VATICAN/Rome: Pope Francis, head of the Roman Catholic Church says there is no Hell were sinners will suffer forever.
“There is no hell where the souls of sinners suffer in eternity”,
Pope Francis was quoted as saying in a Thursday interview with Italian daily La Repubblica.
Francis said: “after death, the souls of people who repent are pardoned by God and join in his contemplation, but those who do not repent, and therefore cannot be pardoned, will disappear.”
“Hell does not exist – what exists is the disappearance of sinful souls,” he added without making reference to portions from the Bible.
The pope was interviewed by Eugenio Scalfari, a veteran Italian journalist and atheist who regularly muses about faith and religion, and enjoys access to the leader of the Catholic Church, NAN reports.
The man of God’s assertion about hell has drawn criticisms from the Pentecostal faithfuls who strongly believe in Hell fire.
Geaz Peter Mwagambo, a Tanzanian Pastor in his reaction said that there is Hell fire.
Mwagambo in a Facebook post added that only those living sinful lives would deny the truth about Hell fire.
“There is Hell fire as it is recorded in the Bible. I know that the world is embracing science, but Hell is real,” Mwagambo said.
“If you live a sinful lifestyle, and have refused to repent, you would be forced to believe that there is no Hell.
“The same people telling us that Hell does not exist today also dissuaded the children of those days from joining Noah in his Ark.
“Who would have believed God will wipe out the earth with water? We are still worshipping the same God.
“The world needs to hear the truth because many people are misinterpreting the Bible just to suit their unrighteous beliefs,” the fiery Pastor added.
Meanwhile, Pope Francis in a development welcomed by most clergies have ordered all sexual abuse cases to be reported to the Church hierarchy.