"Confessions of an Islamophobe" by Robert Spencer

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https://www.ewtn.com/library/NEWAGE/ARINNEWM.TXT

"
V. PASTORAL RESPONSE: GENERAL

Not a Negative Response

In examining what pastoral posture the Church should adopt toward the
NRMs, let us begin by saying what this pastoral approach should not be. It
should not be an attack. It should not be negative against their members,
although the Church might have to defend herself against the NRMs that
attack her unjustly. It should rather be based on light and love."

This is just one among many examples of what the holy roman catholic church teaches about inter-faith dialogue.
 
adgloriam said:
Well, he could have started by giving his book a title like:“Confessions of a Islamophiliac”.
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Have you read any Robert Spencer, or this particular book? I’m assuming no.

He is not an Islamophiliac and so that would not be true.

The idea is people label him and anyone else who speaks about the real links between Jihad terror and Islam as “Islamaphobes”. If you read the summary on Amazon.com you will find out why he chose the title.

Besides, it is a catchy title, and more people will read it.

What he is basically saying is it is uncharitable and disrespectful, to label someone “Islamaphobe” when you disagree with them, even when they simply state facts about Terrorists.
 
adgloriam said:
This is just one among many examples of what the holy roman catholic church teaches about inter-faith dialogue.
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Sure, we should strive to be positive, but in telling the truth sometimes we have to be negative, like “Islam has an incorrect view of Christ”.

Keywords are “pastoral posture the Church should adopt”

In it’s context, it is for the priests and bishops dealing with the New Age movement, not a general guide for dealing with all faiths.
 
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I just realized I replied to an old comment where @anon65111186 was confused with the two similar names. My bad!
 
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I know. I was referrig to Robert Spencer, not Richard. Robert is Catholic.
 
Wow! There’s a Collectible version for only $855(+3.99shipping)
 
If you haven’t read the book, then it is not fair for you dislike it. Like they say, do not judge a book by its cover.
 
Well, no need to read the book for this simple reason: I’ve read other books about the subject by more balanced authors - he adds little to nothing new.

I watched a lecture from Robert Spencer and I’m pretty sure he takes the dialogue into the wrong direction.

These days: there are think tanks, and lobbys, and publishers constantly producing and reinforcing and reproducing their interests saying nothing new - there have to be a 1000 Robert Spencers (sponsored by whomever) endlessly saying the same…

There are countless authors (many are academics teaching at university) whos “intellectual production” has little to no value…

And this is the main thing: Not a single sign in Robert Spencer’s speeches puts inter-faith dialogue at the forefront as the best solutions (not to mention he “blames Islam” yet forgets the role of politics all together - an all to convenient negligence.)

In alternative, I’d recommend anything written by the : “Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue”
http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/interelg/index.htm

And what this “Pontifical Council” says -their content and tone- goes in the opposite direction of Robert Spencer (and the good many) an that’s enough, for me.
 
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Um, is Robert Spencer really that much different from Walid Phares, a man who has made numerous appearances on EWTN’s The World Over with Raymond Arroyo?
 
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Does this sound charitable to you?

Matthew 23:13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!

It sounds to me like Our Lord believed in “hard” love.

Now, I was recently banned for asking a Muslim why we should believe him when Islam teaches and permits and encourages them to lie. I’m pretty certain that this is true since a Muslim tried to convert me to Islam when I was an atheist and that was one of his selling points. And since I have since seen it explained in their own websites and documents.

So why isn’t this a valid question? Why is it suddenly rude to ask them about things that we can prove that they teach?
 
De_Maria said:
Does this sound charitable to you?
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PONTIFICAL COUNCIL FOR INTERRELIGIOUS DIALOGUE

MESSAGE FOR THE END OF RAMADAN
E ‘Id al-Fitr 1437 H. / 2017 A.D.

Dear Muslim Brothers and Sisters, (…)

In the years that have followed, two Messages have been particularly important: the Message of 1991, during the pontificate of Pope John Paul II, entitled “The Path of Believers is the Way of Peace”, and the Message of 2013, in the first year of Pope Francis’ pontificate, entitled “Promoting Mutual Respect through Education”. Both Messages were signed by the Pontiffs.
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http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/p...pc_interelg_doc_20170519_ramadan-2017_en.html
 
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A little consistency would still require you to read the book to make an informed comment, not that you cannot make a comment. By just condemning it just because you do not like the title is, what should I say, rather unscholarlistic, that perhaps reeks of personal judgment and bias.

It is a general rule - know what you are commenting or judging. You wouldn’t know if you have not gone through the content of the book.
 
Reuben_J said:
A little consistency would still require you to read the book to make an informed comment
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I’ve listened to his presentation (not wasting my money on that author!) so I know his ideas sufficiently…!

In this case it’s safe to say:“Once you’ve seen one, you’ve seen them all.”

(It’s no secret what think-tank he belongs to…)
Reuben_J said:
You wouldn’t know if you have not gone through the content of the book.
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I don’t need to read every book on math to know the math!
 
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Ok. Seem your mind is already made up. Anyway, I don’t buy that and it certainly does not foster your credibility, not to mention being a tad arrogant. Just sayin’.
 
"Reuben_J:
being a tad arrogant. Just sayin’.
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No offense taken, and I rather appreciate your honesty 🙂 A lot of folks said the same of John Hardon S.J.

I did listen to a 1 hour lecture from Robert Spencer at Stanford (after him publishing a good 20 books)!! He spent a full 60 minutes blaming on Islam three dozen crimes committed (in recent memory) by Muslims. A ceaseless monologue condemning a whole religion on basis of what some deviant individuals did…

I take offense in Robert Spencers approach, since I have a few Muslim friends and they are really fine people and I sincerely think their religion helps them be better and holier in many ways. There was a time in my life when my only neighbors who had a prayer life were Muslims since all the Christians in that neighborhood and my workplace had abandoned any devotion. And in those days, my Muslim friends were a precious reminder that some man still have faith. And I owe them for that!
 
We have launched on “something completely different” in that we now attempt to make peace with Islam. This is a huge gamble which risks the very existence of the west as we know it. Blessed are the peacemakers - we know not the status of the peace “attempters.”

A little history: Thousands of gallons of christian blood have been shed defending the faith; defending Christendom against Islam. In our age of “diversity”, we forget the wars and battles fought to keep the Ottroman Turks (i.e. Islam) from conquering Europe and forcing their beliefs in violation of Christians’ consciences. It is a religion of absolute, blind faith and not of reason.

Let us remember: The Battle of Lepanto, the 800 Martyrs of Otranto, the Reconquista of Iberia, the Battle of Bileća and numerous others.

The elephant in the peaceful dialog living room is that the inflexibly-held tenets of Islam are incompatible with western/Christian civilization. The near future is going to be very interesting indeed.

Come, Holy Spirit!
 
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po18guy said:
Let us remember: The Battle of Lepanto, the 800 Martyrs of Toronto, the Reconquista of Iberia, the Battle of Bileća and numerous others.
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All those XVI century examples are outdated!!! Ask any African: The Europeans and Americans hosted a good 300 years of slavery after that, and then came 100years of colonial wars!!..Apartheid didn’t end that long ago, and western invasions of sovereign countries go on to this day. Guess what: christian countries have their fair share in all recent crimes against humanity!!!
 
Huh? It seems that you have studied revisionist history. The west, and its attitudes have changed. Islam has not, will not and cannot. You see no problem? Are this week’s terror reports “outdated”?

Have you been seduced by relativism?
 
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