Pope Benedict XVI is «extremely upset» that Muslims have been offended by his words in a recent speech in Germany, the Vatican said Saturday. The new Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, said that the pope's position about Islam is unmistakably in line with Vatican teaching that the Church «esteems Muslims, who adore the only God.» Thus, the pope is «extremely upset that some portions of his speech were able to sound offensive to the sensibilities of Muslim believers and have been interpreted in a way that does not at all correspond to his intentions,» Bertone said in a statement carried by the Associated Press.
