Kardinal Joseph Ratzinger tok i 1996 opp det han mente var den største læremessige trusselen i vår tid: a confluence of what he described as «the a-religious and practical relativism of Europe and America» with «Asia’s negative theology,» producing a profound mutation in core Christian teachings — with Christ seen as simply another spiritual sage comparable to Buddha or Muhammad, and Christianity as one valid religious path among many others.
John Allen skriver nå om en sak mot en vietnamesisk-amerikansk katolsk prest og teolog, F. Peter Phan, som av Troskongregasjonen er blitt bedt om å klargjøre en del punkter i ei bok han har skrevet, som altså kan oppfattes svært relativistisk. The observations make 19 points, grouped under these six broad headings:
* On the salvific value of non-Christian religions
* On the uniqueness and the universality of Jesus Christ
* On the relationship between Jesus, the Logos and the Holy Spirit
* On the uniqueness and the salvific universality of the Church
* On the relationship between Christianity and Judaism
* Other erroneous or confused statements
In general, the observations assert that Phan’s book «is in open contrast with almost all the teachings of the declaration Dominus Iesus,» a 2000 Vatican document which states that non-Christians are «in a gravely deficient situation in comparison with those who, in the church, have the fullness of the means of salvation.»
Among the most serious charges in the CDF observations are that Phan’s book can be read to suggest that:
* Non-Christian religions have a positive role in salvation history in their own right, and are not merely a preparation for the Christian Gospel;
* It makes little sense to try to convert non-Christians to Christianity;
* It would be better to avoid terms such as «unique,» «absolute» and «universal» for the saving role of Christ;
* The Holy Spirit operates in a saving way in non-Christian religions independently of the Logos (meaning Christ as the Word of God);
* The Catholic Church cannot be identified with the church of Christ;
* God’s covenant with the Jewish people does not find its completion in Jesus Christ.
Frukten av «inkulturasjon».
I India har vi katolske prester som utfører hinduritualer og jesuitter som driver zen-meditasjon.