Pope decries Christians' killings in Iraq, India

[Coventina]

Source: Associated Press

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Benedict XVI decried the killing of Christians in Iraq and India and appealed on Sunday for political and religious leaders to defend them.

In India, anti-Christian riots and rampages by Hindu extremists have claimed at least 38 lives since late August, destroying dozen of churches and leaving as many as 30,000 people homeless.

Attacks against Christians and other minorities in Iraq had tapered off amid a drastic decline in overall violence nationwide before some 13,000 Christians were chased away by threats and extremist attacks in the northern Iraqi city of Mosul in recent weeks, according to the U.N. Sunni extremists are believed to be behind the campaign.

The pope reiterated a call for "religious leaders and to all men and women of good will about the tragedy that is developing in some Asian countries, where Christians are victims of intolerance and cruel violence, killed, threatened and forced to abandon their homes and wander about in search of refuge."



Read more: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iEZsh0GYKDXfAdQI4OsO8IHLC0agD9427DNG0

[saltpoint]

1. In my count there were men, women, and children of other religious

traditions who also have been victims of violence and destitution.

Violence and destitution are not faith-specific.

[RC]

2. Maybe if the Christians would treat non-christians as per the Golden Rule, that maybe, just maybe

there might not have been a problem in the first place?
But Christians do not have that reputation, now do they? Following the Golden Rule, that is. Turning the other cheek, live and let live...

[clear eye]

4. Christians are a tiny minority in India

and mostly live in small communal villages. They don't bother anyone. The killing started when leaders of extremist Hindu parties started blaming them for the unsolved murder of a prominent Hindu religious figure, even though all investigators said they believed Maoist guerillas were the perpetrators. The investigators either couldn't determine exactly who was involved or were intimidated from making arrests, then the Hindu fundamentalist rabble rousers capitalized on the anger and confusion. Most of the Christians killed were burned alive in their tiny homes.

Your assumptions are way wide of the mark, and reflect more on the way you treat others (condemning them w/o any knowledge) than on Indian Christians.

[QC]

12. Can't believe it took more than an hour for someone to blame the victims.

Usually someone steps up and does the job in mere minutes.

[JonQ]

21. I wonder what other groups of victims would recieve the same treatment

?

Christians are being killed, clearly they deserve it for {insert generic evil thing done by a different group of christians many years ago}

Now, is the same true for palestinians, hindus, kurds, hutus, ethnic tibetans, native americans, jews, albanians, aborigines, african americans, homosexuals, muslims, buddhists and every other group that has been specifically targeted for violence for perceived aggression by others bearing a vague resemblance to them?

If not, what makes christians so special?

[ohio2007]

3. Dancing, partying 'banned' in holy city ( guess which country ? )

A CLERIC'S call to ban partying and dancing in the Shiite holy city of Karbala has triggered a heated debate among residents, just when they had begun living without fear of hardline militias.

snip
Cleric calls for ban on dancing, partying
Some welcome the move in the holy city
Other say it's a return to "dark old days"

http://www.news.com.au/common/imagedata/0,,6318304,00.jpg
Bands banned ... an Iraqi boy looks at music idol posters and gadgets at a music store in Karbala / AFP / No Source
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,24555173-663,00.html

The pope reiterated a call for "religious leaders and to all men and women of good will about the tragedy that is developing in some Asian countries, ......

You preaching to the choir again pope ?

[La Lioness Priyanka]

5. if the pope had any moral authority left, maybe his opinion would matter

but after the sorry way the catholic church treated john kerry and interfered with american politics, one wonders why any literate person listens to him.

in this specific instance, religious intolerance from any religion, is unacceptable and condemnable.

[Azlady]

18. Pope John Paul II

was the Pope in 2004, not Pope Benedict XVI... just to clarify

[booley]

6. When Hindu militants killed Muslims was that bad too?

What about Iraqi death squads that have targeted gay people and differing sects of Islam?

Sorry but i have grown so cynical of Christian leaders who have no problem with intolerance until they are the targets of it. Then all of a sudden it's a horrible thing that must be addressed immediately.

Like The Christian right in this country, that only began to care about China's police state when Christian missionaries were being persecuted. That other faith groups and secular reformers were treated far worse never occurred to them.

And no not all Christians do this. I understand that. But enough do that it's an issue to me.

Here's the thing. The Pope is right in that we should not tolerate intolerance towards Christians. But we also should not put up with prejudice and oppression of anyone, including people we disagree with.

To speak for justice, you have to be willing to speak up for people who are different then you.

[clear eye]

8. Don't know about this Pope, but previous popes in modern times have

often called for peaceful coexistence of religious groups as part of a call for world peace. Of course they usually travel to places that have Catholic communities, but sometimes it is only other groups that are the combatants and they generally advocate peace. The Pope is not the UN, and his purview is, at least partly, the well-being of his Church's adherents. Why shouldn't the head of a Church comment on the persecution of its members? Did you have the same problem when Israel's Chief Rabbi speaks out against persecution of Jews in Poland, for instance? Sorry. I just don't get the negativity.

[booley]

16. This goes way beyond this pope

This problem goes far beyond the Pope. Like I said, the Christian Right only seems to be bothered by China's police state until China started harrassing missionaries.

I mean, has Israel Chief Rabbi seemed to ignore the plight of persecuted groups in Poland? Gay people don't exactly have it easy as well. IF so, then yes. (and if not then no)

That's where my "negativity" comes from. This kind of exclusion masquerading as compassion. Just because it doesn't happen all the time or to all groups doesn't mean it doesn't happen.

Compassion is about loving all people, not just those most like one's self.

[glinda]

17. This Pope is much more

conservative than the last one. He is much more vocal and has promoted Evangelizing Catholicism. By doing this he does in a sense promote a backlash. I was raised traditional Roman Catholic and I am having difficulty with Pope Benedict. There was a more philosophical approach by Pope John Paul II. Not this guy. He is all about Dogma. I am not attempting to justify violence as I abhor violence but I think the Pope lacks the appropriate tact in his leadership.

[clear eye]

19. I get what you say about the Pope. It's just

that I don't get an outpouring of venom when any person of influence condemns something awful, on the grounds that that person hasn't condemned every other example of evil that comes to mind. Also the killing of the Christians did not take place in the context of a war which does sort of make it stand out.

Let's create an analogy w/i our own culture. Say some sociopath lived in a neighborhood regularly visited by Jehovah's Witnesses. Say said sociopath got tired of their evangelizing and started killing them and burying them in his backyard. Say the situation was discovered and the head of the Jehovah's Witnesses made a statement condemning the killing of members of his faith. Would any DUers respond to the story by saying that the leader had no standing condemning anyone unless he condemned every imaginable evil individually as well and also stopped the practice of door-to-door evangelizing? Even with the proviso that "I abhor violence"?

I think when people won't give someone credit when they do something right, they lose credibility in their criticism of that person. Maybe my feelings have something to do with having last week read the details of the situation in a Reuters story, but I am finding it difficult to relate to people whose first reaction to this news isn't to be grateful that someone is attempting to raise the priority of this ongoing nightmare in India.

[glinda]

24. I think we first must understand

the whole story about what is going on in India. What lead to it, what are the results and what then can be done constructively.

[panzerfaust]

7. SORRY, my mistake

It's like I was always being confused when MSM was talking about "The American Taliband" - I always thought they meant Chainey, Rumfilled, Asscraft ... So I thought the Pope was upset by the killing that Christians have done in both countries, and are now doing in Iraq (as in, religion of choice in the US Army?).

Likely one million Iraqi dead, from our Christian War of Choice there; From our Crusade (which * flat-out originally, and correctly, termed it)

But, I know, we had to bring them Freedom, or pay them back for the Twin Towers, or prevent the use of WMD on New York, or something: Thus was born Operation Iraqi Liberation!

Onward Christian Soldiers!

India?

What goes around, comes around. How many Indians (actual Indians, not just mistakenly so-called - but none-the-less also butchered - by the Christians in the New World) have been killed on the sub-continent since the Soldiers of the Lord set foot (and sword, musket, and cannon) there in the 16th century?

I cannot conceive of how any of the problems of the future can be addressed by any of the childish and savage superstitions of the past.

The Christer, The Hindu, The Muslim each will happily, when strong enough, force others to their belief ('toleration' of 'People of The Book' within Islam, is just that, toleration and limitation). Even if one of these main overarching superstitions is embraced, that is not enough; you must believe in the Right subsection of delusion. Do you think the Pentecostals have anything but scorn for Catholics or mainstream Protestants?

When Christ, through His Church lead by The Pope (his anointed voice on earth), ran the Western World, the blood of infidels, unbelievers, and heretics ran in deep rivers across the continents.

It is tragic, what the Hindu's are doing to the Christians now in India: But to hear the Pope complain of it, is like hearing Cheney complaining of corruption in government.

The Roman Catholic Church brought religious intolerance to a fine and murderous art, and, given the chance, she would again.

The gods are dead, slain by the light of reason, and religion needs to follow them into the grave.

Sadly though, I think I see them stirring in the black pits of ignorance and hatred. They may live yet again, to bring darkness and misery to the land.

Yes, Sarah, I am looking at you ...

[Dems4me]

9. I have a problem with people's intolerances of others -period- not matter what the form.

Even though this isn't a perfect world, we all should have the right to a peaceful co-existance
with out fear.

[clear eye]

20. Thank you.

And a belated welcome to DU.

[entanglement]

10. A corrupt, regressive and genocidal organization like the Catholic Church

has very little moral credibility when it comes to such matters. The reactionary and treacherous role played by this institution is unmatched in the history of humanity.

Ratzinger-Benedict could start by apologizing for the innumerable atrocities committed by his brand of superstition. Or express a tiny bit of shame for the pedophile priests in his church. Or stop telling gullible people in sub-Saharan Africa to avoid condom use - which is practically murder given the extent of the AIDS pandemic. Or stop worsening inter-religious relations in nations already wracked by severe religious violence.

[AlphaCentauri]

22. isn't it good that Protestant churches are just small franchises

who can't be guilty of any atrocities

[Orsino]

11. Little late to decry killing in Iraq.

Or were these the only lives worth defending--and after the fact?

[QC]

13. Ratzinger and JPII both strongly condemned Bush's adventure in Iraq from the beginning.

I never imagined I would be defending Ratzinger or the Vatican, but it's simply a lie to say that they never condemned the killing in Iraq until now.

[Orsino]

15. You mean *at* the beginning.

Forgotten in the years since, it would seem.

[AlphaCentauri]

23. The American public didn't pay attention to the Pope

B*sh was re-elected

[Bragi]

14. Yes Pope, Christians have indeed killed far too many Iraqis

I join with the Pope in decrying the number of Iraqis killed by Christians.

- b