Pope: "Oops."

For those of you who missed it, our newest pontiff Joseph Ratzinger (a.k.a. “Joey Ratz,” a.k.a. Pope Benedict XVI, is all over the news. The top story at BBC World News is entitled, “Pope ‘meant no offence’ to Islam.

 

What is all this about? Though quite-old, Joey is nevertheless new at being the Voice of God on Earth. While visiting his homeland (where as a young lad he frolicked in the countryside of Bavaria with his comrades in the Hitler Youth), he gave a speech in which he “quoted a 14th century CE Christian Emperor who said the Prophet Muhammad had brought the world only ‘evil and inhumane’ things” (BBC World News). The Vatican immediately made the following statement: “It certainly wasn’t the intention of the Pope to carry out a deep examination of jihad (holy war) and of Muslim thought on it, much less to offend the sensibility of Muslim believers… It is clear that the Holy Father’s intention is to cultivate a position of respect and dialogue towards other religions and cultures, and that clearly includes Islam” (Federico Lombardi, chief Vatican spokesman).

 

The BBC has fallen prey to a common media mistake, that of not giving context to quotation. However, the rest is not encouraging. The segment of Joey’s speech reads as follows:

 

(START QUOTE) I was reminded of all this recently, when I read... of part of the dialogue carried on - perhaps in 1391 in the winter barracks near Ankara - by the erudite Byzantine Emperor Manuel II Paleologus and an educated Persian on the subject of Christianity and Islam, and the truth of both. In the seventh conversation...the emperor touches on the theme of the holy war. Without descending to details, such as the difference in treatment accorded to those who have the "Book" and the "infidels", he addresses his interlocutor with a startling brusqueness on the central question about the relationship between religion and violence in general, saying: "Show me just what Muhammad brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." The emperor, after having expressed himself so forcefully, goes on to explain in detail the reasons why spreading the faith through violence is something unreasonable. Violence is incompatible with the nature of God and the nature of the soul. "God," he says, "is not pleased by blood - and not acting reasonably is contrary to God's nature. Faith is born of the soul, not the body. Whoever would lead someone to faith needs the ability to speak well and to reason properly, without violence and threats." (END QUOTE)

 

There are so many issues with this quote that I don’t know where to begin. The foremost, to my mind, is not even the irony of a X-ian emperor saying this to a Muslim in the context of the crusades. The most startling is Matthew 10:34: “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth: it is not peace I have come to bring, but a sword. For I have come to set son against father, daughter against mother, daughter-in-law against mother-in-law; a person’s enemies will be the members of his own household…” etc. But let’s forget for a moment the emperor and pontiff’s abilities at casuistry, and just think about the appropriateness of this quotation.

 

The only word that comes to mind is, “Oops.” Too bad Joey Ratz can’t say that, now that he is the Holy See. But then, if I’m a good Catholic, apparently I have to think that it is really God who is saying this, no? That it is God’s desire to piss off Muslims around the world, no?

 

Yikes. I think I’ll stick with Siva. He’s much cooler than these other gods (He dances all the time. Literally.), and with his multiple arms and destruction/creation portfolio, he could definitely kick both their asses.