Will the Cathedral of St Pölten in Austria become a mosque?
Translation of an article from Kreuz.net.
The Cathedral priest, in charge of St Pölten Cathedral invited a group of Muslims last Sunday. In doing so, he made a mistake with consequences: he gave the Church away.
The theme of the inter-religious meeting was “From heart to heart”. Reverend Father Norbert Burmettler, has been the priest in charge of the Cathedral since September 2006. The 58-year-old priest belongs to the Cathedral chapter and is seen as a supporter of Bishop Klaus Kung. The organizers of this meeting were the Catholic Academic Society and the Islamic Cultural Association, as well as the Cathedral Parish.
There were about 60 people present, amongst whom were 15 Muslims under the leadership of the Imam, an Islamic religious leader.
Father Burmettler greeted his Islamic guests in a friendly manner and started off by apologizing for the monstrous deeds of Christians in the past, as is usual with such meetings. He said the purpose of the meeting is not to convert anybody but to aim for a “positive effect” and for “mutual understanding”.
He then explained that the Baroque frescoes and statues in the Cathedral should not be understood as images of God and that they do not represent an insult to allah. For the sake of caution, he did not mention the presence of God in the tabernacle.
At the end of the meeting, the Reverend Burmettler made a mistake full of consequences. He asked the Imam to direct prayer to allah. The Imam did not need asking twice and began immediately to recite texts from the Koran.
According to Islamic law, the house of God that has once served for the cult of allah will remain forever the property of Islam, i.e. become a mosque.
Cathcon comments
Father Burmettler said when appointed to the post that he wanted to be "a priest for all" and to be a bridgebuilder in the spirit of Cardinal König. He is also responsible for the charismatic renewal movement in the Diocese.
The Cathedral priest, in charge of St Pölten Cathedral invited a group of Muslims last Sunday. In doing so, he made a mistake with consequences: he gave the Church away.
The theme of the inter-religious meeting was “From heart to heart”. Reverend Father Norbert Burmettler, has been the priest in charge of the Cathedral since September 2006. The 58-year-old priest belongs to the Cathedral chapter and is seen as a supporter of Bishop Klaus Kung. The organizers of this meeting were the Catholic Academic Society and the Islamic Cultural Association, as well as the Cathedral Parish. There were about 60 people present, amongst whom were 15 Muslims under the leadership of the Imam, an Islamic religious leader.
Father Burmettler greeted his Islamic guests in a friendly manner and started off by apologizing for the monstrous deeds of Christians in the past, as is usual with such meetings. He said the purpose of the meeting is not to convert anybody but to aim for a “positive effect” and for “mutual understanding”.
He then explained that the Baroque frescoes and statues in the Cathedral should not be understood as images of God and that they do not represent an insult to allah. For the sake of caution, he did not mention the presence of God in the tabernacle. At the end of the meeting, the Reverend Burmettler made a mistake full of consequences. He asked the Imam to direct prayer to allah. The Imam did not need asking twice and began immediately to recite texts from the Koran.
According to Islamic law, the house of God that has once served for the cult of allah will remain forever the property of Islam, i.e. become a mosque.
Cathcon comments
Father Burmettler said when appointed to the post that he wanted to be "a priest for all" and to be a bridgebuilder in the spirit of Cardinal König. He is also responsible for the charismatic renewal movement in the Diocese.
.jpeg)
Comments