The Catholic Dogma: Extra Ecclesiam Nullus omnino Salvatur Or Out of the Church There is Positively No Salvation

by Michael Müller

"To be a member of the Church of Christ is no longer necessary, since, if we lead a good moral life, we are in the state of salvation, whether we belong to her or not! What a wide field does this give to the passions of men! What liberty to all the whims of the human mind! It is therefore of the utmost consequence to state and to show plainly the revealed Catholic truth that 'there is no salvation out of the Catholic Church.'" It must be remembered that every Catholic dogma is a revealed truth that has always been held by the Fathers of the Church from the beginning and must, therefore, be interpreted, not according to modern opinions and latitudinarian principles, but according to the faith of the Fathers and Doctors of the Church; and therefore Vincent of Lerins says: "A true Catholic is he who loves the truth revealed by God, who loves the Church, the Body of Christ, who esteems religion, the Catholic faith, higher than any human authority, talents, eloquence, and philosophy; all this he holds in contempt, and remains firm and unshaken in the faith which, he knows, has always from the beginning been held by the Catholic Church; and if he notices that any one, no, matter who he may be, interprets a dogma in a manner different from that of the Fathers of the Church, he understands that God permits such an interpretation to be made, not for the good of religion, but as a temptation, according to the words of St. Paul: 'For there must be also heresies; that they also, who are reproved, may be made manifest among you.' (I Cor. 11:19) 'And indeed, no sooner are novel opinions proclaimed, than it becomes manifest what kind of a Catholic a man is: ' (Commonit.) Hence, as St. Augustine says, 'a theologian who is humble, will never teach anything as true Catholic doctrine, unless he is perfectly certain of the truth which he asserts, and proves it from Holy Scripture and the Tradition of the Church.' Those who have learned theology well, ' says St. Basil, will not allow one iota of Catholic dogmas to be betrayed. They will, if necessary, willingly undergo any kind of death in their defence.

270 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 2007

About the author

Father Michael Mueller, C.SS.R., was born in 1825 in Germany. He later joined the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer, and was one of eleven clerics sent to the United States by the American Redemptorist Provincial. Upon completion of his theology studies in Maryland, he was ordained in 1853 by John Nepomucene Neumann. He served the Redemptorist communities in the U.S. as Consulter to the Provincial, as well as Superior and Novice Master. Father Mueller is the author of The Blessed Eucharist, Prayer: The Key to Salvation, Triumph of the Blessed Sacrament, The Prodigal Son, and God the Teacher of Mankind. He died in 1899.

Reviews

[Jean-françois Virey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a polemical work which, to a large extent, consists of lengthy quotes from such authorities as Pius IX, St Bellarmine, St Augustine, St Alphonsus Liguori, St Thomas Aquinas and, even more prominently, Orestes Brownson and Bishop Hay of Edinburgh. Reading the author's "Familiar Explanation of Christian Doctrine" first is highly recommended, as this was the book that motivated the articles which Fr. Muller is trying to refute here.

I found the book a rather exciting read which did manage to convince me that its strict interpretation of the dogma was correct (i.e. in accordance with Scripture and the Magisterium), while the liberal opinion it responds to is not.

Fr Muller is definitely an author I intend to read more of in the future.

[Linda Macdonald · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book that tells the truth in divine charity

This book explains the perennial truths of the Catholic faith regarding no salvation outside the Church. Catholics and non-Catholics, liberal Catholics and lapsed Catholics, will benefit from reading this book written by a good and forthright Catholic priest. I highly recommend it.

[Steve Cunningham]

If you need to read anything before tomorrow get this book to read. Brilliant work