For sure, Dawn, you must have read this, too.



Turkey trip 'defines Benedict papacy'

Pope Benedict has returned to Rome at the end of his first visit to a predominantly Muslim country having apparently successfully defused criticism that he views the Islamic faith as "violent".

The BBC's Rome correspondent, David Willey, who followed the Pope's journey to Turkey, reflects on an historic week.

The 79-year-old Pope scored a considerable diplomatic success.

Popes usually go down in history more for what they do than for what they say.

The reign of the 16th-Century Pope Sixtus V is still remembered for his architectural transformations of the city of Rome.

Pope John XXIII is remembered for having called the Second Vatican Council. And Pope John Paul II is remembered as the most travelled Pope in history

In Istanbul, we have, I believe, witnessed some defining moments of the papacy of Benedict XVI.

He reached out to Muslims by praying facing towards Mecca in a famous mosque.

And he reached out to Orthodox Christians, seeking to heal a rift that has lasted more than 1,000 years by holding joint services and giving a joint blessing to their faithful by the side of Patriarch Bartholomew, their spiritual leader, on the holiest day in their church calendar.

BOLD GESTURE
Pope Benedict followed up on promises he had previously made at the Vatican with some very striking and eloquent gestures.

The Pope won the praise of Turkey's former religious affairs director Mehmet Nuri Yilmaz for facing Mecca when he prayed in silence inside Istanbul's Blue Mosque.

The visit to the mosque, an extra stop inserted in the Pope's programme only at the last minute, appears to have gone down extremely well with his hosts

It was a bold gesture, considering that this was only the second time in the history of the papacy that a pope from Rome has entered a Muslim place of worship.
 
I was also present when the late Pope John Paul II broke with precedent by entering the great Umayyad mosque of Damascus during his visit to Syria five years ago.

But that occasion was more a courtesy visit than an opportunity for deep prayer.

Benedict closed his eyes and moved his lips in prayer for what seemed like two very long minutes after being shown around this famous gem of 17th-Century Ottoman architecture.

It is known as the Blue Mosque because of the intricately patterned and coloured tiles which decorate part of the interior of the building.

The moment was "even more meaningful than an apology" for the Pope's much criticised remarks about the Prophet Muhammad in September, said the Mufti of Istanbul, Mustafa Cagrici, the Pope's guide during the visit.

PROTOCOL CALL
The religious and historical symbolism of the Pope's journey to Istanbul has been striking.

Turkey's former capital city straddles the narrow waterway dividing Europe from Asia.

One of its dominant monuments is the broad-domed former Christian church of Hagia Sophia, built by the Roman Emperor Justinian 1,500 years ago.

For centuries this was the largest church in the world. After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, Hagia Sophia became a mosque; now it is a museum.

The Pope therefore had to respect the secular nature of this former holy place, which still contains a mosaic more than 1,000 years old depicting a Byzantine Emperor prostrating himself before a seated figure of Christ.

Yet a prayer here would have been considered out of place.
It would have offended his hosts, the government of the secular Turkish state.

Benedict respected protocol. But 10 minutes later, under the glare of television lights, he was praying at the side of an imam inside the Blue Mosque, only 500 metres (yards) away from Hagia Sophia.

EUROPEAN UNITY
Whether Pope Benedict's visit has brought Turkey any nearer to full membership of the EU remains a moot point.

Certainly Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan made the most of a private remark to him by the Pope, when the pontiff stepped off his plane in Ankara, to the effect that he welcomed the negotiations now going on in Brussels.

This was interpreted by Mr Erdogan as full papal support for Turkey, and duly reported as such in the local press.

But a Vatican official later put a perhaps more realistic spin on the Pope's remarks.

He pointed out that the Vatican - which incidentally is not a member of the EU - normally takes no stand on purely political issues, while supporting the basic ideals and goals of European unity because of the continent's common Christian roots and traditions.


Courtesy of:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6199350.stm

Benedict XVI: Religion Is Not a Vehicle of Hate
Urges Promotion of the "Spirit of Assisi"



NAPLES, Italy, OCT. 21, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Violence in the name of God can never be justified, Benedict XVI told a gathering of interreligious leaders in Naples, urging them to promote peace and the "spirit of Assisi."

Pope's appeal today resounded in the archdiocesan seminary of Capodimonte on the first day of the 21st International Encounter of Peoples and Religions. The meeting, organized by the Community of Sant'Egidio in Naples until Oct. 23, has as its theme "Toward a World Without Violence: Religions and Cultures in Dialogue."

"Faced with a world lacerated by conflicts," the Holy Father said, "where at times violence is justified in the name of God, it is important to re-emphasize that religion can never be a vehicle of hate; never, in the name of God, can we justify evil and violence."

"On the contrary," he added, "because they speak of peace to the human heart, religions can offer precious resources for building a peaceful humanity."

Benedict XVI met with various participants in the meeting, including Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew I; the Anglican archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams; one of Israel's chief rabbis, Yona Metzger; the rector of the Al-Azhar University in Egypt, Ahmad Al-Tayyeb; and the Imam of the United Arab Emirates, Ibrahim Ezzedin.

Understanding

The Holy Father confirmed that the Catholic Church intends "to continue along the road of dialogue to promote understanding among different cultures, traditions and religious wisdom."
"I ardently desire that this spirit spread more and more, especially where the tensions are strongest, where freedom and respect for the other are denied and men and women suffer the consequences of intolerance and misunderstanding," the Pope added.

He continued: "This meeting turns our minds back to 1986, when my venerable predecessor, John Paul II, invited major religious representatives to pray for peace on the hill of St. Francis, highlighting in those circuмstances the intrinsic link that unites an authentic religious attitude with a living sensibility for this basic good of humanity.

"In 2002, after the dramatic events of Sept. 11 of the previous year, the same John Paul II again called religious leaders to Assisi to ask God to stop the grave threats to humanity that were looming, especially because of terrorism.

"In respect of the differences of the various religions, we are all called to work for peace and to an active commitment to promote reconciliation between peoples. It is this authentic 'spirit of Assisi' which is opposed to every form of violence and abuse of religion as a pretext for violence."

That is fact about the names and his reason for doing so. Now, someone explain why you defend Benedict saying these words to the world.

Thanks for that.

My pleasure, Joan.  God speed, today and always.