Egypt's top cleric accuses pope of meddling

An Egyptian policeman in a riot vehicle observes as Coptic Christians begin a noisy protest at night near the bombed church, in Alexandria, on Sunday.

Egypt's top Muslim cleric yesterday criticized Pope Benedict XVI's call for world leaders to defend Christians as interference in his country's affairs, the official MENA news agency reported.

The call, following a deadly car-bombing targeting a Coptic church in Alexandria, in northern Egypt, was "unacceptable interference in Egypt's affairs," Ahmed el Tayeb, the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, the oldest Islamic seat of learning, told reporters.

"I disagree with the pope's view, and I ask why did the pope not call for the protection of Muslims when they were subjected to killings in Iraq?" Tayeb said at a news conference.

The Vatican rejected the accusation, saying the head of the Roman Catholic Church had shown solidarity with the Coptic community as well as concern for the consequences of the violence for the Christian and Muslim population.

"Therefore we cannot see how the pope's approach to bring everybody to accept non-violence can be considered meddling," ANSA news agency quoted Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi as saying.

"I think there are misunderstandings in communication but I don't think we should play up the imam's statement."

Lombardi said the Vatican referred to "an attack against a Christian church and therefore we are concerned about Christian minorities, but that does not mean that we will justify or minimize violence against the faithful of other religions."

Benedict, at a New Year's Mass at the Vatican, had appealed for the "concrete and constant engagement of leaders of nations" to protect Christians in the Middle East, in what he termed a "difficult mission."

In the wake of rising tension and "especially discrimination, abuse and religious intolerance which are today striking Christians in particular, I once again launch a pressing appeal not to give in to discouragement and resignation," he said.

Tayeb, who renewed his condemnation of the New Year's Eve church bombing that cost 21 lives, said Azhar, the highest institute in Sunni Islam, would form a joint committee with the Coptic Church to resolve disputes between the communities.

The committee, which should begin its work in two weeks, will "discuss reasons for the deterioration (in Muslim-Copt ties) and propose appropriate solutions," he said.

Copts make up about 10 per cent of Egypt's 80 million people and have been the targets of sectarian attacks.


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Vatican Adds Nuance to Pope’s Condom Remarks

ROME — The Vatican on Tuesday issued its most authoritative clarification on Pope Benedict XVI’s recent remarks that condoms could sometimes be used for disease prevention, saying that the pope in no way justified their use to prevent pregnancy.

The statement appeared to be a sign of the lingering confusion — and, perhaps, Vatican infighting — over the remarks. Approved by Benedict himself, it said his words had been “repeatedly manipulated” and did not “signify a change in Catholic moral teaching.”

In a book published last month, Benedict said that although condoms were not “a real or moral solution,” in some cases, they might be used as “a first step in the direction of a moralization, a first assumption of responsibility.” He cited as an example a male prostitute who might use a condom so as not to spread disease.

AIDS activists, especially in Africa, where H.I.V. is rampant, welcomed the pope’s comments, as did some moral theologians. But some conservative Catholics, especially in the United States, feared that it would be misinterpreted as a move to condone condom use.

Tuesday’s statement did not go beyond or contradict two previous clarifications by the Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, on the same issue. But it came directly from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the most powerful Vatican office, in what experts said could be a sign of internal Vatican tensions — or a response to criticism.

“I have never seen a communiqué from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith that explains the words of the pope after the fact,” said Paolo Rodari, a Vatican expert at Il Foglio, an Italian daily newspaper. “I think it’s unique. And it demonstrates how many complaints and serious criticism the Vatican has received.”

By publishing “Light of the World,” a book of interviews conducted by a German journalist, Peter Seewald, Benedict effectively did an end run around the Vatican’s communications structures — and also around the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which oversees all doctrine.

The Vatican’s new statement said that Benedict’s comments had been misinterpreted and manipulated by those who effectively saw them as permission for more widespread use of condoms, which like all birth control goes against church teaching.

In the book’s German and English editions, the text cites the example of a male prostitute, implying homosexual sex, in which a condom would not be a form of contraception. But the Italian edition uses the feminine form of prostitute.

Last month, Father Lombardi said that the Italian translation was an error, but added that the pope had specifically told him that the issue was not procreation but rather disease prevention — regardless of gender.

In Tuesday’s statement, the Vatican did not touch the gender question. But it said, “The idea that anyone could deduce from the words of Benedict XVI that it is somehow legitimate, in certain situations, to use condoms to avoid an unwanted pregnancy is completely arbitrary and is in no way justified either by his words or in his thought.”

Mr. Rodari said the prefect of the congregation, Cardinal William J. Levada, the highest-ranking American at the Vatican, had most likely not been shown the book before it was published since it consisted of interviews, not official church doctrine.

Father Lombardi said that he could not comment on whether Cardinal Levada had seen the book before publication, but that it “went without saying” that Benedict had approved Tuesday’s statement.

Issued in six languages, Tuesday’s statement, “Note of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on the Trivialization of Sexuality Regarding Certain Interpretations of ‘Light of the World,’ ” was a masterpiece of Vatican nuance. It used technical theological language, while the pope had used a conversational tone in his book.

It said that condom use by a prostitute for disease prevention could not be considered a “lesser evil” because prostitution is “gravely immoral,” and that “an action which is objectively evil, even if a lesser evil, can never be licitly willed.”

Yet it added that “those involved in prostitution who are H.I.V. positive and who seek to diminish the risk of contagion by the use of a condom may be taking the first step in respecting the life of another even if the evil of prostitution remains in all its gravity.”

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WikiLeaks: Pope Helped Win Sailors' Freedom

The latest US embassy cables released by WikiLeaks suggest the Pope helped win the release of 15 British sailors captured by Iran and held for a fortnight in 2007.



Captive British sailors return home

Another cable reveals that the British ambassador to the Vatican said "Anglican-Vatican relations were facing their worst crisis in 150 years" after the Pope encouraged Anglicans to convert to Rome over the issue of women priests.

Evidence of apparent links between the head of the Roman Catholic church and religious fundamentalists in Tehran come from a "scene setter" for President Obama's then forthcoming visit to Rome, compiled in June 2009 by Julieta Noyes, deputy chief of mission to the Vatican.

Her dispatch explains that the Vatican claims "an ability to act as an intermediary" in international crises involving Iran.

Noyes tells Obama: "The Vatican helped secure the release of British sailors detained in Iranian waters in April 2007."

According to The Guardian, which has published the cables, British diplomats in London said he did issue a message but was not necessarily key to the release.

In other cables relating to the Pope, the British ambassador to the Vatican is said to have feared a backlash against Catholics in the UK after the Pope's message to Anglicans to convert over female priests.

Francis Campbell, the British ambassador to the Holy See, said: "Anglican-Vatican relations were facing their worst crisis in 150 years as a result of the Pope's decision."

His comments came after Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams was a guest of honour at a dinner with Vatican officials.

The cable, from US ambassador Miguel Diaz, said Mr Campbell believed Pope Benedict XVI had put the Archbishop in an "impossible position".

It said: "The Vatican decision seems to have been aimed primarily at Anglicans in the US and Australia, with little thought given to how it would affect the centre of Anglicanism, England, or the Archbishop of Canterbury.

"Benedict XVI, Campbell said, had put Williams in an impossible situation. If Williams reacted more forcefully, he would destroy decades of work on ecumenical dialogue; by not reacting more harshly, he has lost support among angry Anglicans.


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Benedict heralds possibility of resignation if his health fails

Benedict XVI has said he could become the first Pope to voluntarily resign in more than 700 years should he become physically or mentally incapacitated.

The papacy has traditionally been seen as a job for life, with pontiffs expected to remain at the helm of the Church until death


In a book of interviews, the 83-year Pontiff challenged centuries of Catholic Church tradition by saying that he would not hesitate to relinquish his post if no longer felt "physically, psychologically and spiritually" up to the job.

The papacy has traditionally been seen as a job for life, with pontiffs expected to remain at the helm of the Church until death. The last pontiff to resign willingly was Celestine V in 1294.

But in the book, "Light of the World: The Pope, the Church, and the Sign of the Times", Benedict said: "Yes, if a Pope clearly realises that he is no longer physically, psychologically and spiritually capable of handling the duties of his office, then he has a right and, under some circumstances, also an obligation, to resign."

Pope Benedict is considered overall to be in good health but broke his wrist last year after slipping and falling while on holiday in the Italian Alps.

He admitted, however, that he is often taxed by his papal duties and frequent overseas visits.

"Of course, I am sometimes concerned and I wonder whether I can make it even from a purely physical point of view," he said in the book, which has so far attracted most attention for his remarks on the use of condoms being permissible in exceptional circumstances.

Earlier this year it was revealed that his predecessor, John Paul II, signed a document in 1989 saying that would resign if he became incurably ill, but unlike Benedict he ordered that the possibility remain a secret during his lifetime.

In the end, he remained in office until his death in 2005, saying it was for the good of the Catholic Church.

Benedict made 24 new cardinals at the weekend, 10 of them Italian, leading to speculation among Vatican observers that the next Pope could be from Italy.

The most likely contenders include Dionigi Tettamanzi, the Archbishop of Milan; Angelo Bagnasco, the head of the Italian bishops' conference; and Archbishop Gianfranco Ravasi, the president of the pontifical council for culture.



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