"I do believe he has retracted in a way that statement and that's all to the good," said Islam.

LONDON — The crisis triggered by Pope XVI's recent remarks on Islam showed no abating Sunday, September 24, with Yusuf Islam saying its called into question Catholic theology that the pontiff cannot err, and EU Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso blasting Muslim reaction and European silence.

"At one point I used to believe that the Pope was infallible," Islam, previously British pop star Cat Stevens, told the BBC television referring to his time at a Catholic school.

Roman Catholic theology says that the pope cannot err in teachings on faith or morals, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP).

The former pop star, who reverted to Islam in 1977 and has since become a prominent member of Britain 's Muslim community, stressed that the pope's comments showed he was fallible.

"Because of the kind of interpretation he had of Islam, he should read Gandhi and find out what he said about Islam," said the singer, adding that the Indian leader had a more peaceful interpretation of the faith.

Pope XVI has quoted criticism of Islam and Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) by 14th century Byzantine Emperor Manuel II Palaeologus, who wrote that everything Muhammad brought was evil and inhuman, "such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached."

The remarks have sparked a widespread anger and condemnation in the Muslim world.

The pontiff "should have looked elsewhere if he wanted to quote but we respect the Pope and his position -- I do believe he has retracted in a way that statement and that's all to the good," said Yusuf Islam.

Pope Benedict XVI insisted on Wednesday, September 20, that worldwide Muslim anger over his speech was the result of an "unfortunate misunderstanding" and that the quotes did not reflect his personal opinion.

Islam is marking his comeback with a live performance in London on September 26 to an audience that includes former US president Bill Clinton, Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson as well as the famous acting couple, Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones.

In November, 40 years after his debut album, he is releasing a new album to bridge the widening gap between Islam and the West.

Silent Europe

The EU Commission president lashed out a European leaders for not rushing to the pope's aid.

In a related development, Barroso strongly defended Pope Benedict XVI in a newspaper interview Sunday, saying Muslim criticism was "unacceptable" and asking why Europe was so silent.

"Attacking the pope because he refers in a discourse to a historical document is completely unacceptable," he told Welt am Sonntag newspaper.

"The problem is not the comments of the pope but the reactions of the extremists... We must defend our values."

The leader of the world's 1.1 billion Roman Catholics had come under increasing pressure to make an unequivocal apology.

The International Union for Muslim Scholars (IUMS) has canceled an Islamic-Christian summit slated for November or December over the pope's refusal to remove the controversial quotes from his lecture.

The Dublin-based body has also declared an end to dialogue with the Vatican over the crisis.

Al-Azhar, the highest seat of learning in the Sunni world, has also snubbed a papal invitation to visit the Vatican and a proposal to invite the pontiff to deliver a lecture on Islam over the controversy.

The EU Commission president lashed out a European leaders for not rushing to the pope's aid.

"I was disappointed that there weren't more European leaders who said: 'Obviously the pope has the right to express his opinion'," he said.

Barroso's comments came a day after media quoted former Spanish prime minister Jose Maria Aznar as saying Benedict had no need to apologize.

Aznar, instead, asked Muslims to apologize for the conquest of much of the Iberian Peninsula, which lasted from the eighth to the 15th century.

US President George Bush was probably the first Western leader to defend the pope.

"I was appreciative of the fact that he tried to clarify what he meant," Bush told CNN.

"This is a struggle not between religions -- and that's what people have got to understand."