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| Muslim activist sues pope, cardinal for comments about superiority of Christianity |
| 2004-02-29 |
| A Muslim activist sued the pope, a top cardinal and other church officials Saturday, claiming their comments about the superiority of Christianity violated the Italian constitution. Activist Adel Smith said he was seeking a court condemnation of the comments but no monetary or other punitive damages. Smith, who is president of the Muslim Union of Italy, has previously made headlines here for his court battle to have a crucifix taken down from his son’s classroom. Several other Islamic organizations distanced themselves from that effort. In his latest legal effort, Smith said Pope John Paul II and other church officials have violated the Italian constitution which proclaims that all religions are equal under the law. Italy is officially secular, but largely Roman Catholic. Smith cited a passage of John Paul’s 1994 book, "Crossing the Threshold of Hope," in which the pope writes that the "richness of God’s self-revelation" in the Bible’s Old and New Testament’s has been "set aside" in Islam. The suit also cites comments by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, head of the Vatican’s orthodoxy watchdog, who in a 2000 document said the faithful of other religions were in a "gravely deficient situation" concerning their salvation compared to Catholics. Calls placed to the Vatican spokesman weren’t immediately returned Saturday. |
| Posted by:tipper |
| #6 http://www.hvk.org/articles/1003/176.html Adel Smith was born in Egypt, where his father, a Scottish architect who had long worked in Italy, met Adel's mother Mona, according to Corriere della Sera. His father, who designed palaces for King Farouk, became a Muslim but brought his children up as Roman Catholics. The family returned to Rome when Nasser seized power. Adel converted to Islam in 1987. |
| Posted by: ed 2004-2-29 5:11:36 PM |
| #5 Hmm, when did Smith become an Italian name? One suspects that this is just some African-American malcontent looking for a soap box. |
| Posted by: Hiryu 2004-2-29 2:25:48 PM |
| #4 I keep forgetting that the Vatican is a country. All I keep thinking about when I see it is how they manage to hide a secret organization under St Peters statue. I'm sure it's also of concern to the IAEA where the Vatican put it's Nuclear Warheads. |
| Posted by: Charles 2004-2-29 11:31:48 AM |
| #3 The Vatican is a seperate country not covered by the Italian Constitution. The lawsuit is irrevelant. |
| Posted by: Super Hose 2004-2-29 10:30:53 AM |
| #2 Actually if Smith can sue the Pope, any follower of Christianity (or other religions) could sue the Koran. |
| Posted by: mhw 2004-2-29 9:35:06 AM |
| #1 The Italians ought to amend their constitution to declare explicitly that Islam is inferior to Christianity. |
| Posted by: Mike Sylwester 2004-2-29 9:18:11 AM |