Pope Says Iraqi War Must Not Turn into 'Religious Catastrophe'

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  • Source:
    America Magazine: The Jesuit Review of Faith & Culture. 4/14/2003, Vol. 188 Issue 13, p5. 1/9p.
  • Additional Information
    • Subject Terms:
      WAR; RELIGION; IRAQ War, 2003-2011; JOHN Paul II, Pope, 1920-2005; ISLAM
    • Subject Terms:
      IRAQReport Available; INDONESIAReport Available; ROME (Italy); ITALYReport Available
    • Abstract:
      As the toll of death and destruction mounted during the second week of war in Iraq, Pope John Paul II repeatedly prayed for peace and said the conflict must not be allowed to become a 'religious catastrophe.' On March 29, addressing bishops visiting Rome from predominantly Muslim Indonesia, the pope said: 'War must never be allowed to divide world religions. I encourage you to take this unsettling moment as an occasion to work together, as brothers committed to peace, with your own people, with those of other religious beliefs and with all men and women of good will in order to ensure understanding, cooperation and solidarity. Let us not permit a human tragedy also to become a religious catastrophe.'