More than 90 international organizations, members of the International Islamic Council for Propagation and Relief, chaired by Sheikh Al-Azhar Tantawi have demanded an apology from Pope Benedict XVI for his anti-Muslim statements.
The foreign ministers of the 56 member-countries of Organization of the Islamic Conference also demanded that the pope withdraw his anti-Islamic remarks.
The International Union of the Muslim Scholars declared that they would not have any relations with the Vatican, its organs or representatives anywhere in the world until the pope changed his stand enabling constructive and earnest dialogue with the Vatican.
In other words, the Muslim world demands a genuine, official and unequivocal apology from the pope, who went further in insulting the Muslims by stating that the Muslims were unable to understand what he meant by his statement. Muslims also insist that the apology should come directly from him, not from anyone else on his behalf.
While the supreme spiritual head of the Catholics in his arrogance and conceit refuses to make any sincere attempt to correct his mistakes, leading Western newspapers have criticized Pope Benedict XVI for some of the actions he took once he succeeded Pope John Paul II. The New York Times described the pope’s charges against Islam as grave and painful while the French newspaper Le Monde said, “Six months after the publication of the caricatures lampooning the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), we hoped that the pope to be moderate in his statements about Islam and not link it with extremism.”
Against the growing anger of the Muslim world, the Vatican was impelled to make the unprecedented move of inviting the ambassadors of 22 Muslim countries to Vatican to meet with the pope in order to mollify the offended Muslim sentiments. The meeting was frustrating. The pope kept on repeating the need for a bridge of friendship and dialogue between religions and civilizations without even alluding to his public statement shaking the very foundations of such a bridge.
There is no point in exacting a reluctant apology from the pope. His past points at his intolerance, bigotry and racism. The best strategy to deal with such a bigoted religious head is by severing all relations including diplomatic ties with the Vatican as long as he continues to be at the helm. I came to this conclusion based on the following factors:
In an article last month (Sept. 20), “Le Monde” said that in his statements abusing Islam Benedict XVI followed a mistaken philosophy in interacting with other religions, particularly Islam which is fundamentally opposite to the course taken by Pope John Paul II.
The French newspaper also made some disclosures that give an insight into the new pope’s approach to Islam. Soon after his investiture as the pope, Benedict XVI dismissed the official in charge of holding dialogues with the Muslims on the charge that he was more lenient than needed. The newspaper said further that the pope used to keep away from the dialogue between religions held in the town of Assizes in Italy, arguing that it threatened the dissolution of the Catholic personality.
The French “TV 2” channel’s correspondent in Rome said the pope himself wrote the provocative speech. The speech did not go through the official channels as is the normal practice in Vatican.
The New York Times reported that it was not for the first time that Benedict displayed his intolerance of Islam. He strongly objected to the Turkish attempt to join the European Union.
The pope refuses to offer an apology to the Muslim world because he believes that he is infallible. The concept of infallibility is a controversial notion held by the Catholic Church.
US President George Bush expressed his appreciation for the pontiff’s attempt to clarify his position with regard to the statement that provoked the Muslims.
The US leader said that the pope’s stand should not be interpreted as a clash between religions. On the other hand it is a clash between the murderers who employ religion as a cover for their crimes and those who believe in peace. No doubt Bush’s statement is an appreciation of the anti-Islamic stance taken by the pope and the neoconservatives’ hatred of Islam.
Pope Benedict XVI hates Islam and Muslims and thus adopts a line that is the very opposite of the policies of his predecessor Pope John Paul II whose moderate views earned respect from the followers of all religions.
An Italian journalist specialized on Vatican affairs, Sandro Magister, said the pope followed an impracticable strategy in his speeches which deprived him of his ability to contact with other religions in contrast to his predecessor Pope John Paul II.
A boycott of the pope would, presumably, bring an end to his bigotry — a bigotry that could lead to more religious clashes that the world does not need.
