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Patriarch of Egyptian Catholics: Pope’s Views Only Represent the West
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The
Pope’s statements are “merely political and not Catholic
or Orthodox,” said Dr. John Qolta.
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With
additional reporting by Hany Bishr, IOL Cairo staff
CAIRO,
June 19 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Pope John Paul II strongly
condemned Wednesday, June 19, the organizers of the resistance
operation on a Jerusalem bus which killed 19 people the day before,
news agencies reported.
"Those
who plot and plan such barbarous actions must answer to God," the
pontiff told some 8,000 pilgrims at his weekly general audience in St
Peter's Square in the Vatican, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).
"The
dramatic news of the attack which yesterday sowed terror and death in
Jerusalem can only provoke the firmest reprobation of the whole
world," he added.
Meanwhile,
the Patriarch of Egyptian Catholics, Dr. John Qolta, told IslamOnline
that “if this is what the Pope said, then this represents a western
point of view and the western civilization. It goes in line with what
they view as their interests with Israel.”
It
is true, he said, that the Pope represents the Catholic church in the
world; however, his statements are “merely political and not
Catholic or Orthodox. We, here in the east, have a different
perspective because the matter is not a matter of faith or doctrine,
but it is a political and social matter.”
“As
an Arab and Egyptian, I have suffered from Israel since 1948,” he
added. “I consider these forms of operations as ‘martyr’ and
those who carry them out as ‘martyrs’ as well.”
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