Monday October 30, 2006

I've Been Thinking:

On Sunday Pope Benedict XVI went on record condemning the kidnapping of Israeli soldiers and prayed for their return.
Or did he?

This is what Pope Benedict said at St Peter's Square in Rome at Sunday Mass:
"From several sides I am getting requests to intervene in favor of people who are victims of kidnappings in different countries around the world."
"While I reiterate the firmest condemnation of this crime I remember in prayer all the victims, their families and friends."

I think the Pope wanted to thread the needle between the Israeli victims and the Arabs who are so sensitive to being singled out as aggressors - but there can be no moral relativism here, and the Pope knows that better than anyone.
Couching the prayer in the way he did now parallels Arab prisoners with the Israeli kidnapped victims. Palestinian prisoners are held because of their actions - they were planning something or they did something, a court either convicted them or will try them.

That is absolutely not the case with the three Israeli soldiers.
The Pope knows better.