In a very unusual move, the Vatican has issued yet another clarification of Pope Benedict’s remarks at Regensburg on Islam the other day.
As Muslim protests get much media coverage and memories of the Mohammed cartoon-related violence remain fresh, I think the Vatican is worried that the reaction could lead to violence against Christians in Muslim-dominated countries. Which is ironic considering that what the Pope was protesting was religion-motivated violence.
Apparently, the statement from the official Vatican spokesman yesterday wasn’t deemed sufficient and so Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Secretary of State and number 2 man in the Vatican, came out with a news statement.
Pope Benedict is dismayed, the cardinal said, because his words were “interpreted in a manner that in no way corresponds to his intentions.” Far from belittling the faith of Muslims, he noted, the Holy Father had explicitly warned, in that same speech, against “the contempt for God and the cynicism that considers mockery of the sacred to be an exercise of freedom.”
Citing the Vatican II document Nostra Aetate (doc), Cardinal Bertone said that Pope Benedict held the Islamic faith in “esteem,” and strongly favors inter-religious dialogue. He said that the Pope hopes the present “uneasy moment” can be overcome, and “collaboration may intensify” between Christians and Muslims.
I think what we have here is a mounting concern that the Pope’s words—which were clearly true when he said them and what he meant in the first place—could result in fresh persecutions of innocent Christians, again proving the Pope’s point.
Islam is an irony-impaired religion.
Technorati Tags:Catholic, Islam, pope benedict xvi, religious dialogue, religious persecution, Vatican
Already the barbarians are burning down Catholic Churches.
This is o.k. though because nothing matters but the offense radical islomifacist muslims take to age old quotes. They can burn down Catholic Churches, behead little Catholic school girls on their way to class blow up babies, burn Catholic families to death, murder Catholic priests but no one can say anything about their savage acts.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060916/ap_on_re_mi_ea/palestinians_churches_5
I’m totaly serious here folks; can someone explain to me how I, a Catholic, can hold islam in esteem?
Is the Holy Father using broad mental reservation here? It’s a totally syncretist theology with not an original thought anywhere except for perhaps the eternal reward given to a muslim martyr and even that’s not too well thought out.
My recommendation is that when the Holy Father travels to turkey he should place images of mohammet all over his vehicle. The Vatican could state that because he holds mohammet in such high esteem he wanted his image on his vehicle for all to see.
The real reason for doing this would be that since a muslim is not allowed to desecrate any images of mohammet the Holy Father would be protected like a bullet proof shield. Anyway in which they attempted to destroy the vehicle in which the Holy Father was riding would also destroy the image of mohammet thus bringing the attempted assasin eternal condemnation.
I suspect that islam and the koran have a way out of this as well though.