I personally have a slight disagremeent with Benedict, no disrespect to him personally. I take issue with his statement --- I RESPECT ISLAM.
I agree with this statement from James White of Alpha and Omega Ministries :
"Please keep this in mind: we must respect the truth by accurately representing, to the best of our abilities, the views of those with whom we disagree. I seek to portray truthfully the views of Muslims, Mormons, Roman Catholics, etc., because of my commitment to truth as it is embodied in Christ, not because of some post-modern, feel-good "respect" for false religions. I see little evidence that the Old Testament prophets "respected" Baal or Molech, let alone the religions that prompted their worship.
So I would not join the Pope in saying "I respect Islam." That is a far cry from saying I do not respect certain Muslims, and, equally far from saying I cannot or will not treat a Muslim with respect. Sadly, people muddle these categories. Modern shallow thinkers assume that if you wish to show respect for a Muslim you must respect Islam. That is untrue. A Muslim is made in the image of God, and though he follows a false religion, he is still due respect due to the fact that he bears the image of God. Of course, some men are worthy of more respect than others. The wild-eyed terrorist who knows nothing but the hope of seventy virgins in heaven but who cannot give evidence of the slightest knowledge of the views of others does not deserve respect. The reasoned Muslim who seeks to portray accurately my beliefs and engage them in dialogue and debate is another case altogether. And of course, there is an entire spectrum between these two extremes."
I have wondered about the respect statement also. It could be that he said it in a different language with a slightly different meaning, or is using Islamic logic that it is permissible to deceive in order to prevail in the long run.
This Pope is pretty sharp, and has managed to start a converstion on the moral and logical justifications for using violence to promote one's religion.
It is something that must be done for civilization to muddle through this challenge of one major religion that was charged by its founder to spread the faith by the sword.