Emphasizing that grace is available to all people, Pope Francis stressed dialogue and encounter rather than proselytism and underscored the need for each person to seek the Good while following his conscience.“Even you, without knowing it, could be touched by grace,” Pope Francis told Eugenio Scalfari, the atheist with whom he recently corresponded.
From there, Scalfari asked Pope Francis if he himself feels touched by grace. The Roman Pontiff replied, “No one can know that. Grace is not part of consciousness, it is the amount of light in our souls, not knowledge nor reason.”
Pope Francis added that grace can be given to those without faith, those who do not believe, because “grace has to do with the soul.” Although Scalfari said he does not believe in the soul, the Pope said, “You do not believe in it but you have one.”