QUESTION: For his outreach to Islam, the Pope is not afraid of being called a heretic. You also had a similar experience in your region. How do we reach out to the Muslims? Why does there exist Islamophobia among the Christian community?

ANSWER: For us, our path is one of dialogue. Except through dialogue, how can we reach out to them? During the Iraq visit, the Pope said that hope is more powerful than hatred and peace more powerful than war. So, as a bishop in a place like Kannur, I want that we interact with them in the line of Pope Francis’ exhortation for “a harmonious coexistence.” I could find here a good number of loving people among them. We make the mistake of labelling the entire Muslim community on the basis of some particular cases. As Pope Francis prayed in Iraq, “If God is the God of life – for so he is – then it is wrong for us to kill our brothers and sisters in his Name. If God is the God of peace – for so he is – then it is wrong for us to wage war in his Name. If God is the God of love – for so he is – then it is wrong for us to hate our brothers and sisters.” Perhaps, more and more people are becoming narcissistic and turning into themselves because of a wrong understanding of religion.