POPE BENEDICT XVI, A RADICAL OR A FEARLESS REFORMER?

The Bishop of Rome and the Pope of the entire world Catholic church, Pope Benedict XVI is a man who means so many things to so many different people, depending on who you ask. To Icheoku, he is a man who braves the odds to speak his mind!

When he delivered a speech in September 2006 in Germany quoting the Byzantine Emperor Manuel II Paleologus who had said that the Islamic religion is intrinsically violent, hell was let loose throughout the Muslim world? In the pope's own words, "He said, and I quote, 'Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." He was pressured to explain his statement and he threw additional light thereto. But for an apology, those protesters did not get any from the pope?

Again, the pope readmitted a hitherto ex-communicated bishop of the church, Bishop Richard Williamson who debunked the claim that six (6) million Jews were killed during the holocaust. According to the bishop, such a tale is a baloney as only less than 300,000 Jews were killed in the holocaust. In the bishop's own words, "I believe there were no gas chambers... I think that two to three hundred thousand Jews perished in Nazi concentration camps but none of them by gas chambers." The holocaust-denying bishop maintained that the claim of gas chambers was a ruse as the existence of gas chamber in the then Germany, is yet to be conclusively determined. The Jews were hellish mad and demanded a retraction. But what did the bishop of Rome do, he deftly managed the crisis and Icheoku did not remember him, or the said bishop claiming a mistake or apologising for the incident. However, the Jewish power-bloc pressured the Argentine government to refuse the renewal the bishop's work authorisation and he has since returned to his native England.

Instead of apologising for a statement founded on his deep-rooted conviction, Bishop Williamson wrote, "Amidst this tremendous media storm stirred up by imprudent remarks of mine on Swedish television, I beg of you to accept, ........., my sincere regrets for having caused to yourself and to the Holy Father so much unnecessary distress and problems." In response, Papal spokesman the Rev. Federico Lombardi said he had "nothing to say about this letter; everyone can evaluate it as they see fit." The Vatican has asked nothing of Monsignor Williamson, who is not an 'ordinary bishop' of the Catholic Church."

Mr Williamson for the records, was a member of the Society of St Pius X, which was founded by Archbishop Lefebvre in 1970 as a protest against the Second Vatican Council's reforms on religious freedom and pluralism. The late Archbishop Lefebvre made him a bishop in unsanctioned consecration in Switzerland in 1988, prompting the his immediate excommunication from the Catholic church with four others by the late Pope John Paul II. Upon lifting his excommunication, the Vatican asked him to recognise the authority of the Pope and the Second Vatican Council? Equally of note, is that the pope, as a German kid, allegedly was fond of Hitler and hung out at Hitler's youth rally? But he however grew up loving Jesus and ultimately joined a monastery; becoming a priest, a bishop, a cardinal and now the Pope! His lifting of an excommunication placed on a holocaust-denying bishop made one commentator to scream, "Don’t you love it when life deduces logic for you"?

Icheoku says, this is not the first time the actual number of Jews that died in the holocaust has made the front page. Iranian Ahmadinejad once questioned the veracity of the claim that six (6) million Jews were killed during the holocaust? The accuracy of the figure has been a discourse of many academic communities who continuously question how that record was kept by the Jews? However, Icheoku says, whether or not six million Jews were gassed or an accurate record was kept of the killed Jews is immaterial. The accuracy of the numbers should not matter at all, since one Jew is even too many to just kill for no apparent reason? The holocaust, like slavery, like the crusaders, like the inquisition, like every aboriginal depopulation and genocides around the world is a horrible experience which haunts the affected people, and should not be used as a wedge issue by anyone.

Once again, on his pastoral visit to African Cameroon, the pope has stirred the hornet nest of the billion dollar contraceptives (condom) industry. According to the pope, "HIV/Aids was "a tragedy that cannot be overcome by money alone, that cannot be overcome through the distribution of condoms, which can even increase the problem". All the party with interest are firing on all cylinders on what the pope said; Icheoku remembers that Thabo Mbeki of South Africa was similarly harangued when he questioned the veracity of HIV/AIDS, stating that food could be a better panacea than all the condoms and anti-viral medications? Icheoku adds, condoms break and a hungry man will fall victim to even common malaria and without food, he cannot build enough immunity to fight off whatever ailment that may be afflicting him?

Anyway, love him or hate him, the Pope is a man of strong conviction who speaks his mind without let or hindrance; and for this his manly-personality, Icheoku admires the man of God dearly. In a politically-correct world where many people do not really say what they are thinking for fear of the possible fall-out, this pope stands out as an exception. Such men as this pope, with strong character is what the world really needs in order to move forward towards solving many essentials of the day. The pope is not officially a politician and should not be expected to live his life like one, in hushed musings; he is not standing for any re-election nor campaigned for one in the first place, he was a Divinely chosen one to lead the Catholic church. Icheoku therefore, asks the people and other leaders with interest of this world, to stop holding Pope Benedict XVI responsible for all his statements, or with the same standard as they would a politician. The Pope is what the world needs; and only our support and prayers will suffice; but not setting unattainable standards. To the Pope, Icheoku says, speak on; as your over one billion followers are listening as well as other millions of non-indoctrinated admirers.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6C9BuXe2RM