In February 2011, following public controversies with respect to Bishop Richard Williamson's denial of the Holocaust and the Regensburg lecture's impact on Christian-Muslim relations, Fisichella dismissed as premature the idea of assessing the papacy of Pope Benedict XVI. He said: "We're still at the beginning of a pontificate, and in my opinion it's always difficult to make judgments or offer a far-ranging analysis at the beginning. ...A sense of history should make us prudent and cautious from this point of view."