| Fadlullah called for an Islamic – Christian meeting to protect the Christians in Iraq and resolve the problems in Nigeria and Egypt and support the Palestinian people |
Fadlullah: We urge the Pope not to forget the Israeli atrocities committed in Gaza, since he does not forget what had happened to the Jews of Rome.
His Eminence, the Religious Authority, Sayyed Muhammad Hussein Fadlullah, stressed that we support any profound dialogue between the people of the messages based on their values and right human bases. He called on the Islamic and Christian leaderships to cooperate in order to protect the oppressed humans, asserting the importance of cooperation to resolve the sectarian crisis in Nigeria and the recent developments in Egypt, and confirming that it is necessary to provide the Christians in Iraq with maximum protection. He also called on everyone to respond to the call launched by the Chief Islamic Judge and the Archbishop of the Orthodox Church in Palestine to save Al-Aqsa Mosque and Al-Kiyama Church (Church of the Resurrection).
His Eminence urged the Pope, who said that he cannot forget what had happened to the Jews of Rome during World War II, not to forget the Israeli crimes committed against the Palestinians in Gaza, "for we believe that oppression cannot be divided." He also called on the Vatican to represent the true message of the Messiah, who had he been present would have sided with the Palestinians against the Jewish occupiers.
Following is the text of the statement:
In the past few days, we have witnessed, especially on the European arena, new attempts to enhance and solidify the relations between Judaism and Christianity, by meetings and prayers performed by the Pope of the Vatican who stressed the common roots between the two faiths, some of which are: "belief in a single God, first of all, but also the protection of life and the family, the wish for social justice and peace". The Pope also talked about "the beginning of a new phase along the irrevocable path of agreement and friendship between the Catholics and the Jews," pointing at the Jews of Rome that were forced out of their houses and killed during World War II, and saying: " How could one ever forget their faces, their names, their tears, the desperation faced by these men, women and children?"
We believe that a profound dialogue between the followers of the Divine messages can set many issues straight, and open a wider window to peace at the level of the entire humanity, if it is based on true religious and human basis and strong missionary values. It must be noted that a number of Jewish rabbis did not like what the Pope said, claiming that the Vatican took part in the misery of the Jews In Europe during World War II or at least did not exert real efforts to save them from Nazism.
We would like the Pope of the Vatican to be bold enough to talk in the same manner about the Palestinian children, men, and women that were murdered by the Jewish occupiers in the continuous massacres, beginning by the early Zionist raids against the Palestinians, and not ending by the hideous Israeli atrocities committed in Gaza Strip. Actually, we believe that oppression cannot be divided, and that if a certain religious official defends a group of people that underwent oppression and persecution – so he believes – then it is his duty to defend the other people against which the most hideous crimes were committed and that were broadcasted worldwide. And what could these crimes be other than the atrocities committed by the Israelis against the people in Gaza, killing hundreds of children with cold blood to the extent that a Jewish judge admitted these atrocities, in spite of their continuous attempts to cover up these massacres.
We call on the Pope of the Vatican to shoulder his responsibility at the religious and missionary levels and to say the just word concerning what is going on in Palestine, for he is aware that had Jesus Christ (a.s.) been present, he would have stood in the face of these murderers that nothing stops them from committing the most hideous crimes, and that no religious or legal restriction prevents them from stealing human organs from the Palestinians to use them for their soldiers.
We would like the Vatican to represent the manifest message of Jesus Christ in the best way possible by embracing the oppressed and repressed people, and not to fall in the trap of extortion that the Zionist institutions practice on the western governments, peoples, and religious institutions. Only then we can cooperate together to confront oppression and atheism, and refuse all forms of occupation, and establish peace and love for the entire mankind.
Based on our religious capacity, we call on all the Islamic and Christian leaderships to cooperate on the basis of a real dialogue and establish on the ground coordination so as to protect the Muslims, Christians and all oppressed individuals in the world, regardless of their identity, religion, and race… We also call for taking prompt actions to stop the bloodshed in Nigeria, and provide more protection to the Christians in Iraq and satiate the flames of disagreement that we know are mostly based on personal motivations, just as what happened in Egypt between the Copts and the Muslims.
Moreover, we highly praise the calls launched by several Palestinian Islamic and Christian leaderships and that called everyone, especially Muslims and Christians, to save Al-Aqsa Mosque and Al-Kiyama Church that are in danger of collapsing as a result of the ongoing Jewish excavations. We also call on all the vibrant forces in the world to support the Muslims and Christians in occupied Palestine that are undergoing the most hideous forms of oppression and persecution and always by the Jewish occupiers.