Pope vs. Islam (sans cross)

Here's a thorough document on the response:
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0915/dailyUpdate.html

And here's the complete speech.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/pope/story/0,,1873277,00.html

I perused the speech and found it quite sad. It condemns Islam without making any reference to the cross or the gospel. I guess I have a completely opposite view from Benedict-- I don't see how any particular religion or philosophy is any better at showing us how to order society or to see our sin. What is missing from the other philosophies is a cross, a gospel. We need more Christian leaders willing to inject the offense of the Cross, the scandal of the Cross, into public dialogue. If we suffer from angry secularist mobs because of such a witness, so be it.

What we do not need is the cultural and philosophical imperialism of Benedict's speech.

To further complicate things, it is interesting is how different it seems to be in the teaching of the Catholic Church as expressed in the 1992 Catechism. It was a teaching I always found odd at the time.

841 The Church's relationship with the Muslims. "The plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place amongst whom are the Muslims; these profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind's judge on the last day."

Now there's another articulation of a path to salvation completely devoid of the cross.

I suppose everyone can have a bad day. I'm hoping that's what the pope was having.