Pope Francis condemns ‘deviant forms of religion’

Pope Francis has denounced the religious fundamentalism that inspired the Paris massacres, saying the attackers were enslaved by “deviant forms of religion” that used God as a mere ideological pretext to perpetuate mass killings.

In his annual foreign policy address to Vatican-based ambassadors, Francis called for a unanimous response from the international community to end “fundamentalist terrorism” in the Middle East.

And he called for Muslim leaders in particular to condemn “extremist interpretations” of their faith that seek to justify such violence.