Reactions to Pope's apology

The following is the full statement by Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone on Pope Benedict XVI's response to Muslim anger over a speech he gave in Germany on Tuesday.

"Given the reaction in Muslim quarters to certain passages of the Holy Father's address at the University of Regensburg, and the clarifications and explanations already presented through the

Director of the Holy See Press Office, I would like to add the following: The position of the Pope concerning Islam is unequivocally that expressed by the conciliar document Nostra Aetate:

"The Church regards with esteem also the Muslims. They adore the one God, living and subsisting in Himself; merciful and all-powerful, the Creator of heaven and earth, Who has spoken to men; they take pains to submit wholeheartedly to even His inscrutable decrees, just as Abraham, with whom the faith of Islam takes pleasure in linking itself, submitted to God.

Though they do not acknowledge Jesus as God, they revere Him as a prophet. They also honour Mary, His virgin Mother; at times they even call on her with devotion. In addition, they await the day of judgment when God will render their deserts to all those who have been raised up from the dead.

Finally, they value the moral life and worship God especially through prayer, almsgiving and fasting"
(no. 3).

Coptic church

Egypt's Coptic Church has rejected the Pope's remarks implicitly linking Islam and violence saying that Christianity taught love and respect for other faiths.

"The Church categorically rejects the comments of the Vatican pope," said spokesman Bishop Murqos, whose church's leader Shenuda III also bears the title pope. "The Christian religion commands us to love other people whatever their faith," the spokesman said in comments carried by the opposition daily Al Wafd yesterday.

"We must respect the Muslim faithful and their Prophet as we respect the followers of Jesus Christ and it is unacceptable to offend their religious beliefs."We utterly reject any offence to Islamic values or the Prophet."

Copts make up between six and 10 per cent of Egypt's 73 million population and are the largest Christian community in the Middle East. They have been the target of periodic attack by Muslim hardliners in recent years, making their leaders concerned to avoid causing any offence.

Merkel defends pope

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and other leading politicians defended the Pope over his comments. Speaking to German newspaper Bild, Merkel, who heads the centre-right Christian Democrat Union party, said that the pope's comments had been misunderstood.

"Anyone who criticises the pope doesn't understand the intentions behind what he said, which is to encourage dialogue between religions," said Merkel, herself a Protestant. "The pope has said he is clearly in favour of this dialogue, which I also support, and which I consider to be necessary and urgent," she added.

Ignorance of Islam

Sunni Islam's leading religious authority said that the pope's remarks implicitly linking violence and the Muslim faith betrayed "ignorance of Islam". The head of Cairo's Al Azhar university, Shaikh Mohammad Sayyed Tantawi said he was "indignant" at the pontiff's comments which he said "betray a clear ignorance of Islam and attribute to the faith things which have nothing to do with it."