Given the pluralism of world religions, many contemporary academics and pundits argue that Christianity can no longer claim itself to be the one true religion. Not only do those who profess other religious beliefs question Christianity’s uniqueness, but Christians, lay and ecclesial, do so as well. The ultimate question is: Is Jesus singular or is he merely one of many founders of various world religions? This issue assumed new prominence and urgency when in Abu Dhabi Pope Francis and Sheik Ahmad el-Tayeb co-signed a document on February 4, 2019.
This document stated: “The pluralism and the diversity of religions, color, sex, race and language are willed by God in his wisdom, through which he created human beings.” God positively willed the sexual complementarity of male and female, as well as different races and nations. Did he, in the same overt positive manner, will Christianity and Islam and so absolutely will not only Jesus as the founder of Christianity, but also Mohammed as the founder of Islam?
Pope Francis is noted for his ambiguous statements, but I find the indeterminate meaning contained in the Abu Dhabi statement the most egregious. By implication, it not only devalues the person of Jesus, but it also, and more so, strikes at the very heart of God the Father’s eternal will. Thus, such studied ambiguity undermines the very Gospel itself. Such implicit doctrinal subversion of so foundational a mystery of the faith on the part of Peter’s successor is for me and for many in the Church, particularly the laity, not simply inexcusable, but it most of all evokes profound sadness, for it imperils the supreme love that Jesus rightly deserves and merits.
The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, in its 2000 Declaration Dominus Iesus, had already directly addressed such questions. The Congregation wished to clarify ambiguities and to identify flawed misunderstandings and erroneous conceptions of Jesus in relation to other “religious traditions of the world” which risked compromising “the evangelizing mission of the Church”. Thus, Dominus Iesus professed, in accordance with Sacred Scripture and the Magisterium of the Church, that Jesus, as the Father’s only begotten Son, is alone the fullness of divine revelation who singularly possesses the completeness of divine truth. Likewise, being the Father’s Spirit-anointed Son, Jesus taught the Gospel of salvation and through his saving passion and sacrificial death reconciled all to his Father. The Father, in the love and power of the Holy Spirit, raised Jesus from the dead, thus liberating mankind from sin’s curse (cf. Rom 1:3-4). These conjoined saving acts on the part of Jesus and of his Father, both of whom acted in the Holy Spirit, established Jesus as the preeminent Savior of all and the sole Lord of both heaven and earth. Consequently, Dominus Iesus declared that “Jesus Christ has a significance and a value for the human race and its history, which is unique and singular, proper to him alone, exclusive, universal, and absolute.”
Although Dominus Iesus rightly addressed the singularity of Jesus among other religious founders and so the uniqueness of Christianity, I do not think it did so fully and, therefore, adequately. Because of this inadequacy, missing is the full truth and beauty of who Jesus is; and so, what is not fully appreciated is the manner in which he is the universal Savior and definitive Lord. I want in this essay to make evident what is lacking in Dominus Iesus, and in so doing, further nullify any interpretation of the Abu Dhabi document which could affirm, or even suggest , that Jesus and other religious founders are of equal salvific value, and thus that God willed all religions in the same manner as he willed Christianity. I will address then two related complementary aspects of Jesus’ salvific primacy.
First, while implicit within Dominus Iesus, the Declaration did not explicitly state that Jesus’ saving actions established a new salvific order, that is, that his saving actions brought about the possibility for mankind to enter into a radically new relationship with the Father in the Holy Spirit. Second, Dominus Iesus did not emphasize that to partake of the saving benefits of Jesus’ death and resurrection, one must personally be united to him. These two complementary truths further accentuate the singularity of Jesus as the universal Savior and his uniqueness as the definitive Lord.
As to our first point, founders of other religions or other religions as such, other than Judaism and Christianity, simply intend to inform “the believer” what he or she must do in order to have a proper relation to God or “the divine.” The person progresses from a state of religious ignorance to a state of knowing what is religiously required. Such an understanding of “revelation” as merely a source of religious knowledge does not adequately address the evils of sin and death, nor effectively offer a new kind of relationship with God that is truly liberating and life-giving.
Moreover, within religions that profess to offer saving knowledge, the founder of that religion no longer is central once the salvific knowledge is imparted, for he has achieved his salvific purpose – that of revealing a previously absent salvific knowledge. The founder may be revered, as is Mohammed or Buddha, by those who adhere to his teaching, but this adherence is to a founder who has imparted the revealed religious, philosophical, moral and spiritual tenets to be believed and practiced. All religions, except for Judaism and Christianity, are then, by their very nature, Gnostic for they only provide what is considered to be saving knowledge. Thus, while Vatican II, in its Declaration Nostra Aetate, states that “the Catholic Church rejects nothing of what is true and holy in these religions [such as Hinduism, Buddhism and Islam],” for they “often reflect a ray of truth which enlightens all men,” yet the Church has the duty to proclaim that in Jesus, “in whom God reconciled all things to himself (2 Cor. 5:18-19), men find the fullness of the religious life.”
Unlike the gnostic nature of other world religions, within Judaism God acted in such a manner that the Israelites did not simply come to know God more fully, but because of his covenantal action, they came to possess a new kind of relationship with him, a relationship that was not possible prior to his action and to which other peoples and nations did not have access. As the fulfillment of God’s saving actions within the Old Testament, Jesus, as the Father’s incarnate Son, fully addressed the evil of sin, for in the loving act of offering his sinless and holy life to the Father on mankind’s behalf, he redeemed mankind from sin’s condemnation and so reconciled men and women to God. Moreover, by rising from the dead, Jesus conquered death and restored life. Through his death and resurrection Jesus thus established a new salvific order, one in which all evil is vanquished and a new and righteous relationship with God is now possible. Thus, Christianity is principally founded upon the saving actions of God; first anticipated and prefigured within his saving actions among the Israelites and fulfilled in the sending of his Son into the world – the Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Moreover, as mankind’s Savior and Lord, Jesus never loses his personal saving significance, for only by being personally united to Jesus is one freed from sin and death, and only by being personally united to him does one newly abide with the all-holy and all-loving God. In accordance with Dominus Iesus, Jesus’ saving actions with their salvific effects further differentiate and so accentuate Jesus as the singular universal Savior and unique definitive Lord, for no one other than him has accomplished “so great a salvation” (cf. Heb 2:3). Likewise, the need to be personally united to Jesus in order to partake of his saving benefits emphasizes his continual, unending, and ever-present saving importance, and thus his singular significance as the universal Savior. St. John Paul II in his encyclical Redemptoris Missio stated: “It is precisely this uniqueness of Christ which gives him an absolute and universal significance, whereby, while belonging to history, he remains history’s center and goal: ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end’ (Rv 22:13)”. Such an understanding of Jesus’ salvific importance is found within the whole Sacred Scripture and within the Church’s authentic teaching.
St. Paul, in the opening hymn of his Letter to the Ephesians, expresses this saving mystery – the centrality of Jesus’ saving acts and for all to be united to him. Paul invites all to bless “the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him.” From before the creation of the world, the Father “destined us in love to be his sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace which he freely bestowed upon us in the Beloved.” For in Jesus “we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses.” In all of these lavish blessings the Father “made known to us in all wisdom and insight the mystery of his will, according to his purpose which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth” (Eph 1:3-10). From all eternity the Father positively willed that all of mankind and the whole of creation, even angels, are to be united in Jesus Christ, his incarnate Son.
Unlike other religious founders, such as Buddha or Mohammed, Jesus’ resurrection, body and soul, is here foundational. After the Fall, human beings were in the need of salvation, freedom from sin and liberation from the curse of death. The Son of God saved mankind by becoming fully human (cf. Heb. 4:15) and offering himself, “through the eternal Spirit” (Heb 9:14), as a pure and holy sacrifice. This sacrifice of himself reconciled human beings to the Father. Moreover, because of his saving sacrifice, the Father raised Jesus from the dead, and thus the Son of God still exists as man, though now as a glorious man, for “death no longer has dominion over him” (Rom 6:9). The salvation of mankind, freedom from sin and death, resides precisely within the risen humanity of Jesus. To be personally united to the risen humanity of Jesus is to partake of the saving benefits that reside in him.
Here the singularity of Jesus Christ, as the Father’s Son, is made manifest. Only in being personally united to Jesus, as the risen Savior and universal Lord, do men and women share in his holiness, the very life of the Holy Spirit, and so come to live in communion with his Father as the Father’s children. Thus, not only does the resurrection make Jesus unique in his manner of existence as Savior and Lord, but it also allows men and women to live, in a singular manner, in communion with him as their Savior and Lord. There is no relationship similar to the relationship between Christ and the believer. It is unique. This mystery revealed by God the Father, both as to the primacy of Jesus his Son and as to mankind’s invitation to live in communion with him, is therefore singularly Christian and distinguishes Christianity from all other religious traditions.
Equally, in his Letter to the Colossians, Paul sings the primacy of Jesus. Being the perfect image of the invisible Father, the Son is “the first-born of all creation” and in so being “all things were created through him and for him. He is before all things and in him all things hold together.” The whole of creation remains in existence only by being united to the Son for they are for him. As Creator he holds primacy within the created cosmos. Moreover, “he is the beginning, the first born from the dead, that in everything he might be pre-eminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross” (Col. 1:15-20). As the first to be gloriously born anew in his resurrection, Jesus is pre-eminent within the new creation for in and through his death he has made peace with his Father so that all might find reconciling communion in him. Likewise, only in communion with the risen Jesus, he in whom the fullness of God dwells, does re-created humanity share in his resurrection and the whole of the re-created cosmos everlastingly endures.
Similarly, as in St. Paul, the Gospels also bear witness to the necessity of living in Christ Jesus the Son if one is to share in the salvific benefits that accrue to him – the Spirit-filled fruit of living within the Father’s kingdom. The Synoptic Gospels emphasize that Jesus proclaims the coming of God’s kingdom and that through his death and resurrection he establishes that kingdom. To enter into that kingdom Jesus declares that one “must repent and believe in the gospel” (Mk 1:15, cf. Mt 4:17). To believe in the gospel, to believe in Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the living God (cf. Mt 16:16), is to enter into God’s kingdom, for one is united to Jesus, the King who embodies the kingdom.
Thus, to be united to Jesus is to abide in God’s kingdom and so share in the new and eternal life of the kingdom, that is, the holy life of God’s Spirit. In the Gospel of John, Jesus informs Nicodemus: “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Holy Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (Jn 3:5). To be born anew into God’s kingdom is to be born anew into Christ Jesus. Throughout John’s Gospel, Jesus accentuates the importance of abiding in him. Speaking of his death, he declares: “I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to myself” (Jn. 12:32). He reveals that, as the Son of God, he and the Father are one (cf. Jn 10:30) and that his salvific task is to bring those who believe in him into this divine communion. Jesus tells his apostles that when they come to believe in him, “you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you” (Jn 14:20). If a person loves Jesus by keeping his word, “my Father will love him and we will come to him and make our home with him” (Jn 14:23). Jesus’ final prayer is that his followers “may all be one, even as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us… that they be one even as we are one, I in them and they in me, that they may become perfectly one” (Jn 17:20-23).
Jesus illustrates this life-giving communion between him and his disciples through the analogy of a vine and its branches: “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine and you are the branches. He who abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing” (Jn 15:4-5). To abide in Jesus, therefore, is to share in the very divine communion that exists between him and his Father, thus making those who believe one with them. The act of faith and the sacrament of baptism bring about this living and continuous union for through them Jesus and his Father come to dwell within the believer. Thus, there is a living union between Jesus and his disciples, a union that is founded on and nourished by the life-giving Holy Spirit, a union that will bear the fruit of everlasting life.
This mystery of living in communion with Christ is most fully articulated within St. Paul’s teaching concerning the Body of Christ: Jesus is the head of the body and all who believe in him and are baptized are its living members. “You are the body of Christ and individually members of it” (1 Cor 12:27; cf. 1 Cor 6:15-17). Paul declares why this is so: “For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For by one Spirit we were baptized into one body – Jew or Greeks, slaves or free – and all were made to drink of one Spirit” (1 Cor 12:12-13). By sharing in the Holy Spirit, Christians live in the Spirit-anointed Christ and so form one living body with him – they constitute and comprise one living reality. The truth that Jesus is the Head of his body accentuates that the faithful are personally united to the very person of their Lord and Savior Jesus Christ so as to form one living reality in the Holy Spirit. As St. Thomas Aquinas states: “Head and members form as it were one and the same mystical person.” This doctrine of the Mystical Body of Christ, wherein the person of Christ and the individual persons united to him within the communion of the Church share in the one mystical and divine life of the Holy Spirit, distinguishes the Christian Gospel from other religions. Moreover, it calls the Church and its members to proclaim the Gospel to all peoples so that everyone may share in the intimate personal love and everlasting life that resides in Christ Jesus, for as Vatican II states in Lumen Gentium, “the universal Church is seen to be a people brought into unity from the unity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.”
Dominus Iesus enunciated why Jesus, as the Son of God and Word of the Father, is the unique universal Savior and singular Lord of heaven and earth and why the Church shares in that singularity by possessing the fullness of Christ’s saving mystery. What I have articulated above not only complements and but also completes what Dominus Iesus declares, for the manner in which the Church and her members come to participate in the singular saving mystery that is Christ Jesus is by way of being united to Christ and living in him. Again, Lumen Gentium states: “All men are called to this union with Christ, who is the light of the world, from whom we go forth, through whom we live, and towards whom our whole life is directed.” Jesus is the only Savior for only by living in Spirit-filled communion with him does one share in the saving mystery that he is. This unity in Christ the Son is the eternal mystery that the Father has now revealed.
What also must be kept in mind is Vatican II’s teaching contained in Gaudium et Spes. Since Christ died for all and since all are called by God to one destiny which is union with him in Christ Jesus, “we must hold that the Holy Spirit offers to all the possibility of being made partners, in a way known to God, in the paschal mystery.” The Holy Spirit is at work in the lives of all, and so, by cooperating with the Spirit’s action, all men and women, members of other religions or none, are also able to become sharing-companions with Christians in the saving mystery that is Jesus. They too are able to be subsumed into Jesus’ salvific death and resurrection and so become personally united to him.
This primacy of Christ as the universal Savior and definitive Lord will then find its fulfillment when Jesus returns in glory at the end of time, at which point the Church and all of its members will be united to and live in him perfectly and so share fully in his risen glory – the full life and love of the Holy Spirit. St. Paul declares the everlasting significance of this truth when he states: “In him (Jesus) you also, who have heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and have believed in him, were sealed with the Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his (the Father’s) glory” (Eph 1:13-14). Having been united to Christ and sharing in the Spirit of Sonship, Christians are assured of their heavenly inheritance – eternal life and communion with God their Father.
What I have articulated here may be obvious to all faithful Christians. Nonetheless, given the ambiguity contained within the Abu Dhabi statement that Pope Francis signed, a strong reaffirmation is now necessary. One would like to think (the forever giving him the benefit of the doubt) that Pope Francis unwittingly, and so not consciously aware of the doctrinal implications of his signature, did not intend what the document seems to declare.
Regardless, no one, not even a pontiff, can undo or override the will of God the Father concerning Jesus his Son. It is God the Father who “has highly exalted him and bestowed upon him the name which is above ever name.” The Father has eternally decreed that at the name of Jesus, and not at the name of Buddha, Mohammed, or the name of any other past, present, or future religious founder, that “every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.” To do so is not simply to glorify Jesus, but also “to the glory of God the Father” (Phil. 2:9-11). In his love the Father has given the world Jesus his Son (Jn. 3:16), and “there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). In this supreme truth we are to rejoice in gratitude and praise.
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“Did he, in the same overt positive manner, will Christianity and Islam and so absolutely will not only Jesus as the founder of Christianity, but also Mohammed as the founder of Islam?
‘God made me to know Him’ so do not all seekers of Truth, work to the greater glory of God?
The early Hebrews, searches (Seekers of Truth) of the heart, as in the understanding the Light of God, can be seen in Abraham, as he sees/believes the ‘spiritual reality of Creation’ as in all things been the Will of One God. Perhaps we need to see pluralism in the context of the ‘Searchers of Truth’ within all individual hearts.
What we presently need, is to see is a manifestation of true discipleship, not mere words; we see this discipleship in St Mother Teresa who overcame hostility from Hinduism etc. As initially, when she went out into the streets of Calcutta, she had to confront hostility in creating a centre for the destitute, but the gentleness of her witness, was accepted, because her witness was authentic. She approached the goodness within men’s hearts, encouraging them, in words to the effect of ‘be good Hindus’, understanding that the Truth (The divine spark) resides in all men’s hearts, waiting to be nourished, in harmony with these gentle words given by Jesus Christ, in which we see the basis for the encouragement (Growth) of reciprocal love in action.
“And whoever gives to one of these little (Humble) ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you he shall not lose his reward”
‘Because he is a disciple’ one gives (Water) in humility, a sincere acknowledgement of goodness/Truth, reflecting the indwelling Divine spark within the heart/soul, now ignited and waiting to be further enkindled by the Holy Spirit. As “ other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice”
Through the eyes of faith, we come to see, as God wants (Wills) us to see, that is, that every other, is made in the image of God.
kevin your brother
In Christ
Kevin, Being “made in the image of God” doesn’t mean after that point we are – using our intellect and will – tending toward God with our whole heart, mind, body and spirit as He intended through the narrow gate.
Thank you Bill for your comment: No! but the potential is there, in all hearts to do so, in ‘humility’.
We are ‘all’ vulnerable before the yoke of our Fathers inviolate Word (Will) as in ‘one iota’ and when embraced honestly, it will induce humility (St Bernard Humility a virtue by which a man knowing himself as he truly is, abases himself) as we direct the open recognition of our state of being before Him, otherwise we run the risk of becoming self-righteous, the blinding of oneself, to the reality of our own stifled heart/soul.
kevin your brother
In Christ
Interesting reflection, but essentially orthogonal to the matter at hand.
“orthogonal”? you gotta one kidding me. “First, while implicit within Dominus Iesus, the Declaration did not explicitly state that Jesus’ saving actions established a new salvific order, that is, that his saving actions brought about the possibility for mankind to enter into a radically new relationship with the Father in the Holy Spirit. Second, Dominus Iesus did not emphasize that to partake of the saving benefits of Jesus’ death and resurrection, one must personally be united to him.” That’s essentially gospel. What, pray tell, is the matter at hand?
If these well read and intelligent and ingenious comments and viewpoints on the subject of religion, especially on the history of Catholicism, were instead directed towards what is currently going on in Ukraine between their relationship between Europe and Russia and the war there and it’s impact on both Eastern and Western Christian Church(s), rather than a series of naval battles and wars that happened 500-600 years ago both within the Roman Empire and between both ancient eastern and western civilization conquest; then maybe both the US and Europe together, as the original subject previously suggested in their fight between Christians(Catholic and Jewish Christians) against Muslims throughout history between east and west; would be able to end the war between Russia and Ukraine(both primarily Eastern Orthodox Catholic countries, instead of trying to get the whole world involved in World War 3.
The Catholic Church in the US and all of Europe should be united in an effort to end the war in Ukraine by the UN calling for a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine. Europe should be getting their oil supply from the US and Canada in order to keep Russia from taking Ukraine. Then there should be a cease fire arrangement between them so that Russian oil cannot be bought by any European country. Any European country belonging to the UN would be suspended from being a member of the UN indefinitely and the US monetary contribution and US military weapons support for the war there would decreased substantially, dependent on the European Union’s agreement to only buy oil from Europe or Canada. If the European Union does not support this new arrangement, then the US would not be required to pay $ or military support for it’s own membership obligations to being included as part of the UN, indefinitely.
What in the world does light have to do with darkness? Being HOLY means being Set Apart. So, Pope Francis is equating a Church founded by the Son of God to a religious community founded by a mere human? He did read the account of Abraham, Sarah and Hagar in the Bible, right?
Thank you, Father Weinandy. We need more writing by orthodox Catholic theologians on what I’d call Incarnation Theology i.e. the singular and non-duplicative salvific act of this Jesus of Nazareth, God become man. I say non-duplicate because all salvation is through Jesus Christmas and Jesus Christmas alone. The ONLY way to a relationship with the Father is through Jesus Christ. You either believe that or you are not Christian. You either assert that publicly in your evangelization or you are not Catholic. Anything less is mealy-mouthed relativistic nonsense – no matter who’s saying it. Why because Jesus told this to us Himself.
Furthermore, it is ONLY through Jesus Christ that man can become a sharer in God’s divine life. Through Him, by adoption, we become divinized as it were. We become as God – divine – as we possess sanctifying grace. Do any other religions say they have become as God?
Dominus Jesus Cardinal Ratzinger’s theological testament to Christ leaves open the question of salvation outside the Church. Fr Weinandy perceives that arguing “one must be personally united to him” to be beneficiary of Christ’s saving act on the Cross. The former prefect of the CDF Ratzinger addressed salvation on an intenser lever in pursuit of truth than Fr Weinandy. At least in comparison to this article. The issue at hand is the perennial conflict for many of salvation outside the Church. As Pope Benedict Josef Ratzinger later addressed this question attributing the lack of missionary effort to precisely Church teaching that there is salvation outside the Church [Personal union with Christ requires Justification. As early as Trent, the Church taught If anyone shall say that all works done before justification are truly sins or merit the hatred of God Anathema sit. Canons on Justification]. Benedict did not deny there is salvation outside of a [witting] personal union with Christ. Fr Weinandy is correct insofar as salvation is uniquely achieved in Christ. Although theologians have argued salvation is achieved even unwittingly by grace available even to the Amazonian Rain Forest Jivaro who in his own way responds to God’s goodness. This is not to say Fr Weinandy does not hold to the same. My suggestion is he make it clear if indeed he does rather than critique what he presumes lacking in Dominus Jesus.
The issue at hand is the perennial conflict for many of salvation outside the Church.
It isn’t, actually. Fr. Weinandy is rather clear about it: “The ultimate question is: Is Jesus singular or is he merely one of many founders of various world religions?”
Correct Leonardi that is the issue for Fr Weinandy. The ‘issue at hand’ that I address as indicated is different. That is the suggestion by Fr Weinandy of a lacuna in Dominus Jesus authored by Cardinal Ratzinger regarding explicit confirmation that Christ established one religious faith by which we are to be saved. My contention is that appearance perceived by Fr Weinandy for which he offers his improvement is due to the Catholic Church teaching of salvation outside the Church, to which Ratzinger couches his Declaration in consideration whereas Weinandy seems deficient. As alluded in my comment Benedict XVI later expressed lament that this doctrinal truth, salvation outside the Church has been conflated post Vat II many presuming salvation was easily attainable by everyone and virtually on equal footing in any religion. That is not at all indicated in Dominus Jesus. Insofar as Fr Weinandy assuming a lacuna in Cardinal Ratzinger’s CDF Declaration suggested in his article such a lacuna does not exist:
“The Church rules out, in a radical way, that mentality of indifferentism ‘characterized by a religious relativism’ which leads to the belief that ‘one religion is as good as another’. If it is true that the followers of other religions can receive divine grace, it is also certain that objectively speaking they are in a gravely deficient situation in comparison with those who, in the Church, have the fullness of the means of salvation” (Ratzinger Dominus Jesus no. 22).
In addition Fr Weinandy contends, “Dominus Iesus did not emphasize that to partake of the saving benefits of Jesus’ death and resurrection, one must personally be united to him”. Personal unity, union with Christ requires Justification. Trent Canons Justification 1557, “If anyone shall say that all works done before Justification are truly sins or merit the hatred of God anathema sit”. Then Fr Weinandy must conclude that no one outside the Church can be Justified herewith saved. Trent did not come to that conclusion.
Rich Leonardi Leonardi to finally make clear the basis of my critique of Fr Weinandy let me first add that I regularly preach the very need we all have to develop a personal, even intimate relation with the Person of Christ. The issue as I perceive it is Fr Weinandy’s superimposition of his views on Dominus Jesus as if to improve what’s lacking that leaves a sense of restrictiveness, likely unintended regarding the availability of salvation. I’m reminded of the evangelical theme Jesus is my personal savior implying salvation is otherwise strictly remitted. Although it’s certain if we are to believe Christ’s words whoever hears the Word and refuses to believe will be condemned. Nonetheless there are those who have not heard the Word or may never hear it who the Church has taught remain susceptible to salvation by the work of grace in them however difficult or remote that may be.
Fr. Weinandry exposes the Gnosticism of Islam. His point of departure is the difficulty of expressing the common humanity of all persons under, say, Natural Law (?), and the unique and singular nature of Jesus Christ—the Incarnation of the divine into human history.
Comparisons between Faith in Christ and the belief of Islam are not symmetrical as undefined “pluralism” would have it. That is, as between two presumably equivalent scriptures, the Bible and the Qur’an. Rather, the comparison and contrast is between the Incarnation as “the Word made flesh” and, for Muslims, the Qur’an as the eternal, “uncreated” and dictated word-made-book.
Likewise for origins, it is not that Christianity and Islam simply have two different founders. The Church begins with (and is the Mystical Body of) the self-donated and resurrected Christ—more than a founder—and Pentecost which comes from above. Islam begins with a sequence of “recitations” (translation of Qur’an) repeated to scribes by a self-discovered final prophet, said to be a needed corrective to human failings within history—the derailing of Israel (e.g., the golden calf) and the later triadic polytheism of Christianity (versus the Trinitarian 1+1+1=1).
Les centered on the clarity of a Creed than is the Church, the self-understanding of very sectarian Islam is as a wrap-around or cultural “way of life” of Shari’a Law (e.g., the expansive mosque-state), which then sees all other religions as more or less imperfect versions of itself. Catholic Christianity, however, is sacramental and personal incorporation into the singular and risen Christ who is one with the Father.
For the Church to now focus interreligious dialogue at the “cultural” level does offer practical advantages of shared good works in a world always in pain, but taken alone it buys into a deceptive middle ground that risks conceding the very points at issue regarding the nature of Ultimate Reality and our own human nature as the gifted “capacity for [a self-donating] God” (Augustine, Aquinas).
Perhaps the underlying and gnostic sentiment of Islam corresponds roughly with the Western understanding of Natural Law as original to creation? But Islam is truncated as only the willfulness of Allah—absent the Logos. Any hint toward a seemingly second autonomy is blasphemy.
As for its gnostic character, Islam places the golden age at the beginning, even before time began (the “uncreated” Qur’an), while western Gnosticism places the golden age at the end of time as in Communism, Socialism, and now Secular Humanism.
Today, therefore, the collision between these two different kinds of Gnosticism—between Islam and the post-Christian West—calls for greater clarity and witness from the Apostolic Church about both our shared “fraternity” under Natural Law and, within (and above) history, the unique self-disclosure of a Triune God who is infinite love.
I tried to find the most direct statement of volition in the Quran. I am surprised that Muslim apologists do not seem to emphasize it, given that Christian apologists not only shout their interpretation of God’s will from the housetops, but paint it on the curbstones:
John 3:16.
For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life
Too late, by making Muhammad equal to Christ, Francis Apostasy has already occurred.
He is no longer pope.
Unless we believe that God positively wills direct opposites simultaneously, the there is no possibility that God positively wills both Christianity and Islam.
Among other things:
Islam specifically denies that God is a Trinity.
Islam specifically denies that man is made in the image and likeness of God.
Islam specifically denies Jesus’ divinity.
Islam specifically denies that Jesus is the Son of God.
Islam denies that Jesus died on the cross.
Islam denies the Resurrection.
These positions are central to Islam, not peripheral or accidental. The Christian position on each of these points is considered blasphemous in Islam and is punishable by scourging, beheading and/or imprisonment in many Muslim countries.
A Catholic could reasonably conclude that, for reasons we do not fully comprehend, God permits Islam to exist. Nevertheless, Islam must be considered a “defective” and “false” religion by any believing Catholic. Our mission is to evangelize all people, including Muslims. Are there elements of truth and light within Islam? Of course. Are all Muslims evil people? Of course not. However, the reality-based Catholic view would be that Islam is a tool used by the Devil to prevent billions of people from knowing and accepting the truth about Jesus Chris, becoming his disciples, and entering the Church he founded.
Mohammed and his Koran deny that Jesus is the Son of God. Consider 1 John 2:22-23: “Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father. He who confesses the Son has the Father also.”
Remember this: Pope Francis’ very first monthly prayer intention video but Judaism, Islam and Buddhism on equal footing with Christianity. It caused quite a stir at the time. https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/in-first-video-message-pope-francis-stresses-unity-we-are-all-children-of-god-39381.
We are all children of God, he said. True in one sense, but not in the Christian sense of divine filiation / adoption. Many people believed that the video reflected an indifferentist and pluralist attitude concerning non-Christian religions. Scripture and Tradition say that we become God’s adopted Children through baptism into Jesus Christ. Only Jesus saves, and all religions and denominations other than the Christianity found in the Catholic Church (while they may contain rays of light and even elements of grace and may be considered preparation for the Gospel) are also clearly false and therefore defective and dangerous to souls. Those who follow them walk in shadows rather than in the full light that can only be found in Jesus Christ and his Church.
Scripture passages that indicate we become Children of God by incorporation into Christ:
John 1:12: “But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God.”
1 John 3:1-2: “See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God’s children now; it does not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.”
Romans 8:15-16: “It is the Spirit himself bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.”
Gal. 4:4-7: “But when the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” So through God you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son then an heir.
Eph. 1:5-6: “He destined us in love to be his sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace which he freely bestowed on us in the Beloved.
The Abu Dhabi statement is NOT ambiguous. It asserts that all religions exist by virtue of God’s “Wisdom”–i.e., Logos–i.e., God’s CREATIVE will. The statement is NOT OPEN to the interpretation “permissive will.”
For the glory of The Father
Thanks Fr. Thomas G. Weinandy.
“That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him” John 5:23
“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power, for ever and ever!” Revelation 5:13
“The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him”
Revelation 22:3
“Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb”
Jesus also receive praise and worship like The Father and The Holy Spirit!
Jesus also receive prays!
“Come, Lord Jesus” Revelation 22:20
For the glory of The Father!
Too many words Father, just like the pope.
***
“indeterminate meaning”?! Come on now Father!
Up to Pope Francis’ pontificate, it was definative Church teaching that salvation – communion with God in eternity – was tied to our profession of faith in Christ Jesus and our affiliation with the Church Jesus founded. Pope Franics has indicated in numerous statements that this is no longer the case.
Canon 1257 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, [CCC] states: “The Lord himself affirms that Baptism is necessary for salvation. He also commands his disciples to proclaim the Gospel to all nations and to baptize them… The Church does not know of any means other than Baptism that assures entry into eternal beatitude; this is why she takes care not to neglect the mission she has received from the Lord to see that all who can be baptized are “reborn of water and the Spirit.” (God has bound salvation to the sacrament of Baptism, but he himself is not bound by his sacraments).
The Abu Daubi Accord shows how defective Francis’ theology is; the poor quality of theologian he has advising him – and the perniciousness of Islam. No serious Islamic scholar would ever affirm that God wills the plurality of religions – Allah only wills Islam. Clearly their signing was an act of ‘Taqiyya’ Lying for the furtherance of Islam.