Pope Francis assured him: “Hell does not exist”

“There is no hell in which the souls of sinners suffer for all eternity,” Pope Francis said in an interview with the Italian newspaper La Repubblica published today, Thursday.

After death, the souls of people who repent receive God’s forgiveness and join those who contemplate it, but “those who do not repent and therefore can not be forgiven, disappear,” says the Argentine Pontiff.

“Hell does not exist, what exists is the disappearance of sinful souls,” he adds.

The Pope was interviewed by Eugenio Scalfari, a veteran Italian journalist who proclaims himself an atheist but usually reflects on faith and religion and has access to the leader of the Catholic Church.

However, in the past the veracity of some of the journalist’s quotes has been questioned, especially since Scalfari, 93, admitted that he never records his interviews. Despite this, the Vatican has not protested his work and Francisco continues to give him interviews.

The Pope plans to hold the traditional rite of “foot washing” at the Regina Coeli prison in Rome today. The ceremony recalls the biblical passage according to which Jesus washed the feet of the 12 apostles before the Last Supper to show them that he was capable of the humblest act.

The Vatican reported that Francisco will give mass and wash the feet of 12 prisoners, in addition to meeting with a group of them. The 12 chosen are four Italians, one Colombian, two Filipinos, two Moroccans and one respectively from Moldova, Nigeria and Sierra Leone.

Agency dpa.