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CARDINAL SODANO WONDERS WHO WOULD BENEFIT FROM IRAQ WAR Vatican Secretary of State Analyzes Possible Attack ROME, JAN. 30, 2003 (Zenit.org).- The Vatican secretary of state appealed to the United States and Great Britain to analyze the moral aspects and consequences of a possible war against Iraq. "Whom does it suit to confront 1 billion Muslims and run the risk of decades of hostility from the Muslim world?" Cardinal Angelo Sodano asked Tuesday in the Holy See's nunciature in Italy, where he celebrated his 25 years of episcopacy. During an informal meeting with journalists, Cardinal Sodano confirmed that the Vatican is committed "with all the means at its disposal" to find a solution to this crisis. He reminded Western heads of state that a "war" of attack is not justifiable ethically, and less so if it is "preventive," as reflected in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which focuses on a country's right to legitimate defense. In this connection, the cardinal said the "West has the right to defend itself from terrorism," but it also has the obligation to do so according to morality. This poses the question of the clash of civilizations, "poorly presented, certainly, by some, but possible," he cautioned. In any case, he added, "there is not just one Islam. There are many tendencies within it and Muslim ambassadors to the Vatican speak of tolerance," although there is "the problem of the situation of Christians who are suffering" in some of those countries. Regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the secretary of state said that there have been "errors and blindness on both sides, but the two peoples must be able to have two states with secure borders." ZE03013003 email this article: http://www.zenit.org/senglish/send_friend/index.phtml?sid=30723 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ VATICAN LOOKING FOR A GESTURE TO HELP AVERT WAR VATICAN CITY, JAN. 30, 2003 (Zenit.org).- The Vatican might make a "concrete gesture" to avoid a military intervention in Iraq, a top official says. Archbishop Jean-Louis Tauran, Vatican secretary for relations with states, did not exclude the possibility of sending a peace emissary to Baghdad on behalf of the Pope. "For the time being, there is nothing concrete," the archbishop told the press today. "We are just thinking about it. It is a possibility, not yet a plan." ZE03013010 email this article: http://www.zenit.org/senglish/send_friend/index.phtml?sid=30724 ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ CONCEPT OF "PREVENTIVE WAR" IS INADMISSIBLE, SAY ITALIAN BISHOPS U.N. Authorization Isn't Enough, They Contend ROME, JAN. 30, 2003 (Zenit.org).- Simple U.N. authorization doesn't justify a "preventive war" with Iraq, and in any case such a military action would be unacceptable because it is unlimited, say Italy's bishops. The Italian episcopate manifested its position on an eventual conflict in Iraq during a press conference to present the final statement of the bishops' Permanent Council, which met here Jan. 20-22. Bishop Giuseppe Betori, secretary-general of the episcopal conference, said that while "the U.N.'s authorization is an element that can never be given up in a military action, [...] it is not the only one." "If the preventive dimension of a war continues and the conflict in question is not a concrete response to a situation of attack," the U.N. authorization does not make a war just, he said. The very concept of preventive war is "unacceptable in itself, because prevention, in fact, has no limit," the bishop added. "Without a concrete situation of threat, actual or possible, no act of war can be justified." In regard to the possibility that the U.N. inspectors might find weapons of mass destruction on Iraqi soil, Bishop Betori emphasized that "it is not the competence of bishops to judge the degree and level in which such weapons can become a concrete and effective threat." Regarding war scenarios, "the Church's intervention is in the aspect of the formation of consciences," he said. "Today it is not enough to make appeals for peace, but consciences must be formed capable of carrying out concrete plans of peace; otherwise, invitations to peace are ineffective." ZE03013001 email this article: http://www.zenit.org/senglish/send_friend/index.phtml?sid=30728 _______________________________________________ Sent via the discussion list of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq. To unsubscribe, visit http://lists.casi.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/casi-discuss To contact the list manager, email casi-discuss-admin@lists.casi.org.uk All postings are archived on CASI's website: http://www.casi.org.uk