Pope punts on American airstrikes in Iraq

CNN ^ | 08/18/2014 | Daniel Burke, CNN

[SeekAndFind]

Asked if he approved of the American airstrikes that began earlier this month against Muslim militants in Iraq, Pope Francis held back his weighty moral imprimatur, refusing to support or denounce the military campaign.

"I can only say this: It is licit to stop the unjust aggressor," the pontiff said Monday during a press conference on the plane back to Rome from South Korea. "I underline the verb: stop. I do not say bomb, make war, I say stop by some means."

But in an apparent reference to the United States, Francis said "one nation alone cannot judge" the best means of stopping "unjust aggressors" like ISIS, the group that calls itself the Islamic State.

Those decisions should be made by the United Nations, the pontiff said.

[SeekAndFind]

“I am not saying ‘bomb’ or ‘make war’, but ‘stop him’.”

[Old Teufel Hunden]

"I say stop by some means"

I love the peacenics.... Stop by some means but they never quite have a good alternative. If he was up on sinjar mountain, starving and about to get his head whacked off, I wonder if he would feel that there was some other way except the use of force.....

[DTogo]

Francis is certainly no Urban II.

[MeganC]

"I do not say bomb, make war, I say stop by some means."

Ah, I suppose he means we should all write a tersely worded letter to the UN General Assembly asking them to condemn ISIS for doing something about 2/3 of the General Assembly approves of.

So much for being infallible.

[SeekAndFind]

He wasn’t speaking ex-cathedra...

[SeekAndFind]

Ah, I suppose he means we should all write a tersely worded letter to the UN General Assembly asking them to condemn ISIS for doing something about 2/3 of the General Assembly approves of.

[GOP_Party_Animal]

People love to go out of their way to misunderstand ex-cathedra.

[ardara]

I wonder what would have happened at the Battle of Lepanto if Francis had been Pope rather than St.Pius V?

[DTogo]

I wonder what would have happened at the Battle of Lepanto if Francis had been Pope rather than St.Pius V?

Mullah Francis

[Hugin]

No wonder Muslims feel safe beheading Christians. The head of the largest Church can’t even bring himself to say those scumbags should be killed before they kill again. The jihadis must be laughing about what a bunch of wimps Christians are. Any other religion would be up in arms, literally.

[353FMG]

Please don’t try to explain — not worth the effort.

[silverleaf]

then let the United Nations sends its pilots and warplanes, Francis

and you send in your legions, too

Oh wait

[DManA]

Ex-soapbox:

The killing is intolerable. But nothing justifies using violence.

But it’s intolerable, Still, no violence.

So, are we clear? The situation is unalterable. But remember no violence.

But it’s intolerable.

[rbmillerjr]

lol.