Bishop: Turkish Christians ‘embarrassed’ by Pope’s remarks on Armenian genocide
April 15, 2015
Bishop Louis Pelâtre, the French-born apostolic vicar of Istanbul, said that Pope Francis’s remarks on the Armenian genocide have caused a “great sensation” in Turkey.
Ilsussidiario.net reported that the prelate said that all Turks heard the remarks “with surprise”: Muslims reacted “with irritation,” while the Christian community reacted “with a bit of embarrassment.”
The situation for Turkey’s Christians, he added, has become “a little more complicated” because of the Pope’s remarks, but he hopes that the situation will improve in a few days.
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Further information:
- Genocidio Armeno / Il vescovo di Instanbul commenta (Ilsussidiario.net)
- Turkey recalls ambassador to Holy See, protests Pope's statement on Armenian genocide (CWN, 4/13)
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Posted by: Bernadette -
Apr. 16, 2015 7:20 PM ET USA
Back in the 1950's, I was living in San Francisco and made friends with an elderly Armenian jeweler. I would often stop in his little cavern-like shop on my way home from work or school where one had to stoop to enter and go down a few steps. We had great conversations and he told me about the genocide and that he was the only member of his family left, the others had all been killed, the women raped and then killed. Somehow, he had escaped and made his way to the U.S. I often think of him.
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Posted by: unum -
Apr. 15, 2015 7:06 PM ET USA
Turkish Christians should be embarrassed about the Armenian genocide, not the Holy Father's remarks!
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Posted by: ElizabethD -
Apr. 15, 2015 11:10 AM ET USA
So, the "controversy" led me to look up more about the Armenian genocide and it seems to me everything the Pope said is true. It was a huge, brutal genocide and Islamist ideology/implementation of Islamic law and teaching was perhaps the main cause of it. It had a lot of similarities to the way ISIS is operating.
