[CTRL] THE PAPAL ALLIANCE WITH ISLAM

[David Sutherland]

-Caveat Lector- THE NEW PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN THE PAPACY AND ISLAM In recent years Pope John Paul II has worked hard to woo Mecca to Rome. In May 2001 the pope made history by becoming the first Catholic leader to set foot into a mosque and participate in an  organized prayer service.  The symbolic meeting took place when the Pope entered the Umayyad Mosque in the Syrian capital of Damascus. This mosque has significance for both Muslims and Christians. For Muslims it is the oldest stone mosque in the world, while for Christians it is the alleged place where John the Baptist was buried.  The Pope led in Christian prayers, while his Moslem counterpart, Sheikh Ahmed Kataro, led in Moslem prayers. By this dramatic act of worshipping in a mosque, the Pope underlined his commitment to work toward a rapprochement with the Muslims. Twelve days after the horrors of September 11, 2001, the Pope renewed his commitment to work toward a new partnership with Moslems in his message to  the predominantly Muslim nation of Kazakhstan. The Pope declared: "'There is one God'. The Apostle proclaims before all else the absolute oneness of God. This is a truth which Christians inherited from the children of Israel and which they share with Muslims: it is faith in the one God, 'Lord of heaven and earth' (Lk.10:21), almighty and merciful. In the name of this one God, I turn to the people of deep and ancient religious traditions, the people of Kazakhstan."1 The Pope then appealed to both Muslims and Christians to work together to build  a "civilization of love":  "This 'logic of love' is what he [Jesus] holds out to us, asking us to live it above all through generosity to those in need. It is a logic which can bring together Christians and Muslims, and commit them to work together for the 'civilization of love'. It is a logic which overcomes all the cunning of this world and allows us to make true friends who will welcome us 'into the eternal dwelling-places' (Lk.16:9), into the 'homeland' of heaven."2 In his final prayer, the Pope again appealed for Christians and Muslims to work together side by side in fulfilling God's will: "And in this celebration we want to pray for Kazakhstan and its inhabitants, so that this vast nation, with all its ethnic, cultural and religious variety, will grow stronger in justice, solidarity and peace. May it progress on the basis in particular of cooperation between Christians and Muslims, committed day by day, side by side, in the effort to fulfil God's will."3  In spite of the catastrophic events of September 11th, the Pope is still committed to work toward a partnership with the Muslims. The basis of this partnership is the belief that Catholics and Muslims worship the same God of Abraham. This belief is clearly expressed in the new official Catechism of the Catholic Church, which speaks of the new Catholic relationship with the Muslims in these terms: "The plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place amongst whom are the Muslims; these profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind's judge on the last day."4 The Catechism continues affirming  that "The Church has also a high regard for the Muslims. They worship God, who is one, living and subsistent, merciful and almighty, the Creator of heaven and earth, who has also spoken to men. They strive to submit themselves without reserve to the hidden decrees of God, just as Abraham submitted himself to God's plan, whose faith Muslims eagerly link to their own. Although not acknowledging him as God, they venerate Jesus as a prophet, his virgin Mother they also honor, and even at times devotedly invoke. Further, they await the day of judgment and the reward of God following the resurrection of the dead. For this reason they highly esteem an upright life and worship God, especially by way of prayer, alms-deeds and fasting."5 It is evident that the Catholic estimation of Islam has undergone a fundamental change from the religion of "infidels" to that of believers who worship the same God of Abraham.  While in the past the Catholic Church denounced Islam as an evil religion to be suppressed by crusades (Holy War), today  she welcomes and affirms Muslims as having the same faith of Abraham as herself. The driving force behind this tactical reappraisal of Islam is the determination of the Vatican to bring about a New World Order under the "moral and religious" leadership of the Pope. This goal was expressed at Vatican II which declares:  "The encouragement of unity is in harmony with the deepest nature of the [Roman Catholic] Church's mission."6 The profound danger facing the professed Christian world today is to naively accept the Pope's claim to be the official spokesman for Christ on earth -- a deception that is deeply embedded  in the new thrust to create a global coalition of nations on the basis of a politically constructed god which can be adapted to different religious systems. The determination  of the Pope to develop a partnership with Muslims stems from the simple fact that their 1.3 billion members outnumbers the 1 billion Catholic members. By acknowledging the legitimacy of the Islam faith, the Pope is facilitating the Muslims' acceptance of his role as the leader of a future New World Order. The Fatima's Appearances In their informative paper on "Islam and the Vatican," Richard Bennet and Robert Nicholson mention a highly emotional episode which has contributed to building a common ground between Rome and Mecca, namely, the apparitions of our Lady of Fatima, in the town of Fatima, in Portugal. Since Fatima was the name of Muhammad's daughter, attempts have been made to explain Fatima's apparitions as Muslim's phenomena.7 Bennet and Nicholson write: "To quote a Catholic news organization, 'Our Lady of Fatima is really Fatima, daughter of the Prophet Mohammed. On October 23, 1995, Iranian television began running stories that the apparitions in Fatima, Portugal in 1917 were religious phenomena of Muslim origin."8 "Islam teaches that men can achieve favor with God by what a person does. On the Fatima site in Portugal on May 13th, 2000, the Pope proclaimed a message that could be readily accepted by both Muslims and Catholics. 'Pray, pray much and make sacrifices for sinners; many souls go to hell because they have no one to pray and make sacrifices for them'...."9 Heroic deeds to win the approval of God seem to appeal to crowds, including the devout Muslim; it is, however, according to some, light years away from the true Gospel. The Pope's message, and the message and veneration of heroism in Islam are a total negation of the Gospel, "not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us....(Titus 3:5)"   NOTES: 1.  Homily of the Pope, in Astana, Kazakhstan, on Sunday, 23 September 2001. Accessed 9/28/2001. http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/homilies/2001/documents/hf_jpii_hom_20010923_kazakhstan_astana_en.html 2. Ibid. 3. Ibid. 4. Catechism of the Catholic Church, (San Francisco, CA, 1994) Paragraph  841. 5. Vatican Council II: The Conciliar and Post Conciliar Documents, No. 56, Nostra Aetate, Austin P. Flannery, ed. (Grand Rapids, MI, 1975 & 1984) Vol. I., pp. 739-740. 6. Ibid., No. 64, Gaudium et Spes , Vol. I, Sec. 42, p. 942. 7. Richard Bennett and Robert Nicholson, "Islam and the Vatican: A New Partnership sith Muslims," at www.users.bigpond.com/farel/wfs3gu.html, p. 3. 8. Ibid., pp 3-4. 9. www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_p.../hf_jp-ii_hom_ 20000513_beatification-fatima_en.htm accessed 6/1/00. <A HREF="">www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. 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