I believe that every man is a hidden Christian. And in two senses. Man is saved by Christ, in that only through Christ can he attain the beatific vision. And furthermore, all yearnings for the divine, whatever form they take, are and must be attributed to the Holy Spirit. That is at one level but man is also a hidden Christian because, although he is not in a situation in which he is consciously responding to Christian values—there is nevertheless something of Christ in him, as in everyone. And there are many senses, I think, in which this is true. The most obvious, the most simple, is the fact that Christ became man. The fact that he shared our human condition gives significance to every human life wherever it is, whatever it is, and whatever religious belief is held.
CARDINAL BASIL HUME, OSB The Intentional Life: The Making of a Spiritual Vocation
