The Pope is said to be worried over a possible war on Iraq
Posted on 02/10/2003 7:17:40 AM PST by RCW2001
Retired French Cardinal Roger Etchegaray is expected to tell the Iraqis they should co-operate fully with UN weapons inspectors.
He will be travelling by air on Monday to Jordan, from where he will fly on to Baghdad on Tuesday, carrying a personal letter from Pope John Paul II to President Saddam Hussein.
The Vatican has already had assurances from Iraq that the cardinal will be received by the president himself.
The Pope's aides say he remains profoundly concerned over the possibility of war against Iraq and especially for the possible effects of the war upon the Iraqi people, 3% of whom are Catholics.
A Vatican statement said Cardinal Etchegaray's mission was to show the Pope's concern over the situation and ask "Iraqi authorities to reflect seriously on the need for an effective international co-operation based on justice and international law aimed at guaranteeing the people [of Iraq] the supreme good of peace".
Cardinal Etchegaray still plays a prominent behind-the-scenes role inside the Vatican and has travelled numerous times to the Middle East on Vatican business, says the BBC's Rome correspondent, David Willey.
It will be his third diplomatic mission to Baghdad.
He first went to the Iraqi capital in 1985 when he helped to arrange an exchange of prisoners of war between Iran and Iraq while they were at war.
Then in 1998, he visited Baghdad to determine if a papal visit was feasible.
That never happened.
Diplomatic moves
The pope has has previously said war against Iraq would be a "defeat for humanity." In the past weeks, the Vatican has been involved in a flurry of diplomatic initiatives to try to avert a conflict.
The pope held talks with German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer on Friday and they made a joint appeal for peace.
Later this week, the Pope is to meet Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz at the Vatican and next week he will be seeing UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan.
On Sunday, he made a dramatic appeal for world prayer to avert war and called for renewed efforts to avoid a war.
"One must not resign oneself, almost as if the war were inevitable," he said.
| 10 Feb 2003 14:21 Iraq would welcome Pope peace trip - Iraqi envoy |
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ROME, Feb 10 (Reuters) - Iraq would welcome a visit by Pope John Paul in the hope that it would promote peace and stave off a U.S.-led military attack, the Iraqi ambassador to the Vatican said on Monday. Ambassador A. Amir Alanbari said the Baghdad government would have "no hesitation" in issuing a formal invitation and added that Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tareq Aziz may tell the pope at a meeting on Friday that the door to Baghdad was open. "I think a visit to Iraq by the pope would be a great blessing to the Iraqi people and to the cause of peace throughout the world," the envoy told Reuters in an interview. |
Do you worship the United States?
The land of Planned Parenthood
He knows much better than you (believe me) in which Muslim country Christian are treated better or worse. To make it clearer for you - compare the situation of Christians in Iraq (or Syria, also ruled by secularist BAATH) with the situation in our "friend" Saudi Arabia.
After the regime change in Baghdad the position of Christians ther will deteriorate, but those who want this war will not give a hoot (and Pope knows it too).
Good measure of involvement into Muslim extremism is the fact that while Al-Queda and Saudies supported Muslim terrorists in Yugoslavia, Baghdad gave support to Belgrade.
So what is your support for hope and freedom of Christians in Saudi Arabia versus in Iraq? Do you give a hoot if the status of Iraqi Christians will become the same as it is amoung our "friends" Saudies? Or are you just proposing that another group of Christians flees their homeland to come to America? You see, Pope cares for Christians in the Middle East and he knows in which countries they do better or worse.
The burden of proof is on YOU my friend.
Can you substantiate ANY Vatican press conferences "as a matter of great urgency" beseeching World leaders to step into murderous "frays" in the Sudan and elsewhere?
Has the Pope unequivically held specific murderous thugs like Arafat (the Pope's friend) accountable and responsible for his actions?
And suddenly NOW the Vatican feels an obligation to play "peace-maker" and ask the Madman Hussein to lay down his arms?
Gimme a break -- it's only more style over substance, and words instead of deeds.
And this only makes the Vatican MORE accountable for standing by idly twiddling its thumbs.
The Pope has actually been to Sudan. Have you? The Pope has a personal representative working on the strife in Sudan. Do you? What have been your actual deeds with regard to Sudan, not your meaningless gum flapping.
Yes, the Holy See has constantly throughout the years used diplomacy of the type you ask to help build a more just world in general, and the Sudan in particular. In fact, many times throughout the 90's, the only source of information on a weekly or daily basis in the press for me concerning the great tragedy occurring in Sudan was from the Holy See. Problem is, the Pope can only beseech as you say. Political world leaders (as well as the press) can and do ignore him. While the primary duty of the Pope is preaching Christ to the world and the spiritual life Christ's Church, within those parameters he has tried valiantly to do as you ask. You do need to research more, although I can't blame you for not knowing about it - the Western press tends to ignore the Pope.
Has the Pope unequivically held specific murderous thugs like Arafat (the Pope's friend) accountable and responsible for his actions?
Your being silly here. What do you expect? The Pope to put him in jail? Find us all one valid source of the Pope validating the murderous actions of people like Arafat. Don't confuse diplomacy with validation either - our own government deals with Arafat and his ilk also.
And suddenly NOW the Vatican feels an obligation to play "peace-maker" and ask the Madman Hussein to lay down his arms?
This is, and has always been, standard MO for the Holy See. What if the Pope could get Hussein to do just that. That is what we as a nation are asking for. Not that it's likely to happen, but geez, wouldn't it be nice to not have to go to war and have innocent lives of American soldiers and Iraqi's taken from the world while breaking Hussein's reign of terror? Why do you think use of the words "suddenly" and "NOW" are appropriate? There is nothing sudden or impending in how the Holy See has been acting.
You seem to confuse the Holy Father with a Political civil leader of a nation. Your immature whiney vitriol is beginning to sound like those liberals who have all but accused the Pope of being responsible for WWII.
And abortion, contraception, divorce, and loose sex. Don't forget to include that in your red-white-and-blue monologue.
Most of the world associates us more with Madonna than with Thomas Jefferson. Sad, but true.
Problem is, the Pope can only beseech as you say. Political world leaders (as well as the press) can and do ignore him."
It may be the lesson taught in the 'Kumbaya' handbook, but mere "diplomacy" from the Vatican is not nearly enough my friend to "help build a more just world."
The Pope need to make impassioned pleas with comviction to a billion Catholics around the world and wield the influence we know he has.
"What do you expect? The Pope to put him in jail? Find us all one valid source of the Pope validating the murderous actions of people like Arafat."
ONE valid source?? It's not exactly a secret Arafat and the Pope are friends for heaven's sake.
Some of us expect the Pope to chastise a murderer and ask that he cease from his activities -- NOT continue holding court in the Vatican over a quiet cup of tea after the fact.
Don't you find anything strange about this?
"You seem to confuse the Holy Father with a Political civil leader of a nation. Your immature whiney vitriol is beginning to sound like those liberals who have all but accused the Pope of being responsible for WWII."
Yes, the Pope in fact IS the spiritual "leader" of a billion Catholics who take their cue from him -- do they not?
BTW, you haven't the foggiest notion of the dynamics concerning the Catholic Church and events from WWII -- fact is it's not very pretty, though playing ostrich is much easier than handling the truth.
Me?? Who am I -- the Pope??
Since the Pope is arguably the most influencial leader in the world (besides the President) it certainly can suggested the Pope and Vatican work a lot harder to mobilize one-billion Catholics and use its clout and prestige around the world to bring to the fore the constant suffering. Why is this so hard??
Incredibly enough, even Bono appears to have out-hustled the Vatican in influencing public opinion and addressing crises (AIDS) when it come to Africa.
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