“The killing of a man is the real blasphemy, the real crime of blasphemy”. Those words were written by Father Elio Bromuri, teacher of ecumenism at the Istituto Teologico of Assisi, as well as director of the Diocesan office of ecumenism and dialogue (Perugia-Città della Pieve, in Italy), in a note for SIR Italy, dedicated to the violent demonstrations in the Muslim world against the satirical cartoons about Prophet Muhammad. “Undoubtedly wrote the expert – religious symbols, of any kind, should not be covered with sarcasm and contempt. For them, the believers may even be ready to sacrifice their lives”. “However, above all, one should avoid offending the supreme image of God, that is, the person”. “If a priest is murdered while praying in a church, by a young man crying Allah Akbar (and what’s more, a Roman priest who dedicated many years of his life to the search for dialogue and understanding between the Christians and the Muslims), no cartoons can justify the crime”. Bromuri concluded his note by saying: “In the current situation, those who suffer more are the people who cultivate dialogue between religions and cultures, the believers, who pray with hearts free from hate and resentment. They are the real believers who can recognize the word of God, calling for truth and love, and commanding not to kill”.
