Pope Benedict XVI continues to lead the Easter celebrations in Rome on Good Friday after a Holy Thursday mass. Before the religious festival began, the pontiff announced the publication of his first book.
The Pope shocked many Catholics with a dramatically revised version of the Stations of the Cross, one of the central rituals of the Easter ceremony. The Pope carried the cross for the first and last of the 14 stops on a candle-lit procession around the Coliseum in Rome. However, this year the Pope chose to change both the route and the content of the ceremony. One of the boldest changes came on the 3rd stop, where Jesus is given up to Pontius Pilate by the Sanhedrin, a council of Jews.
Pope Benedict XVI has lamented that "nothing positive comes from Iraq", in his Easter message in St Peter's Square in the Vatican.
Here is the Easter Message sent by the patriarchs and heads of local churches in Jerusalem.
Today, Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic and Protestant Christians had the wonderful opportunity to celebrate Easter together on the same date. Most years, the date of Easter observed by Eastern and Western Christians varies from 1-4 weeks. The explanation is complex - a matter of calendrical calculations and astronomical applications based upon the lunar cycle.
Benedict may be right that the Catholic Church has a world-historic chance to transform Europe and bring about change. But the church's own strictures could work against that. The paradox may be that for all his stylistic softening as pope, Joseph Ratzinger's own labors through the decades, applying his life experience with such rigor to protecting and preserving the church, are precisely what prevent Europeans from reconnecting with their roots.
Prime Minister Olmert's government is again flirting with early elections as a result of escalating tensions between coalition partners. Recent opinion polls reveal that most Israelis want early elections, and that this time around, the public would firmly place Binyamin Netanyahu and his Likud Party at the helm.
The moment of truth has arrived, and it has to be said: Israel does not want peace. The arsenal of excuses has run out, and the chorus of Israeli rejection already rings hollow. Today, the new reality before our eyes leaves no room for doubt and the tired refrain that "Israel supports peace" has been left shattered.
Why neocons are so apoplectic about the speaker's visit to Syria.
The Easter pardon by Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of the 15 British sailors and Marines ends the crisis. And as the beaming smile of President Ahmadinejad while he graciously accepted apologies from the sailors and Marines testifies, there is no doubt as to who won the showdown. Among Iranians, for whom love of the Brits is an acquired taste, Ahmadinejad is the victor. His position inside Iran, a subject of speculation, is surely stronger today.
The US offered to mount aggressive air patrols over Iranian bases during the country's stand-off with Britain, UK media reported. Citing unnamed diplomatic sources, The Guardian newspaper said Pentagon officials offered a series of military options that Britain rejected. Britain reportedly told the US to keep out of the affair and instead tone down armed forces activity in the Gulf region.
The Foreign Ministry spokesman said today that holding talks with the US was not on Iran's agenda.
Faced with overwhelming evidence to the contrary, even President Bush has backed off his earlier inflammatory assertions about links between al-Qaeda and Saddam Hussein. But Vice President Cheney, in an interview with right-wing talk radio host Rush Limbaugh, continued to stick to his delusional guns.
First the bees, now this...
A brutally cold surge of arctic air into the eastern half of the US will easily bring record-low temperatures on Easter morning and could cause significant losses in some of the nation's most prolific agricultural areas.
Oh noooo!!...
Hear ye, hear ye, hear ye! The New Crusaders call on all Christians and churches to begin implementation of the 10 planks of the following Agenda. Our goal is nothing short of taking over the United States of America and then the entire world.
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