VATICAN CITY - A blue-ribbon panel of Islamic scholars and Pope Benedict XVI hammered out a consent agreement yesterday hoping to bring a close to a tumultuous week of global protests following remarks by the Pope about Islam made during a recent pilgrimage to Germany.The consent agreement affirms the Pope's infallibility, but acknowledges that "even I make a mistake every now and then."
The agreement, signed this morning in the Vatican’s Department of Ecumenical Affairs, obligates the Pope to attend fifty hours of sensitivity and diversity training over the next three months. The training will include role-playing, strategies to improve interpersonal communication, and exercises designed to enhance awareness of cultural differences.
In return, the world's Muslims have agreed to attend a weekend seminar on non-violent conflict resolution to be held in Boulder, Colorado early next month. Mr. Richard Bonelli, President of the Boulder Chamber of Commerce and Bureau of Tourism, said the people of Boulder were "looking forward to hosting the world's Muslims," but asked for patience on the part of both visitors and local citizens. "Logistically, lines at the airport are going to be a little long," said Bonelli. "I suspect there are quite a few Muslims in the world."
The Pope, appearing on NBC’s The Today Show this morning, lashed out at the media for creating what he called "a holy mess" over the entire episode. "First of all, Matt," said the Pope, "My remarks were taken completely out of context." When host Matt Lauer asked the Pope to elaborate, he testily declined. Instead, he spoke of a need to "put this behind [him]. I just want to move forward now. See, all that business with the Muslims, that's all in the rear view mirror for me." The Pope expressed a desire to get back to the job "he was elected to do."
Copies of the consent decree will appear as an insert in this week’s edition of The Pittsburgh Catholic.
