Pope Francis has been accused of religious pluralism after telling an interfaith youth gathering in Singapore that “all religions are a path to God.”

On his final leg of his 12-day South Asia tour, the pontiff told the conference of young Catholic, Sikh and Muslim representatives that religions are “like different languages that express the divine.”

“But God is for everyone, and therefore, we are all God’s children.

“There is only one God, and religions are like languages that try to express ways to approach God. Some Sikh, some Muslim, some Hindu, some Christian.”

He warned the young representatives against being divided, saying: “I want to tell you something historical: every dictatorship in history, the first thing they do is take away dialogue. Interreligious dialogue is built on respect for others. This is very important.”

Catholic Culture described comments on religions being different paths to one God as “an argument that seemed clearly in conflict with the constant teaching of the Catholic Church”.

American Bishop Joseph Strickland, who was removed as the Bishop of Tyler under Pope Francis, urged fellow Catholics to “pray for Pope Francis to clearly state that Jesus is the only Way.”