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September 5, 2000
ON THE UNICITY AND SALVIFIC UNIVERSALITY OF JESUS CHRIST AND THE CHURCH
INTRODUCTION
1. The Lord Jesus, before ascending into heaven, commanded his disciples
to proclaim the Gospel to the whole world and to baptize all nations: "Go
into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature. He who
believes and is baptized will be saved; he who does not believe will be
condemned" (Mk 16:15-16); "All power in heaven and on earth has
been given to me. Go therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in
the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching
them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you
always, until the end of the world" (Mt 28:18-20; cf. Lk 24:46-48;
Jn 17:18,20,21; Acts 1:8).
The Church's universal mission is born from the command of Jesus Christ
and is fulfilled in the course of the centuries in the proclamation of
the mystery of God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and the mystery of the
incarnation of the Son, as saving event for all humanity. The fundamental
contents of the profession of the Christian faith are expressed thus: "I
believe in one God, the Father, Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of
all that is, seen and unseen. I believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the
only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light
from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one being with
the Father. Through him all things were made. For us men and for our salvation,
he came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy Spirit he became incarnate
of the Virgin Mary, and became man. For our sake he was crucified under
Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose
again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is
seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to
judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end. I believe
in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the
Father. With the Father and the Son he is worshipped and glorified. He
has spoken through the prophets. I believe in one holy catholic and apostolic
Church. I acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. I look for
the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come".1
2. In the course of the centuries, the Church has proclaimed and witnessed
with fidelity to the Gospel of Jesus. At the close of the second millennium,
however, this mission is still far from complete.2 For that reason, Saint
Paul's words are now more relevant than ever: "Preaching the Gospel
is not a reason for me to boast; it is a necessity laid on me: woe to me
if I do not preach the Gospel!" (1 Cor 9:16). This explains the Magisterium's
particular attention to giving reasons for and supporting the evangelizing
mission of the Church, above all in connection with the religious traditions
of the world.3
In considering the values which these religions witness to and offer humanity,
with an open and positive approach, the Second Vatican Council's Declaration
on the relation of the Church to non-Christian religions states: "The
Catholic Church rejects nothing of what is true and holy in these religions.
She has a high regard for the manner of life and conduct, the precepts
and teachings, which, although differing in many ways from her own teaching,
nonetheless often reflect a ray of that truth which enlightens all men".4
Continuing in this line of thought, the Church's proclamation of Jesus
Christ, "the way, the truth, and the life" (Jn 14:6), today also
makes use of the practice of inter-religious dialogue. Such dialogue certainly
does not replace, but rather accompanies the missio ad gentes, directed
toward that "mystery of unity", from which "it follows that
all men and women who are saved share, though differently, in the same
mystery of salvation in Jesus Christ through his Spirit".5 Inter-religious
dialogue, which is part of the Church's evangelizing mission,6 requires
an attitude of understanding and a relationship of mutual knowledge and
reciprocal enrichment, in obedience to the truth and with respect for freedom.7
3. In the practice of dialogue between the Christian faith and other
religious traditions, as well as in seeking to understand its theoretical
basis more deeply, new questions arise that need to be addressed through
pursuing new paths of research, advancing proposals, and suggesting ways
of acting that call for attentive discernment. In this task, the present
Declaration seeks to recall to Bishops, theologians, and all the Catholic
faithful, certain indispensable elements of Christian doctrine, which may
help theological reflection in developing solutions consistent with the
contents of the faith and responsive to the pressing needs of contemporary
culture.
The expository language of the Declaration corresponds to its purpose,
which is not to treat in a systematic manner the question of the unicity
and salvific universality of the mystery of Jesus Christ and the Church,
nor to propose solutions to questions that are matters of free theological
debate, but rather to set forth again the doctrine of the Catholic faith
in these areas, pointing out some fundamental questions that remain open
to further development, and refuting specific positions that are erroneous
or ambiguous. For this reason, the Declaration takes up what has been taught
in previous Magisterial documents, in order to reiterate certain truths
that are part of the Church's faith.
4. The Church's constant missionary proclamation is endangered today
by relativistic theories which seek to justify religious pluralism, not
only de facto but also de iure (or in principle). As a consequence, it
is held that certain truths have been superseded; for example, the definitive
and complete character of the revelation of Jesus Christ, the nature of
Christian faith as compared with that of belief in other religions, the
inspired nature of the books of Sacred Scripture, the personal unity between
the Eternal Word and Jesus of Nazareth, the unity of the economy of the
Incarnate Word and the Holy Spirit, the unicity and salvific universality
of the mystery of Jesus Christ, the universal salvific mediation of the
Church, the inseparability - while recognizing the distinction - of the
kingdom of God, the kingdom of Christ, and the Church, and the subsistence
of the one Church of Christ in the Catholic Church.
The roots of these problems are to be found in certain presuppositions
of both a philosophical and theological nature, which hinder the understanding
and acceptance of the revealed truth. Some of these can be mentioned: the
conviction of the elusiveness and inexpressibility of divine truth, even
by Christian revelation; relativistic attitudes toward truth itself, according
to which what is true for some would not be true for others; the radical
opposition posited between the logical mentality of the West and the symbolic
mentality of the East; the subjectivism which, by regarding reason as the
only source of knowledge, becomes incapable of raising its "gaze to
the heights, not daring to rise to the truth of being";8 the difficulty
in understanding and accepting the presence of definitive and eschatological
events in history; the metaphysical emptying of the historical incarnation
of the Eternal Logos, reduced to a mere appearing of God in history; the
eclecticism of those who, in theological research, uncritically absorb
ideas from a variety of philosophical and theological contexts without
regard for consistency, systematic connection, or compatibility with Christian
truth; finally, the tendency to read and to interpret Sacred Scripture
outside the Tradition and Magisterium of the Church.
On the basis of such presuppositions, which may evince different nuances,
certain theological proposals are developed - at times presented as assertions,
and at times as hypotheses - in which Christian revelation and the mystery
of Jesus Christ and the Church lose their character of absolute truth and
salvific universality, or at least shadows of doubt and uncertainty are
cast upon them.
I. THE FULLNESS AND DEFINITIVENESS OF THE REVELATION OF JESUS CHRIST
5. As a remedy for this relativistic mentality, which is becoming
ever more common, it is necessary above all to reassert the definitive
and complete character of the revelation of Jesus Christ. In fact, it must
be firmly believed that, in the mystery of Jesus Christ, the Incarnate
Son of God, who is "the way, the truth, and the life" (Jn 14:6),
the full revelation of divine truth is given: "No one knows the Son
except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone
to whom the Son wishes to reveal him" (Mt 11:27); "No one has
ever seen God; God the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, has
revealed him" (Jn 1:18); "For in Christ the whole fullness of
divinity dwells in bodily form" (Col 2:9-10).
Faithful to God's word, the Second Vatican Council teaches: "By this
revelation then, the deepest truth about God and the salvation of man shines
forth in Christ, who is at the same time the mediator and the fullness
of all revelation".9 Furthermore, "Jesus Christ, therefore, the
Word made flesh, sent 'as a man to men', 'speaks the words of God' (Jn
3:34), and completes the work of salvation which his Father gave him to
do (cf. Jn 5:36; 17:4). To see Jesus is to see his Father (cf. Jn 14:9).
For this reason, Jesus perfected revelation by fulfilling it through his
whole work of making himself present and manifesting himself: through his
words and deeds, his signs and wonders, but especially through his death
and glorious resurrection from the dead and finally with the sending of
the Spirit of truth, he completed and perfected revelation and confirmed
it with divine testimony... The Christian dispensation, therefore, as the
new and definitive covenant, will never pass away, and we now await no
further new public revelation before the glorious manifestation of our
Lord Jesus Christ (cf. 1 Tim 6:14 and Tit 2:13)".10
Thus, the Encyclical Redemptoris missio calls the Church once again to the task of announcing the Gospel as the fullness of truth: "In this definitive Word of his revelation, God has made himself known in the fullest possible way. He has revealed to mankind who he is. This definitive self-revelation of God is the fundamental reason why the Church is missionary by her very nature. She cannot do other than proclaim the Gospel, that is, the fullness of the truth which God has enabled us to know about himself".11 Only the revelation of Jesus Christ, therefore, "introduces into our history a universal and ultimate truth which stirs the human mind to ceaseless effort" .12
6. Therefore, the theory of the limited, incomplete, or imperfect
character of the revelation of Jesus Christ, which would be complementary
to that found in other religions, is contrary to the Church's faith. Such
a position would claim to be based on the notion that the truth about God
cannot be grasped and manifested in its globality and completeness by any
historical religion, neither by Christianity nor by Jesus Christ.
Such a position is in radical contradiction with the foregoing statements
of Catholic faith according to which the full and complete revelation of
the salvific mystery of God is given in Jesus Christ. Therefore, the words,
deeds, and entire historical event of Jesus, though limited as human realities,
have nevertheless the divine Person of the Incarnate Word, "true God
and true man"13 as their subject. For this reason, they possess in
themselves the definitiveness and completeness of the revelation of God's
salvific ways, even if the depth of the divine mystery in itself remains
transcendent and inexhaustible. The truth about God is not abolished or
reduced because it is spoken in human language; rather, it is unique, full,
and complete, because he who speaks and acts is the Incarnate Son of God.
Thus, faith requires us to profess that the Word made flesh, in his entire
mystery, who moves from incarnation to glorification, is the source, participated
but real, as well as the fulfilment of every salvific revelation of God
to humanity,14 and that the Holy Spirit, who is Christ's Spirit, will teach
this "entire truth" (Jn 16:13) to the Apostles and, through them,
to the whole Church.
7. The proper response to God's revelation is "the obedience
of faith (Rom 16:26; cf. Rom 1:5; 2 Cor 10:5-6) by which man freely entrusts
his entire self to God, offering 'the full submission of intellect and
will to God who reveals' and freely assenting to the revelation given by
him".15 Faith is a gift of grace: "in order to have faith, the
grace of God must come first and give assistance; there must also be the
interior helps of the Holy Spirit, who moves the heart and converts it
to God, who opens the eyes of the mind and gives 'to everyone joy and ease
in assenting to and believing in the truth'".16
The obedience of faith implies acceptance of the truth of Christ's revelation,
guaranteed by God, who is Truth itself:17 "Faith is first of all a
personal adherence of man to God. At the same time, and inseparably, it
is a free assent to the whole truth that God has revealed".18 Faith,
therefore, as "a gift of God" and as "a supernatural virtue
infused by him",19 involves a dual adherence: to God who reveals and
to the truth which he reveals, out of the trust which one has in him who
speaks. Thus, "we must believe in no one but God: the Father, the
Son and the Holy Spirit".20
For this reason, the distinction between theological faith and belief in
the other religions, must be firmly held. If faith is the acceptance in
grace of revealed truth, which "makes it possible to penetrate the
mystery in a way that allows us to understand it coherently",21 then
belief, in the other religions, is that sum of experience and thought that
constitutes the human treasury of wisdom and religious aspiration, which
man in his search for truth has conceived and acted upon in his relationship
to God and the Absolute.22
This distinction is not always borne in mind in current theological reflection.
Thus, theological faith (the acceptance of the truth revealed by the One
and Triune God) is often identified with belief in other religions, which
is religious experience still in search of the absolute truth and still
lacking assent to God who reveals himself. This is one of the reasons why
the differences between Christianity and the other religions tend to be
reduced at times to the point of disappearance.
8. The hypothesis of the inspired value of the sacred writings of
other religions is also put forward. Certainly, it must be recognized that
there are some elements in these texts which may be de facto instruments
by which countless people throughout the centuries have been and still
are able today to nourish and maintain their life-relationship with God.
Thus, as noted above, the Second Vatican Council, in considering the customs,
precepts, and teachings of the other religions, teaches that "although
differing in many ways from her own teaching, these nevertheless often
reflect a ray of that truth which enlightens all men".23
The Church's tradition, however, reserves the designation of inspired texts
to the canonical books of the Old and New Testaments, since these are inspired
by the Holy Spirit.24 Taking up this tradition, the Dogmatic Constitution
on Divine Revelation of the Second Vatican Council states: "For Holy
Mother Church, relying on the faith of the apostolic age, accepts as sacred
and canonical the books of the Old and New Testaments, whole and entire,
with all their parts, on the grounds that, written under the inspiration
of the Holy Spirit (cf. Jn 20:31; 2 Tim 3:16; 2 Pet 1:19-21; 3:15-16),
they have God as their author, and have been handed on as such to the Church
herself".25 These books "firmly, faithfully, and without error,
teach that truth which God, for the sake of our salvation, wished to see
confided to the Sacred Scriptures".26
Nevertheless, God, who desires to call all peoples to himself in Christ
and to communicate to them the fullness of his revelation and love, "does
not fail to make himself present in many ways, not only to individuals,
but also to entire peoples through their spiritual riches, of which their
religions are the main and essential expression even when they contain
'gaps, insufficiencies and errors'".27 Therefore, the sacred books
of other religions, which in actual fact direct and nourish the existence
of their followers, receive from the mystery of Christ the elements of
goodness and grace which they contain.
II. THE INCARNATE LOGOS AND THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE WORK OF SALVATION
9. In contemporary theological reflection there often emerges an
approach to Jesus of Nazareth that considers him a particular, finite,
historical figure, who reveals the divine not in an exclusive way, but
in a way complementary with other revelatory and salvific figures. The
Infinite, the Absolute, the Ultimate Mystery of God would thus manifest
itself to humanity in many ways and in many historical figures: Jesus of
Nazareth would be one of these. More concretely, for some, Jesus would
be one of the many faces which the Logos has assumed in the course of time
to communicate with humanity in a salvific way.
Furthermore, to justify the universality of Christian salvation as well
as the fact of religious pluralism, it has been proposed that there is
an economy of the eternal Word that is valid also outside the Church and
is unrelated to her, in addition to an economy of the incarnate Word. The
first would have a greater universal value than the second, which is limited
to Christians, though God's presence would be more full in the second.
10. These theses are in profound conflict with the Christian faith.
The doctrine of faith must be firmly believed which proclaims that Jesus
of Nazareth, son of Mary, and he alone, is the Son and the Word of the
Father. The Word, which "was in the beginning with God" (Jn 1:2)
is the same as he who "became flesh" (Jn 1:14). In Jesus, "the
Christ, the Son of the living God" (Mt 16:16), "the whole fullness
of divinity dwells in bodily form" (Col 2:9). He is the "only
begotten Son of the Father, who is in the bosom of the Father" (Jn
1:18), his "beloved Son, in whom we have redemption... In him the
fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him, God was pleased
to reconcile all things to himself, on earth and in the heavens, making
peace by the blood of his Cross" (Col 1:13-14; 19-20).
Faithful to Sacred Scripture and refuting erroneous and reductive interpretations,
the First Council of Nicaea solemnly defined its faith in: "Jesus
Christ, the Son of God, the only begotten generated from the Father, that
is, from the being of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true
God from true God, begotten, not made, one in being with the Father, through
whom all things were made, those in heaven and those on earth. For us men
and for our salvation, he came down and became incarnate, was made man,
suffered, and rose again on the third day. He ascended to the heavens and
shall come again to judge the living and the dead".28 Following the
teachings of the Fathers of the Church, the Council of Chalcedon also professed:
"the one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, the same perfect
in divinity and perfect in humanity, the same truly God and truly man...,
one in being with the Father according to the divinity and one in being
with us according to the humanity..., begotten of the Father before the
ages according to the divinity and, in these last days, for us and our
salvation, of Mary, the Virgin Mother of God, according to the humanity".29
For this reason, the Second Vatican Council states that Christ "the
new Adam...'image of the invisible God' (Col 1:15) is himself the perfect
man who has restored that likeness to God in the children of Adam which
had been disfigured since the first sin... As an innocent lamb he merited
life for us by his blood which he freely shed. In him God reconciled us
to himself and to one another, freeing us from the bondage of the devil
and of sin, so that each one of us could say with the apostle: the Son
of God 'loved me and gave himself up for me' (Gal 2:20)".30
In this regard, John Paul II has explicitly declared: "To introduce
any sort of separation between the Word and Jesus Christ is contrary to
the Christian faith... Jesus is the Incarnate Word - a single and indivisible
person... Christ is none other than Jesus of Nazareth; he is the Word of
God made man for the salvation of all... In the process of discovering
and appreciating the manifold gifts - especially the spiritual treasures
- that God has bestowed on every people, we cannot separate those gifts
from Jesus Christ, who is at the centre of God's plan of salvation".31
It is likewise contrary to the Catholic faith to introduce a separation
between the salvific action of the Word as such and that of the Word made
man. With the incarnation, all the salvific actions of the Word of God
are always done in unity with the human nature that he has assumed for
the salvation of all people. The one subject which operates in the two
natures, human and divine, is the single person of the Word.32
Therefore, the theory which would attribute, after the incarnation as well,
a salvific activity to the Logos as such in his divinity, exercised "in
addition to" or "beyond" the humanity of Christ, is not
compatible with the Catholic faith.33
11. Similarly, the doctrine of faith regarding the unicity of the
salvific economy willed by the One and Triune God must be firmly believed,
at the source and centre of which is the mystery of the incarnation of
the Word, mediator of divine grace on the level of creation and redemption
(cf. Col 1:15-20), he who recapitulates all things (cf. Eph 1:10), he "whom
God has made our wisdom, our righteousness, and sanctification and redemption"
(1 Cor 1:30). In fact, the mystery of Christ has its own intrinsic unity,
which extends from the eternal choice in God to the parousia: "he
[the Father] chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be
holy and blameless before him in love" (Eph 1:4); "In Christ
we are heirs, having been destined according to the purpose of him who
accomplishes all things according to his counsel and will" (Eph 1:11);
"For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to
the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many
brothers; those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called
he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified"
(Rom 8:29-30).
The Church's Magisterium, faithful to divine revelation, reasserts that
Jesus Christ is the mediator and the universal redeemer: "The Word
of God, through whom all things were made, was made flesh, so that as perfect
man he could save all men and sum up all things in himself. The Lord...is
he whom the Father raised from the dead, exalted and placed at his right
hand, constituting him judge of the living and the dead".34 This salvific
mediation implies also the unicity of the redemptive sacrifice of Christ,
eternal high priest (cf. Heb 6:20; 9:11; 10:12-14).
12. There are also those who propose the hypothesis of an economy
of the Holy Spirit with a more universal breadth than that of the Incarnate
Word, crucified and risen. This position also is contrary to the Catholic
faith, which, on the contrary, considers the salvific incarnation of the
Word as a trinitarian event. In the New Testament, the mystery of Jesus,
the Incarnate Word, constitutes the place of the Holy Spirit's presence
as well as the principle of the Spirit's effusion on humanity, not only
in messianic times (cf. Acts 2:32-36; Jn 7:39, 20:22; 1 Cor 15:45), but
also prior to his coming in history (cf. 1 Cor 10:4; 1 Pet 1:10-12). The
Second Vatican Council has recalled to the consciousness of the Church's
faith this fundamental truth. In presenting the Father's salvific plan
for all humanity, the Council closely links the mystery of Christ from
its very beginnings with that of the Spirit.35 The entire work of building
the Church by Jesus Christ the Head, in the course of the centuries, is
seen as an action which he does in communion with his Spirit.36
Furthermore, the salvific action of Jesus Christ, with and through his
Spirit, extends beyond the visible boundaries of the Church to all humanity.
Speaking of the paschal mystery, in which Christ even now associates the
believer to himself in a living manner in the Spirit and gives him the
hope of resurrection, the Council states: "All this holds true not
only for Christians but also for all men of good will in whose hearts grace
is active invisibly. For since Christ died for all, and since all men are
in fact called to one and the same destiny, which is divine, 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".37
Hence, the connection is clear between the salvific mystery of the Incarnate
Word and that of the Spirit, who actualizes the salvific efficacy of the
Son made man in the lives of all people, called by God to a single goal,
both those who historically preceded the Word made man, and those who live
after his coming in history: the Spirit of the Father, bestowed abundantly
by the Son, is the animator of all (cf. Jn 3:34).
Thus, the recent Magisterium of the Church has firmly and clearly recalled
the truth of a single divine economy: "The Spirit's presence and activity
affect not only individuals but also society and history, peoples, cultures
and religions... The Risen Christ 'is now at work in human hearts through
the strength of his Spirit'... Again, it is the Spirit who sows the 'seeds
of the word' present in various customs and cultures, preparing them for
full maturity in Christ".38 While recognizing the historical-salvific
function of the Spirit in the whole universe and in the entire history
of humanity,39 the Magisterium states: "This is the same Spirit who
was at work in the incarnation and in the life, death, and resurrection
of Jesus and who is at work in the Church. He is therefore not an alternative
to Christ nor does he fill a sort of void which is sometimes suggested
as existing between Christ and the Logos. Whatever the Spirit brings about
in human hearts and in the history of peoples, in cultures and religions,
serves as a preparation for the Gospel and can only be understood in reference
to Christ, the Word who took flesh by the power of the Spirit 'so that
as perfectly human he would save all human beings and sum up all things'".40
In conclusion, the action of the Spirit is not outside or parallel to the
action of Christ. There is only one salvific economy of the One and Triune
God, realized in the mystery of the incarnation, death, and resurrection
of the Son of God, actualized with the cooperation of the Holy Spirit,
and extended in its salvific value to all humanity and to the entire universe:
"No one, therefore, can enter into communion with God except through
Christ, by the working of the Holy Spirit".41
III. UNICITY AND UNIVERSALITY OF THE SALVIFIC MYSTERY OF JESUS CHRIST
13. The thesis which denies the unicity and salvific universality
of the mystery of Jesus Christ is also put forward. Such a position has
no biblical foundation. In fact, the truth of Jesus Christ, Son of God,
Lord and only Saviour, who through the event of his incarnation, death
and resurrection has brought the history of salvation to fulfilment, and
which has in him its fullness and centre, must be firmly believed as a
constant element of the Church's faith.
The New Testament attests to this fact with clarity: "The Father has
sent his Son as the Saviour of the world" (1 Jn 4:14); "Behold
the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world" (Jn 1:29). In
his discourse before the Sanhedrin, Peter, in order to justify the healing
of a man who was crippled from birth, which was done in the name of Jesus
(cf. Acts 3:1-8), proclaims: "There is salvation in no one else, for
there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be
saved" (Acts 4:12). St. Paul adds, moreover, that Jesus Christ "is
Lord of all", "judge of the living and the dead", and thus
"whoever believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his
name" (Acts 10: 36,42,43).
Paul, addressing himself to the community of Corinth, writes: "Indeed,
even though there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth - as in fact
there are many gods and many lords - yet for us there is one God, the Father,
from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ,
through whom are all things and through whom we exist" (1 Cor 8:5-6).
Furthermore, John the Apostle states: "For God so loved the world
that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not
perish but may have eternal life. God did not send his Son into the world
to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through
him" (Jn 3:16-17). In the New Testament, the universal salvific will
of God is closely connected to the sole mediation of Christ: "[God]
desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
For there is one God; there is also one mediator between God and men, the
man Jesus Christ, who gave himself as a ransom for all" (1 Tim 2:4-6).
It was in the awareness of the one universal gift of salvation offered
by the Father through Jesus Christ in the Spirit (cf. Eph 1:3-14), that
the first Christians encountered the Jewish people, showing them the fulfilment
of salvation that went beyond the Law and, in the same awareness, they
confronted the pagan world of their time, which aspired to salvation through
a plurality of saviours. This inheritance of faith has been recalled recently
by the Church's Magisterium: "The Church believes that Christ, who
died and was raised for the sake of all (cf. 2 Cor 5:15) can, through his
Spirit, give man the light and the strength to be able to respond to his
highest calling, nor is there any other name under heaven given among men
by which they can be saved (cf. Acts 4:12). The Church likewise believes
that the key, the centre, and the purpose of the whole of man's history
is to be found in its Lord and Master".42
14. It must therefore be firmly believed as a truth of Catholic faith
that the universal salvific will of the One and Triune God is offered and
accomplished once for all in the mystery of the incarnation, death, and
resurrection of the Son of God.
Bearing in mind this article of faith, theology today, in its reflection
on the existence of other religious experiences and on their meaning in
God's salvific plan, is invited to explore if and in what way the historical
figures and positive elements of these religions may fall within the divine
plan of salvation. In this undertaking, theological research has a vast
field of work under the guidance of the Church's Magisterium. The Second
Vatican Council, in fact, has stated that: "the unique mediation of
the Redeemer does not exclude, but rather gives rise to a manifold cooperation
which is but a participation in this one source".43 The content of
this participated mediation should be explored more deeply, but must remain
always consistent with the principle of Christ's unique mediation: "Although
participated forms of mediation of different kinds and degrees are not
excluded, they acquire meaning and value only from Christ's own mediation,
and they cannot be understood as parallel or complementary to his".44
Hence, those solutions that propose a salvific action of God beyond the
unique mediation of Christ would be contrary to Christian and Catholic
faith.
15. Not infrequently it is proposed that theology should avoid the
use of terms like "unicity", "universality", and "absoluteness",
which give the impression of excessive emphasis on the significance and
value of the salvific event of Jesus Christ in relation to other religions.
In reality, however, such language is simply being faithful to revelation,
since it represents a development of the sources of the faith themselves.
From the beginning, the community of believers has recognized in Jesus
a salvific value such that he alone, as Son of God made man, crucified
and risen, by the mission received from the Father and in the power of
the Holy Spirit, bestows revelation (cf. Mt 11:27) and divine life (cf.
Jn 1:12; 5:25-26; 17:2) to all humanity and to every person.
In this sense, one can and must say that Jesus Christ has a significance
and a value for the human race and its history, which are unique and singular,
proper to him alone, exclusive, universal, and absolute. Jesus is, in fact,
the Word of God made man for the salvation of all. In expressing this consciousness
of faith, the Second Vatican Council teaches: "The Word of God, through
whom all things were made, was made flesh, so that as perfect man he could
save all men and sum up all things in himself. The Lord is the goal of
human history, the focal point of the desires of history and civilization,
the centre of mankind, the joy of all hearts, and the fulfilment of all
aspirations. It is he whom the Father raised from the dead, exalted and
placed at his right hand, constituting him judge of the living and the
dead".45 "It is precisely this uniqueness of Christ which gives
him an absolute and universal significance whereby, while belonging to
history, he remains history's centre and goal: 'I am the Alpha and the
Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end' (Rev 22:13)".46
IV. UNICITY AND UNITY OF THE CHURCH
16. The Lord Jesus, the only Saviour, did not only
establish a simple community of disciples, but constituted the Church as
a salvific mystery: he himself is in the Church and the Church is in him
(cf. Jn 15:1ff.; Gal 3:28; Eph 4:15-16; Acts 9:5). Therefore, the fullness
of Christ's salvific mystery belongs also to the Church, inseparably united
to her Lord. Indeed, Jesus Christ continues his presence and his work of
salvation in the Church and by means of the Church (cf. Col 1:24-27),47
which is his body (cf. 1 Cor 12:12-13, 27; Col 1:18).48 And thus, just
as the head and members of a living body, though not identical, are inseparable,
so too Christ and the Church can neither be confused nor separated, and
constitute a single "whole Christ".49 This same inseparability
is also expressed in the New Testament by the analogy of the Church as
the Bride of Christ (cf. 2 Cor 11:2; Eph 5:25-29; Rev 21:2,9).50
Therefore, in connection with the unicity and universality of the salvific
mediation of Jesus Christ, the unicity of the Church founded by him must
be firmly believed as a truth of Catholic faith. Just as there is one Christ,
so there exists a single body of Christ, a single Bride of Christ: "a
single Catholic and apostolic Church".51 Furthermore, the promises
of the Lord that he would not abandon his Church (cf. Mt 16:18; 28:20)
and that he would guide her by his Spirit (cf. Jn 16:13) mean, according
to Catholic faith, that the unicity and the unity of the Church - like
everything that belongs to the Church's integrity - will never be lacking.52
The Catholic faithful are required to profess that there is an historical
continuity - rooted in the apostolic succession53 - between the Church
founded by Christ and the Catholic Church: "This is the single Church
of Christ... which our Saviour, after his resurrection, entrusted to Peter's
pastoral care (cf. Jn 21:17), commissioning him and the other Apostles
to extend and rule her (cf. Mt 28:18ff.), erected for all ages as 'the
pillar and mainstay of the truth' (1 Tim 3:15). This Church, constituted
and organized as a society in the present world, subsists in [subsistit
in] the Catholic Church, governed by the Successor of Peter and by the
Bishops in communion with him".54 With the expression subsistit in,
the Second Vatican Council sought to harmonize two doctrinal statements:
on the one hand, that the Church of Christ, despite the divisions which
exist among Christians, continues to exist fully only in the Catholic Church,
and on the other hand, that "outside of her structure, many elements
can be found of sanctification and truth",55 that is, in those Churches
and ecclesial communities which are not yet in full communion with the
Catholic Church.56 But with respect to these, it needs to be stated that
"they derive their efficacy from the very fullness of grace and truth
entrusted to the Catholic Church".57
17. Therefore, there exists a single Church of Christ, which subsists
in the Catholic Church, governed by the Successor of Peter and by the Bishops
in communion with him.58 The Churches which, while not existing in perfect
communion with the Catholic Church, remain united to her by means of the
closest bonds, that is, by apostolic succession and a valid Eucharist,
are true particular Churches.59 Therefore, the Church of Christ is present
and operative also in these Churches, even though they lack full communion
with the Catholic Church, since they do not accept the Catholic doctrine
of the Primacy, which, according to the will of God, the Bishop of Rome
objectively has and exercises over the entire Church.60
On the other hand, the ecclesial communities which have not preserved the
valid Episcopate and the genuine and integral substance of the Eucharistic
mystery,61 are not Churches in the proper sense; however, those who are
baptized in these communities are, by Baptism, incorporated in Christ and
thus are in a certain communion, albeit imperfect, with the Church.62 Baptism
in fact tends per se toward the full development of life in Christ, through
the integral profession of faith, the Eucharist, and full communion in
the Church.63
"The Christian faithful are therefore not permitted to imagine that
the Church of Christ is nothing more than a collection - divided, yet in
some way one - of Churches and ecclesial communities; nor are they free
to hold that today the Church of Christ nowhere really exists, and must
be considered only as a goal which all Churches and ecclesial communities
must strive to reach".64 In fact, "the elements of this already-given
Church exist, joined together in their fullness in the Catholic Church
and, without this fullness, in the other communities".65 "Therefore,
these separated Churches and communities as such, though we believe they
suffer from defects, have by no means been deprived of significance and
importance in the mystery of salvation. For the spirit of Christ has not
refrained from using them as means of salvation which derive their efficacy
from the very fullness of grace and truth entrusted to the Catholic Church".66
The lack of unity among Christians is certainly a wound for the Church;
not in the sense that she is deprived of her unity, but "in that it
hinders the complete fulfilment of her universality in history".67
V. THE CHURCH: KINGDOM OF GOD AND KINGDOM OF CHRIST
18. The mission of the Church is "to proclaim and establish
among all peoples the kingdom of Christ and of God, and she is on earth,
the seed and the beginning of that kingdom".68 On the one hand, the
Church is "a sacrament - that is, sign and instrument of intimate
union with God and of unity of the entire human race".69 She is therefore
the sign and instrument of the kingdom; she is called to announce and to
establish the kingdom. On the other hand, the Church is the "people
gathered by the unity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit";70
she is therefore "the kingdom of Christ already present in mystery"71
and constitutes its seed and beginning. The kingdom of God, in fact, has
an eschatological dimension: it is a reality present in time, but its full
realization will arrive only with the completion or fulfilment of history.72
The meaning of the expressions kingdom of heaven, kingdom of God, and kingdom
of Christ in Sacred Scripture and the Fathers of the Church, as well as
in the documents of the Magisterium, is not always exactly the same, nor
is their relationship to the Church, which is a mystery that cannot be
totally contained by a human concept. Therefore, there can be various theological
explanations of these terms. However, none of these possible explanations
can deny or empty in any way the intimate connection between Christ, the
kingdom, and the Church. In fact, the kingdom of God which we know from
revelation, "cannot be detached either from Christ or from the Church...
If the kingdom is separated from Jesus, it is no longer the kingdom of
God which he revealed. The result is a distortion of the meaning of the
kingdom, which runs the risk of being transformed into a purely human or
ideological goal and a distortion of the identity of Christ, who no longer
appears as the Lord to whom everything must one day be subjected (cf. 1
Cor 15:27). Likewise, one may not separate the kingdom from the Church.
It is true that the Church is not an end unto herself, since she is ordered
toward the kingdom of God, of which she is the seed, sign and instrument.
Yet, while remaining distinct from Christ and the kingdom, the Church is
indissolubly united to both".73
19. To state the inseparable relationship between Christ and the
kingdom is not to overlook the fact that the kingdom of God - even if considered
in its historical phase - is not identified with the Church in her visible
and social reality. In fact, "the action of Christ and the Spirit
outside the Church's visible boundaries" must not be excluded.74 Therefore,
one must also bear in mind that "the kingdom is the concern of everyone:
individuals, society and the world. Working for the kingdom means acknowledging
and promoting God's activity, which is present in human history and transforms
it. Building the kingdom means working for liberation from evil in all
its forms. In a word, the kingdom of God is the manifestation and the realization
of God's plan of salvation in all its fullness".75
In considering the relationship between the kingdom of God, the kingdom
of Christ, and the Church, it is necessary to avoid one-sided accentuations,
as is the case with those "conceptions which deliberately emphasize
the kingdom and which describe themselves as 'kingdom centred.' They stress
the image of a Church which is not concerned about herself, but which is
totally concerned with bearing witness to and serving the kingdom. It is
a 'Church for others,' just as Christ is the 'man for others'... Together
with positive aspects, these conceptions often reveal negative aspects
as well. First, they are silent about Christ: the kingdom of which they
speak is 'theocentrically' based, since, according to them, Christ cannot
be understood by those who lack Christian faith, whereas different peoples,
cultures, and religions are capable of finding common ground in the one
divine reality, by whatever name it is called. For the same reason, they
put great stress on the mystery of creation, which is reflected in the
diversity of cultures and beliefs, but they keep silent about the mystery
of redemption. Furthermore, the kingdom, as they understand it, ends up
either leaving very little room for the Church or undervaluing the Church
in reaction to a presumed 'ecclesiocentrism' of the past and because they
consider the Church herself only a sign, for that matter a sign not without
ambiguity".76 These theses are contrary to Catholic faith because
they deny the unicity of the relationship which Christ and the Church have
with the kingdom of God.
VI. THE CHURCH AND THE OTHER RELIGIONS IN RELATION TO SALVATION
20. From what has been stated above, some points follow that are
necessary for theological reflection as it explores the relationship of
the Church and the other religions to salvation.
Above all else, it must be firmly believed that "the Church, a pilgrim
now on earth, is necessary for salvation: the one Christ is the mediator
and the way of salvation; he is present to us in his body which is the
Church. He himself explicitly asserted the necessity of faith and baptism
(cf. Mk 16:16; Jn 3:5), and thereby affirmed at the same time the necessity
of the Church which men enter through baptism as through a door".77
This doctrine must not be set against the universal salvific will of God
(cf. 1 Tim 2:4); "it is necessary to keep these two truths together,
namely, the real possibility of salvation in Christ for all mankind and
the necessity of the Church for this salvation".78
The Church is the "universal sacrament of salvation",79 since,
united always in a mysterious way to the Saviour Jesus Christ, her Head,
and subordinated to him, she has, in God's plan, an indispensable relationship
with the salvation of every human being.80 For those who are not formally
and visibly members of the Church, "salvation in Christ is accessible
by virtue of a grace which, while having a mysterious relationship to the
Church, does not make them formally part of the Church, but enlightens
them in a way which is accommodated to their spiritual and material situation.
This grace comes from Christ; it is the result of his sacrifice and is
communicated by the Holy Spirit";81 it has a relationship with the
Church, which "according to the plan of the Father, has her origin
in the mission of the Son and the Holy Spirit".82
21. With respect to the way in which the salvific grace of God -
which is always given by means of Christ in the Spirit and has a mysterious
relationship to the Church - comes to individual non-Christians, the Second
Vatican Council limited itself to the statement that God bestows it "in
ways known to himself".83 Theologians are seeking to understand this
question more fully. Their work is to be encouraged, since it is certainly
useful for understanding better God's salvific plan and the ways in which
it is accomplished. However, from what has been stated above about the
mediation of Jesus Christ and the "unique and special relationship"84
which the Church has with the kingdom of God among men - which in substance
is the universal kingdom of Christ the Saviour - it is clear that it would
be contrary to the faith to consider the Church as one way of salvation
alongside those constituted by the other religions, seen as complementary
to the Church or substantially equivalent to her, even if these are said
to be converging with the Church toward the eschatological kingdom of God.
Certainly, the various religious traditions contain and offer religious
elements which come from God,85 and which are part of what "the Spirit
brings about in human hearts and in the history of peoples, in cultures,
and religions".86 Indeed, some prayers and rituals of the other religions
may assume a role of preparation for the Gospel, in that they are occasions
or pedagogical helps in which the human heart is prompted to be open to
the action of God.87 One cannot attribute to these, however, a divine origin
or an ex opere operato salvific efficacy, which is proper to the Christian
sacraments.88 Furthermore, it cannot be overlooked that other rituals,
insofar as they depend on superstitions or other errors (cf. 1 Cor 10:20-21),
constitute an obstacle to salvation.89
22. With the coming of the Saviour Jesus Christ, God has willed that
the Church founded by him be the instrument for the salvation of all humanity
(cf. Acts 17:30-31).90 This truth of faith does not lessen the sincere
respect which the Church has for the religions of the world, but at the
same time, it 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'".91 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.92 However, "all the children of the Church should nevertheless
remember that their exalted condition results, not from their own merits,
but from the grace of Christ. If they fail to respond in thought, word,
and deed to that grace, not only shall they not be saved, but they shall
be more severely judged".93 One understands then that, following the
Lord's command (cf. Mt 28:19-20) and as a requirement of her love for all
people, the Church "proclaims and is in duty bound to proclaim without
fail, Christ who is the way, the truth, and the life (Jn 14:6). In him,
in whom God reconciled all things to himself (cf. 2 Cor 5:18-19), men find
the fullness of their religious life".94
In inter-religious dialogue as well, the mission ad gentes "today
as always retains its full force and necessity".95 "Indeed, God
'desires all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth' (1
Tim 2:4); that is, God wills the salvation of everyone through the knowledge
of the truth. Salvation is found in the truth. Those who obey the promptings
of the Spirit of truth are already on the way of salvation. But the Church,
to whom this truth has been entrusted, must go out to meet their desire,
so as to bring them the truth. Because she believes in God's universal
plan of salvation, the Church must be missionary".96 Inter-religious
dialogue, therefore, as part of her evangelizing mission, is just one of
the actions of the Church in her mission ad gentes.97 Equality, which is
a presupposition of inter-religious dialogue, refers to the equal personal
dignity of the parties in dialogue, not to doctrinal content, nor even
less to the position of Jesus Christ - who is God himself made man - in
relation to the founders of the other religions. Indeed, the Church, guided
by charity and respect for freedom,98 must be primarily committed to proclaiming
to all people the truth definitively revealed by the Lord, and to announcing
the necessity of conversion to Jesus Christ and of adherence to the Church
through Baptism and the other sacraments, in order to participate fully
in communion with God, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Thus, the certainty
of the universal salvific will of God does not diminish, but rather increases
the duty and urgency of the proclamation of salvation and of conversion
to the Lord Jesus Christ.
CONCLUSION
23. The intention of the present Declaration, in reiterating and
clarifying certain truths of the faith, has been to follow the example
of the Apostle Paul, who wrote to the faithful of Corinth: "I handed
on to you as of first importance what I myself received" (1 Cor 15:3).
Faced with certain problematic and even erroneous propositions, theological
reflection is called to reconfirm the Church's faith and to give reasons
for her hope in a way that is convincing and effective.
In treating the question of the true religion, the Fathers of the Second
Vatican Council taught: "We believe that this one true religion continues
to exist in the Catholic and Apostolic Church, to which the Lord Jesus
entrusted the task of spreading it among all people. Thus, he said to the
Apostles: 'Go therefore and make disciples of all nations baptizing them
in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching
them to observe all that I have commanded you' (Mt 28: 19-20). Especially
in those things that concern God and his Church, all persons are required
to seek the truth, and when they come to know it, to embrace it and hold
fast to it".99
The revelation of Christ will continue to be "the true lodestar"
100 in history for all humanity: "The truth, which is Christ, imposes
itself as an all-embracing authority". 101 The Christian mystery,
in fact, overcomes all barriers of time and space, and accomplishes the
unity of the human family: "From their different locations and traditions
all are called in Christ to share in the unity of the family of God's children...
Jesus destroys the walls of division and creates unity in a new and unsurpassed
way through our sharing in his mystery. This unity is so deep that the
Church can say with Saint Paul: 'You are no longer strangers and sojourners,
but you are saints and members of the household of God' (Eph 2:19)".
102
The Sovereign Pontiff John Paul II, at the Audience of June 16, 2000, granted
to the undersigned Cardinal Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine
of the Faith, with sure knowledge and by his apostolic authority, ratified
and confirmed this Declaration, adopted in Plenary Session and ordered
its publication.
Rome, from the Offices of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith,
August 6, 2000, the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord.
Joseph Card. Ratzinger
Prefect, September 5, 2000
The list of references to �DOMINUS IESUS�:
(1) First Council of Constantinople, Symbolum Constantinopolitanum: DS 150.
(2) Cf. John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 1: AAS 83 (1991), 249-340.
(3) Cf. Second Vatican Council, Decree Ad gentes and Declaration Nostra aetate; cf. also Paul VI Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii nuntiandi: AAS 68 (1976), 5-76; John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio.
(4) Second Vatican Council, Declaration Nostra aetate, 2.
(5) Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue and the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, Instruction Dialogue and Proclamation, 29: AAS 84 (1992), 424; cf. Second Vatican Council, Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et spes, 22.
(6) Cf. John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 55: AAS 83 (1991), 302-304.
(7) Cf. Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue and the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, Instruction Dialogue and Proclamation, 9: AAS 84 (1992), 417ff.
(8) John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Fides et ratio, 5: AAS 91 (1999), 5-88.
(9) Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Dei verbum, 2.
(10) Ibid., 4.
(11) John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 5.
(12) John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Fides et ratio, 14.
(13) Council of Chalcedon, Symbolum Chalcedonense: DS 301; cf. St. Athanasius, De Incarnatione, 54, 3: SC 199, 458.
(14) Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Dei verbum, 4.
(15) Ibid., 5.
(16) Ibid.
(17) Cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, 144.
(18) Ibid., 150.
(19) Ibid., 153.
(20) Ibid., 178.
(21) John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Fides et ratio, 13.
(22) Cf. ibid., 31-32.
(23) Second Vatican Council, Declaration Nostra aetate, 2; cf. Second Vatican Council, Decree Ad gentes, 9, where it speaks of the elements of good present "in the particular customs and cultures of peoples"; Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 16, where it mentions the elements of good and of truth present among non-Christians, which can be considered a preparation for the reception of the Gospel.
(24) Cf. Council of Trent, Decretum de libris sacris et de traditionibus recipiendis: DS 1501; First Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Dei Filius, cap. 2: DS 3006.
(25) Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Dei verbum, 11.
(26) Ibid.
(27) John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 55; cf. 56 and Paul VI, Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii nuntiandi, 53.
(28) First Council of Nicaea, Symbolum Nicaenum: DS 125.
(29) Council of Chalcedon, Symbolum Chalcedonense: DS 301.
(30) Second Vatican Council, Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et spes, 22.
(31) John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 6.
(32) Cf. St. Leo the Great, Tomus ad Flavianum: DS 294.
(33) Cf. St. Leo the Great, Letter to the Emperor Leo I Promisisse me memini: DS 318: "...in tantam unitatem ab ipso conceptu Virginis deitate et humanitate conserta, ut nec sine homine divina, nec sine Deo agerentur humana". Cf. also ibid. DS 317.
(34) Second Vatican Council, Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et spes, 45; cf. also Council of Trent, Decretum de peccato originali, 3: DS 1513.
(35) Cf. Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 3-4.
(36) Cf. ibid., 7; cf. St. Irenaeus, who wrote that it is in the Church "that communion with Christ has been deposited, that is to say: the Holy Spirit" (Adversus haereses III, 24, 1: SC 211, 472).
(37) Second Vatican Council, Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et spes, 22.
(38) John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 28. For the "seeds of the Word" cf. also St. Justin Martyr, Second Apology 8, 1-2; 10, 1-3; 13, 3-6: ed. E.J. Goodspeed, 84; 85; 88-89.
(39) Cf. John Paul II, Encyclical Letter, Redemptoris missio, 28-29.
(40) Ibid., 29.
(41) Ibid., 5.
(42) Second Vatican Council, Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et spes, 10. Cf. St. Augustine, who wrote that Christ is the way, which "has never been lacking to mankind... and apart from this way no one has been set free, no one is being set free, no one will be set free" De civitate Dei 10, 32, 2: CCSL 47, 312.
(43) Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 62.
(44) John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 5.
(45) Second Vatican Council, Pastoral Constitution Gaudium et spes, 45. The necessary and absolute singularity of Christ in human history is well expressed by St. Irenaeus in contemplating the preeminence of Jesus as firstborn Son: "In the heavens, as firstborn of the Father's counsel, the perfect Word governs and legislates all things; on the earth, as firstborn of the Virgin, a man just and holy, reverencing God and pleasing to God, good and perfect in every way, he saves from hell all those who follow him since he is the firstborn from the dead and Author of the life of God" (Demonstratio apostolica, 39: SC 406, 138).
(46) John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 6.
(47) Cf. Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 14.
(48) Cf. ibid., 7.
(49) Cf. St. Augustine, Enarratio in Psalmos, Ps. 90, Sermo 2,1: CCSL 39, 1266; St. Gregory the Great, Moralia in Iob, Praefatio, 6, 14: PL 75, 525; St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae, III, q. 48, a. 2 ad 1.
(50) Cf. Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 6.
(51) Symbolum maius Ecclesiae Armeniacae: DS 48. Cf. Boniface VIII, Unam sanctam: DS 870-872; Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 8.
(52) Cf. Second Vatican Council, Decree Unitatis redintegratio, 4; John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Ut unum sint, 11: AAS 87 (1995), 927.
(53) Cf. Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 20; cf. also St. Irenaeus, Adversus haereses, III, 3, 1-3: SC 211, 20-44; St. Cyprian, Epist. 33, 1: CCSL 3B, 164-165; St. Augustine, Contra adver. legis et prophet., 1, 20, 39: CCSL 49, 70.
(54) Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 8.
(55) Ibid.; cf. John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Ut unum sint, 13. Cf. also Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 15 and the Decree Unitatis redintegratio, 3.
(56) The interpretation of those who would derive from the formula subsistit in the thesis that the one Church of Christ could subsist also in non-Catholic Churches and ecclesial communities is therefore contrary to the authentic meaning of Lumen gentium. "The Council instead chose the word subsistit precisely to clarify that there exists only one 'subsistence' of the true Church, while outside her visible structure there only exist elementa Ecclesiae, which - being elements of that same Church - tend and lead toward the Catholic Church" (Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Notification on the Book "Church: Charism and Power" by Father Leonardo Boff: AAS 77 [1985], 756-762).
(57) Second Vatican Council, Decree Unitatis redintegratio, 3.
(58) Cf. Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Declaration Mysterium Ecclesiae, 1: AAS 65 (1973), 396-398.
(59) Cf. Second Vatican Council, Decree Unitatis redintegratio, 14 and 15; Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Letter Communionis notio, 17: AAS 85 (1993), 848.
(60) Cf. First Vatican Council, Constitution Pastor aeternus: DS 3053-3064; Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 22.
(61) Cf. Second Vatican Council, Decree Unitatis redintegratio, 22.
(62) Cf. ibid., 3.
(63) Cf. ibid., 22.
(64) Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Declaration Mysterium Ecclesiae, 1.
(65) John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Ut unum sint, 14.
(66) Second Vatican Council, Decree Unitatis redintegratio, 3.
(67) Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Letter Communionis notio, 17; cf. Second Vatican Council, Decree Unitatis redintegratio, 4.
(68) Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 5.
(69) Ibid., 1.
(70) Ibid., 4. Cf. St. Cyprian, De Dominica oratione 23: CCSL 3A, 105.
(71) Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 3.
(72) Cf. ibid., 9; cf. also the prayer addressed to God found in the Didache 9,4: SC 248, 176: "May the Church be gathered from the ends of the earth into your kingdom" and ibid. 10, 5: SC 248, 180: "Remember, Lord, your Church... and, made holy, gather her together from the four winds into your kingdom which you have prepared for her".
(73) John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 18; cf. Apostolic Exhortation Ecclesia in Asia, 17: L'Osservatore Romano (November 7, 1999). The kingdom is so inseparable from Christ that, in a certain sense, it is identified with him (cf. Origen, In Mt. Hom., 14, 7: PG 13, 1197; Tertullian, Adversus Marcionem, IV, 33,8: CCSL 1, 634.
(74) John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 18.
(75) Ibid., 15.
(76) Ibid., 17.
(77) Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 14; cf. Decree Ad gentes, 7; Decree Unitatis redintegratio, 3.
(78) John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 9; cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, 846-847.
(79) Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 48.
(80) Cf. St. Cyprian, De catholicae ecclesiae unitate, 6: CCSL 3, 253-254; St. Irenaeus, Adversus haereses, III, 24, 1: SC 211, 472-474.
(81) John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 10.
(82) Second Vatican Council, Decree Ad gentes, 2. The famous formula extra Ecclesiam nullus omnino salvatur is to be interpreted in this sense (cf. Fourth Lateran Council, Cap. 1. De fide catholica: DS 802). Cf. also the Letter of the Holy Office to the Archbishop of Boston: DS 3866-3872.
(83) Second Vatican Council, Decree Ad gentes, 7.
(84) John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 18.
(85) These are the seeds of the divine Word (semina Verbi), which the Church recognizes with joy and respect (cf. Second Vatican Council, Decree Ad gentes, 11; Declaration Nostra aetate, 2).
(86) John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 29.
(87) Cf. ibid.; Catechism of the Catholic Church, 843.
(88) Cf. Council of Trent, Decretum de sacramentis, can. 8, de sacramentis in genere: DS 1608.
(89) Cf. John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 55.
(90) Cf. Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 17; John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 11.
(91) John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 36.
(92) Cf. Pius XII, Encyclical Letter Mystici corporis: DS 3821.
(93) Second Vatican Council, Dogmatic Constitution Lumen gentium, 14.
(94) Second Vatican Council, Declaration Nostra aetate, 2.
(95) Second Vatican Council, Decree Ad gentes, 7.
(96) Catechism of the Catholic Church, 851; cf. also 849-856.
(97) Cf. John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Redemptoris missio, 55; Apostolic Exhortation Ecclesia in Asia, 31.
(98) Cf. Second Vatican Council, Declaration Dignitatis humanae, 1.
(99) Ibid.
(100) John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Fides et ratio, 15.
(101) Ibid., 92.
(102) Ibid., 70.
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