Heartsick Boy Asks, Pope Francis, If Atheist Dad Is In Heaven?
Heartsick Boy Asks If Atheist Dad Is In Heaven. Pope Francis Reveals The Answer With A Hug.
A sobbing child told the pontiff his dead father was a good man, but he wondered if a nonbeliever could be in heaven.
Carol Kuruvilla
Pope Francis hugs a child named Emanuele at the & nbsp; St. Paul of the Cross parish during a pastoral visit on April 15, 2018.
A tearful little boy grappling with big existential questions after the death of his father received some touching words of consolation from Pope Francis.
The poignant moment between the pontiff and the child on Sunday highlighted Francis’ enduring emphasis on prioritizing mercy.
The child, whom Francis referred to as Emanuele, met the pope during a papal visit to the St. Paul of the Cross parish on the outskirts of Rome. During a question-and-answer session with children of the parish, Emanuele approached the microphone to ask Francis a question.
But the child froze before he could get his words out. He can be seen sobbing into his hands in video recordings of the encounter.
Francis encouraged the boy to come forward and whisper the question into his ear. The pope gave the boy a hug and the pair had a quiet chat before Emanuele returned to his seat.
Francis then addressed the crowd, saying that Emanuele had granted permission to share the conversation.
He revealed that Emanuele was crying for his father, who had recently died. The boy told the pontiff that his dad was an atheist, but a good man who had all four of his children baptized.
“Is Dad in heaven?’” the boy asked the pope.
Watch a video of the encounter in Italian below.
“A boy that inherited the strength of his father also had the courage to cry in front of all of us,” the pope said. “If this man was able to create children like this, it’s true that he is a good man.”
“That man did not have the [gift] of faith, wasn’t a believer. But he had his children baptized. He had a good heart,” Francis added.
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Emanuele cries during an encounter with Pope Francis on April 15.
The pope said that God decides who goes to heaven, and that God has “the heart of a father.” He asked the young girls and boys in the audience if they thought God would abandon a father like Emanuele’s, who was a good man.
“No,” the children shouted back.
“There, Emanuele, that is the answer,” the pope said, according to a translation provided by the Catholic News Service. “God surely was proud of your father, because it is easier as a believer to baptize your children than to baptize them when you are not a believer. Surely this pleased God very much.”
This isn’t the first time Francis has acknowledged that atheists can work for good.
In a 2013 homily, the pope reiterated the Christian belief that eternal salvation is attained through Jesus Christ. But he declared that all humans are created in the image of God, and that all have a duty to do good. This principle of doing good to others is one that unites all of humanity, the pope said, including atheists. “Just do good and we’ll find a meeting point,” the pope said in that sermon.
- How would you have answered the boy?
- Is there a biblical answer to the boy's question?
- Do you agree with the last paragraph above by the Pope in a 2013 homily?
- In addition, the article states, "The pope said that God decides who goes to heaven, and that God has “the heart of a father.” Do you agree?
- Has the traditional Catholic view of salvation changed? Better yet, when did it changed? CM
Comments
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@C_M_ said:
- How would you have answered the boy?
- Is there a biblical answer to the boy's question?
- Do you agree with the last paragraph above by the Pope in a 2013 homily?
- In addition, the article states, "The pope said that God decides who goes to heaven, and that God has “the heart of a father.” Do you agree?
- Has the traditional Catholic view of salvation changed? Better yet, when did it changed? CM
I normally tell people we do not know whom God saves or does not. If you believe in Christ you can know for sure you have eternal life. Some of the worst enter heaven before some of the best according to Jesus.
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I wonder!
How is it that the little boy knows so much about atheism, but he doesn't know the promises, plans, or the principles of salvation? Let keep it simple: What are the texts, terms, and promises of eternal life? CM -
The Pope is part of the problem that keeps biblical Christianity out of sight. And there are plenty who insure it will suffer abundant ridicule. But who but God knows whom Jesus died for? There's always hope for even the most religious or the most vile.
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I saw this on YouTube a few days ago. Here's the video:
Francis clearly gives an unbiblical answer. Yet I've been wondering what the "right" answer would have been. Learning the truth about "the Gehenna of fire" would have been devastating for the boy who was already heartbroken.
Francis showed great compassion and comforted the boy, and since I have no idea how the situation could have been resolved with a biblical answer without hurting the boy deeply, I can't really condemn Francis for his unbiblical answer.
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“Then Peter opened his mouth, and said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons: But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.” (Acts 10:34–35) (KJV 1900)
This is a touchy passage for any who make grace conditional. But conditional grace is not grace.
Since I believe in "Limited Atonement", I think it is possible many for whom Christ died never hear the gospel, yet are justified and go to heaven when they die. The Westminster Confession and the London Baptist Confession both agree.
Paragraph 3. Elect infants dying in infancy are regenerated and saved by Christ through the Spirit;10 who works when, and where, and how He pleases;11 so also are all elect persons, who are incapable of being outwardly called by the ministry of the Word.
10 John 3:3, 5, 6
11 John 3:8THE BAPTIST CONFESSION OF FAITH OF 1689
Cornelius gave evidence of the new birth before hearing Peter preach, as did Lydia. But the word increases the level of salvation and saves our souls (mind) by revamping our thinking and outlining sin and repentance.
But I believe some atheists, some Muslims, even the Pope himself might end up in heaven never having heard the gospel, but by having been atoned for as God's elect, and brought to life in the New Birth.
So I need not dodge those who hurt for loved ones who they think aren't saved.
