WARSAW – While talking to media on his way back from a trip to Poland, leader of the Catholic Church Pope Francis said that associating Islam with terrorism was wrong as not all Muslims were violent, adding that extremism existed in all religions, including Catholicism.
The Pope went on to say that nearly every religion had a small group of fundamentalists, adding that Christians also had such factions.
“Social injustice and idolatry of money are the prime causes of terrorism,” he said while responding to a question.
He added that “terrorism grows when there is no other option left and when the money is made a god and it, instead of the person, is put at the centre of the world economy.”
To a query he said: “I don’t like to talk about Islamic violence because every day when I look at the papers I see violence here in Italy – someone killing his girlfriend, someone killing his mother-in-law. These are all baptised Catholics.”
“If I talk about Islamic terrorism, I should also talk about Catholic terrorism,” he went on to say.
On the occasion, Pope Francis also accused the West of mishandling the issue of immigrants.
“I ask myself how many young people that we Europeans have left devoid of ideals, who do not have work and then they turn to drugs and alcohol or enlist in ISIS,” he added.
