Francis: Charity is only acceptable fanaticism
In Egypt, pope stresses importance of religious tolerance
Celebrating an open- air Mass in front of thousands of Egyptians on Saturday, Pope Francis delivered a powerful message of religious tolerance, telling the crowd the only acceptable kind of fanaticism is that of “charity.”
“Any other type of fanaticism does not come from God and is not pleasing to him,” Francis told the crowd of about 15,000 Catholics and Copts at a suburban Cairo stadium. “True faith is one that makes us more charitable, more merciful, more honest and more humane ... it makes us see the other not as an enemy to be overcome but a brother or sister to be loved, served and helped.”
The message of unity highlights a main theme of the pontiff’s two- day visit to Egypt to promote tolerance, peace and dialogue between Christians and Muslims in the Arab world’s largest country. The trip comes on the heels of bombings at Coptic Christian churches on Palm Sunday that killed 44 people and injured scores more.
In the wake of the recent attacks, military and police seemingly outnumbered the stadium crowd at times Saturday. Two military helicopters circled the area, and police checked cars for explosives. Only attendees with a pass from the Egyptian homeland security agency were allowed to enter.
Despite the security concerns, Francis
“The pope’s visit is a blessing for all Egyptians. He will improve and increase the view of Egypt abroad and is sending a message that Egypt is safe.” Mohammed Ahmed pharmacy clerk
glided around the stadium in an opentopped golf cart ahead of the Mass as a joyful crowd welcomed the pope with a show of yellow and white balloons and a chorus singing Gloria.
Amr Moussa, former foreign minister, Arab League secretary general and a Muslim, praised the Mass for showcasing interfaith understanding.
“The pope recognized the core beliefs of Islam … that co- existence is at the center of Islam,” he said.
Jozef Mata, 23, a social worker and one of the 250,000 Catholics in the country, took a four- hour bus ride from his home in Assiut in central Egypt and slept on the floor of a Cairo high school the night before the Mass.
“Francis is telling us that we are his sons,” he said. “He will take care of us whatever the cost.”
Roshdy Zayed, 81, a Catholic, came with his 10 grandchildren from Nazlet Khater, a village in Upper Egypt, and said he was thrilled with the pope’s message of peace and unity. “Wonderful things happened today,” he said. “I say thank you to God for today.”
In addition to the spiritual uplift and message of peace, Sameh Mina, 47, owner of a wholesale food supply company in Cairo, hoped Francis’ visit would resurrect the country’s hard- hit tourist industry, which has suffered mightily as a result of terror attacks and turmoil following the 2011 revolution.
“If only we can use the pope visit to inspire tourists to make the same trip,” said Mina, who like most Christians in Egypt believes the time Jesus and his family spent here makes the country a pilgrimage destination. “He leads 1.2 billion people, and if just 10% came to make a pilgrimage here, our economy would be saved.”
The Mass came on the last day of Francis’ visit to the African nation. On Friday, he became the first pope to visit Al Azhar University, a center of Sunni Islamic scholarship that dates back to the 10th century.
Pharmacy clerk Mohammed Ahmed, 40, welcomed the pontiff’s visit as an acknowledgment that most Egyptians don’t sympathize with the Islamic State and other jihadists.
“The pope’s visit is a blessing for all Egyptians,” Ahmed said. “He will improve and increase the view of Egypt abroad and is sending a message that Egypt is safe.
“We feel bad that these church bombings are happening. But this is the result of people like the Muslim Brotherhood in Turkey and ( Palestinian) Hamas.”
Francis appeared to endorse this view Friday at Al Azhar University, where he condemned the “flow of money and weapons destined to those who provoke violence.”
The most populous Arab country, Egypt is majority Muslim. About 10% of its 92 million citizens are Copts, making it the largest Christian community in the Middle East.
Francis met with the spiritual head of the Copts, Pope Tawadros, on Friday, pledging that one church would not rebaptize those who converted from one faith to the other. The measure has intense symbolic significance because it means the Vatican and Coptic Churches now respect how each performs the sacrament.
Peter Basilious, a 28- year- old Coptic pharmacist, said Francis’ visit would draw Rome and the Coptic Christian Church closer.
“This is about high- level politics — promoting peace between Muslim and Christians but also looking for a real connection to the Egyptian Orthodox leaders,” Basilious said. “Francis is showing he loves our church and wants a unified approach to our faith.”