Papal Bull to no longer preach hellfire?

[niccimalm]

During a discussion with Jehovah’s Witnesses regarding authority and infallable teaching (the new light growing brighter theory), they (the JWs) said that the Catholic Church has changed it’s doctrine multiple times in history. I took exception to that statement and said I knew of NO Roman Catholic doctrine that has changed. They responded by stating that one example is a Papal Bull that was recently issued (1990s or so) directing the Church to stop preaching hellfire because people have become too sophisticated to believe such a thing.

This doesn’t sound right to me, but I’m having a hard time finding anything in the way of research or proof. Any help would be appreciated.

Also, how can I articulate that the difference between Catholic discipline (not doctrine)changing and Watchtower teachings changing – they say it’s the same thing (new light).

Thank you.

 

[Fr.Charles_Grondin]

What they are most likely referring to is Blessed Pope John Paul II’s Wednesday audience of July 28, 1999 in which he said:

The images of hell that Sacred Scripture presents to us must be correctly interpreted. They show the complete frustration and emptiness of life without God. Rather than a place, hell indicates the state of those who freely and definitively separate themselves from God, the source of all life and joy. This is how the Catechism of the Catholic Church summarizes the truths of faith on this subject: “To die in mortal sin without repenting and accepting God’s merciful love means remaining separated from him for ever by our own free choice. This state of definitive self-exclusion from communion with God and the blessed is called ‘hell’” (n. 1033).

The Wednesday audience is not an official teaching document of the Church. It is simply an address by the Pope to those gathered there. However, even with that being said, Blessed Pope John Paul II did not tell anyone to stop preaching about hell. He simply stated the theological opinion that hell is not a physical place but rather is a state of existence in which we are eternally separated from God and suffer the pain of that loss.

Ultimately, I would think that the quibbling of whether hell is a physical place or state of existence to be rather silly. Either way, we don’t want to experience it…