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Local Outrage Over Pope's Muslim RemarksMany Surprised And Angry
By Vic Lee
Sep. 15 - KGO - Muslims around the world are enraged tonight by comments Pope Benedict made about Islam. The reaction here, at least from the San Francisco Muslim community, was more measured. Many had not heard about the comments when they went to Friday prayers at a mosque here in San Francisco. And those who had wanted the pope to explain what he meant.
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Many Muslims who came for Friday prayers at the mosque on Jones and Market were surprised and angry at the pope's remarks.
Nawaf Shatrat, Islamic Society of S.F.: "If it's his intention to spread the word that Islam is a terrorist religion, yes he should apologize to the Muslim people and should explain his position exactly."
The pontiff made his controversial comments during a speech Tuesday at a German university. At one point the pope talked about jihad and holy war and that violence was incompatible with the nature of god. He quoted from a book recounting the words of a 14th century Christian Emperor.
The Pope: "The emperor comes to speak about the issue of jihad, holy war. I quote 'show me just what Muhammad 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.'"
According to a published report, the pontiff did not explicitly agree nor repudiate the statement.
From Turkey, to Tehran, to Cairo, from the Muslim brotherhood to the Pakistani government Muslims around the world responded angrily, demanding he apologize.
A prominent Turkish politician said, "He is going down in history in the same category as leaders such as Adolph Hitler and Benito Mussolini."
The Pakistani government said the remarks were "deeply disturbing for Muslims all over the world."
Britain's Muslim council called the comments "Ill informed and bigoted."
The Islamic Society of San Francisco says it has good relations with Catholic Church officials here.
Souliman Ghali says both sides need to go beyond the rhetoric.
Souliman Ghali, Islamic Society of S.F.: "We need to really focus on what combines us together, some of the good work we've been doing together and we need to forgive each other every once in a while."
The Vatican scrambled to control the damage. It issued a statement saying the pope did not intend to offend Muslims. The Vatican's chief spokesman insisted that Pope Benedict respects Islam. The spokesman for the San Francisco archdiocese was unavailable for comment.
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By Vic Lee
Sep. 15 - KGO - Muslims around the world are enraged tonight by comments Pope Benedict made about Islam. The reaction here, at least from the San Francisco Muslim community, was more measured. Many had not heard about the comments when they went to Friday prayers at a mosque here in San Francisco. And those who had wanted the pope to explain what he meant.
Related Links
ABC7 Video On Demand
Get Alerts In Your E-Mail
Get Alerts On Your Desktop
Talk About This Story
Many Muslims who came for Friday prayers at the mosque on Jones and Market were surprised and angry at the pope's remarks.
Nawaf Shatrat, Islamic Society of S.F.: "If it's his intention to spread the word that Islam is a terrorist religion, yes he should apologize to the Muslim people and should explain his position exactly."
The pontiff made his controversial comments during a speech Tuesday at a German university. At one point the pope talked about jihad and holy war and that violence was incompatible with the nature of god. He quoted from a book recounting the words of a 14th century Christian Emperor.
The Pope: "The emperor comes to speak about the issue of jihad, holy war. I quote 'show me just what Muhammad 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.'"
According to a published report, the pontiff did not explicitly agree nor repudiate the statement.
From Turkey, to Tehran, to Cairo, from the Muslim brotherhood to the Pakistani government Muslims around the world responded angrily, demanding he apologize.
A prominent Turkish politician said, "He is going down in history in the same category as leaders such as Adolph Hitler and Benito Mussolini."
The Pakistani government said the remarks were "deeply disturbing for Muslims all over the world."
Britain's Muslim council called the comments "Ill informed and bigoted."
The Islamic Society of San Francisco says it has good relations with Catholic Church officials here.
Souliman Ghali says both sides need to go beyond the rhetoric.
Souliman Ghali, Islamic Society of S.F.: "We need to really focus on what combines us together, some of the good work we've been doing together and we need to forgive each other every once in a while."
The Vatican scrambled to control the damage. It issued a statement saying the pope did not intend to offend Muslims. The Vatican's chief spokesman insisted that Pope Benedict respects Islam. The spokesman for the San Francisco archdiocese was unavailable for comment.
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