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Religious Consultation|
Deutsche Presse-Agentur, February 23, 2005 Pope's controversial
new book goes on sale DATELINE: Rome A new book by Pope John Paul II that has raised eyebrows by drawing a comparison between the Holocaust and abortion went on sale in Italy and in other countries Wednesday. "Memory and Identity" contains reflections on events taking place during the 20th century during exchanges between the Polish-born pontiff and two philosophers. The books main themes include the rise and fall of totalitarian regimes, a warning against the seductions of the West, scepticism over democracy and his longstanding aversion to free sexuality and the use of contraception. One of the pope's main concern is over a world without God, suggesting that non-believers and those in the atheistic West cannot distinguish good from evil. He also comments on the 1981 attempt on his life by Ali Agca, suggesting that the Turkish gunman did not act alone. But it is his comments on abortion that have sparked the greatest controversy so far. In one passage, the pope says that although the extermination of the Jews stopped after the end of the Nazi dictatorship, the "legal extermination" of unborn humans continued. This has drawn angry reactions from a number of quarters, including the head of the Jewish community in Germany, where the book also went on sale Wednesday. German Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, one of the Vaticans chief theologian and a close associate of Karol Wojtyla, has moved to defuse the controversy by saying the pope never meant equating abortion with the Holocaust. "He calls our attention to the permanent temptations for humanity, and on the need to take care not to fall into the pitfalls of evil," the cardinal said at the books launch in Rome. Despite, or perhaps because of the controversy, the book appeared to be selling well in Italy. One bookseller in central Milan said he had already sold 30 copies within the space of a few hours. There is enormous interest in the book by a rather diversified crowd that appears to be interested in the important themes touched upon by the book," a book shop assistant at a Milan Rizzoli store told Deutsche Presse-Agentur, dpa. The book, priced at 16 euros (21 dollars) and edited in Italy by the Rizzoli publishing house, is the pope's fifth. His first book, "Crossing the Threshold of Hope," has sold more than 20 million copies worldwide. Some 300,000 copies of "Memory and Identity" have been printed in Italy so far. << Deutsche Presse-Agentur -- 2/23/05 >>
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