WASHINGTON — WASHINGTON -- With his visits to a synagogue and a mosque, his acknowledgment of the sins of Christians against Muslims and Jews, and his decision to establish diplomatic relations with Israel, Pope John Paul II won the appreciation and trust of believers of other faiths the world over.
His successor, meeting today with leaders of other faiths during his first American visit, is developing a very different kind of reputation.
In his three years as spiritual leader of the world's 1.1 billion Roman Catholics, Pope Benedict XVI has alienated other Christians with his repeated assertion that his is the one true church. A 2006 address in which he quoted a 14th-century Byzantine emperor who linked Islam and violence set off riots in Muslim countries. And Jews continue to protest his endorsement of a prayer for their conversion.
To some Catholics, those are the forthright moves of a stalwart defender of the faith. But critics, inside the church and out, say his words and actions may be complicating already delicate relations with other religions.
"He has a very, very high Christology, which is to say there is only one way to God, and that is through Jesus Christ. And the only path to Jesus Christ is the Roman Catholic Church, " said Catholic scholar Rosann Catalano, associate director of the Institute for Christian and Jewish Studies in Baltimore. "If that's your starting point, it seems to me, there is not an openness to the possibility that the other - the one who is not you - can be a blessing."
Pope Benedict's meeting with other religious leaders today at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center will be largely ceremonial: Adherents of Judaism, Islam, Buddhism and other faiths will give him gifts symbolizing their beliefs; the pontiff will speak about religions working together to promote peace.
"One of the things that he admires about America is the vibrancy of the church in a multicultural and multi-religious environment," said the Rev. James Martin, acting publisher of the Jesuit magazine America.
Interfaith outreach has been a priority of the church since the Second Vatican Council, and Pope Benedict - who, as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, was a close adviser to Pope John Paul II - says he is committed to dialogue.
