The Crescent And the Cross
I came by this article in Asia Times that looks at how the late Pope John Paul II, regarded Islam and Moslems and how his death has led Catholic voices sound the alarm about the coming Islamicization of Europe. The article goes further to point at some of Pope Benedict XVI standpoints when it comes to Islam and Moslems. I found the article not really convincing and a bit disturbing and I am really eager to know more about the new Pontiff's position on Islam as well as Judaism. (Via Arts & Letters Daily)
posted by Hannibal | 9:52 AM
3 Comments:
This is really troubling if we have to accept all what is said about Pope Benedict XVI without close scrutiny to the facts and I believe media is playing a dirty role in providing negative accounts of the Pontiff's views on several issues.Let's wait and see.
First of all thank you for those enlighting thoughts and for taking the time to do some research on the subject. I have some reserves though: first on how muslims tend to mix religion with politics, I can't ignore the fact that in some moslem countries religion is the engine of the State but in some other countries secularism is the rule and the separation between the State and religion is even found in their constitutions. Take for example the case of Tunisia, a north african country, and you will find that even though Islam is the religion of the State, there's no interference with politics. I should explain here that in Islam we don't have such a high religious authority or establishment like the Church in Christianity. Yes there's a religious clergy but it's role is limited and it doesn't have the power of the State. You may think of Iran where the ayatollahs hold the power but this is an exception due to many historical, civilizational and cultural factors.
Second, I don't agree with the fact that there are many moslem terrorists for religious reasons, though I admit that you didn't generalize. Terrorism is not linked to one religion or faith or race and I am sorry to say that there are christian terrorists too who use religion to accomplish political gains, I can mention here, the problem in Northern Ireland and the conflict between Catholics and Protestants,what do you think of the IRA's paramilitary wing? aren't these terrorists? or freedom fighters?, Terrorism is a very complicated issue given the fact that it transcends, borders, nationalities, races, faiths, etc I don't ignore the fact that there moslem extremists and fundamentalists who have nothing to do with the real nature of Islam and the teachings of Islam but we should bear in mind that those groups are but a marginalized minority and they will never succeed.
Sorry for being a bit enthousiastic about the subject but I am someone who believes in tolerance, moderation and dialogue for they are the true bases of Islam. I hope we will continue this enriching discussion in the future on other issues.
Your comments are always welcome!
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