Death Penalty: Catholic, church to oppose death penalty

Pope changes teaching to oppose death penalty in all cases

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Catholics New Pope: Best of the worst reactions around the world - by Natasha Lennard

Catholic's New Pope Francis 1

Reactions from Twitter and other media around the world revealed that Pope Francis I — unsurprisingly, has terrible views on gay and reproductive rights. He has, however, somewhat better views on poverty and inequality. It was also reported that the new Catholic Pope personally helped Argentina’s right-wing military junta hold political prisoners after 1976.

The link below will take you to "the best of the worst" of what Twitter had to say about the new Catholic figurehead,

Read more: New pope: Best of the worst reactions - Salon.com

Vatican: Pope cancels Syria trip due to danger

The Pope has cancelled a high-level papal delegation to Syria to promote an end to the conflict due to the deteriorating situation there.

Pope Benedict had originally intended to send seven senior clerics to Damascus, including Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the Archbishop of New York.  Instead, Cardinal Robert Sarah, head of the Vatican Cor Unum department which coordinates Roman Catholic charities, will visit Lebanon and meet religious and political figures there, including Syrian Church leaders and refugees, the pope said on Wednesday.

Speaking to pilgrims and tourists at his weekly general audience, the Pope called on the world powers to help end the civil war in Syria. He also urged both sides to spare no effort to seek peace through dialogue.  "We have to do everything possible because one day it could be too late," he said.

Read more: Vatican cancels Syria trip due to danger - Yahoo! News

Cubans celebrate Christmas ahead of pope's visit

Cuban faithful celebrating Christmas say they have plenty to cheer this year as they prepare for the arrival of Pope Benedict XVI, the first visit by a pontiff to the Communist-run island since John Paul II's historic tour nearly 14 years ago.

The visit, expected in March, coincides with the 400th anniversary of Cuba's patron saint and follows years of lobbying by Roman Catholic officials on the island.

The timing also appears to reward the larger role the church has assumed in Cuba in recent years. Havana Archbishop Jaime Ortega personally negotiated the release of political prisoners in 2010 and 2011, and church magazines have become a forum for articles offering advice to Cuban leaders on a process of free-market reforms begun by President Raul Castro.

For more: Cubans celebrate Christmas ahead of pope's visit - Boston.com

Malta: Luga local council demands the removal phallic symbol monument before Pope's visit

Luqa local council has demanded the removal of the 'monument of shame' opposite the Lidl supermarket, before the Pope's visit.

In a statement issued today, Mayor John Schembri said that the council welcomed the fact that Pope Benedict would be going to Luqa. However, he added, "in the opinion of the council, the Pope's first visit among us risks being a source of embarrassment to the people of Luqa and the Maltese in general, due to the obscene 'monument' (seen as a phallic symbol) which is still dominating the 'LIDL' roundabout on one's entry into the village."

For more: timesofmalta.com - Council seeks removal of Luqa 'vulgar' monument before Pope's visit

Breaking News - Pope: God decides sex, not man

For the complete report from Breaking News.co.tt click on this link

Pope: God decides sex, not man

Pope Benedict XVI criticized homosexuals in his end of year address yesterday, saying that the confusion of the sexes is as great a threat to humanity as climate change. In other words sex change is as big a threat as climate change. The head of the Roman Catholic Church launched the attack against "the negation of natural laws" and caused many homosexuals in Europe to react with counter-accusations. The fresh condemnation of homosexuals from the Vatican comes only days after the state rejected the United Nations proposals to de-penalize universal homosexuality, presented last December 18 by 66 countries.

The Dallas Morning News: Vatican - Pope's comments seem to throw cold water on worth of interfaith dialogue - by Bruce Tomaso

For the complete report from The Dallas Morning News click on this link

Vatican - Pope's comments seem to throw cold water on worth of interfaith dialogue

No one who knows anything about Pope Benedict XVI believes he is ever going to be enthusiastic about interfaith discussions if they put the various faiths involved on equal footing -- if, in other words, an underlying assumption of such talks is that Islam, or Judaism, or Buddhism, or whatever, is as valid a way of expressing human understanding of God as is Christianity. In Benedict's mind, that is simply not the case: The pope, make no mistake, is Catholic.

Benedict praised a forthcoming book about Christianity, saying it "explained with great clarity" that "an inter religious dialogue in the strict sense of the word is not possible." In theological terms, he added, "a true dialogue is not possible without putting one's faith in parentheses." His comments were contained in a letter to Marcello Pera, the author of the new book, "Why We Must Call Ourselves Christian," which argues that Europe should stay true to its Christian roots. That's a point Benedict has made many times, even as Europe at once grows more secular, and more religiously diverse.

Note EU-Digest: Faith is not what the Pope or any other religious leader tells us, but faith is what you feel in your heart. Religious "man-made" doctrine has been a curse to the world, history proves that.