Pope Leo Needs to Confront Evil



Last month Pope Leo took a trip to Algeria and spoke inside one of its ancient Catholic churches. Algeria is notorious for murdering Christians and oppressing them. According to World Watch it is the 20^th worst country in the world for persecuting Christian believers. The Pope, who has been congratulated for attacking Donald Trump and the Iran war, had a chance to offer real help to one of the world’s most beleaguered Christian populations. Here is what he said: ““Communion between Christians and Muslims takes shape under the mantle of Our Lady of Africa. Here, in #Algeria, maternal love gathers everyone as children, within our rich diversity, in our shared aspiration for dignity, love, justice, and peace. In a world where division and wars sow pain and death, living in unity and peace is a compelling sign.” This rhetoric belies reality. In Algeria it is against the law for Christians to proclaim the gospel. You can spend up to five years in prison and be fined heavily for doing so. Dozens of churches have been forced to close. It was a chance for the Pope to speak out against the outrageous persecution of Christians in all of Africa where Muslims slaughter Christians by the tens of thousands. He had a chance to stand for something that mattered and he blew it. If the Pope wants the respect of Christians around the world he is going to have to show more courage and less cowardice in the face of Christianity’s enemies.

A.S. Ibrahim in World: https://wng.org/opinions/the-popes-algerian-mirage-1776671193?mkt_tok=NzEwLVFSUi0yMDkAAAGhSRqy4tmm4Y5wHgDflnTg7KUw1Ae9_N5T4fDibU5p4mtiv8ISgm18UmsP8ok5eikdW7wA1U0NWjt7UhQuUsgvPvfua-lTkIZfMUdqG9o3O1L6Zw