Posted: 22.09.06 08:37. Post subject: Parliamentarians Get Copy of Pope's Speech

STRASBOURG, France, SEPT. 20, 2006 (Zenit.org).- The vice president of the European Parliament has sent 732 Euro-deputies the text of Benedict XVI's address at the University of Regensburg.

In a statement, Mario Mauro said that with today's initiative, it is hoped that "future manipulations will be avoided and that the European Parliament will assume a clear position in favor of freedom of speech."

The Holy Father's address Sept. 12 prompted widespread criticism in the Muslim world.

"In his address," Mauro noted, "the Pope did no more than invite to dialogue, an address that evidently has been misunderstood and manipulated by a part of the Muslim world and part of the media, which have not understood the authentic thought of the Pope."

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