Pope calls for 'brotherhood' with Islam but warns of widening religious divides

ANKARA, Turkey -- Pope Benedict XVI began his first visit to a Muslim country Tuesday by urging all religious leaders to "utterly refuse" to support any violence in the name of faith, but he expressed worry that the risks of more conflicts and terrorism were growing in the Middle East and elsewhere.\nBenedict, speaking to diplomats in the Turkish capital, said "recent developments in terrorism and in certain regional conflicts" highlight the need for strong and effective international efforts, including peacekeeping forces in violence-wracked places such as Lebanon.\nThe pontiff also urged dialogue and "brotherhood" between faiths, while Turkey's chief Islamic cleric said at a joint appearance that growing "Islamophobia" hurts all Muslims.\nIn calling for religious leaders to "utterly refuse" any form of violence in the name of faith, Benedict carefully avoided a direct reference to Islam, but he said the "disturbing" conflicts in the world show "no sign of abating."\n"I am thinking of the risk of peripheral conflicts multiplying and terrorist actions spreading," the pontiff added, but did not cite specific locations or groups.\nThe pope called on all religious leaders to reject attempts to wield political power and called on them to "utterly refuse to sanction recourse to violence as a legitimate expression of religion."\nBenedict also said guarantees of religious freedom are essential for a just society -- comments that risked bringing the Vatican into conflict with some Islamic nations that allow only Muslims to worship openly or impose restrictions on religious minorities. The views could be reinforced later during the four-day visit when the pope meets in Istanbul with Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, the spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians.\nThe pope is expected to call for greater rights and protections for Christian minorities in the Muslim world, including for the tiny Greek Orthodox community in Turkey.\nWith only some 30,000 Roman Catholics in a nation of some 72 million Muslims, the trip lacked the pageantry of a usual papal pilgrimage. With fear for the pope's safety, only one open air event is planned during the four-day trip with all other events in heavily guarded buildings.\nSecurity forces were posted on rooftops and roadways around the pope's route. Only a few Turks broke away from their daily routine to watch the papal motorcade pass.\nBut the Vatican holds big goals of the trip -- a closely watched journey full of symbolism that could offer hope of religious reconciliation or deepen what many say is a growing divide between the Christian and Islamic worlds. Seeking to ease anger over his perceived criticism of Islam, Benedict met with Ali Bardakoglu, chief of Turkey's Religious Affairs Directories.\n"The so-called conviction that the sword is used to expand Islam in the world and growing Islamophobia hurts all Muslims," Bardakoglu said at a joint appearance.\nThe comment appeared to be a reference to Benedict's remarks in a speech in September when he quoted a 14th century Christian emperor who characterized the Prophet Muhammad's teachings as "evil and inhuman." Those remarks triggered a wave of anger in the Islamic world; on Sunday, more than 25,000 Turks showed up to an anti-Vatican protest in Istanbul, asking the pope to stay at home.