Are the Italian Bishops Promoting the Qur’an as the ‘Revealed Word of God’?: At This Point, Would Anything Stop Them From Doing So?; Italy’s Catholic Bishops Promote Koran as ‘revealed Word of God’ in Schools

Are the Italian Bishops Promoting the Qur’an as the ‘Revealed Word of God’?

At this point, would anything stop them from doing so?

Vatican News, which describes itself as “the news portal of the Holy See,” ran the story in Italian: “Countering the walls of prejudice: CEI and PISAI present ‘Fact Sheets for Understanding Islam.’” CEI is the Italian Bishops’ Conference, and PISAI is the Pontifical Institute for Arabic and Islamic Studies. So what we have here is the spectacle of the Vatican and the Italian bishops taking it upon themselves to teach the world about Islam. Don’t hold your breath waiting for al-Azhar to issue fact sheets for understanding Christianity, and that’s likely just as well. The Holy See’s Islam material looks to be as biased, misleading, and inaccurate as anything one can imagine coming out of al-Azhar about any non-Islamic Faith.

As if to emphasize that this ill-conceived venture had backing at the highest levels, the Vatican News article notes happily that Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, the Archbishop of Bologna and president of the Italian Bishops’ Conference, “was among those present at yesterday’s launch at Palazzo Borromeo—the seat of the Italian Embassy to the Holy See—for a resource developed by Catholics and Muslims.” Zuppi called the new fact sheets on Islam “a powerful antidote to violence and ignorance.” Fr. Wasim Salman, dean of PISAI, added that “in-depth study” was “a way to counter a clash of civilizations.’”

This is because, Vatican News informs us, “prejudice builds walls, while knowledge constructs bridges.” And so these “Fact Sheets for Understanding Islam” purport to provide that knowledge. Taking for granted the mass Muslim migration that has transformed Europe and will continue to do so in ways that are all too foreseeable, Zuppi said: “It is vital to get to know one another, especially when living in close proximity. We often think we know someone, yet in reality, we do not know them at all—or rather, we only ‘know’ them through the lens of prejudice.”

Secure in his righteousness, Zuppi continued: “Ignorance should have no place in our schools, yet, unfortunately, it often ends up setting the agenda. As a result, people feel entitled to pass judgment on others without truly knowing them. These fact sheets on Islam, created jointly by Catholics and Muslims, therefore serve as a powerful antidote to both violence and ignorance.”

Violence? Who is committing the violence here? Only Muslims, not Catholics. Yet the fact sheets don’t seem to spend any time telling Muslims not to be violent. Instead, “the eleven fact sheets go beyond common stereotypes.” That’s a relief! “The material begins with ‘What is Islam?’ and ‘A Brief History of Islam,’ covering faith and theology, the Quran as the revealed word of God, the emulation of the prophetic model, and acts of worship (‘ibāda’).”

Wait a minute. The Qur’an as “the revealed word of God”? Surely they’re teaching young Catholics that Muslims believe the Qur’an to be the revealed word of God, not that the book itself is actually the revealed word of God? That seems likely, but nowadays the spirit of ecumenical openness has become so all-pervasive that one cannot be sure without further clarification from the Vatican or the Italian bishops, and that was not forthcoming. Would anyone really be surprised if far-left, pro-mass migration bishops and other high Catholic Church officials endorsed the Qur’an as the “revealed word of God”? --->READ MORE HERE

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Italy’s Catholic bishops promote Koran as ‘revealed Word of God’ in schools:

Cdl. Matteo Zuppi presented the Islamic education program for state-school religion teachers, saying Catholic religion classes should serve as a ‘laboratory of culture and dialogue.’

Italy’s Catholic bishops are promoting a new Islamic education program that describes the Koran as the “revealed Word of God,” while Cardinal Matteo Zuppi has said Catholic religion classes should be treated as a “laboratory of culture and dialogue.”

On October 21, Zuppi, archbishop of Bologna and president of the Italian Bishops’ Conference (CEI), presented the new educational initiative, “Factsheets for Understanding Islam,” at an event in the Palazzo Borromeo – the seat of the Italian Embassy to the Holy See in Rome. Promoted jointly by the CEI, the Pontifical Institute for Arabic and Islamic Studies, and the Italian diplomatic mission, the program is designed for teachers of Catholic religion classes in state schools.

Reflecting on his years as a religion teacher, Zuppi stated: “The only thing that was clear was that there was no need to teach catechism.” For this reason, according to him, Catholic religious education classes in schools should be conceived as a mere “laboratory of culture and dialogue.”

“The eleven sheets go beyond the usual clichés. They begin with ‘What Is Islam?’ and ‘A Brief History of Islam,’ then go on to address faith and theology [and] the Qur’an as the revealed Word of God,” Vatican News reported.

Created by a joint team of Catholic and Muslim experts who negotiated over differences to produce a single, mutually agreed text, the 11-module curriculum presents Islamic doctrine, including describing the Koran as the “revealed word of God,” under the pretext of eradicating “ignorance” and fostering social cohesion.

“I would send everyone to school, because there is remarkable ignorance [about Islam]…. The sheets represent the exact opposite of the clash of civilizations,” Zuppi added. He also praised the joint Catholic-Muslim text as a great “antidote to violence and ignorance,” while warning that news headlines critical of Islamic proliferation are “dangerous with islamophobia.” --->READ MORE HERE

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