At the Catholic Junior College, Singapore, on Friday, 13 September 2024, the pope is reported by the Vatican as saying: "One of the things that has impressed me most about the young people here is your capacity for interfaith dialogue. This is very important because if you start arguing, “My religion is more important than yours...,” or “Mine is the true one, yours is not true....,” where does this lead? Somebody answer. [A young person answers, “Destruction”.] That is correct. All religions are paths to God. I will use an analogy, they are like different languages that express the divine. But God is for everyone, and therefore, we are all God’s children. “But my God is more important than yours!”. Is this true? There is only one God, and religions are like languages, paths to reach God. Some Sikh, some Muslim, some Hindu, some Christian. Understood? Yet, interfaith dialogue among young people takes courage. The age of youth is the age of courage, but you can misuse this courage to do things that will not help you. Instead, you should have courage to move forward and to dialogue."
Some have expressed concern at this, especially at "All religions are paths to God" which seems at variance with our Lord's own teaching and that of the church. These concerns aren't based on a mistaken belief that everything the pope says should be taken as an ex cathedra teaching. The pope's critics know that. Nor are the concerns about the pope's personal behaviour. Again, his critics do realise the distinction between the pope's teaching-office and his actions as a man. (This is just as well, since some popes have sinned badly, though not this one, who seems to lead an exemplary personal life.) The concerns aren't to do with the pope's opinions on matters outside the scope of the magisterium either. He wasn't talking about his favourite soccer team or his taste in music. Citing these irrelevant reasons for objecting to a papal utterance doesn't resolve the matter in hand, but just avoids addressing it. Similarly, denying that he said what he said is of no help, any more than dismissing the remarks as "off the cuff".
Rather, the concerns are about what happens when any Catholic - lay or cleric - consistently denies the church's teaching. I say consistently because on 17 September the pope said to young adults in Tirana, Albania: “Contemplate the diversity of your traditions as a wealth, a wealth willed by God.” and “Unity is not uniformity and the diversity of our cultural and religious identities is a gift from God.”
The question actually is whether a Catholic can say that all religions are paths to God and still be considered a believing Catholic. If that person holds clerical office, can they continue to discharge their duties? What if your parish-priest or bishop started saying it? If I thought Hinduism was as valid as Catholicism, I'd consider myself lapsed.