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21 Nov 2010 19:55

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World: The Vatican shakes off Pope Benedict’s condom comments

  • yeah … Pope Benedict made some claims in a to-be-released book that make it sound like the Catholic Church’s stance on condoms is softening.
  • … but The Vatican almost immediately backtracked, saying that he had “not reformed or changed the church’s teaching.” source

06 Nov 2010 12:17

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World: Pope Benedict to Spain: Your secularism is bad news, guys

  • The clash between faith and modernity is happening again, and it is very strong today. … Spain saw in the 1930s the birth of a strong and aggressive anti-clericalism.
  • Pope Benedict XVI • Seeming to suggest that Spain’s growing secularism will bring rise to the kind of fascism that led to the Spanish Civil War. See, Spain (currently ruled by Socialists) has done a few things that the Catholic Church doesn’t like, including getting rid of religious education in schools and legalizing abortion. The pope suggests a “meeting between faith and secularism and not a confrontation.” Perhaps we’re cynical, but does anyone see this as the Pope’s attempt to scare people back towards religion in Spain? source

18 Apr 2010 11:05

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World: We have no soul: Post about Pope right after “Shake Weight” parody

Pope Benedict, currently in damage-control mode, apologized directly to eight abuse victims in Malta and said the Church would right the wrongs of the past. source

10 Apr 2010 14:54

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World: The Vatican: Oh, that letter from the Pope was a form letter

  • There may be some overstep and rush to judgment going on here. … Moreover, while that proceeding was ongoing, there is no known report of the priest having re-offended.
  • Vatican lawyer Jeffrey Lena • Regarding that letter that suggested current pope may have had some connection to the sex-abuse scandals dogging the Catholic Church for the last 30 years. Lena claims the letter is “a form letter typically sent out initially with respect to laicisation cases.” The priest in question, who personally asked to be defrocked, was put on probation for three years after pleading no contest to tying up and raping two pre-teen boys. After he was finally defrocked in 1987, he was convicted of other sex crimes as a civilian. Yeah. This is a mess. source

01 Apr 2010 10:13

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World: Could Pope Benedict be charged in a abuse scandal cover-up?

  • NO because he’s a head of state, the Vatican says source

28 Mar 2010 12:15

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World: Pope Benedict doesn’t plan to cower in fear due to church scandal

  • The nature of this issue is bound to attract media attention and the way the Church responds is crucial for its moral credibility.
  • Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi • Regarding the Pope’s response to the whole church sex scandal. The Pope had to deal with this on a pretty rough day – Palm Sunday – and did so in somewhat vague terms. He spoke of using God’s help to lead one “towards the courage of not allowing oneself to be intimidated by the petty gossip of dominant opinion.” All of this, of course, suggests that the Pope won’t be bullied the the court of public opinion, despite the scale of the scandal. source

25 Mar 2010 20:02

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World: Did the Pope wash his hands of a sex-abuse scandal?

200 deaf boys were allegedly abused by a priest. And Pope Benedict XVI didn’t punish him. If this is true, the Popemobile may not be enough protection for His Holiness. source
 

24 Jan 2010 20:16

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Tech: Why not? The Pope wants his priests to be bloggers for the Lord

  • The evangelicals are way ahead of you, boys. In case you were wondering if this social media thing was going to be a mere fad, a whole decade after blogging was the hip new thing, Pope Benedict XVI is ready to confirm its importance. “The world of digital communication,” he proclaimed on YouTube, “with its almost limitless expressive capacity, makes us appreciate all the more Saint Paul’s exclamation: ‘Woe to me if I do not preach the Gospel.'” It gets better. The theme for his World Communications Day message in May is “New Media at the service of the Word.” Our boy Benny really gets it! Next up: condoms. source

17 Jul 2009 08:11

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World: Holy crap! The Pope broke his wrist today

  • Pope Benedict XVI got ganked in a fall while on vacation. The world’s holiest guy (well, depending on your religion – for example, Rainn Wilson doesn’t swing that way) was injured while hanging out in his chalet in the mountainous Valle d’Aosta region of Italy. Vatican spokesman suggests it’s “nothing serious,” and the dude was able to eat a little breakfast and have mass before he went to the hospital. Though, we just have to wonder: Does el Popearino have killer health insurance? If not, he should. source

08 May 2009 11:43

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World: The Pope makes up for lost time with the Islamic community

  • My visit to Jordan gives me a welcome opportunity to speak of my deep respect for the Muslim community, and to pay tribute to the leadership shown by his majesty the king in promoting a better understanding of the virtues proclaimed by Islam.
  • Pope Benedict XVI • On his chance to say nice things about Islam in Jordan, a few years after causing waves in 2006 by quoting a medieval text that used the phrase “evil and inhuman” to describe some of the Prophet Muhammad’s teachings. The Pope, obviously, is very sorry about that. • source