What makes the pope think that athiests can go to heaven when scripture says
But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death. Revelation 21:8
they wont and they will go to the lake of fire
Not all atheists are unbelievers in the more essential sense of the word, and so not all of them are necessarily abominable in God’s sight because they don’t believe in His existence. Surely, most of them aren’t murderers, whoremongers, and liars because they choose not to believe in the existence of God or explicitly profess faith in Jesus Christ. The truth is that even atheists or “non-believers” can please God and attain eternal life by performing acts of faith by the influence and assistance of divine grace, regardless of whether they acknowledge God’s providential care; although getting to heaven is much harder for anyone without their participation in the sacramental life of the Church and without prayer. St. Paul assures us that everyone who obeys the Mosaic moral law shall be declared righteous and just before God, including those who are unacquainted with the Torah or sacred Scripture. The requirements of the spirit of the law are written in the hearts of all human beings, and thus they are a law unto themselves. Indeed, their conscience bears witness to their moral standing with God. It’s grave voice either defends or condemns our acts from the moment they are contemplated to the time they are completed. So the secret thoughts of many shall be revealed at the final judgment in accord with the Gospel truths (Rom 2:12-16). St. John concurs: “If our hearts do not condemn us, we have boldness before God … because we obey his commandments and do whatever he asks” (1 Jn 3:22-23).
God does in fact speak to all people through their conscience which, therefore, judges whether they are assenting to a divine truth. If in a state of correctness - unimpaired by the errors of human reasoning and rationalizations - conscience acts as a judge besides as a medium of divine truth. This God given faculty which holds the divine law lies at the core of our being. It enjoins us at the appropriate moment to do good and avoid doing evil. As judge, conscience approves of our intentions and acts if they are good and denounces them if they are wicked. Meanwhile it acts as a reliable witness to the authority of truth in light of the Supreme Good towards which all human beings are drawn. Thus when we listen to the voice of our conscience, we do in fact hear God speaking to us. John H Cardinal Newman has said, “Conscience is a messenger of Him, who both in nature and grace speaks to us behind a veil, and teaches and rules us by his representative. Conscience is the aboriginal Vicar of Christ.” Hence, it is by the judgment of their conscience that even atheists may perceive and acknowledge the moral prescriptions of the divine law, making them morally accountable, just as we Christians are, for their deeds. "The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself " (Ezekiel 18:20).
Conscience naturally is the fundamental source of all moral obligation for all human beings in their relations with one another. Atheists as well can assent to a divine truth which is contained in the spirit of the law without having to open the New Testament or be a member of a Christian church. An atheist with a well-formed conscience should know just as much as a well-versed Christian does that we should love our enemies and do good to those who hate us (cf. Mt 5:44). Their conscience would certainly admonish them if they thought about doing something wicked towards their enemies or refused to act charitably towards them at the appropriate opportunity. By obeying the law written in their hearts and choosing good over evil, atheists are in fact acting in faith. Those who choose to do good to those who hate them are indeed collaborating with the Holy Spirit, who inspires and assists them with His grace. In the framework of faith, the material object of their act would be, in this case, the essential meaning and importance of the words of Christ spoken by our Lord in the Gospel in the form of a command, which would naturally thus belong to the law written in their hearts; the formal object is its character of being a divinely revealed truth which must be assented to in order to please God and remain in His grace, without which nobody can be saved. “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word; and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our abode with him” (Jn 14:23). By keeping Christ’s word as it is written in their hearts, atheists really love the Lord despite the fact they aren’t aware of it; at least they do objectively by any act of faith of theirs.
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