The Messenger

spoken before. “For these sins, and others soon to be revealed, we offer our confession, and we beg your forgiveness. There are no words to describe the depth of our grief. In your hour of greatest need, when the forces of Nazi Germany pulled you from your houses in the very streets surrounding this synagogue, you cried out for help, but your pleas were met by silence. And so today, as I plead for forgiveness, I will do it in the same manner. In silence….”
    The Pope retook his seat and looked at the television screen, as if the images of distant mayhem could still be seen there. “I warned him not to do it, but he didn’t listen to me. Now he intends to come to Europe to mend fences with his former allies. I wish him well, but I think his chances for success are slim.”
    Gabriel looked to Donati for an explanation.
    “The White House informed us last night that the president will be coming here early next year for a tour of European capitals. The president’s men are hoping to project a warmer, less confrontational image and repair some of the damage over the decision to go to war in Iraq.”
    “A war I steadfastly opposed,” the Pope said.
    “Is he coming to the Vatican?” Gabriel asked.
    “He’s coming to Rome—that much we know. The White House hasn’t told us yet whether the president would like an audience with the Holy Father. We fully expect that a request will be arriving soon.”
    “He wouldn’t dream of coming to Rome without dropping by the Vatican,” the Pope said. “Conservative Catholics are an important part of his constituency. He’ll want a nice photo opportunity and some kind words from me. He’ll get his photo. As for the kind words…” The Pope’s voice trailed off. “I’m afraid he’ll have to look elsewhere for those.”
    Donati motioned for Gabriel to sit, then settled himself in the chair next to him. “The president is a man who appreciates straight talk, as our American friends like to say. He’ll listen to what you have to say, Holiness.”
    “He should have listened to me the first time. I made it very clear to him when he came to the Vatican before the war that I believed he was embarking on a disastrous path. I told him that war was not justified because there was no true imminent threat to America and her allies. I told him that he had not exhausted every last avenue to avert conflict and that the United Nations, not the United States, was the proper authority for dealing with this problem. But I reserved most of my passion for my final argument against the war. I told the president that America would win a quick battlefield victory. ‘You are powerful,’ I said, ‘and your enemy is weak.’ But I also predicted that for years after the war America would face a violent insurgency. I warned him that in trying to solve one crisis with violence, he would only create another more dangerous crisis. That war would be seen by the Muslim world as a new Crusade by white Christians. That terrorism could not be defeated by more terrorism but only through social and economic justice.”
    The Pope, having finished his homily, looked at his small audience for reaction. His eyes moved back and forth several times before settling on Gabriel’s face. “Something tells me you wish to take issue with something I’ve said.”
    “You are a man of great eloquence, Holiness.”
    “You are among family, Gabriel. Speak your mind.”
    “The forces of radical Islam have declared war on us—America, the West, Christianity, Israel. Under God’s law and the laws of man, we have the right, indeed the moral duty, to resist.”
    “Resist the terrorists with justice and opportunity rather than violence and bloodshed. When statesmen resort to violence, it is humanity that suffers.”
    “You seem to believe that the problem of terrorism and radical Islam can be swept away if they were more like us—that if poverty, illiteracy, and tyranny weren’t so prevalent in the Muslim world, there would be no young men willing to sacrifice their lives in order to maim and kill others. But they’ve seen the way we live, and they want nothing of it. They’ve seen our democracy, and they reject it. They view democracy as a religion that runs counter to the central tenets of Islam, and therefore they will resist it with a sacred rage. How do we deliver justice and prosperity to these men of Islam who believe only in death?”
    “It certainly cannot be imposed on them by the barrel of a