Benedict keeps his counsel - but is he wise to do so?

ANALYSIS: The Pope’s reticence compares unfavourably with his predecessor’s outspoken methods

ANALYSIS:The Pope's reticence compares unfavourably with his predecessor's outspoken methods

HAS POPE Benedict XVI got stuck in the lift in his ivory tower? The question may seem impertinent, even disrespectful, but it is one which inevitably asks itself in these dramatic days when seemingly endless social unrest sweeps across much of North Africa and the Middle East.

What has Benedict got to say about all of this? Answer, not a lot. Yes, it is true that the Vatican’s nuncio to the UN in Geneva, Archbishop Silvano Tomasi, last week expressed the Holy See’s concern about the possibility of a “humanitarian catastrophe” in the wake of violence in the region.

It is also true that the Vatican’s most powerful media mouthpieces have paid much concerned attention to developments, especially in Libya. Vatican daily L’Osservatore Romano has described Muammar Gadafy as “merciless”, expressing its fears about the “frightening picture of massacres of the civilian population”.

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Furthermore, the Vatican’s senior spokesman, Fr Federico Lombardi, last week spoke of the “possible springtime of the Arab world”, adding: “The Arab people’s true growth in freedom and democracy must be born from within, without counterproductive external interference.”

This is all very well, very responsible and very correct, but what has Benedict got to say? When he met with the president of Lebanon, Michel Sleiman, in the Vatican last week, the Holy See issued a communique which informed us that the two men had “dwelt on the situation in the Middle East, with particular reference to recent events in certain Arab states”.

The “parties” expressed their shared conviction that “it is vital to resolve the ongoing conflicts in the region”.

One is tempted to add that the “parties” might also have reminded everyone to wrap up well and not forget their umbrellas.

Benedict’s low profile might well be the expression of a wise, “wait and see” attitude regarding an immensely complex moment in part of the Islamic world. It is hard not to contrast that careful approach, however, to that of his predecessor, John Paul II.

When Bush snr (Kuwait, 1991) and Bush jnr (Baghdad, 2003) went all gung-ho about the idea of military invasions, attempting to convince us all of their legitimacy, there was one voice which on both occasions very firmly and very loudly begged to differ, namely that of the last pope.

He did not for a moment hesitate when it came to rapping the knuckles of the world’s most powerful nation, notwithstanding the inevitable tensions.

Likewise, on a smaller scale John Paul II did not hesitate to express his views on Italian matters, even if he did so only rarely.

When he visited Sicily in May 1993, speaking at the Valle dei Templi near Agrigento, John Paul thundered in rage against la cosa nostra, saying that the mafiosi have the killings of innocent people on their consciences and adding: “God has said, Do not kill. No man, no human organisation, no Mafia, can change this and trample all over God’s most holy rights . . . I say to those who are responsible: Convert, the day of God’s judgment awaits you.”

If Benedict has been cautious in relation to events in the Arab world, he has been positively silent in relation to events in Italy. Opinion polls from every side of the political spectrum would suggest that, right now, a majority of Italian Catholics are perplexed by the failure of the Catholic Church to openly condemn the much-discussed, after-hours activity of prime minister Silvio Berlusconi.

An SWG survey carried by La Repubblica last week found that 51 per cent of Italians felt that

the church had been too indulgent in its attitude to the prime minister, while in an online survey by the Catholic weekly Famiglia Cristiana, 73.4 per cent of the first 25,000 readers to respond called on Berlusconi to resign in the wake of his being ordered to stand trial on the charge of exploitation of underage prostitution.

Benedict is not John Paul II. His is a much more timid world view and, perhaps more importantly, is a much less gregarious person than his predecessor.

At another time, all this would be perfectly reasonable – but today? Perhaps it is time for the Pope to become more engaged.