Just B 16

MUMBAI, May 04, 2010, 09:40 Hrs (Nirmala Carvalho / AsiaNews):

The Prelature of Opus Dei organised a Seminar called “Just B16” on the 1st May in Mumbai.

“Just B16” stands for “Just Pope Benedict XVI”; its raison d’être grounded in helping people understand who Pope Benedict XVI is and why currently there appears to be an orchestrated campaign in the international media to besmirch his name.

The attendants were visibly pleased to learn a host of details about the Pope that the press usually doesn’t talk about. For instance a “historic first” that has been omitted from reporting is that recently Pope Benedict XVI was invited to preach in a Lutheran Church! Having been born in Bavaria, the native German Pope is clearly more favoured when it comes to being able to speak the language of the Lutherans.

And indeed, it is not only the Lutherans that the Pope has sought dialogue with. In his 5-year pontificate, he has paved the way for Anglicans to come back to the fold of the Catholic Church, while retaining their rite. He has joined hands with the Archbishop of Moscow to fight against secularism, liberalism and relativism. He continues to dialogue with some 138 Islamic scholars and has been warmly received in synagogues in Cologne, New York and recently, in Rome.

The Seminar unearthed some of the minds behind the scenes of the recent ploy to arrest the Pope when he goes to the UK in September. Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens are self-professed atheists. As a matter of fact, they have formed a schism with mainstream atheism and now subscribe to what is called “New Atheism”. This 21st Century brand of atheism veers away from the denial of the existence of God. The New Atheists believe that religion should not be tolerated but countered; the credibility of religious leaders should be put to doubt.

Towards midday, the attendants grouped to do case studies of the issues at hand: what the media is saying; the lawsuit against the Pope; the response of the Church. One of the conclusions reached was that the media has the duty to tell the truth and the moment this end is forgotten, the media becomes an agent of unjustified hysteria. Another told everyone present how moving it was to read the letter of Pope Benedict XVI to the Catholics of Ireland. “You can sense that it is a father writing to his children,” he said.

It was encouraging to see that a heterogeneous group of young and older professionals from different walks of life all seemed to agree that the current media buzz is a carefully strategized worldwide campaign to discredit the Church and the Pope. The closing remarks in the Seminar were focused towards Christians learning how to pray for those who persecute them and defending the Church as a good child defends its mother.