Pope Francis: It is better to be an atheist than hypocritical Catholic

Pope Francis has said it is better to be an atheist than one of many hypocritical Catholics he said lead a double life. 

"There are those who say 'I am very Catholic, I always go to Mass, I belong to this and that association'," the leader of the 1.2 billion-member Roman Catholic Church said, according to a Vatican Radio transcript. 

RELATED: Pope Francis: Atheists can be welcome in Heaven

Pope Francis said, some of these hypocritical people should also say: "'my life is not Christian, I don't pay my employees proper salaries, I exploit people, I do dirty business, I launder money, [I lead] a double life'." 

"There are many Catholics who are like this and they cause scandal," he said. "How many times have we all heard people say 'if that person is a Catholic, it is better to be an atheist'."

Pope Francis does not know that we have our morality, our values. God is not a single source of morality. Most atheists are excellent people, though they do not believe in God. And I think they are so good because they do not believe in God. It is difficult to think that God exists and that he is always so neutral, always so relentless. Where is God when so many people are so poor, hopeless, sick, people die, where is God??? If God is so good and if he can do everything, why do people die? If you think that God is good and you believe that this "good," omnipotent person remains neutral when people are poor, sick and die, what does the word "good" mean in your opinion? We atheists have other notions about "good" and "bad."  

Pope Francis. Image: Getty Images

Sweden’s 'feminist' government don hijabs in Iran

In Iran (almost) all women are persecuted. And hijab is for me a symbol of this horrible persecution. For me hijab is a symbol of misogyny. No one has to have hijab. Nobody has to hide his face and his hair behind hijab. What the Swedish government has done is not political correctness. This is the biggest insult against all women who are fighting for their rights in Iran and who are often brutally murdered. These Swedish women may have business interests in Iran. This eastern country has a lot of oil and natural gas. And Sweden wants to get this wealth.

Sweden’s 'first feminist government' in Iran. Image via YOU TUBE

No wonder that right-wing extremism, populism and anti-liberalism have more and more adherents in Europe. Right-wing extremism, populism and anti-liberalism are fed by hypocrisy and false political correctness. Hypocrisy and indifference are their basic elements.

Sweden’s 'first feminist government' in action. Image via YOU TUBE

Just signed referral of Swedish #climate law, binding all future governments to net zero emissions by 2045. For a safer and better future. pic.twitter.com/OqOO2y8BU6

— Isabella Lövin (@IsabellaLovin) February 3, 2017

Walk of shame: Women of Sweden's "first feminist government in the world" don hijab as they walk past Iran's Rouhani https://t.co/aeEFgibVhV pic.twitter.com/urHrtObkYv

— Hillel Neuer (@HillelNeuer) February 12, 2017

“If Sweden really cares about human rights, they should not be empowering a regime that brutalizes its own citizens while carrying out genocide in Syria; and if they care about women’s rights, then the female ministers never should have gone to misogynistic Iran in the first place,” said UN Watch executive director Hillel Neuer. 

Walk of shame: Women of Sweden's "first feminist government in the world" don hijab as they walk past Iran's Rouhani https://t.co/aeEFgibVhV pic.twitter.com/urHrtObkYv

— Hillel Neuer (@HillelNeuer) February 12, 2017

“They go to my country,” said Aliinejad recently in the European Parliament, “and they ignore millions of those women who send their photos to me and put themselves in danger to be heard. And [the European politicians] keep their smile, and wearing hijab, and saying this is a ‘cultural issue’—which is wrong.”




Nobody is perfect, but nobody has to be stupid, greedy and indifferent. 

Pope Francis: Atheists can be welcome in Heaven

I'm an atheist and of course, I don't think that paradise and hell exist. I don't believe in god. But I think these words are good. Catholicism is very widespread in all the world. Many developing countries are Catholic. In the past, majority of the population was very aggressive in these countries and the victims of this aggression were atheists who had "no chance" to be "welcome" in paradise. Probably, these words of Pope Francis have improved their life. Pope Francis isn't always progressive, but these words were courageous and very useful. The atheists can be more rarely prosecuted after this speech. And I think this is really very good.

Pope Francis said: 

"You ask me if the God of the Christians forgives those who don’t believe and who don’t seek the faith. I start by saying – and this is the fundamental thing – that God’s mercy has no limits if you go to him with a sincere and contrite heart. The issue for those who do not believe in God is to obey their conscience. Sin, even for those who have no faith, exists when people disobey their conscience.” (Source: La Repubblica, 11 September, 2013)

Pope Francis. Image via YOU TUBE

The absolutely unbelievable blue city that came out of a dream

By David Chutlashvili

In the north of Morocco, there is a small town called Chefchaouen. This unbelievable place can be called a ’blue dream,’ since the old part of it is filled with buildings painted in all shades of blue — from light blue to aquamarine.

This beautiful coloring was introduced by Jewish refugees, who believed that the more you look at anything blue, the more often you think about afterlife. 

These Jewish refugees were not fanatics. They were freethinkers, agnostics, and atheists. They had poetic ideas about life after death. 

This is a long-standing tradition in Chefchaouen; All buildings are painted blue, although these Jewish refugees are no longer alive. But there is no fanaticism in this beautiful city. Chefchaouen lives very quietly.

This small city proves that when humanity will survive, only with the help of poetry and cultural exchange. 

© Mario Tome

© Claude Renault

© Alexander Dragunov

© Andy Mumford

© halifaxlight

© Sorin Rechitan

© Claude Renault

© Beum Photography

© Broocee Oz

© Claude Renault

© Cherry Bharati

© oneworldtwoexplorers.com

© Olga Osipova

© Giorgio Compagnoni

© Sabino Parente