Sometimes it seems as if the world has lost its collective moral compass. Lombardi's statement keeps going on about "respect" -- that is, the respect that we all must have for Islam. But about the lack of respect that the Muslim murderers showed to Ambassador Stevens and the others he says nothing.
These prelates are playing a dangerous game. Perhaps they are unaware of the history of dhimmitude, and the reality that the dhimmi laws are still part of Sharia. Perhaps they think life for Christians in the Middle East will go better if they toe the Islamic supremacist line. But they will eventually discover that the Qur'anic mandate to make war against and subjugate unbelievers extends even to those who readily give Islamic supremacists whatever they want.
It is also doubtful that they realize that the imposition of blasphemy laws upon the West would allow the Islamic jihad an unfettered hand to expand its activities in Western countries, and no one would be allowed to speak out in opposition or resistance.
Nor do they realize that calling for censorship in the wake of violence and murder will only get them more violence and murder -- because the murderers see that their tactics work.
"Vatican spokesman, responding to Libyan violence, decries provocations against Islam," from CWN, September 12:
Responding to mob violence against US embassies in Libya and Egypt, which led to the deaths of four American diplomats, the director of the Vatican press office released a statement condemning “provocations against the sensibilities of Muslim believers.”The statement by Father Federico Lombardi did not include a condemnation of the killings in Benghazi, Libya, or the burning of American flags in Cairo. Instead he focused on offenses against Islam. The Muslim mobs were reportedly outraged by reports of a film, produced by an obscure American, that criticized Islam.
With Pope Benedict XVI preparing to travel to the Middle East this weekend amid mounting tensions in the region, the papal spokesman stressed that the Pope would bring a “message of dialogue and respect for all believers of different religions.” The statement from Father Lombardi, in its entirety, read:
Profound respect for the beliefs, texts, outstanding figures and symbols of the various religions is an essential precondition for the peaceful coexistence of peoples. The serious consequences of unjustified offence and provocations against the sensibilities of Muslim believers are once again evident in these days, as we see the reactions they arouse, sometimes with tragic results, which in their turn nourish tension and hatred, unleashing unacceptable violence.The message of dialogue and respect for all believers of different religions, which the Holy Father is preparing to carry with him on his forthcoming trip to Lebanon, indicate the path that everyone should follow in order to construct shared and peaceful coexistence among religions and peoples.
From Libya, Bishop Giovanni Martinelli, the apostolic vicar of Tripoli, told Vatican Insider that Western countries should have the “courage” to ban “all blasphemous projects” and establish “a policy that is respectful of religion.”
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That's the prudential judgment of (a spokesman of) the Holy See and is not binding on the consciences of you or me.