In our Gospel reading today, Peter declares: “There is no salvation through anyone else, nor is there any other name under heaven given to the human race by which we are to be saved” (Acts 4:12). What does it mean to proclaim that Jesus Christ is the sole savior of humanity?
Theology of Religions. A theology of religions attempts to understand the phenomenon of religious diversity from the standpoint of one’s religion. It tries to incorporate the other religions into its belief system, trying to make sense of the role of other prophets, sacred texts, sacred events in relation to one’s religious worldview.
For instance, Hinduism believes that all reality is One; all phenomena are manifestations of Advaita. Given this worldview, Hinduism shows a great openness to other religions, whose gods and mystics and rituals are all manifestations of The One, Advaita.
A Christian theology of religions explains the relationship of non-Christians to the saving death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. How are they saved by Jesus Christ? Are they saved at all? Or are they saved by their respective gods and prophets? Are their sacred texts revelations, too, of God or are they mere human words? These are some questions which every Christian ought to answer, especially as the world becomes more and more a global community, as we find ourselves interacting with people of various faiths. Our responses to these questions manifest our theology of religions, our perspective of the relationship of other religions to the Christian worldview.
Three Versions of a Christian Theology of Religions. Exclusivism maintains that only those who are baptized Christians are offered the possibility of salvation. Because non-Christians cannot be saved, exclusivists are fired with zeal to convert non-Christians, for incorporation into the Church, into the Body of Christ, is the prerequisite for the possibility of salvation.
Inclusivism, on the other hand, purports that everyone, Christian and non-Christian alike, are offered the possibility of salvation. Non-Christians who follow the dictates of their conscience, witness to truth and justice, live lives of compassion already adhere, albeit implicitly, to the teachings of Jesus. Quoting Lumen Gentium, Vatican II’s Constitution on the Church: “Those who, through no fault of their own but who nevertheless seek God with a sincere heart, and … try in their actions to do his will as they know it through the dictates of their conscience — those too may achieve eternal salvation.” Karl Rahner calls these non-Christians who live morally upright lives “anonymous Christians.”
Lastly, pluralism contends that there are multiple ways to salvation and multiple saving figures. Christ is not considered the sole savior of humanity. Each religion offers a path to salvation. Each religion has its own saving figure, sacred texts, rituals and norms for living. In sum, people are saved in and through their respective religions.
The Mainstream Catholic Position. The mainstream Catholic Church espouses inclusivism. Gaudium et Spes, Vatican II’s reflection on the Church’s mission in the modern world, declares: “[w]e 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.” Moreover, Nostra Aetate, Vatican II’s pronouncements about the Church’s relation to non-Christian religions, humbly recognizes rays of truth and holiness in the other great religions of the world, which participate in the truth of Christ.
Sole Savior, Universal Redemption. And so we ask: How does the Cross of Christ save all humanity? There are many theologies that attempt to answer this question. Karl Rahner offer a theory of double causality: the Cross is caused by grace and is the cause of grace. For the Cross to be caused by grace means that there is a prior grace that allows the Cross to happen and become the source of grace for all. This is the Father’s primordial will. From all eternity, the Father has willed to create, to share His being with others, and to draw all creatures into communion with Him. While sin has alienated humanity from God, the sinless Jesus restores humanity’s communion with the Father. The Cross thus effects our union with God. In this sense, the Cross, while caused by a prior grace, becomes the source of grace for all.
Finally, while it is important for us to try to understand how Jesus redeems all humanity — apologetics, it is equally important to live out what we believe — witness. How does our belief in Jesus as sole savior of humanity impact our way of life, our values and ethics, our relationship with Christians and non-Christians? Is belief in Jesus’ unique redemptive role in history mere information that has no bearing on our lives? Or is it the ground of our being — the source of our motives and the meaning of our lives, the font of our identity and our mission in the world, the origin and destiny of our lives?
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