Vatican takes on tense question of salvation for the Jewish people

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Vatican City, Dec 11, 2015 / 06:01 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Though it “is and remains an unfathomable divine mystery,” Jews can participate in salvation without confessing Christ explicitly, a Vatican committee said in a document released on Thursday.

A committee of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity issued a document Dec. 10 which discusses theological questions regarding Catholic-Jewish relations. In particular, it deals with the tension between the universality of salvation in Christ and God’s unrevoked covenant with the Jewish people.

“Another focus for Catholics must continue to be the highly complex theological question of how Christian belief in the universal salvific significance of Jesus Christ can be combined in a coherent way with the equally clear statement of faith in the never-revoked covenant of God with Israel,” the document states.

“The Gifts and the Calling of God are Irrevocable,” as the Dec. 10 document is known, also discusses the Church’s mandate to evangelize in relation to Judaism. It says that the Church does not support “any specific institutional mission work directed towards Jews,” though “Christians are nonetheless called to bear witness to their faith in Jesus Christ also to Jews.”

patheos.com/blogs/catholicnews/2015/12/vatican-takes-on-tense-question-of-salvation-for-the-jewish-people/
 
יהושע said to him, “I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
 
gilliam said:
Vatican City, Dec 11, 2015 / 06:01 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Though it “is and remains an unfathomable divine mystery,” Jews can participate in salvation without confessing Christ explicitly, a Vatican committee said in a document released on Thursday.

A committee of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity issued a document Dec. 10 which discusses theological questions regarding Catholic-Jewish relations. In particular, it deals with the tension between the universality of salvation in Christ and God’s unrevoked covenant with the Jewish people.

“Another focus for Catholics must continue to be the highly complex theological question of how Christian belief in the universal salvific significance of Jesus Christ can be combined in a coherent way with the equally clear statement of faith in the never-revoked covenant of God with Israel,” the document states.

“The Gifts and the Calling of God are Irrevocable,” as the Dec. 10 document is known, also discusses the Church’s mandate to evangelize in relation to Judaism. It says that the Church does not support “any specific institutional mission work directed towards Jews,” though “Christians are nonetheless called to bear witness to their faith in Jesus Christ also to Jews.”

patheos.com/blogs/catholicnews/2015/12/vatican-takes-on-tense-question-of-salvation-for-the-jewish-people/
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I think this dilemma for the Church is part of an even larger issue, namely, that of reconciling Catholicism’s historical roots within Judaism and accepting the Word of G-d as revealed in the Hebrew Bible while, at the same time, believing in the new revelation of Jesus and the Gospels. It might have been easier for the Church to break from Judaism and its Torah completely but it did not choose to do so, most likely since Jesus in His role as the Messiah, as well as most of His Apostles, has His roots in the Jewish faith. Due to its steadfastness toward the moral teachings found in the Hebrew Bible and its simultaneous insistence that the Word of G-d is, finally, fully revealed in the New Testament, there is bound to be a certain tension within the Catholic and the larger Christian faith.
 
gilliam said:
Vatican City, Dec 11, 2015 / 06:01 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Though it “is and remains an unfathomable divine mystery,” Jews can participate in salvation without confessing Christ explicitly, a Vatican committee said in a document released on Thursday.

A committee of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity issued a document Dec. 10 which discusses theological questions regarding Catholic-Jewish relations. In particular, it deals with the tension between the universality of salvation in Christ and God’s unrevoked covenant with the Jewish people.

“Another focus for Catholics must continue to be the highly complex theological question of how Christian belief in the universal salvific significance of Jesus Christ can be combined in a coherent way with the equally clear statement of faith in the never-revoked covenant of God with Israel,” the document states.

“The Gifts and the Calling of God are Irrevocable,” as the Dec. 10 document is known, also discusses the Church’s mandate to evangelize in relation to Judaism. It says that the Church does not support “any specific institutional mission work directed towards Jews,” though “Christians are nonetheless called to bear witness to their faith in Jesus Christ also to Jews.”

patheos.com/blogs/catholicnews/2015/12/vatican-takes-on-tense-question-of-salvation-for-the-jewish-people/
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How can one be saved without coming to Christ , they can’t so what is with this document
 
meltzerboy said:
I think this dilemma for the Church is part of an even larger issue, namely, that of reconciling Catholicism’s historical roots within Judaism and accepting the Word of G-d as revealed in the Hebrew Bible while, at the same time, believing in the new revelation of Jesus and the Gospels. It might have been easier for the Church to break from Judaism and its Torah completely but it did not choose to do so, most likely since Jesus in His role as the Messiah, as well as most of His Apostles, has His roots in the Jewish faith. Due to its steadfastness toward the moral teachings found in the Hebrew Bible and its simultaneous insistence that the Word of G-d is, finally, fully revealed in the New Testament, there is bound to be a certain tension within the Catholic and the larger Christian faith.
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I don’t think there is a dilemma
 
Really, we should not try to convert Jews?

Lets look at what Jesus Christ told us:

In Matthew 15:22-24 : “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” When he speaks to the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4:4-7) it seems to be out of the necessity of thirst that he speaks to her (and it seems to be only out of necessity that he is in Samaria at all). While he does volunteer to help the Roman centurion (Matthew 8:5-13), this may have only been in deference to the authority that centurion seemed to be very keen on asserting.

We do know that he did change his mind on this matter, as at the end of his life (or rather after the end of it) he commanded his disciples to preach to all the other nations (e.g. Matthew 28:18-20):

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 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. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Seems pretty clear and straightforward to me. What’s going on in the church these days?
 
My understanding of this is basically there won’t be any missions for Jewish people…like for instance the Spanish missions to Native Americans. Not that there shouldn’t be any effort to convert Jews, but just not in an institutionalized fashion.
 
meltzerboy said:
I think this dilemma for the Church is part of an even larger issue, namely, that of reconciling Catholicism’s historical roots within Judaism and accepting the Word of G-d as revealed in the Hebrew Bible while, at the same time, believing in the new revelation of Jesus and the Gospels. It might have been easier for the Church to break from Judaism and its Torah completely but it did not choose to do so, most likely since Jesus in His role as the Messiah, as well as most of His Apostles, has His roots in the Jewish faith. Due to its steadfastness toward the moral teachings found in the Hebrew Bible and its simultaneous insistence that the Word of G-d is, finally, fully revealed in the New Testament, there is bound to be a certain tension within the Catholic and the larger Christian faith.
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Well, Jesus said He didn’t come to make life easier for everyone and answer all of the hard questions.

In Catholicism intentions and formation of conscience are very important factors.
 
Why should we convert Jews or anyone? We should be thankful to the Judaic faith,perhaps you would like to start with Jesus. There are lost sheep in every faith.jumping through the hoops does not provide a superior believer just someone who baaas louder
 
jinglebelle said:
Why should we convert Jews or anyone? We should be thankful to the Judaic faith,perhaps you would like to start with Jesus. There are lost sheep in every faith.jumping through the hoops does not provide a superior believer just someone who baaas louder
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Why should we convert Jews or anyone? Because Jesus told us to, that’s why. “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”. Or should we ignore the Great Commission these day?

And Christ said we should make disciples of “all nations”.
 
friardchips said:
Hi! 🙂 Yes, through Him. It is He who judges. Ultimately.
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He is so merciful, kind, and patient. Full of Love, Truth, and Grace.

It is He who judges, that is true. Let us not forget the words of our Blessed Mother:

“And his mercy is from generation unto generations, to them that fear him.”

May the grace and peace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you
 
MiserableSinner said:
He is so merciful, kind, and patient. Full of Love, Truth, and Grace.

It is He who judges, that is true. Let us not forget the words of our Blessed Mother:

“And his mercy is from generation unto generations, to them that fear him.”

May the grace and peace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with you
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Hi. Fear is the beginning of wisdom. Interpreting grace-filled fear is something else. I think we have to see that for people to jump into a new way of understanding is for them a massive jump. I agree with Brenden64 that we can’t waste our ‘talents’ and not preach. But of what does preaching consist. Love. What does doing love consist? If one looks at an image of the Virgin Mother, we see sometimes that her hands are joined together in prayer. I love these statues and images when her hands are in prayer because the images express being animated by the Holy Spirit, by grace. Such a depicted expression is very active. It adds action to the still image. Prayer is a biggie. Prayer and love. In terms of verbal preaching…?! I think there is a time and a place for all things and that with prayer we know when and where to preach verbally. The Holy Spirit giving us what we need. But, as the poster after me has just posted in the document, it is He, the Creator, who judges over all.

Thank you for your blessing message. And peace be to you too. 🙂
 
From the commission document that is being discussed here:

"The universality of salvation in Jesus Christ and God’s unrevoked covenant with Israel

Since God has never revoked his covenant with his people Israel, there cannot be different paths or approaches to God’s salvation. The theory that there may be two different paths to salvation, the Jewish path without Christ and the path with the Christ, whom Christians believe is Jesus of Nazareth, would in fact endanger the foundations of Christian faith. Confessing the universal and therefore also exclusive mediation of salvation through Jesus Christ belongs to the core of Christian faith. So too does the confession of the one God, the God of Israel, who through his revelation in Jesus Christ has become totally manifest as the God of all peoples, insofar as in him the promise has been fulfilled that all peoples will pray to the God of Israel as the one God (cf. Is 56:1-8). The document “Notes on the correct way to present the Jews and Judaism in preaching and catechesis in the Roman Catholic Church” published by the Holy See’s Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews in 1985 therefore maintained that the Church and Judaism cannot be represented as “two parallel ways to salvation”, but that the Church must “witness to Christ as the Redeemer for all” (No.I, 7). The Christian faith confesses that God wants to lead all people to salvation, that Jesus Christ is the universal mediator of salvation, and that there is no “other name under heaven given to the human race by which we are to be saved” (Acts 4:12)."

en.radiovaticana.va/news/2015/12/10/vatican_issues_new_document_on_christian-jewish_dialogue_/1193274
 
I have not read the full document yet but just to note one line that I saw in a quick overview (in addition to pointing to the various documents from the Magisterium on evangelization etc).

Note first that this is not a document from the Magisterium:

“The text is not a magisterial document or doctrinal teaching of the Catholic Church, but is a reflection prepared by the Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews on current theological questions that have developed since the Second Vatican Council. It is intended to be a starting point for further theological thought with a view to enriching and intensifying the theological dimension of Jewish-Catholic dialogue.”

From this document of that commission:

“The Church is therefore obliged to view evangelisation to Jews, who believe in the one God, in a different manner from that to people of other religions and world views.”

as well as

“Christians are nonetheless called to bear witness to their faith in Jesus Christ also to Jews”
 
The Church should shower the Jews with love in specific institutional ways.
 
Brendan_64 said:
Why should we convert Jews or anyone? Because Jesus told us to, that’s why. “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”. Or should we ignore the Great Commission these day?

And Christ said we should make disciples of “all nations”.
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Devout they be,leave well alone.To have your faith respected,respect all
 
jinglebelle said:
Devout they be,leave well alone.To have your faith respected,respect all
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Well that is not what Jesus told us to do.

Jesus did not say that devout followers of other faiths should be left alone. Jesus told us to make disciples of all nations and to baptise them in the name of the the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

The aim is not to respect other faiths in order that they respect ours. We are tasked by Jesus to call others to conversion and to baptise them as followers of Christ.
 
St. Paul tells us how to “love” in the well known verses in Cor. 1:13. I’d imagine this applies to all people.

🙂
 
Brendan_64 said:
Well that is not what Jesus told us to do.

Jesus did not say that devout followers of other faiths should be left alone. Jesus told us to make disciples of all nations and to baptise them in the name of the the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

The aim is not to respect other faiths in order that they respect ours. We are tasked by Jesus to call others to conversion and to baptise them as followers of Christ.
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I must have missed the sermon on the mount where Jesus proclaimed Himself a Catholic.
 
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