Pope Benedict was in trouble on 2 fronts yesterday, struggling to contain anger over remarks he made in Latin America and facing a revolt by former colleagues in Germany.
Benedict XVI launched an appeal to European peoples to recognize the contributions of the former Yugoslavian Republic of Macedonia. The Pope's remarks today found favor in the audience he granted to Macedonian Parliament Speaker Ljubisa Georgievski, who was accompanied by government members and representatives of the Orthodox Church. "The peaceful coming together of the aspirations of the people who live in your country is an example for the European continent, upon which the Holy See looks with favor."
Benedict XVI recognized the historical contribution of Bulgarian Christianity while receiving in audience the president of that country's Parliament. Georgi Pirinski came to the Vatican today accompanied by a Bulgarian delegation that included members of government and representatives of the Orthodox Church. The visit is part of the celebrations in honor of Sts. Cyril and Methodius according to the Julian calendar followed by the Orthodox Churches.
[WAR: The Orthodox choose to bend their knee to a Roman Caesar, rather than a Roman Pontiff. But should those in the COG follow either of them? Are these 2 options the only choice?]
The Pope noted how the meetings he had held with Italian bishops during their "ad limina" visits over recent months had served to corroborate his "conviction that in Italy the faith is alive and profoundly rooted, and that the Church is an organization of the people, a capillary network close to individuals and families. ... The Catholic faith and the presence of the Church remain the great unifying factor of this beloved nation and a precious reservoir of moral energies for the future."
"We see before us the dragon of which the Book of Revelation speaks," he writes in a discussion of evil. "John portrays the 'beast rising out of the sea,' out of the dark depths of evil, with the symbols of Roman imperial power, and he thus puts a very concrete face on the threat facing the Christians of his day: the total claim placed upon man by the emperor cult and the resulting elevation of political-military-economic might to the peak of absolute power - to the personification of the evil that threatens to devour us."
"Latin Future: the language for building the identity of Europe" is the theme of an international congress to be held in Rome and the Vatican.
In the eye of the beholder...
Cardinal Carlo Maria Martini has described Jesus of Nazareth, the new work by Pope Benedict XVI, as a "very beautiful book." At a May 23 presentation on the Pope's book, the retired Archbishop of Milan, who is a respected Scripture scholar, said that he had thought about writing his own book about Jesus. "But," he said, "it seems to me that this book by Joseph Ratzinger corresponds to my desires and my plans, and I am very happy that he wrote it."
The Catholic archbishop of Moscow has applauded the reunification of the Russian Orthodox Church after an 80-year schism. He also said that the agreement is a sign of hope for further dialogue between the Russian Orthodox and Catholic Church.
Whorelord...
For centuries, the Vatican has bestowed a special kind of charity on the residents of Rome, providing low-rent accommodation in the vast number of properties it owns in the heart of the Italian capital. But recently the Holy See has suddenly turned on many of its tenants, demanding higher rents or threatening to throw them out.
Huh?!...
The New York archdiocese has received a record-breaking gift of $22.5 million from an atheist. Robert Wilson, a retired financier, has given the sum to a program that will pay tuition for needy children attending New York's parochial schools. Explaining his decision to make the grant to a Catholic charity, Wilson pointed out that his money would be used to pay for the education of children, rather than for specifically religious purposes. While he is not religious, Wilson indicated a deep respect for the Catholic faith. "Let's face it, without the Roman Catholic Church there would be no Western civilization."
Less than a week after 3 German soldiers were killed in Afghanistan, debate is heating up over a monument to honor the country's post-WW2 armed forces members who died while on duty at home and abroad.
China wants Germany to provide more investment and technology to help develop a key bilateral relationship between the two nations, President Koehler said after meeting Chinese Premier Jiabao in Beijing today.
After almost 2 years of 'reflection' on the French and Dutch referendum results the European constitutional cauldron is now bubbling merrily as Chancellor Merkel busies herself in preparing an acceptable stew to serve at next month's summit of European Leaders. Talk of separate Europes - a spectre raised by President Chirac - was squashed firmly by Mr Ahern and the Irish Presidency during the constitutional negotiations of 2004. No doubt Mrs Merkel will be equally firm. Nevertheless, the threat of a possible break-up of the Union will not go away.
As foreign minister, Kouchner will have the task of imposing a substitute for the European constitution. Sarkozy has called for "A Europe which protects," another expression for "community preference"—phrases which have been interpreted in Germany and other capitals as an intention to aggressively defend France's business interests against its European competitors.
President Yushchenko has ordered Ukraine's 40,000 interior ministry troops to come under his command, amid a deepening political crisis.
The official considered to be a leading contender to succeed President Putin criticized a landmark Soviet-US arms treaty as being a "relic of the Cold War," and promised that Russia would have a "sword" capable of piercing a US missile shield.
German press...
After the bomb attack on Tuesday, tensions are mounting in Turkey. The government blames the Kurds and the military has not ruled out hunting down Kurdish fighters in northern Iraq. German commentators fear that Turkey could be sliding deeper into chaos.
With nuclear weapons, the 7th largest standing army in the world and impressive economic growth rates, Pakistan projects a powerful image. But the country lacks the strength of an effective state at home. Attacks by armed supporters of the government against opposition activists in Karachi and frequent terrorist bombings raise fears about Pakistan's future. Pakistan has become a dysfunctional state, a tinderbox that may not light up for years, but could also go up in flames in an instant.
A federation or confederation between Jordan and the Palestinians would improve the prospects for peace in the Middle East, Benjamin Netanyahu said. "Some kind of federation or confederation between Jordan and the Palestinians" would enhance peace prospects in the region, Netanyahu said. He also rejected a peace plan proposed by Saudi Arabia.
Any eruption of large-scale violence in Lebanon is cause for concern, since so many related regional crises are "hot-wired" through Lebanon. A major political firestorm may overtake the Middle East this summer. It's hard to predict just how it might start, and harder to predict what it will devour.
Iran's hard-line president warned Israel on Thursday that other nations in the region would "uproot" the Jewish state if it attacked Lebanon in the summer. "If you think that by bombing and assassinating Palestinian leaders you are preparing ground for new attacks on Lebanon in the summer, I am telling you that you are seriously wrong. If this year you repeat the same mistake of the last year, the ocean of nations of the region will get angry and will uproot the Zionist regime."
[WAR: Notice the spin! Ahmadinejad specifically said "regime", while the reporter used "state" - and there's a BIG difference between the two.]
As Iran becomes a nuclear power, and the IAEA admits it may have underestimated Tehran's [assumed/alleged] progress toward a bomb, no one - at least in Germany - seems to care. Why?
The German presidency of the EU urged Iran to rethink its nuclear program after the UN atomic watchdog warned that Tehran could acquire nuclear weapons within 3-8 years.
Iran's president signaled defiance a day after UN monitors said Tehran was flouting demands to halt its sensitive nuclear work, saying on Thursday the Islamic state was close to achieving its "ultimate goals". President Ahmadinejad accused the West of trying to stop Iran's atom program in order to reduce its influence in the world, but made clear it would not yield to the pressure.
President Ahmadinejad said today that Iran has made its mind to pursue its peaceful nuclear endeavor. "Ladies and gentlemen, gone is the era of ordering nations; the Iranian nation has made its mind to go on with its peaceful nuclear activities. Some in the world consider themselves the representative of the international community. While unpopular in their own country, they wish to decide for others."
President Ahmadinejad said today that "bullying powers" will succumb to the will of Iranian nation soon. "The nuclear train of Iran has started moving; nuclear program of the country belongs to nobody or group; therefore, all nations should be aware of the fact that Iranians will not back down from their rights even one iota. Had your missiles, warships and planes been able to do anything, they would have saved you from Iraq quagmire. You should know that the era of such acts is over."
CBS news has learned that Iran is continuing to make progress on its expanded efforts to enrich uranium — in spite of covert efforts by US and other allied intelligence agencies to actively sabotage the country's nuclear program.
The US threatened new UN sanctions to punish Iran's nuclear drive as it ratcheted up tensions with the biggest display of naval power in the Gulf in years. Hours after a bristling US armada led by 2 aircraft carriers steamed into waters near Iran for exercises, Iran defied the threats and pledged that its controversial atomic program was expanding.
The Bush administration may be highlighting accusations that the Iranian government is behind attacks in Iraq in order to strengthen its hand in preparing for military strikes on Iran, according to a leading British think-tank. In a report sifting the evidence produced by US authorities against Iran, the independent think-tank Basic cast doubt on the strength of the intelligence, saying that proved links between the Tehran regime and militia inside Iraq remained "sketchy".
The President, reined in by his party's fear of electoral disaster and his nation's war weariness, has hesitated to go all the way with the neocons' plan to open up the 2nd phase of their bid to "transform" the Middle East into a pile of "democratic" rubble: no one in this country but Dick Cheney and his boys think going to war with Iran is such a grand idea, but that isn't stopping the neocons from trying to pull it off anyway. Clemons informs us that the plan is to have the Israelis mount the first strike, after which the Iranians will retaliate against US troops in Iraq – and the fight will be on.
Steve Clemons, relying on "multiple sources," says that Dick Cheney is slowly coming to the sad realization that President Bush may be a wimp who can't be trusted to start a shooting war with Iran. If that turns out to be the case, Cheney figures that the only option left will be to somehow goad Iran into attacking us first, thus making war inevitable.
America finds itself married to a guy who has turned out to be a complete dud. Divorce — which in our nonparliamentary system means impeachment — is the logical solution. But even though Bush cheated on us, lied, besmirched our family's name and spent all our money, we the people, not to mention our elected representatives and the media, seem content to stick it out to the bitter end.
Crude oil prices rose in Asian trading today amid worries about tension in major oil producers Nigeria and Iran. Potential conflicts in Nigeria - Africa's biggest oil producer and a top supplier of crude to the US - and Iran could affect global supply and are buoying prices after the sharp drop-off Thursday, analysts said.
The eurozone will in 2007 take over from the US as the driver of world economic growth, according to Paris-based think tank the OECD, with a strong performance by Germany giving Europe the edge. But the European picture is not entirely rosy.
From the news these days you'd think farmers have never had a better friend than ethanol. But if you actually are a farmer, ethanol and the high corn prices it brings is looking less and less like a blessing - and more like a curse.
So let's say you have a 10-, 11- or 12-year-old boy and you took away his video games, his iPod and, yes, even the television. Would he know what to do? Would you know what to do with him? If these questions make you cringe, fear not. Help has arrived in the form of "The Dangerous Book for Boys" - a sort of "how to" guide to life and play for young boys that is enjoying sudden and sensational success.
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