Q. Recently someone close to me said that anyone who does not believe in (and follow) Jesus will not go to heaven. References were made to John 14:6 ("No one comes to the Father except through me") and Acts 4:12 ("There is no salvation through anyone else, nor is there any other name under heaven given to the human race by which we are to be saved").

It doesn’t seem to me that such scriptural passages are to be taken literally, because that would deny redemptions to Jews, Buddhists, Muslims, etc., simply because they were born and raised in another culture. Would you elaborate on the possibility of salvation for non-Christians? (Dallas, Oregon)

A. Your instincts are right. The world’s population is 7.7 billion; 2.3 billion of us are Christian. Why would a loving God create us all if two-thirds were destined to eternal unhappiness -- and largely, through no fault of their own?

(I remember once, as a journalist, covering Pope John Paul II in rural Nigeria and seeing a billboard advertising Coca-Cola. I got into a discussion with my seatmate, a reporter from the Los Angeles Times, as to whether more people in the world had heard of Jesus Christ or of Coca-Cola -- and we weren’t really sure.)

And what about those who lived in the many centuries before Jesus was born? Are they out of luck just because they were born too early?

The scriptural passages that you reference do not mean that only Christians can be saved; they simply mean that the possibility of salvation has been won for everyone solely through the redemptive work of Jesus. The teaching of the church on this is clear.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church, quoting the Second Vatican Council, says: "Those who, through no fault of their own, do not know the Gospel of Christ or his church, but who nevertheless seek God with a sincere heart, and, moved by grace, try in their actions to do his will as they know it through the dictates of their conscience -- those too may achieve eternal salvation" (No. 847).  

Does that mean that all religions are equally valid and that we should stop our efforts at evangelization? Of course not. I believe very strongly that the Christian faith (and, in particular, the Catholic Church) offers the surest and safest path to salvation -- through the teachings of Jesus and the strength of the sacraments.

Q. Our pastor is very old-school and loves elaborate liturgy. He uses incense frequently, and my wife -- who is seriously affected by the smoke -- is at the point of not going to Mass at all. (She never knows when he might fire up the censer.) I also find that the stink -- and that is the word for it -- of burning charcoal extremely irritating. (I am always left with a clogged nasal passage.)

I don’t believe that I should have to medicate because I went to Mass, and I wonder why the church continues this archaic and off-putting practice. When Pope John XXIII wanted to "open the windows" of the church, that might not have been necessary if this terrible practice had been done away with at Vatican II! (Henrico County, Virginia)

A. Frankly, I don’t think that your wife has a valid excuse for "not going to Mass at all." If your own pastor is so wedded to incense, why not just try a different Catholic parish? (I Googled "Catholic churches in Henrico County, Virginia" and found seven parishes listed.)

As for having "this terrible practice done away with," a bit of background might be helpful. Incense was common in Jewish worship; in Chapter 30 of the Book of Exodus, the Lord instructs Moses to build a golden altar for the burning of incense. That practice was carried over into Christian liturgy, the smoke from the incense being seen as a symbol of the prayers of the worshippers rising to heaven.

Strictly speaking, there is no requirement that incense be used at any particular Mass, but parishes commonly use it on feasts of particular solemnity and at funerals to reverence the body of the deceased.

You raise a legitimate point about the sensitivities and allergies some in the congregation might have, and for that reason I think it wise for parishes to let it be known when incense might be used. As an example, the parish of Blessed Sacrament in Madison, Wisconsin, notes on its website that, except for Easter Sunday, "Incense may be used only at the 11:00 a.m. Mass."

- - - Questions may be sent to Father Kenneth Doyle at askfatherdoyle@gmail.com and 30 Columbia Circle Dr., Albany, New York 12203.