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I can only say that I believe God places in our midst the
Pope who is right for the times in which we live. I loved Pope John Paul II as a Father, but I can only, at this time, love Pope Benedict as a distant Uncle. God will in His time resolve my inner conflict but what cannot be resolved is the reality that these are two very distinct personalities made from different molds. Yet both men of God, brilliant men, good men burdened by the weight of a Church with many cracks, but a sound foundation. God bless and keep writing,
faholo
posted by
faholo
on September 26, 2006 at 5:40 PM
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I'm still mulling this one over...
...on the one hand I note the sharp departure from Pope John Paul II's approach, which was to see Islam as an ally against the growing secularization of the world -- and also to secure peace by not inflaming the passions of religious differences. On the other hand, I wonder whether or not raising the point about the lack of reciprocity on the part of Islamic nations -- in terms of religious freedom for Christians, as Muslims enjoy in "Christian" societies -- and raising the point about a belief system that is (at best) ambiguous on the question of sanctioning forced conversions and violence against "nonbelievers", and that posits the nature of God as absolutely transcending reason needs to be talked about in these early years of the 21st century?
I honestly do not know. I'll continue to wrestle with this...
But there are consequences to such public musings and one should take responsibility for making Christians in Islamic lands even more unsafe by a choice of words and examples that were undiplomatic to make the points above....
posted by
writersjourney
on September 19, 2006 at 10:09 PM
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Most of the speech, though well done, was ignored...
while one small part of it was highlighted by nearly everyone. I can't help but notice that by-in-large the Muslim's reaction to his quote of a fourteenth-century Byzantine Christian emperor only proved his point.
posted by
RiFDaws
on September 19, 2006 at 11:27 AM
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Araial, Freedom of speech is a great gift, but remember,
"faith works through love" Have a blessed day!
posted by
MountainClimber57
on September 19, 2006 at 10:22 AM
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Freedom of speech goes out the window and censorship is the name
of the game.
posted by
Ariala
on September 19, 2006 at 9:19 AM
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