RE: The Principle of Contingent Causation: The Impossibility of Infinite Regress.
July 22, 2023 at 12:37 pm
Oh pls. You obviously have never read this: "161 Believing in Jesus Christ and in the One who sent him for our salvation is necessary for obtaining that salvation. "Since "without faith it is impossible to please [God]" and to attain to the fellowship of his sons, therefore without faith no one has ever attained justification, nor will anyone obtain eternal life 'But he who endures to the end." http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/para/161.htm
Believing in Jesus is necessary for attaining Salvation. It's that simple. If Baptism is out of reach, one can make an act of Contrition. When Baptism is within reach, one is strictly commanded by Christ to do all in one's power to receive it: "1257 The Lord himself affirms that Baptism is necessary for salvation. He also commands his disciples to proclaim the Gospel to all nations and to baptize them. Baptism is necessary for salvation for those to whom the Gospel has been proclaimed and who have had the possibility of asking for this sacrament. The Church does not know of any means other than Baptism that assures entry into eternal beatitude; this is why she takes care not to neglect the mission she has received from the Lord to see that all who can be baptized are "reborn of water and the Spirit." God has bound salvation to the sacrament of Baptism, but he himself is not bound by his sacraments." (CCC 1257).
You don't understand the one or two passages you try to wrest out of context. That is speaking of hypothetical cases like the proverbial virtuous pagan on a native pagan island who has not yet heard the Gospel of Christ. They are bound to serve God according to their Conscience. They are not bound to more than that, until they have heard the Gospel. Even Christ said: "If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains." (John 9:41)
You should read the incidents in Church History about those proverbial virtuous pagans. I recall one of them well: Priests who were laboring in distant mission fields to bring souls to Baptism and Salvation came upon a native tribe: This tribe already worshipped whom they called "The Great Spirit". The Priests were amazed at the simple faith of these simple men. The people gave thanks, "that the Great Spirit" had sent "Black Robes" (by which they meant, Christian Priests), to show them the way to Salvation. The Priests marveled and gave them Baptism, and taught them faith in Christ, and contrasted their piety, humility, simplicity and nobility to the proud godlessness that Atheism and such related opinions lead to.
Believing in Jesus is necessary for attaining Salvation. It's that simple. If Baptism is out of reach, one can make an act of Contrition. When Baptism is within reach, one is strictly commanded by Christ to do all in one's power to receive it: "1257 The Lord himself affirms that Baptism is necessary for salvation. He also commands his disciples to proclaim the Gospel to all nations and to baptize them. Baptism is necessary for salvation for those to whom the Gospel has been proclaimed and who have had the possibility of asking for this sacrament. The Church does not know of any means other than Baptism that assures entry into eternal beatitude; this is why she takes care not to neglect the mission she has received from the Lord to see that all who can be baptized are "reborn of water and the Spirit." God has bound salvation to the sacrament of Baptism, but he himself is not bound by his sacraments." (CCC 1257).
You don't understand the one or two passages you try to wrest out of context. That is speaking of hypothetical cases like the proverbial virtuous pagan on a native pagan island who has not yet heard the Gospel of Christ. They are bound to serve God according to their Conscience. They are not bound to more than that, until they have heard the Gospel. Even Christ said: "If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains." (John 9:41)
You should read the incidents in Church History about those proverbial virtuous pagans. I recall one of them well: Priests who were laboring in distant mission fields to bring souls to Baptism and Salvation came upon a native tribe: This tribe already worshipped whom they called "The Great Spirit". The Priests were amazed at the simple faith of these simple men. The people gave thanks, "that the Great Spirit" had sent "Black Robes" (by which they meant, Christian Priests), to show them the way to Salvation. The Priests marveled and gave them Baptism, and taught them faith in Christ, and contrasted their piety, humility, simplicity and nobility to the proud godlessness that Atheism and such related opinions lead to.
