Pope: all good people go to heaven, even atheists!

Consider my non-believing mind blown away.

During his homily at Wednesday Mass in Rome, Pope Francis rocked some Religious and Atheist minds today when he declared that everyone was redeemed through Jesus, including atheists.

Despite what others think (you must accept Jesus to get into heaven) Pope Francis has a different view: actions speak louder than words. If you act like a good person, then you are a good person. If you talk about Jesus all the time but act poorly, it’s clear you’re a faker and therefore are not a good person.

Francis must be making this up! Where would be get such a ridiculous idea?

“To do what is right and true is more pleasing to the Lord than an offering.” (Proverbs 21:3).

Where indeed.

As an outspoken Atheist, I couldn’t be more pleasantly surprised. Pope Francis is exceeding my expectations so far. Every time Eggs Benedict made a declaration, I winced.

I’m slowly changing my mind about this pope to a more positive impression than I might have imagined. I wonder if the cardinals knew what they were getting when they selected him… and how are his more zealous followers going to respond to this? Will be very interesting.

While Francis and I still disagree about a lot of his church’s policies, too numerous to list here, I am willing to admit that I am genuinely surprised by his very noble gesture. We may be thousands of miles apart, but that was still a step in the right direction.

Peter