Summary of exclusivism

• Exclusivism in Christianity claims that Christianity (or one version of it) is the only true faith
• Many verses in the Bible support an exclusivist view of Christianity
• Taken at face value, John 14:6 seems to say that salvation depends on absolute and explicit commitment to Jesus: truth is to be found exclusively in his teaching and way of life
• Exceptions to exclusivism:

  Children who die before they are able to make this commitment can be saved. This is also reflected in the reason that used to be given for the practice of emergency baptisms
• Exceptions to exclusivism:

  Those who die never having heard about Jesus will be judged on the conformity of their lives with the natural moral law that some Christians think is built into the fabric of the universe and accessible to all
• John 14:6: 'I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me'
• Fundamentalists, however, tend to adopt a narrower interpretation of the verse
• Fundamentalists:

  Salvation depends on declared belief in Christ, which means that evangelism is an absolute priority
• Fundamentalists:

  The belief that God was uniquely revealed in Christ is see as a central truth of Christianity that is threatened by any dilution of exclusivism
• Fundamentalists:

  Before Vatican II, the official view of the Catholic Church was that there is no salvation outside the Church