The French bishops weigh in

The French bishops weigh in

A friend sends along the following note regarding the riots in Paris that are spreading.

The rioting that began in Paris suburbs has now continued for more than 10 days, and spread beyond Paris to other cities in France, Belgium, and Germany, defying the efforts of French government authorities to contain them. Although the rioting has flared in neighborhoods populated largely by Muslim immigrants, the French bishops advised strongly against viewing the conflict in religious terms. Instead, they suggested looking for the sources of the unrest in “recent urbanization, difficulties for young people in finding employment, and the instability of family life.”

(As Pope St. Pius V said after the Battle of Lepanto, the Ottoman Turks were simply helpless vicitms of urbanization, unemployment, and unstable family life. )

While those three factors cannot be completely discounted, the problem with the French bishops’ statement is that burying your head in the sand regarding the most visible and glaring cause of conflict, one cited by the aggressors time and again, is willful and culpable ignorance.

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