This article tries to comprehend the doctrinal base of some polemical assessments of Benedict XVI; discussing its effects on the issue of religious tolerance. After presenting what is understood to mean tolerance, it proposes a way through the encyclical letter Deus caritas est; in this letter, the new papal doctrine is founded on a particular interpretation of the notion of "God's love". Lastly, it intends to show how this "love", by an exaggerated emphasis on the idea of identity, becomes an instrument of fight against every difference, spoiling the possibility of a pacific relationship among the religions and, consequently, sowing the seeds of fundamentalism.
Benedict XVI; Christianity; Religious Tolerance; Difference; Religions