Vatican to Muslims: practice what you preach

After initially supporting Muslim outrage at a perceived lack of respect for their religion in the cartoon fiasco, the Vatican "is now urging Islamic countries to reciprocate by showing more tolerance toward their Christian minorities."

Reuters reports that, after "criticizing both the cartoons and the violent protests in Muslim countries that followed," the Vatican this week "linked the issue to its long-standing concern that the rights of other faiths are limited, sometimes severely, in Muslim countries."

The recent murders of Catholic priests in Turkey and Nigeria have tested the Vatican's patience. At least 146 Christians and Muslims have died in five days of rioting in Nigeria, with many being hacked to pieces with machetes or burned alive.

"If we tell our people they have no right to offend, we have to tell the others they have no right to destroy us," Cardinal Angelo Sodano, the Vatican's Secretary of State, told reporters.

"We must always stress our demand for reciprocity in political contacts with authorities in Islamic countries and, even more, in cultural contacts," Foreign Minister Archbishop Giovanni Lajolo told the daily Corriere della Sera.

The quest for reciprocity is at the heart of Vatican diplomacy toward Muslim states, as they seek the same rights for Christian minorities as Muslims generally have in Western countries, such as practicing their religion freely.

"Enough now with this turning the other cheek! It's our duty to protect ourselves," said Monsignor Velasio De Paolis, secretary of the Vatican's supreme court. "The West has had relations with the Arab countries for half a century, mostly for oil, and has not been able to get the slightest concession on human rights," he said.

Bishop Rino Fisichella, head of the Pontifical Lateran University, called for the Vatican to speak out more. "Let's drop this diplomatic silence," he said. "We should put pressure on international organizations to make the societies and states in majority Muslim countries face up to their responsibilities."

Pope Benedict XVI "signaled his concern" on Monday, when he told the new Moroccan ambassador to the Vatican that peace can only be assured by "respect for the religious convictions and practices of others, in a reciprocal way in all societies."