The Pope promotes the wife-beater's defense

I'm admired a number of the current Pope's opinions, but this is not one of them. He's saying that the cartoonists of Charlie Hebdo had it coming because they insulted someone's religion. And that in so doing it's normal to use violence in retaliation. He said:

"If my good friend Dr Gasparri says a curse word against my mother, he can expect a punch. It’s normal. It’s normal. You cannot provoke. You cannot insult the faith of others. You cannot make fun of the faith of others."

Bullshit plain and simple. Of course you can. It's called freedom of speech. And those that respond with violence, no matter the insult, do not deserve physical violence in response. Ever. In fact such response, and the justification behind it, serves only to restrict freedom of speech. Yes, there are limits on that freedom, like yelling "fire" in a crowded theater. Or inciting someone to violence. Ironically, the Pope did exactly the latte, giving a free pass for someone to commit not only violence but murder in the name of one's religion. Shame on you Pope.