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A Reason for the Pope's Position
02/18/2003

As frustrating as I find the morally turgid public statements of Vatican higher-ups that seem politically motivated, I do hold out hope that the Pope and some less outspoken voices have reason for not articulating their somewhat conflicting opinions. Michael Novak voices something that I've been repeating, myself, around the Internet:

What are the differences between Iraq and Kosovo? For one thing, it is very important that war against an Arab sovereign such as Saddam not be construed as a religious war. It is actually far better for the Pope in advance to be visibly opposed to a war in Iraq, even while pleading for Iraq's compliance with the U.N. resolutions.

Unfortunately, if this is the Pope's thinking, one downside — and it is by no means an easy stance to take — is that the public statements may continue to overshadow the prudent silence even if it becomes clear, later, why such a strategy was followed. We see this with claims against the Vatican's behavior during World War II. But being moral and being faithful were never meant, as far as I can tell, to be easy.

Posted by Justin Katz @ 12:16 PM EST