Soft landing, smooth start
So far, things have gone well for Pope Benedict on his arrival and first day’s itinerary in Ankara, Turkey.
Benedict was greeted at the airport by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who until the last minute had said he did not have time to receive the pope.
Good political move, since Turkey got in trouble yesterday with the European Union over its treatment of Cyprus, which jeopardized Turkey’s already shaky bid to enter the EU.
The two chatted in private inside a terminal building, exchanged gifts and then Erdogan emerged to announce the pope had indicated he supported Turkey’s decades-long bid to join the EU.
Well, let’s straighten that out.
Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi later issued a statement clarifying that the Holy See has no say in EU membership but “views positively” the pursuit by Turkey. This is a reversal for Benedict, who as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger opposed Turkey’s inclusion because it was a Muslim nation “in permanent contrast” with a majority Christian continent.
To further clarify, Fr. Lombardi…
released a brief statement repeating that the Vatican had “neither the power nor the specific political task” of gaining Turkey’s admission to the Union in a time of apparently growing opposition in Europe to Turkey’s accession.
And that’s a key point to keep in mind here, that there’s plenty of opposition in Europe to Turkey’s admission to the EU, and that opposition is increasing.
But Lombardi said that the Vatican “views positively and encourages the road of dialogue and of moving toward integration of Turkey in Europe on the basis of common values and principles.”
That says what it says — diplomatically — and nothing more and nothing less. But it is being trumpeted by the world’s media as a turnaround by the Pope, as that LA Times article above reports it.
The shift on the EU is significant because the 25-nation bloc next month decides whether to continue talks with Turkey, which has fallen behind in key political and economic reforms it is obliged to undertake.
They’re also giving fairly prominent coverage of the Pope’s firm call for religious freedom and reciprocal respect. Which, of course, is the consistency of Benedict.
Hoping to soothe anger over what many Turks see as an anti-Islamic bias, the pope called for “brotherhood” and healthy dialogue between Muslims and Christians. He repeatedly etched out the common ground shared by the two faiths.
“The best way forward is via authentic dialogue between Christians and Muslims, based on truth and inspired by a sincere wish to know one another better,” the pope said, “strengthening the bonds of affection between us in our common wish to live together in harmony, peace and mutual trust.”
But he did not back away from the message central to his world view, choosing a speech to the Ankara-based diplomatic corps to denounce violence that is cloaked in religious fervor and to make a plea for broader religious freedom especially for minority communities.
The media are still beating the drum of ‘the Pope’s insulting remarks about Islam’ and how offended the Muslims still are. Which begs the questions of how much those media are stoking whatever anger is there, why they aren’t examining the anger instead, and especially why the media aren’t using their considerable reach and power to inform instead of sensationalize. This LA Times snip is just one example of what nearly all of them are doing.
Benedict enraged much of the Muslim world with a speech he made in September at the University of Regensburg, Germany, in which he linked Islam to violence and quoted a Byzantine emperor who called the religion founded by the prophet Muhammad as “evil and inhumane.”
But…
Striking a much more diplomatic pose, Benedict praised Turkey as a “bridge between East and West, between Asia and Europe, a crossroads of cultures and religions.” He told reporters aboard his flight to Turkey that his visit was a mission to promote dialogue and the search for understanding and reconciliation “in this difficult moment in history.”
Some of this reporting is good. But about that address in Regensburg nearly two and a half months ago, those repeated remarks are distorted and gratuitous. Whether or not the media ever get the message of what Benedict said in Regensburg, make sure you do.