Do you think that the Pope's remarks about Islam offensive or justified?

Question

I think the remarks were totally justified!!!

Answer 1

Absolutely justified.

Don’t you see the irony in Muslims being able to desecrate a Christian Temple in Jerusalem by spreading feces on images of Christ? But a Christian leader (the Pope) can’t remind people of what 14th century Byzantine emperor Manuel Paleolous II said about the profit Mohammad several hundred years ago. It wasn’t even the Popes own words or thought. He was repeating what Paleolous II supposedly said. . What’s with the hypersensitivity anyway?

The Muslims can dance in the streets; shout and yell; raise their fists all they want to but I do not believe the Pope owes Muslims an apology for anything.

Some have contended the terrorists are a form of radical Islam and a small minority of the faith. They say the large majority of Muslims are a peaceful people. I am beginning to wonder about these claims when I see the reported millions in the streets protesting what the Pope repeated.

Two faced or what? Is Islam a peaceful religion or a violence based religion? By what I am seeing and hearing, I would have to conclude the latter.

Answer 2

Of course they were not justified. They were offensive.

Tell me this, If the head of Germany today were to "QUOTE" Adolf Hitler... What would happen? You know damn well what would happen.. She would be asked to resign.

Or if the King of Saudi Arabia quoted Usama bin Laden... Again, you can imagine.

A person holding an important position should not do stupid things. The Pope should not have done that. Why quote something controversial like that then back away from it saying "ohhhh i was just quoting history".. Thats a sissy move. Pope John Paul was an honorable man, I guarantee you he would never do something like this.

Islam never forced people to convert. When the Muslims took over land from the byzantine CHRISTIANS they were very tolerant towards the people they conquered and thus they were seen in a favorable light. Or when Saladin conquered Jerusalem, he did not exact revenge for all the brutality the Christians showed when they took the city. History is filled with acts of Islamic kindness. WHEN THE PROPHET MUHAMMAD retook Makkah (the city that persecuted him, abused him, people stoned him) he did not kill one person! This is Islam, folks. Now you tell me how is that inhumane? The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was a kind, gentle man who hurt few people. Only time Muslims get violent is in war, and in war you better get violent.. or you get wiped out. But even in war, God has given us rules and regulation (for example, we CAN NOT kill civilians). Islam is a realistic way to live your life.

The Pope, as a religious learned man was misinterpreting Islamic teachings left and right. I was shocked to see such uneducated talk from a "educated" man.

Answer 3

I do not feel he was intending to make a statement about Islam as a whole. I believe he failed to make the point he intended to. I agree with the idea that violence does not lead to any gain, however, I do not agree with the general sentiment regarding Islam which appears to be present throughout the Pope's speech. While I don't think the Pope intended to say that all of Islam follows a belief in violent conversion of the infidels, he did not explicitly state that he was speaking of the sub-sect of Islam who does use violence. I can see where negative comments regarding Islam could be inferred from his speech.

I do, however, feel a violent response to any comment stating your group is violent is either counterproductive or affirming the truth.

Answer 4

He was quoting someone else.
This other person's words may be offensive, if they are not based on fact.

The emperors words were, he said: "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."

Benedict said "I quote" twice to stress the words were not his and added that violence was "incompatible with the nature of God and the nature of the soul". >

One might, however, question his motives in bringing this up.

I seem to recall from history that it was the Christians who first attacked the Muslims in the crusades without any provocation.

Answer 5

Justified! What he said was taken from an historical document. He calls a spade a spade and should not recant. The problem of today is the whole idea of being politically correct. John Paul II was that way and it accomplished nothing. Christ said, "I come not to bring Peace, but the sword." We should not continue in our "false" sense of security. Islam has one goal....to make converts of everyone and we need to have the backbone to speak the truth.

Answer 6

Justified going on historical events.

Answer 7

From what I've heard, they seem rather offensive, though I haven't heard the remarks in their entirety so I'm witholding judgement until I hear more about the context.

Answer 8

They are untrue, they are lies and thats what offends me. You see the Pope does not have the guts to debate the issue, consider both side perhaps have a Muslim there to respond to him, no like a coward he make a baseless statement with absolutely no evidence, and brainwashes the gulible christian auidence.

It is absolutely incredible that the Pope can support such a clam given the history of the Catholic Church, and Christianity in general. Moreover the Christian Claim that Islam was spread by the sword is ridiculous. Most of the orientalist historians that levelled this accusation against Islam where totally biased. Most modern historian reject this claim. Some points to bear in mind:

1. Opinion of historian De Lacy O’Leary. “Islam at the cross road” (Page 8): “History makes it clear however, that the legend of fanatical Muslims sweeping through the world and forcing Islam at the point of the sword upon conquered races is one of the most fantastically absurd myth that historians have ever repeated.”
2. Muslims rule in Spain for about 800 years.
3. 14 million Arabs are Coptic Christians. Muslims were the ruled Arabia for 1400 years.
4. More than 80% non-Muslims in India. The Muslims ruled India for about a thousand years.
5. Indonesia and Malaysia. Indonesia is a country that has the maximum number of Muslims in the world. The majority of people in Malaysia are Muslims. May one ask, “Which Muslim army went to Indonesia and Malaysia?”
6. East Coast of Africa. Similarly, Islam has spread rapidly on the East Coast of Africa. One may again ask, if Islam was spread by the sword, “Which Muslim army went to the East Coast of Africa?”
7. Thomas Carlyle. The famous historian, Thomas Carlyle, in his book “Heroes and Hero worship”, “The sword indeed, but where will you get your sword? Every new opinion, at its starting is precisely in a minority of one. In one man’s head alone. There it dwells as yet. One man alone of the whole world believes it, there is one man against all men. That he takes a sword and try to propagate with that, will do little for him. You must get your sword! On the whole, a thing will propagate itself as it can.”
8 Allah states in the Quran “Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from error” [Al-Qur’an 2:256]
9. Increase in the world religions from 1934 to 1984. An article in Reader’s Digest ‘Almanac’, year book 1986, gave the statistics of the increase of percentage of the major religions of the world in half a century from 1934 to 1984. This article also appeared in ‘The Plain Truth’ magazine. At the top was Islam, which increased by 235%, and Christianity had increased only by 47%. May one ask, which war took place in this century which converted millions of people to Islam?
10. Islam is the fastest growing religion in America and Europe. Today the fastest growing religion in America is Islam. The fastest growing religion in Europe in Islam. Which sword is forcing people in the West to accept Islam in such large numbers?
11. Dr. Joseph Adam Pearson. Dr. Joseph Adam Pearson rightly says, “People who worry that nuclear weaponry will one day fall in the hands of the Arabs, fail to realize that the Islamic bomb has been dropped already, it fell the day MUHAMMED (pbuh) was born”.

Answer 9

And you are a bigot and most uninformed.. Why doesn't the Pope speak of the atrocities of the Inquisition and the Crusades? The Crusades were the bloodiest time in history-all done by the Catholic Church. No religion can ever reach their height of killing and destruction.

Answer 10

I don't know why the Catholic Church does not issue a death warrant for the revolting comment from Islam that the Pope is just like Hitler, and Mussolini.
Especially since Muslims today are responsible for the lions share of violence, hatred, and murder in these last days.
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