**“The Lord has redeemed all of us, all of us, with the Blood of Christ: all of us, not just Catholics. Everyone! ‘Father, the atheists?’ Even the atheists. Everyone!…We must meet one another doing good. ‘But I don’t believe, Father, I am an atheist!**
Isn’t this what non-Catholics are always saying? Christ died for everyone?
But then we have the parameters that God the Fathr sets: “Many are calloed’ few are chosen.”
Is this what Pope Francis is saying?
Many are called but only a few will answer the call?
Isn’t this what non-Catholics are always saying? Christ died for everyone?
No.
(Depends who you talk to.)
This means the vilest of sinners, whosoever!!!
BUT!!!!!!!!! the key word is believeth! ... to those who do NOT believe, and accept Jesus' blood on calvary as payment for their sins, the answer is NO!! NO!! NO!!
...and the words " depart from me, I never knew you." will be heard on that fateful day of Judgement!
God's Word is clear, no amount of " good works" by any athiest will gain him or her entrance into heaven..period. Pope's statement or not!
The way I read it is he was saying that no matter who you are, as long as you're above ground, there is a chance for salvation. Anything else and he would be a Universalist and I haven't heard anything to back that up yet. We equate atheism with evil and it isn't that easy to define. I knew a man for years who was an atheist, but he was not a bad man and helped many over the years - he did a lot of good despite his unbelief. We used to kid him with the phrase, "I believe Lord. Help my unbelief." On the flip side, I was with him at his deathbed while he breathed his last. I am sorry to say that I saw what appeared to be a dark smoky trail coming from the top of his head and exiting through the wall. A week or so later, I mentioned to my wife that I was afraid for him and she said that she had seen it too. I have no idea why we may have been able to see what we took as his soul exiting, but I have heard of many such cases. My wife was with her mother when she died and said it was like a golden glow came out of her and filled the area above her mother before dissipating. We have plenty of evidence her mother had been saved many years.
Some of the most avid evangelists I have heard were "reformed" atheists and a couple became believers while trying to prove God didn't exist. I'm not a Catholic, but I really like this Pope and do not believe that he was saying that a confirmed atheist, who has never "come around" will be saved - just indicating that many atheists are capable of doing good works and have the opportunity to benefit by being led to Christ.
You can never tell. When you think the Pope means one thing some Catholic will come along and tell you you are wrong.
If you then change your mind to agree with thge first Catholic another Catholic will come along and tell you you are still wrong.
What non=Catholics are you talking about?
Christ may have died for everyone, but not all will accept him and be saved. There were 2 thieves on the cross with Jesus, but only one saw Christ in Paradise.