Sarajevo Archbishop Puljic was quoted by the local media as saying on Thursday that the Pope's statement from his speech at Regensburg University was misinterpreted and politicised.
According to international media reports, the Pope quoted criticism of the Prophet Mohammad by 14th century Byzantine Emperor Manuel II Palaeologus. Using the terms "jihad" and "holy war", the 79-year-old Pope said violence was "incompatible with the nature of God".
"We expect everybody in the Islamic world to stand up against threats, violence and announcements of the holy war. This would be a gross insult against God and Islam," Puljic said alluding to protests which the pope's statement sparked in the Muslim-populated parts of the world, the murder of a nun in Somalia and arson attacks on Catholic churches.
A few days ago, the leader of the Islamic Community in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Mustafa Efendi Ceric, called on Muslims to refrain from inappropriate reactions to the Regenburg speech of Pope Benedict XVI.
Ceric was quoted by the Bosnian Islamic community's press agency BiH MINA as urging Muslims to use the Pope's speech as an incentive to serious dialogue on the struggle against violence in the world instead of resorting to protests.
"Although the Pope's speech (in Regensburg) should be perceived in its entirety in the sense of his intention to separate faith from violence, his selection of quotations does not contribute to that intention," the Bosnian Islamic dignitary said.