"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".This statement has saturated Western reporting and I can only imagine how it's being spread through Muslim communities. I expect these distortions from those using jihad as their rallying cry, but for responsible reporters to neglect the context of the statement is criminal.
The Pontiff began with two themes; faith and reason, placing an emphasis on history and education. He then introduced Byzantine emperor Manuel II Paleologus, a Persian (from late 14th/early 15th century) familiar with Islam and Christianity, whom he quotes "as the starting-point for my reflections on this issue."
He uses the above quote and continues "to explain in detail the reasons why spreading the faith through violence is something unreasonable. Violence is incompatible with the nature of God and the nature of the soul. "God", (Manuel II) says, "is not pleased by blood - and not acting reasonably is contrary to God's nature. Faith is born of the soul, not the body. Whoever would lead someone to faith needs the ability to speak well and to reason properly, without violence and threats... To convince a reasonable soul, one does not need a strong arm, or weapons of any kind, or any other means of threatening a person with death...""
The lecture continued by explaining the historical benefits of differing perspectives, citing divisions in Christian history, and calling for a "genuine dialogue of cultures and religions so urgently needed today."
"The positive aspects of modernity are to be acknowledged unreservedly: we are all grateful for the (marvelous) possibilities that it has opened up for mankind and for the progress in humanity that has been granted to us... The intention here is not one of retrenchment or negative criticism, but of broadening our concept of reason and its application."
His Holiness closes by rebuking the West for its "aversion to the questions which underlie its rationality," after quoting Socrates, "It would be easily understandable if someone became so annoyed at all these false notions that for the rest of his life he despised and mocked all talk about being - but in this way he would be deprived of the truth of existence and would suffer a great loss."
""Not to act reasonably, not to act with logos, is contrary to the nature of God", said Manuel II... It is to this great logos, to this breadth of reason, that we invite our partners in the dialogue of cultures. To rediscover it constantly is the great task of the university," Benedict XVI closed.
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