There is an old and rather annoying joke about the devout
Protestant who dies and is met by St. Peter at the pearly
gates for a tour of heaven. As the tour goes on St. Peter
points out all the different denominations, Lutherans,
Methodists, Presbyterians and so forth. As they come to a
certain group way off to themselves, St. Peter draws the man
closer and whispers, "Now, for this next group, we need to be
really quiet. They are the Catholics and they think they're
the only ones here."
Good jokes are funny because of certain clever contrasts with
the truth. But some attempts at humor, like this one, fail
because of muddled logic and a distortion of the truth. This
joke fails because, verily, there is no need for faith in
heaven. The joke takes a needless swipe of the Catholic
understanding of the Faith as the "true religion." A faith
and moral doctrines of a religion - or aspects of a religion
- are either true or false.
Christ identifies Himself as the "way, the truth and the
life." The early Church was known simply as "the Way." In
every time, the magisterium of the Catholic Church, under the
guidance of the Holy Spirit, proclaims "fullness of truth" of
Jesus Christ. Every soul upon entering eternity is measured
against the definitive revelation of the truth of Christ. In
acknowledging the truth of faith, one becomes more
accountable, not less.
If the Catholic Faith is true (as Catholics ought to
believe), then when the fullness of truth is revealed on the
day of judgment to every soul - Catholic or non-Catholic -
the Catholic Faith will be validated as true. The same logic
(in terms of expectations) holds for anyone who thoughtfully
subscribes to any religion. Why would anyone be Lutheran or
Muslim or Hindu if he harbored any significant doubts as to
the ultimate truth of the religion, a truth that must be
definitively validated upon entering eternity?
The insistence that the truths of the Catholic Faith are
validated in heaven (and hell, for that matter), upon close
inspection, does not suggest that non-Catholics of goodwill
cannot be saved. In particular cases it could be argued that
a devout non-Catholic is doing the will of the Father more
perfectly than many Catholics. Equally consistent with the
truth "heaven validates the truths of the Catholic Faith" is
to insist that it is beyond our authority and competence to
declare the condemnation of this or that person. Christ
Himself warns, "Judge not and ye shall not be judged."
Catholics are in the business of proclaiming salvation in
Christ, not condemning anyone to hell. One hopes Judas and
Hitler and Osama bin Laden - and that good-for-nothing office
manager - made it (or will make it) to heaven. But if not,
only God knows. And if they fell short of eternal bliss (to
use a euphemism), God's justice is served.
Contemplating the reality and prospect of hell is sobering.
There are real consequences for willfully avoiding ultimate
questions about our existence and the meaning of a good life.
Every Catholic, for example, must confront a personal
inadequacy in understanding the Catholic Faith. Priests
frequently must correct penitents who regularly receive
Communion at Mass despite their objective mortal sins:
invalid marriages, deliberately missing Mass with an
insufficient reason, the usual sexual sins, etc. Day by day,
Catholics are obliged to deepen their understanding of the
Faith and purify goodwill with the express purpose, at
minimum, of avoiding fires of hell.
In this week's Gospel, Christ asserts before His ascension
into heaven, "All power in heaven and on earth has been given
to me." If true, the way of Christ is not only worth
proclaiming; His way is an imperative. Our reasoning and
conclusions may be flawed. Our understanding of our faith may
be far too vague. But there is no joke in the demand Christ
places on us: "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."
Fr. Pokorsky is pastor of St. Michael Parish in Annandale.