An article appeared in the INDEPENDANT on September 11, 2013, whose headline accused the Pope of telling atheists that they “don’t have to believe in God to get to heaven.”
Now, I am no fan of the papacy and believe the Roman Church to be in grave error on various issues. However, if one slows down and actually reads what the Pope said, we might realize that the headline isn’t being as accurate as one might think.
For example:
The Pope never said that atheists can go to heaven. Let’s look at the actual quote…
“You ask me if the God of the Christians forgives those who don’t believe and who don’t seek the faith. I start by saying – and this is the fundamental thing – that God’s mercy has no limits if you go to him with a sincere and contrite heart. The issue for those who do not believe in God is to obey their conscience.
“Sin, even for those who have no faith, exists when people disobey their conscience.”
Now let’s look at that quote from the standpoint of Roman Catholic theology. The RCC believes strongly in natural law, which they understand as the law of God, written on the conscience of man, apart from Scripture (see Rom.2).
So, the Pope told an atheist…
1. God’s mercy has no limits … any orthodox Christian believes this
2. The Pope adds that God’s mercy has no limits, if you go to Him with a sincere and contrite heart … again, any orthodox Christian believes this
Now, unless I am mistaken, St. Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Martin Luther, and John Calvin might have all said that no atheist actually goes to God with a sincere and contrite heart and therefore, has no access to God’s mercy. (I wish the Pope would have added that.)
However, if, as the Catholic correspondent that was quoted later in the article said, the Pope was just “seeking to have a more meaningful dialogue with the world” then he may have felt that it wasn’t necessary for his argument.
3. Then the Pope said that “The issue for those who don’t believe in God is to obey their conscience.” and “Sin, even for those who have no faith, exists when people disobey their conscience.” – This also is true.
The atheists will be judged (and condemned) for sinning against their conscience (Rom.2:12-16). And since “all have sinned and fall short of God’s glory” (Rom.3:23), not only atheists, but all people are condemned.
Bottom line, the Pope’s right if his comments are not meant to imply that it’s possible to perfectly obey one’s conscience and thereby be saved without faith in Christ. (Since he never said that, we should be cautious about putting those words in his mouth.) Nevertheless, the issue for the atheist (in light of the article) is that they must totally and perfectly keep the law, as it is revealed to the human conscience … or face eternal damnation.
Now, let’s look at what the Pope wasn’t saying…
1. The Pope wasn’t saying that the atheist could get to heaven without Christ.
2. The Pope wasn’t saying that the atheist didn’t need faith.
3. He wasn’t even saying that it was possible for an atheist to have a sincere and contrite heart before God. (He may believe that, but he didn’t say so.)
If one really thinks about it, the Pope’s comments do not indicate how an atheist might be saved as much as they suggest the reason why he needs a Savior. (i.e. People need a savior because they will perish unless they perfectly kept the law of God, even as it is written on their conscience. And no one does that!)
The man asked if God would “forgive” those that neither believe or seek God. Although the Pope did not answer that question outright, he might have indirectly been saying that the inquirer would remain unforgiven unless he obeyed his conscience and sought God’s mercy with a sincere and contrite heart.
Now it is true that the mercy of God is found only in Jesus Christ. It’s also true that the Pope did not go there in his argument. (I wish he had.) However, what isn’t true is the headline. The Pope never said that atheists could go to heaven without repenting from their unbelief.
The writer of the article got it wrong either because he doesn’t know his theology or perhaps, because he has a bone to pick with the Roman Church that blinded him from truthfully analyzing what the Pope was saying.
Bottom line for us, Don’t confuse a headline with the truth … When it comes to matters of theology, always assume the press will get it wrong unless you have good reason to think otherwise … Give others, that claim to be Christians, the benefit of the doubt before accepting an accusation against them from the world.
May the Lord help us not to slander others in our zeal to uphold the gospel.
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