"The WAR on error"
The forcible imposition of a western, Catholic patriarch in Constantinople, on the throne that had been occupied by such luminaries as John Chrysostom and Photius the Great left deep psychological wounds in the east.
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Pope Benedict is visiting Turkey this week at the invitation of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholomew - a visit the Turkish government appears to have done everything possible to discourage. How is the visit being read by Catholics, Turks, and the Orthodox?
Celebrating Mass for the small Catholic community in Istanbul on December 1, Pope Benedict XVI said that "the Church wishes to impose nothing on anyone, and merely asks to live in freedom, in order to reveal the One whom she cannot hide: Christ Jesus."
Pope Benedict XVI left Turkey on Friday after a momentous visit in which he reached out to Muslims and Orthodox Christians while standing firm on key issues such as papal authority and Europe's Christian roots.
Made public today was a Message from Benedict XVI to Cardinal Francis Arinze, prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, for a study day organized by that dicastery, which takes place today and is dedicated to the theme of: "Sunday Mass for the sanctification of Christian people." "Today, it is more than ever necessary to reiterate the sacred nature of the Lord's day and the need to participate in Sunday Mass. Sunday was not chosen by the Christian community, rather by the Apostles, indeed by Christ Himself Who on that day, 'the first day of the week,' arose and appeared before the disciples. ... Each Sunday celebration of the Eucharist enacts the sanctification of Christian people, until that Sunday without end, the day of the definitive encounter of God with His creatures."
They may taste the same, but the differences are huge. A woman in southern Germany is doing her best to increase the profile of St. Nicholas. Santa has almost completely taken over. Where to start? The supermarket shelves.
A handful of German states are heralding in new legislation on Friday that allows people to shop till they drop - at almost any time of the week. With the exception of Sunday shopping, which is banned by the constitution, the federal government turned power to determine store hours over to the German states.
Germany's parliament is currently debating whether to ban the far-right National Democratic Party (NPD). But such a step may prove to be neither feasible nor advisable. In fact Germany's democrats would be better off focusing on their strengths and trying to make the NPD irrelevant.
Germany's economy is booming and unemployment is dropping steadily. The good news is testing Germany's proclivity for pessimism.
As protests against the government of Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Siniora continued in Beirut, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier pledged his country's support in the face of internal and external pressure.
Turkey's membership talks are on the edge of collapse.
Shared devotion to “multipolarity” in world affairs offers only a temporary bond. When China emerges as an undisputed pole in its own right, Russia will likely seek new partners to counterbalance Chinese power. Joint worries about America's role in Central Asia mask an underlying rivalry for influence and resources. How these latent tensions are resolved will depend on political developments in both countries, and on how nationalistic each becomes. For Russian nationalists, China is both a threat and a solution to the problem of American power. But the equilibrium of fears may not last.
UPI analysis
Washington is abuzz with theories offering a potential way out of Iraq, one risk expert poses a new option: split Iraq in two. "We need radical thinking. The military situation (in Iraq) cries out for political experimentation."
The gulf's two military powers, Saudi Arabia and Iran, are lining up behind their warring religious brethren in Iraq in a potentially explosive showdown, as expectations grow in both countries that America is preparing a pull-out of its troops.
Only the onset of floods seems, for the moment, to have put off all-out fighting between Ethiopia and Somalia. American military intelligence now works closely with Ethiopia, sometimes taking up whole floors of hotels in Addis Ababa.
The Organization of the Summit described it as “an initial summit to explore ways to solidify the agreements joining the two continents”. On the agenda were questions related with peace and security, investment, energy, natural resources, the agricultural sector and cooperation, in general.
A well-placed and highly reliable source provided a different explanation of the Saudis’ talks with the American Vice President. The source said that Dick Cheney’s visit was aimed at delivering a clear message from the American President to the Saudi King - that there is no basis for dialogue with Iran. His visit is an attempt to prevent the adoption of any recommendations from the Baker-Hamilton Iraq Study Group.
We may soon face nuclear war in the Middle East. Seymour Hersh of The New Yorker has reported that the president has refused to rule out the nuclear option against Iran. President Bush's religious views are unclear, but he is reportedly tight with people like the preacher John Hagee of the Religious Right, for whom events in the Middle East hold the promise of Armageddon. Think of Dr. Strangelove reading the Book of Revelation, and you'll get some idea of the showdown they seem to have in mind.
The leader of Britain's Liberal Democrat party is considering recommendations to discipline and perhaps expel Baroness Jenny Tonge from the party's membership in the House of Lords following comments she made last week on the power of the "pro-Israel lobby." Tonge defended comments she made at September's party conference that "The pro-Israeli lobby has got its grips on the western world, its financial grips. I think they've probably got a grip on our party."
The dollar succumbed to another sharp sell-off Friday after figures showing that US industry shrank last month fuelled market fears over a severe downturn in America’s economy. Startled currency markets immediately stepped up their assault on the US currency, driving the pound and euro to new heights.
Central banks around the world, which had been holding greenbacks as their chief reserve currency, have started to diversify. And the main beneficiary of their diversification is sterling, which has become a major reserve currency for the first time since the 1930s.
The past week's ructions in the currency markets are a sign of changing perceptions of the world economy.
A time to be cautious of the stock market... a massive volume of derivatives... What will the Saudis do when the US backs out of Iraq? GW Bush and his unilateral quest for dominance... a rise in applications for jobless benefits...
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