Once again, Melanie Phillips rallies to the defence of western civilisation

madmelSurprise, surprise – Mad Mel sides with Pope Benedict: “the Pope’s real crime surely lay in speaking a truth that is denied by the many who claim that Islam is a religion of peace. On the contrary, Islam does indeed have a long history of imposing its faith on the world by the sword.”

Unlike European Christians, of course, who have spread their faith across the world by purely pacifistic means.

Mel concludes with a dire warning: “Our greatest danger comes from those in the West who … have mentally surrendered to the irrationality and false logic of those who accuse the West of aggression simply because it defends itself against Islamic holy war. This surrender has already resulted in a degree of self-censorship and back-to-front thinking, with accusations of ‘Islamophobia’ hurled at those telling the truth about the violence practised by some Muslims in the name of Islam.

“If we are ever to defeat the global jihad against free societies, it is vital to tell that truth – that it is the West that is under attack. It is in that context that the Pope’s remarks must be seen – defending Christianity and western civilisation from an onslaught that has not just snuffed out many innocent lives, but seeks to snuff out freedom and truth itself.”

Daily Mail, 18 September 2006