Pope Francis's Use of the Word 'Genocide' Regarding Mass Killings of Armenians Sparks Heated Controversy

Pope Francis has shown that he is never one to back away from potential controversy.

Yes, Pope Francis is at it again, shaking things up.

If Ronald Reagan were still around, I could just picture him shaking his head disapprovingly and saying, "There he goes again."

In one fell swoop, with a few simple words, Pope Francis once again upset a lot of people, although mostly by uttering the truth.

This time, his target was Turkey. Particularly, one disturbing chapter in Turkey's history: the mas killings of Armenians. He reiterated that many people refer to this episode as "the first genocide of the 20th century."

This is a well-known chapter in history, and estimates generally reach 1 million Armenians killed during this chapter in history.

Here, specifically, is what he said while speaking at a mass at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Armenian massacres:

"In the past century, our human family has lived through three massive and unprecedented tragedies."

"The first, which is widely considered 'the first genocide of the 20th century,' struck your own Armenian people," he said, referencing a 2001 declaration by Pope John Paul II and the head of the Armenian church.

This caused an uproar by Turkish officials. Kenan Gursoy, the former Turkish ambassador to the Vatican, defended his country's action to pull it's ambassador from the Vatican. "Since this is a situation that we do not approve of, as a first reaction, (the ambassador) is summoned to get consultation." Gursoy stated. He also argued that adding that the specific use of the word "genocide" by Pope Francis was unfair, suggesting that it is "a one-sided evaluation."

Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu suggested that the Pope is "out of touch with both historical facts and legal basis."

Cavusoglu went on to say:

"Religious offices are not places through which hatred and animosity are fueled by unfounded allegations."

Turkey has expressed regret for the incident, although it has always steadfastly rejected any suggestions that this episode amounted to genocide, specifically. Many are arguing that the Pope's use of the term "genocide" amounts to Islam-bashing."



Here is the article that I got much of the information used in this blog entry from:

Pope Francis uses 'genocide' to refer to mass killings of Armenians by Turks By Jethro Mullen, CNN Updated 10:34 AM ET, Mon April 13, 2015

http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/12/europe/pope-francis-turkey-armenia-genocide-reference/