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Pope Francis Misquote Nearly Opens Gates Of Heaven To Animals

A woman dressed as a character from a Nativity scene put a lamb around the neck of Pope Francis as he arrives to visit the Church of St. Alfonso Maria dei Liguori in Rome in this picture released on Jan. 6, 2014. | Reuters/L'Osservatore Romano

An erroneous media report last week allegedly quoting Pope Francis nearly officially opened the gates of heaven to dogs and other animals.

Picked up by major news outlets worldwide including the New York Times and CNN, the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera ran a headline on Nov. 27 saying "The pope and animals: Paradise is open to all creatures."

The article recounted Pope Francis' remarks from his general audience on Nov. 26, when the topic was the transformation of all creation into a new heaven and a new earth.

During that audience, the Pope referred to heaven, saying "the Sacred Scripture teaches us that the fulfillment of this marvelous plan cannot but affect all that which surrounds us and which emerged from the thought and the heart of God." He did not refer specifically to animals in his remarks.

But at the same time, the Corriere della Sera article quoted comments by Pope Paul VI in 1978 when he reportedly comforted a distraught boy whose dog has died with the words: "One day, we will see our animals again in the eternity of Christ. Paradise is open to all of God's creatures."

The Italian newspaper's headline apparently referred to the late Pope Paul VI, not Pope Francis, but the other publications apparently mixed up the quotes from the two popes, resulting in erroneous reports.

Finally on Friday, the Religion News Service set the record straight that Pope Francis has not said anything about deceased pets going to heaven.

The following day, the Vatican officially denied the report. "There is a fundamental rule in journalism. That is double-checking, and in this case it was not done," the Vatican's deputy spokesman, Father Ciro Benedettini, said.

The spokesman said he received a number of calls on the story from outside Italy on Friday and was taken by surprise because he did not recall the pope saying anything like that.

The New York Times quickly admitted its mistake, saying it had misattributed the remark by Paul VI to the current pope.

CNN also corrected its story on its website, noting the misattribution, adding that it not clear what Pope Francis believes about animals going to heaven.

Benedettini was asked about what Pope Francis thinks about animals. The Vatican spokesman replied that from the Holy Father's speeches and gestures "it is clear that he is in spiritual harmony with all of creation."

The spokesman recalled that a group that looks after stray dogs once brought the animals to his general audience and Pope Francis was pleased.

When he made a Christmas season visit to a Rome parish last year, Francis willingly let a young girl place a lamb on his shoulders as a shepherd would carry it, Benedettini said. The pope also once told priests that a good pastor should know not only the names of his parishioners but also the names of their dogs, the Vatican spokesman added.

However, Benedettini said he could not recall any statement from Pope Francis about the possible spiritual side of animals and whether they, too -- like virtuous people – will go to heaven in the Afterlife.

At least three past popes made varying remarks about this matter.

According to the New York Times, Pope Pius IX, who led the church from 1846 to 1878, strongly supported the doctrine that dogs and other animals have no consciousness.

However, Pope John Paul II spoke differently in 1990 when he proclaimed that animals do have souls and are "as near to God as men are."

But in 2008, former Pope Benedict XVI upset animal lovers when he said only humans were "called to eternity," adding that an animal's death simply "means the end of its existence on earth."

To settle the issue, Jesuit priest and author Jim Martin was quoted as saying that "the only person who can speak about heaven with direct experience would be Jesus, and he didn't say anything about animals."