Austrian cardinal Christoph Schönborn, speaking Sunday for the 333rd anniversary of the day Christians drove the forces of Islam from Europe, said the continent is now facing a renewed threat of Islamic conquest.
“Will there be an Islamic conquest of Europe? Many Muslims want that and say: Europe is at its end,” the 71-year-old Archbishop of Vienna Schönborn said at the Holy Name of Mary church festival, according to The Telegraph.
“God have mercy on Europe and on thy people, who are in danger of forfeiting our Christian heritage,” the cardinal added.
Schönborn noted that Europe wasn’t just under attack economically, but also in “human and religious matters,” as well.
In 1683, a Christian coalition, led by Polish King John Sobieski III, delivered a decisive blow against the Ottoman Empire. Sobieski trampled Ottoman forces with 18,000 horsemen, an event widely held to be the largest cavalry charge in history.
“Lord, remember, it is your people. And if we have strayed and if we have squandered the inheritance, Lord, do not abandon us! Do not abandon this Europe, which has produced so many saints. Do not abandon us, because we have become lukewarm in our faith,” Schönborn prayed at the closing of his speech. “…Have mercy on your inheritance, have mercy on your people, with Europe, which is about to forfeit your Christian inheritance! Have mercy on us and raise us up again, for the glory of your name and as a blessing to the world! Amen.”
In particular, Schönborn seems to referencing the unmitigated flood of refugees into Europe, virtually all of whom are Muslim. Based on sheer numbers, many leading right-wing political parties in Europe believe European culture could soon be finished once and for all if these flows aren’t stopped, if not reversed.
Although various outlets are calling him a frontrunner for the papacy, the fact of the matter is that his chances aren’t terribly good. The last conclave was his best opportunity, and while in the past he was seen as a conservative supporter of orthodoxy, he seems to have ended up more and more in the progressive camp of the Catholic Church.
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