Posted on 03/05/2005 11:43:35 PM PST by nickcarraway
Rome, Mar. 04 (CWNews.com) - The authoritative Jesuit journal Civilta Cattolica has published an essay denouncing religious intolerance and "Christianophobia," and urging government action to protect religious believers from adverse discrimination.
The Civilta Cattolica article, written by the American Jesuit Drew Christiansen, argues that religious intolerance is on the rise in many countries, including the US. Government officials have been slow to respond to attacks on religious belief, which have grown more frequent since the 1990s, Father Christiansen argues, in an article that appears in the March 5 issue of the journal.
The Jesuit author argues that Christians are subjected to abusive treatment in many countries, while their faith is regarded as a threat to political stability. Religious intolerance is sometimes disguised through "the manipulation of the idea of religious liberty for political ends," he adds. Under the influence of "dogmatic secularism," political leaders and media outlets have created a public atmosphere in which religious believers are excluded from political debates, under the mistaken belief that religion is a divisive influence.
Father Christiansen suggests that UN leaders should carefully analyze the issue of religious tolerance. Noting that popular fears of religion have been increased by the worldwide campaign against terrorism, he argues that responsible political leaders should distinguish between resistance to terrorism and religious intolerance.
The article in Civilta Cattolica reflects a concern that has been voiced by Vatican officials in the past. Archbishop Giovanni Lajolo, the Vatican's "foreign minister," remarked in December 2004 that the war against terrorism should not be used as a pretext for hostility to religious faith. Archbishop Lajolo, too, has denounced a rise in open hostility toward the Christian faith in public life.
A pro-Christian Jesuit? Who'da thunk it?
Of course, who'd of thunk we'd get to the point where we'd be surprised by a pro-Christian Jesuit?
A good rule of thumb upon meeting a Jesuit is to ask, "Are you a good Jesuit, or a bad Jesuit?"
How about, "do you know what a Novena is?"
They don't like EU rule..wait till they get a taste of Mohammed's yoke.
In which Seminary was this Jesuit educated ; - )
Indeed. This Jesuit is seriously at risk of getting his a** kicked by his Provincial. He came dangerously close here to defending Catholicism.
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