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TIRANA. — Pope Francis called yesterday for moderate Muslims and all religious leaders to condemn Islamic extremists who “pervert” religion to justify violence, as he visited Albania and held up the Balkan nation as a model for interfaith harmony.
“To kill in the name of God is a grave sacrilege. To discriminate in the name of God is inhuman,” Francis told representatives of Albania’s Muslim, Orthodox and Catholic communities during his half-day visit to Tirana.
Security was unusually tight for the pope’s first trip to a majority Muslim country since the Islamic State group began its crackdown on Christians in Iraq and announced its aim to extend its self-styled caliphate to Rome.
The trip was preceded by reports that militants who trained in Iraq and Syria had returned and might pose a threat.
The Vatican insisted it had no reports of specific threats and that no special security measures were taken. But Francis’ interactions with the crowds were much reduced compared to his previous foreign trips. His open-topped vehicle sped down Tirana’s main boulevard, not stopping once for Francis to greet the faithful as is his norm.
He only kissed a few babies at the very end of the route, and then left quickly after his Mass ended without stopping. Snipers dotted rooftops along the route and uniformed Albanian police formed human chains to keep the crowds at bay behind barricades, while Francis’ own bodyguards stood watch, perched on the back of his car or jogging alongside.
Albania’s Interior Ministry promised “maximum” protection from 2 500 police forces and beefed-up patrols at border crossings.
In his opening speech, Francis told President Bujar Nishani, Albanian officials and the diplomatic corps that Albania’s interreligious harmony was an “inspiring example” for the world, showing that Christian-Muslim co-existence wasn’t only possible but beneficial for a country’s development.
“This is especially the case in these times in which authentic religious spirit is being perverted by extremist groups,” he said.
“Let no one consider themselves to be the ‘armour’ of God while planning and carrying out acts of violence and oppression!” Francis said in the wood-panelled reception room of Tirana’s presidential palace.
Muslims make up about 59 percent of Albania’s population, with Catholics amounting to 10 percent and Orthodox Christians just under that, according to the country’s official figures. Muslims and Christians govern together and interfaith families are common, thanks to the near-quarter century when religion was banned under communism.
Later in the day, addressing Muslim and other religious leaders at a Catholic university, Francis said: “All believers must be particularly vigilant so that, in living out with conviction our religious and ethical code, we may always express the mystery we intend to honour.”
“This means that all those forms which present a distorted use of religion must be firmly refuted as false since they are unworthy of God or humanity.”
Francis has said it was legitimate to use force to stop the Islamic extremists, but that the international community should be consulted on how to do so.
Last month, the Vatican’s office with relations with Muslims issued a strong statement condemning the Islamic State’s atrocities and calling on religious leaders, particularly Muslims, to use their influence to stop them. The extremists’ advance is of particular concern to the Vatican given the exodus of faithful from lands where Christian communities have existed for 2,000 years.
The capital’s main Boulevard Martyrs of the Nation was decorated with Albanian and Vatican flags for Francis’ visit — as well as giant portraits of 40 Catholic priests who were persecuted or executed under Stalinist dictator Enver Hoxha, who declared Albania the world’s first atheist state in 1967. — AP.
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