11
introduced a profound change in our understanding of the way that other Christians reach
salvation. This change is so significant that in my opinion "No salvation outside the
church" is no longer a problem for Catholic theology as far as the members of the other
Christian churches are concerned. In light of Vatican II, we can now recognize their own
churches as the ecclesial means by which non-Catholic Christians are being saved.
23
Interestingly, Lumen Gentium, the document on the Church, still contains a version of
extra ecclesiam. It states, "Whosoever, therefore, knowing that the Catholic Church was made
necessary by God through Jesus Christ, would refuse to enter her or to remain in her, could not
be saved."
24
Yet implicit in even this very negative statement is the idea that one who knows the
RCC claims and refuses to believe them and enter the RCC still may be saved if he truly does not
understand that the RCC is the true Church. Here we have a reaffirmation and further
development of Pius IXs idea that only those culpably outside the RCC are lost.
Part II: Recent Roman Catholic Statements
Having surveyed the history of extra ecclesiam, we now move on to examine recent
Roman Catholic documents. Without question, the most influential official development of the
Catholic position on other religions has come with the voice of John Paul II. Despite the fact
that he has been perceived by more liberal Catholic theologians as not being nearly ecumenical
enough, and while very consciously attempting to frame his approach as an honest reflection of
Vatican II, John Paul has expanded even further the openness of the Vatican council. We will
look primarily at three documents of his tenure. The first two, Redemptoris Missio and Ut Unam
Sint, are his own encyclicals. The third and most recent, Dominus Iesus, was penned by Cardinal
Joseph Ratzinger, and confirmed by John Paul.
Redemptoris Missio: Redemptoris Missio (RM), written in 1990, a papal encyclical of
over fifty single-spaced pages, is an extensive theological argument for the ongoing validity of
23
Sullivan 145.
24
Lumen Gentium 14.