'Papa Boys' fete John Paul II's step to sainthood

Both Pope John Paul II and Mother Teresa of Calcutta, shown here at the Vatican in 1997, are on the "fast track" to sainthood -- the Vatican sped up consideration of their "cause"

ROME — As John Paul II mania grips Rome ahead of Sunday's ceremony that will put the late pope on the path to sainthood, thousands of young devotees are flocking to the city to celebrate their hero.

"We were born during John Paul II's pontificate, attended his audiences and spent World Youth Days with him," said Massimo Manzolillo, a member of the Papa Boys Association, a fan club set up in 2005 after his death.

"He was our friend. A friend of ours is being beatified, it's an incredible, wonderful thing," he said. "I wouldn't miss this for the world."

Armed with sleeping bags, "blessed" John Paul II T-shirts and an irrepressible enthusiasm, up to 13,000 Papa Boys are making their way by the busload from across Italy to St. Peter's Square for the beatification.

Dismissing critics who have accused the Vatican of unjustly fast-tracking the process, the youngsters have no doubt their mentor merits sainthood and has more than the two miracles up his sleeve necessary to achieve it.

"We have hundreds of people calling us up and telling us about the pope's miracles," said Daniele Venturi, head of Italy's Papa Boys.

"I know of at least 700 children who have been named after John Paul II because they were miracle babies, born to mothers who couldn't conceive and whose prayers for help were then answered," he added.

Those arriving in Rome in time for a vigil on Saturday will be cramming into hostels near the Vatican or bunking for free in a youth camp set up by the city council a nearby seaside town.

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Egypt's top cleric accuses pope of meddling

An Egyptian policeman in a riot vehicle observes as Coptic Christians begin a noisy protest at night near the bombed church, in Alexandria, on Sunday.

Egypt's top Muslim cleric yesterday criticized Pope Benedict XVI's call for world leaders to defend Christians as interference in his country's affairs, the official MENA news agency reported.

The call, following a deadly car-bombing targeting a Coptic church in Alexandria, in northern Egypt, was "unacceptable interference in Egypt's affairs," Ahmed el Tayeb, the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, the oldest Islamic seat of learning, told reporters.

"I disagree with the pope's view, and I ask why did the pope not call for the protection of Muslims when they were subjected to killings in Iraq?" Tayeb said at a news conference.

The Vatican rejected the accusation, saying the head of the Roman Catholic Church had shown solidarity with the Coptic community as well as concern for the consequences of the violence for the Christian and Muslim population.

"Therefore we cannot see how the pope's approach to bring everybody to accept non-violence can be considered meddling," ANSA news agency quoted Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi as saying.

"I think there are misunderstandings in communication but I don't think we should play up the imam's statement."

Lombardi said the Vatican referred to "an attack against a Christian church and therefore we are concerned about Christian minorities, but that does not mean that we will justify or minimize violence against the faithful of other religions."

Benedict, at a New Year's Mass at the Vatican, had appealed for the "concrete and constant engagement of leaders of nations" to protect Christians in the Middle East, in what he termed a "difficult mission."

In the wake of rising tension and "especially discrimination, abuse and religious intolerance which are today striking Christians in particular, I once again launch a pressing appeal not to give in to discouragement and resignation," he said.

Tayeb, who renewed his condemnation of the New Year's Eve church bombing that cost 21 lives, said Azhar, the highest institute in Sunni Islam, would form a joint committee with the Coptic Church to resolve disputes between the communities.

The committee, which should begin its work in two weeks, will "discuss reasons for the deterioration (in Muslim-Copt ties) and propose appropriate solutions," he said.

Copts make up about 10 per cent of Egypt's 80 million people and have been the targets of sectarian attacks.


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Vatican Adds Nuance to Pope’s Condom Remarks

ROME — The Vatican on Tuesday issued its most authoritative clarification on Pope Benedict XVI’s recent remarks that condoms could sometimes be used for disease prevention, saying that the pope in no way justified their use to prevent pregnancy.

The statement appeared to be a sign of the lingering confusion — and, perhaps, Vatican infighting — over the remarks. Approved by Benedict himself, it said his words had been “repeatedly manipulated” and did not “signify a change in Catholic moral teaching.”

In a book published last month, Benedict said that although condoms were not “a real or moral solution,” in some cases, they might be used as “a first step in the direction of a moralization, a first assumption of responsibility.” He cited as an example a male prostitute who might use a condom so as not to spread disease.

AIDS activists, especially in Africa, where H.I.V. is rampant, welcomed the pope’s comments, as did some moral theologians. But some conservative Catholics, especially in the United States, feared that it would be misinterpreted as a move to condone condom use.

Tuesday’s statement did not go beyond or contradict two previous clarifications by the Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, on the same issue. But it came directly from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the most powerful Vatican office, in what experts said could be a sign of internal Vatican tensions — or a response to criticism.

“I have never seen a communiqué from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith that explains the words of the pope after the fact,” said Paolo Rodari, a Vatican expert at Il Foglio, an Italian daily newspaper. “I think it’s unique. And it demonstrates how many complaints and serious criticism the Vatican has received.”

By publishing “Light of the World,” a book of interviews conducted by a German journalist, Peter Seewald, Benedict effectively did an end run around the Vatican’s communications structures — and also around the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which oversees all doctrine.

The Vatican’s new statement said that Benedict’s comments had been misinterpreted and manipulated by those who effectively saw them as permission for more widespread use of condoms, which like all birth control goes against church teaching.

In the book’s German and English editions, the text cites the example of a male prostitute, implying homosexual sex, in which a condom would not be a form of contraception. But the Italian edition uses the feminine form of prostitute.

Last month, Father Lombardi said that the Italian translation was an error, but added that the pope had specifically told him that the issue was not procreation but rather disease prevention — regardless of gender.

In Tuesday’s statement, the Vatican did not touch the gender question. But it said, “The idea that anyone could deduce from the words of Benedict XVI that it is somehow legitimate, in certain situations, to use condoms to avoid an unwanted pregnancy is completely arbitrary and is in no way justified either by his words or in his thought.”

Mr. Rodari said the prefect of the congregation, Cardinal William J. Levada, the highest-ranking American at the Vatican, had most likely not been shown the book before it was published since it consisted of interviews, not official church doctrine.

Father Lombardi said that he could not comment on whether Cardinal Levada had seen the book before publication, but that it “went without saying” that Benedict had approved Tuesday’s statement.

Issued in six languages, Tuesday’s statement, “Note of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith on the Trivialization of Sexuality Regarding Certain Interpretations of ‘Light of the World,’ ” was a masterpiece of Vatican nuance. It used technical theological language, while the pope had used a conversational tone in his book.

It said that condom use by a prostitute for disease prevention could not be considered a “lesser evil” because prostitution is “gravely immoral,” and that “an action which is objectively evil, even if a lesser evil, can never be licitly willed.”

Yet it added that “those involved in prostitution who are H.I.V. positive and who seek to diminish the risk of contagion by the use of a condom may be taking the first step in respecting the life of another even if the evil of prostitution remains in all its gravity.”

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Pope Benedict Calls for ‘Profound Reform’ of World Economy

Pope Benedict XVI is calling for "profound reform" of the world economy following last week's G20 summit in Seoul and the APEC Summit in Japan that proposed a Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific.

The pontiff says he is concerned the current economic crisis will tempt richer nations to forge alliances at the expense of poorer ones. Addressing the faithful from his study window overlooking Saint Peter's Square, he spoke of what he believes is wrong with the world's economy and how nations might emerge from the crisis.

The pope said the current economic crisis, addressed by the meeting of the G20, has to be taken with great seriousness. He added that the crisis has numerous causes, sending a strong call for a profound reform of the global economic development model.

The pope also called for a revival of farming to help the victims of the global economic crisis. He said a strategic revival of agriculture appears crucial. He added that the moment has come for a re-evaluation of agriculture, not in a nostalgic sense, but as an indispensable resource for the future.

Pope Benedict also warned that despite the economic crisis, long-industrialized countries are promoting lifestyles that are dominated by unsustainable consumerism.

The leader of the Roman Catholic Church called for a new equilibrium between agriculture, industry and services so that development can be sustainable.

Pope Benedict also called on the international community to send more aid to Haiti. The pope said his thoughts are with the people of Haiti, who because of a terrible earthquake in January are now suffering from a cholera epidemic. He appealed to the international community to generously help those affected.

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