Vatican paper raps Sri Lanka on Israeli aid (correction)

Catholic World News ^ | 12/30/04

[B Knotts]

Vatican, Dec. 30 (CWNews.com) - The following is a corrected version of a story that appeared on CWNews.com earlier this week, in which a crucial error in translation caused a serious misinterpretation of the news. CWNews apologizes for the error.

Vatican, Dec. 28 (CWNews.com) - The Vatican newspaper has denounced a decision by Sri Lanka to reject emergency aid offered by the Israeli government. Sri Lanka declined the Israeli aid because it would have been furnished by a military team.

Calling for "a radical and dramatic change of perspective" among people "too often preoccupied with making war," L'Osservatore Romano chastised the government of the stricken Asian nation for putting unnecessary restrictions on an Israeli offer to furnish medical help.

The Vatican paper observed that in what "should be a time for unconditional solidarity," some world leaders seem incapable of escaping a "small-minded approach that restricts their horizons." The suffering caused by the tsunami has created "a mass of deaths, across borders," L'Osservatore observed. The fact that the devastation swept across different societies, cultures, and nations should help to reinforce the universal perspective, the paper suggested.

[B Knotts]

Ahem.

[B Knotts]

Correction PING

[livius]

Thanks for the correction. When I saw the Italian version - after the fact - I saw what had happened. The sad thing was that it was even slightly believable (which I attribute to the anti-Israel leftists holed up in the Vatican).

[Slump Tester]

Then the dumb SOB's don't need any of our money either.

[Jaded]

An error in translation? I'm shocked, shocked I tell you! Next time I will jump on the band wagon earlier, so I won't be alone. /so

[Thorin]

>>>>>>>Thanks for the correction. When I saw the Italian version - after the fact - I saw what had happened. The sad thing was that it was even slightly believable (which I attribute to the anti-Israel leftists holed up in the Vatican).<<<<<<<<

The sad thing is that there are a large number of posters willing, even eager, to believe anything bad abiout the Catholic Church.

[Sursum Corda]

Thank you for posting this. I wonder if all those who used the original/incorrect story as an occasion to attack the Catholic Church will have the good graces to retract their statements.

I agree that certain officials in Rome have waged common cause with Middle East terrorists, and that criticisms of this extreme bias are most justified.

Perhaps the next Pope pay more attention to administration and reigning in such out of control individuals.

Unfortunately, the current Pontiff has been much too quiet on this issue.

Sursum Corda

[Racehorse]

Then the dumb SOB's don't need any of our money either.

They are accepting Israeli aid, including non-military personnel.  Since the country is primarily Buddhist, has diplomatic relations with Israel, and the IDF team would not have traveled to Tamil Tiger territory, I don't quite understand the objection to the IDF contingent.  But, from Haaretz:

A far smaller team landed in Sri Lanka on Monday night, headed by four doctors from Hadassah University Hospital, Ein Karem in Jerusalem. The team was carrying medicine and baby food.

The doctors - who specialize in rescue operations, trauma and pediatrics - were also checking the viability of setting up a field hospital in the area, and advised Israel to send a larger team, such as the one Sri Lanka rejected.

"We will advise Israel and the Foreign Ministry... to send something more massive," said Dr. Avi Rivkind, director of Hadassah's trauma unit. "We will try to use our... broad experience in dealing with terror attacks and rescuing masses to help in this disaster as well."

[In veno, veritas]

I always get confused between the nominative and accusative case.

[OldFriend]

Rather than blaming, so called translation, they ought to simply apologyze for attacking Israel before getting the facts.

No apologies are required by those who reacted to the Vatican's original story.

IMHO

[shrinkermd]

A year ago to the day of the Indonesian tragedy a massive earth quake hit Iran. Seemingly, the Islamofascists are facing not only a shifting and destruction of the Islamic state, but, also, a shifting of the tectonic plates.

I wish all Christians, including the Vatican, would learn it is best to actualize and encourage what you are for rather than to criticize and demean those you are against. Ad hominem attacks and attacks on specific political systems are seldom as effective as touting simple Christian belief and charity.

In the meantime the Vatican wins the Falwell award for the stupidest comment of the year.

[B Knotts]

Did you read the above correction? The Vatican newspaper never attacked Israel. A mistranslation of the Vatican newspaper's story by Catholic World News (not a Vatican publication) caused this whole misunderstanding.

[B Knotts]

Hello? Did you read the correction above?

[Petronski]

The whole kerfuffle was a mistranslation? Is that what this means?

[Petronski]

Color me embarrassed, in the extreme.

[B Knotts]

Look further down on this thread. They're still attacking the Vatican, and not even bothering to read/comprehend the correction.

[Petronski]

Seems the whole thing was a mistranslation. (!)

[B Knotts]

Yes. Catholic World News mistranslated the original article. That is what I had begun to suspect when I looked at the article in Italian, and now they have 'fessed up.

[Petronski]

Well, let's ping as many people as we can so this gets cleared up for the record. I'm very sorry for assuming the worst.

[Kerfuffle]

It takes a real man to admit that he was wrong... (sarcasm alert).