesus Christ.  If, therefore, you have maintained integrity with your  own religious tradition you will  surely  agree that  even your tradition claims that no one is saved except by the merits  of Christ's redemption being applied to the individual soul in time and space.  The one difference between Roman Catholic and Protestant  soteriology is the way in which those merits are applied.  "Through no other can man be saved."

 

The Inerrancy of the

Sacred Scriptures

 

Now the Roman Catholic Church has always taught that the Sacred Scriptures are inerrant, i.e., without  error  or falsehood.  Classical Protestantism claims  the same belief.  The one difference between RC and Protestant theology concerning the Scriptures is that Protestantism believes that the Sacred Scriptures  alone are to be the sole rule of faith.  This belief is the second foundational  principle of Protestantism.  But the Scriptures say that salvation comes through Jesus Christ and that without faith in Him no one will be saved.  Therefore, if  you  are to remain a Baptist it is incumbent upon you to accept and to believe the Word of God that your denomination prides itself in taking so literally.

 

In other words, Reverend Taylor, if you are to remain a Protestant or a Christian of any kind you are forced to accept that God has revealed His word in the Sacred Scriptures and that word is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. (Is. 43:11; John 10:9, 14:6, 17:1-2, Eph. 2:8-9, Luke 20:35-36, Apoc. 21:27, Matt. 7:14,  20:16, Luke 13:24)  With the testimony of the Word of God are we not compelled to believe that the number of the saved will be few?

 

A Protestant Loophole?

 

Now according to the 3rd and final foundational principle of Protestantism you are free to interpret the Scriptures according to you own private judgment. For is it not written by the leader of the Protestant revolt, Martin Luther, that "anyone can interpret the Sacred Scriptures with the guidance of the Holy Ghost, yes even a child of nine."  Therefore, you could say that in your reading of the Scriptures God seems to indicate that there are those who will be saved outside the ordinary means of salvation.  You may even quote to me the three Scriptures that seem to support your position:

Matt 19:16-22 "What good work must I do to have eternal life?" "...But if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments."...

Or; Acts 10:34 "...Now I really understand that God is not a respecter of persons, but rather in every nation he who fears Him and does what is right is acceptable to him..."

Or; Romans 2:14-16 "When the Gentiles who have no law do by nature what the Law prescribes, these having no law are a law unto themselves. They show the work of the Law written in their hearts. Their conscience bears witness to them, even when conflicting thoughts accuse or defend them. This will take place on the day when, according to my gospel, God will judge the hidden  secrets of men through Jesus Christ." 

 

Now it seems that, according to these three passages, God will save the righteous  man of "any nation".  However,  a brief exegesis of  these passages will show that this is not as simple as that.  First of all Scripture cannot contradict itself. It can only demonstrate paradoxically the same truth seen from a different  point  of view.  The fact  is  that  in  each  of  these passages there are conditions that one must fulfill in order to be judged righteous in the eyes of God.  In Matthew  the Israelite to whom the Law  has  been  given  must obey that Law. In  Acts  and Romans the Gentiles must obey the same Law which is ultimately written within the heart of every human being.  We call this the Natural Law.  In other words those principles of action and behavior which God has woven into the very nature of  man.   Because he is capable of  free choice and can go against his nature  God has  made  it  necessary  that all men acknowledge and conduct themselves according to the principles of the natural law in  order  to  be  " acceptable to Him".

 

It  must also be taken into consideration that for the Israelites all those who were outside of the religion of Israel could not be found righteous because  they had not been chosen by God and had not been given the Law obedience to which made one righteous.  The three passages  above do not negate this truth but only show to the Israelites that those who are not Israelites can also be given salvation through the Revelation and Merits of Jesus Christ. In other words, the Gentiles  can also be saved.   This was a great revelation to the Israelites and is emphasized  over  and over again in the New Testament as being the
"Good News  of  Salvation".  But notice according to Romans even those who have no faith will be judged not on their  lack  of  faith but upon their works.  "...treasure up to thyself wrath upon the day of wrath and of the revelation of the just judgment of God, who will  render to every man according  to his  works.  Life eternal indeed he will  give to those who  by patience in good works seek glory and honor and immorality;  but wrath and indignation to those who are contentious, and who do not submit to the truth but assent to iniquity.   Tribulation  and anguish  shall be visited upon the soul of   EVERY MAN  WHO  WORKS  EVIL;  of Jew first and then of Greek.  But  glory  and  honor and peace shall be awarded to everyone who does  good, to Jew first and then to Greek.  Because  with  God there is not respect  of  persons." (Romans 2:5-11)

 

The  most important element to remember is that St. Paul is writing to Roman Catholics and not to pagans. He wishes  to  express  to them that even though they were not born of the race of  Abraham they are still the spiritual  children  of Abraham because they have been  REDEEMED through Christ Jesus, Our Lord.  The second important element in this particular passage is that "conduct" that is, doing the will of God, at least through the Natural Law is absolutely necessary for Eternal Life.  Everyone will be judged according to how they have responded to the truth  and the knowledge of God and of right and wrong.

 

Without the Grace of Christ

 

Now you asked about the justice of God and the fairness of "equal opportunity" (sounds liberal to me).  Your statement  is  as  follows:  "Should not all people who ever  lived have an equal chance at the best God has to offer?"  The traditional answer of the Roman Catholic Church is simple. NO! Eternal Salvation meaning the Beatific Vision is  purely and solely a gift from God.  It cannot be earned nor can it be demanded.  And even if the "virtuous pagan" lives  out  the  natural  law  to the best  of  his  ability  it  is also written                         "...  without   faith  it is IMPOSSIBLE  to please God." (Hebrews 11:6)

 

You know that obedience to the will of God is necessary for salvation. It is repeated continuously throughout the Sacred Scriptures.  It is also stated that those who do obey the Law of God will be rewarded  for our God is infinitely Just and will not condemn those who have made the most of what they have been given. (Matt. 25:15-)  But how difficult it is to obey the will of God without the grace of Christ.  I myself must struggle every day to avoid sinning and I  have  been  immersed deeply into the grace of Christ.  And so it is for all those who received the grace of Christ.  Therefore, if we who have been made children of God through grace have a difficult time renouncing sin and obeying the Father's will how much more difficult is it for those who have never been given the grace of Christ to do what God commands all men to do through their very nature?

"...without me you can do nothing" (Jn 15:5)

 

It  is  not  unfair  nor  unjust  for God not to give everyone the same opportunity for the beatific vision. It  is  not  our  right to possess  and,  in fact, it  is  a  totally  supernatural  gift  which man   is incapable of possessing. For  a  human  being  to  "see God in the face"   God  must  add to his  nature something that will make that nature capable of seeing God.  All men are born without the capacity to see God face to face and God could have left us in that state even without the consequences of original sin.  Nevertheless, in His infinite love for man He Himself became a man in order to give us the gift of sanctifying grace.  This grace gives the soul the capacity to have the beatific vision.  Now  we  know that it is the general will of God "... that all men be saved and come to the knowledge of  truth." (1 Tim2:4) We call this His general will and as Roman Catholics we believe that God has  given  all men "sufficient  grace" to come to know Him and to respond  to His call of salvation.   Therefore, I  believe that if there are actually human beings  out there who, even though they do not know  Christ,  live  out the Law  of   God written  within  their  hearts,  then Christ  will  send them someone to teach them about Himself and give them the grace of the sacraments that they may come to the beatific vision when they  die.  In other words, Reverend Taylor, if a man does the will of God  without  knowing Christ then even if a miracle must be performed Christ  will  provide him with  the graces necessary  for salvation.  In this way God  provides an equal  opportunity  for  eternal  life.  Yet  how  few there are who find it.