Matt C. Abbott
Robert Spencer on Pope Francis' view of Islam
By Matt C. Abbott
From Crux (July 31):
I asked Spencer, who has written 15 books and numerous articles on various aspects of Islam, to comment on the pope's aforementioned remarks.
Spencer responded as follows:
Click here to read a related past column of mine about William Kilpatrick's timely book Christianity, Islam, and Atheism: The Struggle for the Soul of the West, published by Ignatius Press.
© Matt C. Abbott
August 1, 2016
From Crux (July 31):
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Pope Francis on Sunday defended his avoidance of the term 'Islamic violence' by suggesting the potential for violence lies in every religion, including Catholicism.
'I don't like to talk about Islamic violence, because every day, when I read the newspaper, I see violence,' Francis said, when asked about why he never speaks of Islamic terrorism or fundamentalism when condemning attacks such as the murder of a French priest last week, who had his throat slit by an Islamic terrorist as he was celebrating Mass....
'I believe that it's not fair to identify Islam with violence. It's not fair and it's not true,' he continued, adding that he's had a long conversation with the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, the Cairo-based Islamic university often described as the Vatican of the Sunni world.
I asked Spencer, who has written 15 books and numerous articles on various aspects of Islam, to comment on the pope's aforementioned remarks.
Spencer responded as follows:
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The pope is once again ignoring a simple distinction: while people of all faiths and backgrounds commit acts of violence, Islam is unique among world religions in having a developed doctrine, theology and legal system mandating warfare against unbelievers. Unless and until that is confronted, Muslims will continue to commit acts of violence against non-Muslims, including Christians.
The pope is doing the Christians of the Middle East and the world a grave disservice by obfuscating about the motivating ideology of attacks upon them, instead of confronting it and calling upon Muslims to renounce and reform Islam's doctrines of violence.
Click here to read a related past column of mine about William Kilpatrick's timely book Christianity, Islam, and Atheism: The Struggle for the Soul of the West, published by Ignatius Press.
© Matt C. Abbott
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