The Pope Francis Thread

What the Hell?

Pope Francis: 'There Is No Hell'

 

In another interview with his longtime atheist friend, Eugenio Scalfari, Pope Francis claims that Hell does not exist and that condemned souls just "disappear."


I think he just visited a newsroom.

 

* In a statement released on Mar. 29, after Scalfari's report garnered worldwide attention, the Vatican said:

"The Holy Father Francis recently received the founder of the newspaper La Repubblica in a private meeting on the occasion of Easter, without however giving him any interviews. What is reported by the author in today’s article [in La Repubblica] is the result of his reconstruction, in which the textual words pronounced by the Pope are not quoted. No quotation of the aforementioned article must therefore be considered as a faithful transcription of the words of the Holy Father."

 

Wouldn't that prove the existence of hell?

 

When an atheist addresses the Pope as "Your Holiness," is that trolling? And can the Pope troll back?

 

I want to know more about the attempted walk back on this.
It looks as if it was published with quote marks.
If this was not an interview, is the pope pissed that Scalfari published it? Did Scalfari agree to keep it off the record, was it supposed to be no-attribution or deep background?
If it was an interview, is Scalfari pissed that the pope's people have implied that Scalfari is lying?
Are the pope and Scalfari still friends after this?
Is the pope going to comment directly in response to the publication?

 

No Highway to Hell, no classic South Park scene with Sadaam, no Trevor Hoffman intro, no Hell's Angels...

 

That's what I thought at first. But I was distracted by "condemned souls just disappear," like your favorite columnist or beat writer.