Re: One Common Faith

[JS]

When was this document written, and what does it mean that it was 'comissioned' by the House?

Khazeh Fananapazir <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

 The One Common Faith has been placed on the web by Dr Foster

http://bahaistudies.net/bwc/onecommonfaith.html

One Common Faith

Commissioned by the Universal House of Justice

________________________________________
One Common Faith
Bahá'í World Centre
Bahá'í World Centre, Haifa
Copyright © 2005 by the Universal House of Justice
Copyright under the Berne Convention
All Rights Reserved
Availability of this etext in no way modifies the copyright status of the
above publication.
This etext is freely available through anonymous internet file-sharing.


If the friends are agreeable we could study it together but I think we
should be aware of contrary winds and dispositions

Firstly from a Catholic perspective
http://www.cin.org/docs/dominus-iesus.html
http://www.ewtn.com/library/CURIA/CDFUNICI.HTM
and from a Protestant perspective

1. Pluralism -- "All major world religions lead to God and salvation."

Various forms of Pluralism exist. For our purposes, though, the Pluralism we
are concerned with is “Religious” or “Philosophical” Pluralism. Religious
Pluralism is the view that all major religions are equally valid and lead to
God and salvation. Thus, no one religion is inherently better or superior to
any other major world religion. With Religious Pluralism, all the major
religions such as Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam are
equal. For pluralists, there may be differences in rituals and beliefs among
these groups, but on the most important issues, there is great similarity.
Most religions, they claim, stress love for God and love for fellow human
beings. They also point out that most religions have a form of the Golden
Rule. Religious pluralists also point out that there are pious people in all
the major r! eligions. Religious Pluralism became increasingly popular in the
the latter half of the twentieth century. The leading proponent of Religious
Pluralism in the last few decades has been John Hick.

2. Inclusivism -- "One religion is best but salvation is possible in other
religions."

"Inclusivism" is the position that one religion is uniquely true but
salvation is accessible to those outside of that faith. For example, a
Christian inclusivist might say, "I am a Christian and I think Christianity
is the most correct religion, but I also think there is saving truth in
other religions like Islam and Hinduism. People of other faiths can be saved
by Jesus even if they do not explicitly believe in Him." Inclusivists do not
go as far as pluralists in that inclusivists do not claim that all religions
are equal. They do believe, though, that truth and salvation can be found in
other religions. Some Christian inclusivists claim that the salvation of!
Jesus is unknowingly applied to adherents of other religions who live good,
moral lives. Catholic and Inclusvist theologian, Karl Rahner, referred to
such people as “anonymous Christians.”

The sixteenth century reformer Ulrich Zwingli held to a form of Inclusivism.
In more recent years, Karl Rahner helped popularize this perspective. The
Roman Catholic Church and several mainline Protestant denominations have
also shifted toward Inclusivism in recent decades. The Roman Catholic
“Vatican II Council” of the 1960s explicitly declared that people of other
religions could be saved. Evangelical theologian, Clark Pinnock, too, has
espoused Inclusivism. Traditionally, religions such as Hinduism and Buddhism
have been proponents of Inclusivism as well.

3. Exclusivism -- "Salvation is found in only one religion."

"Exclusivism" (or “Particularism”) is the view that there is only one way to
God and salvation. Thus one religion is uniquely a! nd supremely true and all
other religions are false. Christianity is often viewed as an exclusive
religion because of Jesus’ statement in John 14:6: “I am the way, the truth
and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” In addition to
Christianity, the religions of Islam and Judaism have traditionally been
considered to be exclusive religions. Those who hold to Exclusivism usually
affirm that other religions possess elements of truth, but these religions
do not teach ‘the truth’ that is able to save its followers. In fact, much
of what is taught in other religions is viewed by exclusivists as false. It
should be noted that some groups within Judaism and Christianity have
drifted away from Exclusivism in recent decades.




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