Pope Francis : "God willed the plurality of religions"

[Dovekin]

Another way to think of it.

There is one God, who desires that all people be saved.
Through Jesus Christ, God gave a variety of ways for people to be saved. The Word of God. The natural order. Humanity that we share with Jesus.

All these are meant to be part of the Church. But they also exist outside the Church’s borders.We are delighted by these things, and love them within the Church, so we should love them when we find them outside the Church.

Muslims share our belief in one God. They recognize in humanity a dignity that is a gift from God, though they may not see it as a reflection of the Son’s glory as we do. When we share the intimacy of our relationship with Jesus, they gain a greater appreciation for humanity. And we hear their belief in God’s blessing on humanity, it deepens our relationship with God. Fraternity moves us toward each other, even if it does not make us one.

We can hope that helping them to a better understanding of God’s grace will increase our understanding. The gifts God has given them were always meant to enrich us as well. The deeper and broader our fraternity is, the closer we come to the goal of bringing all together in Christ.

 

[Genesis315]

Yes, it says the right to freedom is derived from God’s will for religious plurality and therefore coercion must be rejected.

The document says: “Freedom is a right of every person: each individual enjoys the freedom of belief, thought, expression and action.” What is the basis for man having such freedom? It tells us that this freedom is derived from God wisely willing religious pluralism: “The pluralism and the diversity of religions…are willed by God in His wisdom, through which He created human beings. This divine wisdom is the source from which the right to freedom of belief…derives.” Finally it provides the practical consequence of this: “Therefore, the fact that people are forced to adhere to a certain religion or culture must be rejected…;”

Again, what’s given as the practical consequence should be the willed principle and vice versa. God in his wisdom wills man to be free, therefore religious pluralism derives from this wise choice, not the other way around.

God doesn’t say “I desire religious pluralism, therefore I will make man free.” He says “I desire man to adhere to Me freely, therefore there will be religious pluralism as a consequence.”