{"id":4406,"date":"2013-10-01T22:10:00","date_gmt":"2013-10-01T22:10:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.catholicnewsagency.com\/news\/pope-to-atheist-all-people-can-receive-grace-seek-the-good\/"},"modified":"2013-10-01T22:10:00","modified_gmt":"2013-10-01T22:10:00","slug":"pope-to-atheist-all-people-can-receive-grace-seek-the-good","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/catholicnews\/2013\/10\/pope-to-atheist-all-people-can-receive-grace-seek-the-good\/","title":{"rendered":"Pope to atheist: all people can receive grace, seek the Good"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Vatican City, Oct 1, 2013 \/ 04:10 pm (CNA\/EWTN News<\/a>).- Emphasizing that grace is available to all people, Pope Francis stressed dialogue and encounter rather than proselytism and underscored the need for each person to seek the Good while following his conscience.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cEven you, without knowing it, could be touched by grace,\u201d Pope Francis told Eugenio Scalfari, the atheist with whom he recently corresponded.<\/p>\n

\tScalfari conducted a Sept. 24 interview with the Pope at his Vatican residence, which was published Oct 1. in Italian daily La Repubblica.<\/p>\n

\tPope Francis shared St. Augustine\u2019s view of \u201cthe grace given by the Lord as a fundamental element of faith. Of life. Of life's meaning.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tHe explained that the saint's \u201cinsight\u201d was that being touched by grace fundamentally changes, affects a person: \u201cWho is not touched by grace may be a person without blemish and without fear, as they say, but he will never be like a person whom grace has touched.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tFrom there, Scalfari asked Pope Francis if he himself feels touched by grace. The Roman Pontiff replied, \u201cNo one can know that. Grace is not part of consciousness, it is the amount of light in our souls, not knowledge nor reason.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tPope Francis added that grace can be given to those without faith, those who do not believe, because \u201cgrace has to do with the soul.\u201d Although Scalfari said he does not believe in the soul, the Pope said, \u201cYou do not believe in it but you have one.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tScalfari responded by revisiting their mutual admission that neither of them were trying to convert the other, which allowed a discussion of the nature of dialogue and inter-personal relationship.<\/p>\n

\t\u201cProselytism is solemn nonsense, it makes no sense,\u201d said Pope Francis. \u201cWe need to get to know each other, to listen to each other and improve our knowledge of the world around us.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tFollowing an encounter with another person, the Pope said, he at times wants another encounter, because it has led to both new ideas and new needs in himself. \u201cThis is important: to get to know people, to listen, to expand the circle of ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tPope Francis said that \u201cthe important thing\u201d is that the world's many paths should \u201clead towards the Good.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tWhen Scalfari questioned whether there is a single vision of the Good, the Roman Pontiff responded, \u201cEach of us has a vision of good and of evil. We have to encourage people to move towards what they think is Good.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tHe affirmed that each person must follow his conscience, saying, \u201cEveryone has an idea of good and evil and must choose to follow the good and fight the evil as he or she understands it. That would be enough to improve the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

\tThe two were able to agree that love for other people must come to surpass the love of self in men's hearts.<\/p>\n

\tPope Francis pointedly asked Scalfari about what he believes, regarding \u201cthe essence of the world\u201d and questions of man's nature: \u201cwho we are, where we come from, where we are going.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\u201cI believe,\u201d Scalfari answered, \u201cin Being, that is, in the fabric from which forms, bodies arise. He went on to say that he considers Being to be \u201ca fabric of energy\u201d which is indestructible and eternally chaotic, and that in human beings there is a resonance of this chaos.<\/p>\n

\tPope Francis responded by saying that Being is God the Father, who is \u201cthe light and the Creator.\u201d<\/p>\n

\t\u201cGod is the light that illuminates the darkness, even if it does not dissolve it, and a spark of divine light is within each of us.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n<\/a>\n<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Vatican City, Oct 1, 2013 \/ 04:10 pm (CNA\/EWTN News).- Emphasizing that grace is available to all people, Pope Francis stressed dialogue and encounter rather than proselytism and underscored the need for each person to seek the Good while following his…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1031,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4406","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-vatican"],"yoast_head":"\nPope to atheist: all people can receive grace, seek the Good<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Vatican City, Oct 1, 2013 \/ 04:10 pm (CNA\/EWTN News).- Emphasizing that grace is available to all people, Pope Francis stressed dialogue and encounter rather than proselytism and underscored the need for each person to seek the Good while following his...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" 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