There is no truth to rumors suggesting that Pope Francis wants Islam and Christianity to merge. This was clarified by Vatican spokesman Greg Burke who said that the supposed quotes coming from Pope Francis from as early as 2015 are invented, reports Crux.
In one report that came out, Pope Francis was quoted as telling a Vatican audience that Jesus Christ, Mohammed, Jehovah, and Allah are all names employed to describe an entity that is distinctly the same across the world.
He was supposed to have also said that for centuries, blood has been needlessly shed because of the desire to segregate the people’s faiths.
There is also another fake quote where Pope Francis supposedly said that people can accomplish miraculous things by merging everyone’s faiths and that the time for such movement is now.
Burke reiterated that those quotes are invented. Pope Francis has repeatedly pledged himself to closer ties with other faiths and routinely meets leaders of other Christian churches and other religions, which is in keeping with the moves initiated by his predecessors, particularly Saint Pope John Paul II and emeritus Pope Benedict XVI.
The pontiff has also stressed the importance of maintaining a clear sense of what makes Christianity distinct and even warned believers that they should not put their Christian identity up for auction.
Fake quotes from Pope Francis and various incarnations of the story have been published and shared by numerous websites since 2015.
No plans to mix the Holy Bible with the Quran
With the clarification coming from the Vatican, it also becomes clear that there is not truth to the supposed remarks from Pope Francis saying that the spiritual lessons found in the Quran are just as valid as those found in the Holy Bible.
The false quotes appear to have originated from a fake article written by NationalReport.net, a website that has authored many other fake headlines such as “Vladimir Putin Will Sing at Donald Trump’s Inauguration, Sources Say’ and ‘Ronald McDonald to Return in 2017 as ‘Ronald Reagan,’ details the Christian Post.
The NationalReport.net’s false Pope quotes on Islam are not the only false Pope Francis quotes circulating on the internet.
Sometime in December 2014, a meme also circulated online that purported quoted Pope Francis as saying that believing in God is not required to be a good person.
The meme also said the Pope was quoted as saying that in a way, the traditional notion of God is outdated. One can be spiritual but not religious.
It is not necessary to go to church and give money for many, nature can be a church. Some of the best people in history do not believe in God, while some of the worst deeds were done in His name, the quote added.
While some Catholics questioned whether Pope Francis said during a 2013 homily that atheists could achieve redemption through good deeds, a Vatican spokesperson who translates his remarks into English explained what the pontiff meant.
He said that Pope Francis is suggesting that those, who through no fault of their own do not know the Gospel of Christ and his Church but sincerely seek God and, moved by grace, try to do his will as it is known through the dictates of conscience can attain eternal salvation.
New Year’s Eve message
Meanwhile, during Pope Francis’ New Year’s Eve message, he cited the need for the global leaders to act on the growing problem of youth unemployment in the world.
Pope Francis cited, in particular, the youth joblessness in Italy, which now stands at 36% and is actually the highest among the 28 member nations of the European Union.
Given that premise, the Vatican high priest has urged global leaders to do more in tackling the problem of unemployment because a generation is apparently being lost to desperation, migration, and joblessness.
The 80-year-old pontiff made his last message for 2016 on December 31 during an evening vespers service in St. Peter’s Basilica.