Now that we have established without question, that the Church teaches No Salvation Outside of her, see Popes defend the Dogma , and Saints on the Dogma.Let's now consider the reasoning for this teaching. The Church has defined this dogma therefore it comes from God and is not to be debated on. Going to one of the sources of revelation, the Holy Bible, we see clearly there are certain conditions for the gift of salvation that our Lord suffered His Passion for. First lets look at the most obvious condition, Holy Baptism.
" Jesus answered: Amen,Amen, I say to thee, unless a man be born again of water and the Holy Ghost, he cannot enter the Kingdom of God." John 3:5
and again:
" He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved: but he that believeth not shall be condemned." Mark 16:16
So we see Our Lord has made water Baptism a condition for obtaining the reward of Heaven. The Church has always taught that Baptism is the entrance to the Church so without it one is outside the Church. His words are abundantly clear. When the Lord says Amen.Amen he is about to speak of something very, very important and wants our attention. We know that the Jews neither believe or are Baptized as well as the Mohammedan's and the Hindu's. So we know that unless before they die these groups will never be saved. Why? Because God has said so! While this would be tragic, it would be no more tragic than Our Lord suffering His passion and people finding other ways but His to get to heaven!
Next we see the case of the Protestant. Although a Protestant may or may not be baptized. If it is a valid Baptism it would only suffice until the next commandment that Our Lord gave comes due. That is when he reaches the age of reason, the receiving of His Flesh and Penance. We must remember that the Protestant Minister is without valid Holy orders, even if the Protestants believed in the Real Presence and the Sacrament of Penance. Let's see what the Lord commands of us in these matters:
John 6:48" I am the Bread of Life."
John 6:49" Your fathers did eat manna in the dessert, and are dead."
John 6:50 " This is the Bread which cometh down from Heaven; that if
any man eat of it, he may not die."
John 6:51 " I am the living bread which came down from heaven."
John 6:52 "If any man eat of this bread, he shall live forever; and the
bread that I will give, is my flesh, for the life of the world."
John 6:53 " The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying: How can this man give us his flesh to eat?"
John 6:54 " Then Jesus said to them: Amen,amen, I say unto you: Except you eat the flesh of the son of man, and drink his blood. you shall not have life in you."
John 6:55 " He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath everlasting life: and I will raise him up on the last day."
John 6:56 " Form my flesh is meat indeed: and my blood is drink indeed."
John 6:57 " He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, abideth in me, and I in him.
John 6:58 " As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, the same also shall live by me."
John 6:59 This is the bread that came down from heaven. Not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead. He that eateth this bread, shall live forever."
John 6:60 " These things he said, teaching in the synagogue, in Capharnaum."
The commandment to eat His Flesh was imposed by the Lord and only Catholics still have Sacrifice, the real presence of the Lord, and therefore eat His Flesh. Our Lord was thunderously direct and clear in that we must partake in the Eucharist for salvation. As far as Penance, the Protestant does not believe in the necessity of going to a Priest for confession, see
( Confess Your Sins to a Priest) so he has no way of receiving forgiveness for his sins and doing penance for them. Sadly, the Protestant will not be in a state of grace without going to confession as this is the only way to rid oneself of sin after Baptism. According to the Word of God, those outside the Church are lacking and cannot be saved, unless before they die they unite themselves to the one true Church, outside of which there is no salvation. Please, pray for all those who are outside the Church, that they may cooperate with grace, come home to Holy Mother the Church, receive the Sacraments that Christ left us as the means to salvation, and, submit themselves to the Holy Roman Pontiff, the Vicar of Christ on earth.
