The Irish standard., 1897-11-06
SALVATION FOR PRoTEsTANTs.

SO much misunderstanding exists even
among well-instructed Catholics on the
salvation of Christians of the various
Pfotestants sects that we copy the fol-
lowing interesting article on the sub
ject by Rev. r. f. Clarke, S. J.. and
give it prominence in our editorial COL
umns as follows:
In the sects which accept the divinity
OF Christ there not only is a posi-
bility Of salvation but there are hun
dreds and thousands of their members
who live united to Christ by faith, hone
and charity and die in the grace anu
love Of God. These belong to what is
called the soul of the church, Though
not to it's body; they are under sad dis
advantages as compared to Catholics
and never can attain to that holiness
which belongs only to the children of
the church. though they may and often
do practice true and genuine piety.
If the number from the sects who save
their souls is comparatively small, 1t is
chiefly for two reasons-either because
they have committed mortal sins and
do not know how to get rid Of them, or
it is because they are directly or In
directly in bad faith. They have no
tribunal of penance, none of the un-
limited stream of graces that flow into
the soul OF a Catholic through the sacra-
ments the sacramentals, holy mass ami
the other means Of grace. and. above
all, they have for the most part no idea
of the way to make an act of contritton
or of it's efficacy In restoring the soul
to the favor of God and to it's Inherit
ance in the kingdom of heaven. Be-
sides this there is an ever~increasing
number who are not in good faith.
A man is said to be in good faith
with regard to the religion that he pro-
fcsses when in his heart he firmly be-
lieves 1t to be the true religion and
when there is present in his mimi no
serious doubt which shakes his conf
dence. He is in bad faith when he does
not believe it to be the true religion or
when he is inclined to think that there
is some other religion which IS equally
in the possession of the truth or still
more so. But this Is not all. What
have laid down are the conditions Of
good faith in the present. In order to
constitute the good faith required for
the virtue of divine faith it is also nee
essary that he should never, in tho
course of his whole life. have had such
n serious doubt about his own religion
or such strong conviction that some
other religion was true as to lay upon
him the obligation at least of further
inquiry, and this under pain of serious
sin.
With this definition before use we can
easily lay down the necessary condi-
tions of good faith among those outside
the church. He who has never once
doubted the truth of Professionalism Is
in good faith: he who has once serious
ly doubted about its truth or has enter
tanned strong suspicion that the Cath
Ollie church. and it alone. is the true
church of Jesus Christ and has put his
doubts aside and not followed them up.
cannot be said to be in good faith 1t
is not necessary to bad faith that he
should at the present morp Mt be con-
scious of the falsity Of the religion ne
processes. or that he should be in a
state of doubt. He may be perfectly
satisfied at the present time OF it's ortlo-
doxy, he may have no sort of attrac-
ton to the Catholic church, he may
even hate and condemn her, yet the
mere fact that at some previous period
Of his life he suspected the existence Of
religion nobler. truer, holier than his
own. and that through indifference or
self-interest or pride or human respect,
or some other tie binding him down to
earth, he put that suspicion aside, de-