MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Francis resumes dialogue in the Vatican with the higherst authority of Sunni Islam
Al-Azhar froze meetings in 2011 after taking offence at some comments made by Pope Benedict: “repetitive and negative statements” about Muslims. 
At the start of the half-hour meeting on Monday, the Pope said that the fact it was taking place at all was significant: “the meeting is the message”. Francis has met the grand imam of Cairo's al-Azhar mosque after a five-year pause in dialogue between the Roman Catholic Church and the mosque, the highest authority of Sunni Islam. Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb visited the Vatican en route to a Paris conference involving Muslims and Catholics.
Al-Azhar froze meetings in 2011 after taking offence at some comments made by the previous pope. It said Pope Benedict made “repetitive and negative statements” about Muslims.
At the start of the half-hour meeting on Monday, the Pope said that the fact it was taking place at all was significant. “The meeting is the message,” he said.
Relations between Al-Azhar and the Vatican soured in 2006 after Pope Benedict quoted a 14th Century Byzantine emperor in remarks taken by some Muslims to imply that Islam was a violent religion.
Pope Benedict repeatedly said the words did not reflect his personal views, but he stopped short of issuing a clear apology to Muslims.
On Monday, a Vatican spokesperson said that the meeting between Sheikh Tayeb and Pope Francis had been “very cordial”. The leaders exchanged gifts, embraces and discussed conflicts and tensions between Christians and Muslims in the Middle East.
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Read all commentsAnd this article displays two basic truths. First, that Islam IS a violent religion. Although it is probably more accurate to refer to it as a cult. One only has to read the many exhortations to kill “non-believers” and, as another example, the “rights” given to men to abuse women. Second, the hubris of Islam in that it is unable to accept criticism.
May 24th, 2016 - 07:20 am 0One could write at length about the activities of the Taliban and Daesh, both of which have undertaken actions that are both horrific and inhuman. It would not be unreasonable, in any conflict, to treat the members of both organisations as not human. But there are easier examples. In the United Kingdom, some of these fanatics, i.e. muslims, have taken to attempting to impose their “values” on the wider population. It is unfortunate that, in the pursuit of political correctness and “human rights”, both government and the police have forgotten the pursuit of law and order. There is no room in this country for groups who attempt such things. To the extent that, irrespective of where they were born, members of these groups should be deported once their prison sentences have been fully completed. It is, after all, akin to finding a maggot in the apple of British society.
Pope Benedict was right, and right not to grovel and offer an apology for telling the truth. I see no point in Pope Francis having such a meeting. Neither religion is going to make any accommodation to the other. And if Francis believes that Christianity is the true faith and Roman Catholicism the one expression of that faith, why is he expending his efforts on seeking a rapprochement with one of the leaders of a “religion” whose sacred texts exhort its followers to destroy Francis's, and all other non-Muslim, adherents?
May 24th, 2016 - 12:58 pm 0Sooner or later there will be a re-run of the Christians vs the 'Musselmen'
May 24th, 2016 - 01:56 pm 0With a bit of luck these two deluded factions will kill each other, just like before.
I have no problem with that as long as they leave the rest of us in peace.
Stupid bastards the lot of them.
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