Posted on 08/11/2014 2:12:29 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
Pope Francis has joined with Christians facing genocide in Iraq and Syria, calling upon the world to make an armed response to the Islamic State. He has asked the world to "stop these crimes" and called for the use of "a professional, well-equipped army."
You know a situation is bad when a pope calls for an armed response. Pope Francis, widely appreciated as a practical and realistic man, is not just calling for a cease-fire or negotiations. Instead, he is inviting an armed response to the terrorism of the Islamic State.
Such a call is virtually unprecedented for a pontiff in modern times, but our age is an extraordinary one and the Islamic State has no interest in a bargaining table. Instead, the Islamic State is bent on genocide and barbarism, ruthlessly exterminating anyone who opposes them.
On Sunday, Pope Francis said he held "dismay and disbelief" over what is happening in Iraq. He called the Islamic State fighters terrorists and said there was a need for "a professional, well-equipped army." "The situation is going from bad to worse," he warned.
Meanwhile, Pope Francis was not the only cleric calling for swift and decisive action to end the genocide in Iraq. The Episcopal Vicar of Iraq, Canon Andrew White, managed to visit the town of Qaraqosh under cover and personally assess the situation in that community following Islamic State capture.
His words are chilling. "Today, Qaraqosh stands 90 per cent empty, desecrated by the gunmen of the fanatical Islamic State terror group now in control. The majority of the town's 50,000 people have fled, fearing that, like other Christians in this region, they will be massacred.
"The militants, in a further act of sacrilege, have established their administrative posts in the abandoned churches."
(Excerpt) Read more at catholic.org ...
Don’t wait for Obama to chime in.
So, is this the green light for a new Crusade? When I was in HS, our mascot was a Crusader!
I read of some Kurds who captured members of ISIS, there will be no need for any POW camps.
RE: I read of some Kurds who captured members of ISIS,
These ISIS folks are as good as dead. Peshmerga show no mercy to their enemies.
Those “cute Swiss Guards” are ALL professional soldiers, and dedicated Catholics.
And they’re very good with guns.
Good for Pope Francis. bh0 definitely won’t do more than his current pin pricks. A Christian volunteer crusader army?
Yes, and while you're laughing uncontrollably at their outfits, they'll cut you down, pronto ...
And then there was the Albigensian Crusade. The Albi believed everything that tied humanity to the world of the flesh was evil, including vaginal (but not anal or oral) sex, and even eating. There were never too many true believers (perfecti) because their asceticism meant certain death at a very young age with no heirs. But they also attracted a larger group of supporters who were promised propitiation for their sins by the perfecti.
The Catholic Church expected an easy war to suppress the perfecti and “liberate” those influenced by them, but was surprised by the counter-offensive, led by nominally Catholic kings. The response by the German mercenaries was so brutal that according to legend which is certainly false, but propagated because it seemed to represent the attitude, the German warrior supposedly instructed, “kill them all (Catholic allies of the Albi and the Albi themselves); Let God sort them out.” IN the end, 20,000 people were supposedly killed, although this is likely an exaggeration.
The Crusaders was provoked, too.
I have seen a number of stories which attribute this quote to Chaldean Patriarch Louis Sako of Baghdad, articles dated August 7.
"The central Iraqi government appears incapable of protecting its citizens," THE PATRIARCH said, "and there is no cooperation or coordination with the regional government."
"The Islamic State fighters, he [Sako] said, are taking advantage of the power vacuum to impose their rule and terror. There is a need of international support and a professional, well-equipped army. The situation is going from bad to worse."
etc.
Check on the news tab at google with keywords
All of these articles apparently trace back to one source: a story by Cindy Wooden of the Catholic News Service (LINK). All of them use "Pope" in the headline, but all of them attribute the "armed" quote to Chaldean Patriarch Louis Sako of Baghdad, who is the Catholic Bishop of Baghdad.
Good job of sorting this out.
Then it must really be bad.
“For the one in authority is Gods servant for your good. “
Tell that to the Jews who lived under Hitler. Oh that’s right, they’re DEAD. On that point Paul was dead wrong.
An important announcement by Pope Francis
http://www.kath.net/news/47035
11 August 2014, 11:00
Vatican diplomat: military intervention in Iraq
Such an approach is “at this moment may be necessary,” said Archbishop Silvano Tomasi, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations agencies in Geneva, “Vatican Radio” on weekends.
Vatican City (kath.net/KNA) A Vatican’s top diplomat has expressed cautious approval for military intervention in Iraq. Such an approach is “at this moment may be necessary,” said Archbishop Silvano Tomasi, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations agencies in Geneva, the station “Radio Vatican” at the weekend. It was equally urgent, however, that those countries which (IS) supported the terrorist group “Islamic State” tacitly with weapons and money, identified and were being taken to set their help, so Tomasi on Saturday.
Pope Francis had urged the international community on the same day in a widely through the short message service Twitter message, “to protect all victims of violence in Iraq.” In another Twitter message, he wrote four hours (German channel) later: “not defeated violence is with more violence.”
“Speaking of which ... Has there ever been aPope who fought in the Crusades?”
Since the First Crusade was in 1099 and the Second one was in 1145, there was no internet for them to learn about the Muslims, or did you think popes had their own through some miracle?
And, if they HAD learned from some infrequent travelers there was no way to alert an army or two and no way to produce enough ships to convey them to the battles. C’mon!
At the very least the anti-crusaders have to now admit that if the Muslims of yore are anything like the present-day strain (word chosen carefully) it may have justified.
The answer is “NO”.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.