Jesuit Priest Says Pope Benedict Was Wrong About Islam

Would Fr Körner like to explain to the myriads of Christians martyred by the Muslims exactly how Pope Benedict was wrong?

From LifeSiteNews

By Gaetano Masciullo

Father Felix Körner called Pope Benedict XVI’s characterization of Islam as irrational ‘a factual error.’

A Jesuit theologian has accused Pope Benedict XVI of a “factual error” in his 2006 Regensburg address, claiming the pope mischaracterized Islam as irrational and misjudged how deeply his words would provoke Muslims worldwide.

In an interview published August 27 with the German Catholic News Agency, Katholisch.de reported, Father Felix Körner, S.J. – a priest and Islamic studies scholar – argued that Benedict characterized Islam as irrational and violent during his 2006 address at the University of Regensburg, and that this “was a factual error. But that error then brought about something good,”

According to the Jesuit, the former pope underestimated the worldwide impact his words would have and the extent to which they could be perceived by Muslims as provocative.

Körner rejected the idea that Islamic theology can generally be described as irrational, arguing instead that it is “extremely rational.” However, Katholisch.de recalled that Benedict’s address prompted international outrage and, in some places, violent Muslim demonstrations.

At the same time, Körner argued that the violence following the speech led to a “more intensive dialogue” between Christians and Muslims, according to the German outlet. Islamic scholars initially responded to Benedict with a letter. When that letter received no answer, a broader initiative known as “A Common Word” followed in 2007, declaring common ground between Islam and Christianity and addressed to numerous Christian leaders. According to Körner, that initiative contributed to the creation of the Catholic-Islamic Forum.

Catholic and Muslim theologians, Körner claims, have established that both traditions refer to the same God as the creator and “consummator” of the world.

Important differences, however, remain. Körner identified the status of Muhammad as one of the continuing points of dispute between Catholicism and Islam. He specifically warned that it is “unwise” for Catholics to recognize Muhammad as a prophet. According to the Jesuit theologian, acknowledging Muhammad as a prophet would also require accepting his proclamation as the word of God. Such a position, he said, would mean that Jesus Christ could no longer be understood as “the decisive turning point in history.”

In his 2006 address, properly titled “Faith, Reason and the University: Memories and Reflections,” Benedict argued that Christian faith is inseparable from logos – reason, intelligibility, and the divine Word – and warned that both Christianity and modern culture suffer when reason is confined to what can be empirically measured. He defended the historic synthesis between biblical faith and philosophical reasoning, rejecting modern attempts to “de-Hellenize” Christianity.

The controversy centered around Benedict quoting a 14th century dialogue between Byzantine Emperor Manuel II Palaeologus and a Persian scholar, including the emperor’s remark that Muhammad brought “things only evil and inhuman,” such as the command to spread faith by the sword.

Benedict later insisted he cited the passage to illustrate that violence contradicts the nature of God, adding that the emperor’s comments did not reflect his own view of Islam or the Koran. Nevertheless, many Muslims perceived the quotation as an endorsement of an anti-Islamic judgment, sparking protests worldwide.

Among the most controversial outcomes of Catholic-Islamic dialogue stands the 2019 Document on Human Fraternity, signed by Pope Francis – himself a Jesuit – and the Grand Imam of al-Azhar in Abu Dhabi. The declaration calls for universal brotherhood, mutual respect among religions, and defines all religions as “willed by God.”