Austrian cardinal sees much in common between Islam, Christianity

Published: 2004-02-18

NAPLES, Fla. (CNS) -- Cardinal Christoph Schonborn of Vienna, Austria, offered a rare glimpse into efforts to "build bridges" between Christians and Muslims during a Feb. 9 talk at a Naples parish. After celebrating an early Mass at St. William Parish for a congregation of 1,200, Cardinal Schonborn spoke for an hour about the challenges and opportunities that have risen in efforts to increase understanding between Christianity and Islam. The cardinal told of his 2001 meeting with the religious and political leader of Iran, President Mohammad Khatami, and his subsequent presentation to an Islamic university. In that speech, Cardinal Schonborn said he saw the most difficult point of contention between the two faiths as the fact that both are resigned to being "universal" and "missionary." In other words, Christians and Muslims have always had at the core of their identities a resolution to convert others to their faith.

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