Remember Lepanto!

With courage uncommon even for brave jihadi, two faithful soldiers of Islam valiantly shot an Italian nun in the back.

Guess that'll teach Pope Benedict to defame Muhammad, eh?

At this time, I wish also to add that I am deeply sorry for the reactions in some countries to a few passages of my address at the University of Regensburg, which were considered offensive to the sensibility of Muslims.

These in fact were a quotation from a Medieval text, which do not in any way express my personal thought.

Yesterday, the Cardinal Secretary of State published a statement in this regard in which he explained the true meaning of my words. I hope that this serves to appease hearts and to clarify the true meaning of my address, which in its totality was and is an invitation to frank and sincere dialogue, with great mutual respect.

And here's Tarcisio Cardinal Bertone's statement, for the record:

“The Holy Father thus sincerely regrets that certain passages of his address could have sounded offensive to the sensitivities of the Muslim faithful, and should have been interpreted in a manner that in no way corresponds to his intentions,”

In short: I'm sorry that you're reacting like a bunch of lunatics.

That's not the grovelling apology we all feared he would make, and by making it, only further underscores the point he was trying to make in his speech at the University of Regensburg about the irrationality lying at the heart of Islam.

SIDE NOTE: This morning I saw a poster advertising a Mass for the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, to be celebrated by Auxiliary Bishop Peter Hundt of Toronto at Holy Family Parish in Parkdale, on Saturday, October 7, at 10:30 a.m.

This famous portrait of the Battle of Lepanto appeared on it with the superscription, "Remember Lepanto."

This poster would not have appeared 10 years ago in a Catholic parish almost anywhere, for fear of upsetting ecumenical dialogue and causing division.

Pastors used to skim over the reason for the creation of the feast by Pope St. Pius V: the intercession of Our Lady and the deliverance of the Christian fleet from near-certain defeat to victory over the Turks in 1571.

Scales are falling from a lot of people's eyes.