One of Germany’s most senior Catholic leaders, Cardinal Joachim Meisner, criticized on Sunday what he described as restrictions on Christians in Islamic nations.In an interview with Deutschlandfunk radio, Meisner, who is archbishop of Cologne, charged that this led to “an aversion against Muslims” among Germans.
The often outspoken cleric said he had been campaigning for the past two years for the Church of St Paul in Tarsus, Turkey to be permanently opened for worship by any Christian.
The Turkish government which treats the early medieval church at Paul’s birthplace as a museum granted access to Christian groups from mid 2008 to mid 2009 to use it, but restrictions are back in force.
“It’s a battle that is pointless. And then you get the feeling, this just is not right. And that is one of the reasons for all this aversion towards our Muslim fellow citizens,” Meisner said.
via German Catholic leader criticizes Islamic treatment of Christians : Religion General.
Despite the term (“aversion) which I think is somewhat over the edge (looks as if Europeans had something personal against Muslims), he is right in pointing out the problem: the extreme differences (and absolutely unjustified ones) between the situation of Muslims in Europe and that of non-Muslims in Islamic countries.
Thanks to Tea and Politics
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