Can non-Orthodox make it to Heaven? Non-Christians?

[Dorothea]

The Orthodox Church is the straight path to union with God, and His Church, but God saves who He chooses. Only God knows the hearts of people, and it was said two weeks ago in our Epistle reading that God judges the hearts of all, and only by what the person knows, not by what he does not.

The law of God is written in every human heart, so they have a natural inclination towards Him, and God sees that. But as I said....you can only be judged by what you honestly know, not by which you don't.

 

[All4Christ]

To whom much is given, much will be required.

 

[~Anastasia~]

To whom much is given, much will be required.

Sometimes I consider this verse in light of Orthodoxy - and it's VERY sobering, don't you think?

 

[All4Christ]

Sometimes I consider this verse in light of Orthodoxy - and it's VERY sobering, don't you think?

Exactly. To me, it puts everything in perspective.

 

[abacabb3]

I am late to this conversation, but I personally affirm the historical teaching of the Church, that is, there is no salvation outside of the Church. This was they key motivating factor in my conversion, in fact.

One thing my spiritual father has helped me understand has been that while we can affirm there is salvation in Christianity, that is Orthodoxy, we of course cannot vouch for the salvation of each individual person espousing to be a Christian. Likewise, while we MUST affirm there is no salvation in any schismatic group, let alone outside of Christianity, we cannot unequivocally assert that each individual outside of Orthodoxy is damned.

We have support for the preceding in the fathers. For example, Saint Augustine warned the Donatists about schism in the most strict terms, but he allowed for the salvation of Donatist laymen who had every desire to be Catholic/Orthodox but were geographically cut off from the Church.

I think we must be careful not to take "exceptions," like the alleged salvation of Trajan by St Gregory the Great's prayers, and turn that into some sort of normative expectation (that salvation is outside of the CHurch.) In fact, it is the opposite.