Editor sorry over new cartoons

2006-04-16 19:22

Rome - The editor of a religious magazine linked to the Roman Catholic conservative Opus Dei group apologised on Sunday for publishing a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad that offended Muslims.

Cesare Cavalleri of Studi Cattolici said it was not his intention to upset Muslims and that he had been surprised by the reaction to the cartoon, according to a statement published by the ANSA news agency.

"If, contrary to my intentions and those of the author, anyone felt offended in his religious feelings, I freely ask him in a Christian manner for forgiveness," he said.

The offending cartoon, which appeared in the March issue of the magazine and angered several Muslim organisations in Italy, showed the Italian poet Dante Alighieri and the Roman poet Virgil.

The two are the protagonists of Dante's epic poem The Divine Comedy in which Virgil guides the author through the various circles of Hell.

Muhammad cut in two

The cartoon shows Muhammad among the damned, cut in two for "bringing divisions to society".

Cavalleri said the cartoon had been "interpreted as anti-Islamic when it was a condemnation of the cultural identity crisis of the West".

He is a member of Opus Dei and the magazine is published by the firm which also puts out the works of Josemaria Escriva, founder of Opus Dei.

But Opus Dei said this weekend that Studi Cattolici was not one of its official or unofficial publications.

Cartoons by 12 artists first published in a Danish newspaper last September and later reprinted in a number of other mainly European dailies sparked Muslim protests, often violent, worldwide.

Opus Dei, which has a chiefly lay membership, has aroused controversy over charges that it is secretive and socially ultra-conservative.

It came to wider attention when it was heavily and unflatteringly featured in the best-selling novel The Da Vinci Code.

- AFP