George Bush's Mahjong Secrets: Revealed! The Legend of Koizumi manga, featuring both Georges Bush, Putin, Pope Benedict XVI, Thatcher, et al, has had its first chapter translated into English.
posted by HotPants on Jun 2, 2009 - 7 comments

The Pope is now on Facebook.
posted by HumanComplex on May 22, 2009 - 31 comments

According to Senior Harvard AIDS Prevention Researcher Dr. Edward Green, condoms not only are not helping to prevent the AIDS crisis, but are actually making the problem worse.
posted by Roach on Mar 22, 2009 - 47 comments

Bishop Richard Williamson, a member of The Society of Saint Pius X, has been making news since his excommunication was lifted by Pope Benedict XVI in January. On January 21, 2009, in a nearly six minute interview Williamson told a television news program in Sweden that "I believe that history is strongly against, is hugely against, six million Jews having been gassed in gas chamber as a deliberate policy" during the Holocaust. In 2001, the bishop wrote "That girls should not be in universities flows from the nature of universities and from the nature of girls: true universities are for ideas, ideas are not for true girls, so true universities are not for true girls." The Vatican is now repudiating the Holocaust denials. And Bishop Williamson has claimed he will reconsider the issue of Nazi gas chambers by reading the book of a former Holocaust doubter.
posted by McGuillicuddy on Feb 12, 2009 - 89 comments

Constantine's Sword (google video) A former priest's personal journey through the tangled and sometimes violent history between Christians and Jews.
posted by empath on Oct 2, 2008 - 14 comments

I am Charles A. Lindbergh, Jr. I am the Dauphin of France. I am, by the grace of God, Pope. [more inside]
posted by Countess Elena on Sep 15, 2008 - 59 comments

Sabrina Guzzanti, an Italian comedienne who said that Pope Benedict XVI would go to Hell and be tormented by homosexual demons is facing a prison term of up to five years, according to the provisions of the Lateran treaty. [more inside]
posted by ersatz on Sep 13, 2008 - 21 comments

Smartie Art by Prudence Emma Straite; who previously has made works of Dali (and whole rooms) from chocolate and the Pope (and the Coliseum) from pizza. (Radio 4 doc - real audio) (PS. The blue Smartie is back)
posted by fearfulsymmetry on Apr 16, 2008 - 12 comments

After breaking the ice with his video message to all Americans, His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI arrives in Washington, D.C. this afternoon for the initial part of his first Papal visit to the United States of America. Watch it all live. [more inside]
posted by resurrexit on Apr 15, 2008 - 36 comments

The most challenging scenario(video) of communion distribution in the upper deck of Yankee Stadium. See the Pope on 5th Avenue or vote for your favorite papal skateboard design. Other activities. Itinerary. Security. Via.
posted by These Premises Are Alarmed on Apr 12, 2008 - 15 comments

Papa Palmérino Sorgente, the Pope of Montréal [more inside]
posted by XMLicious on Feb 28, 2008 - 8 comments

"Ratzinger is an Evolutionist, which by definition makes one an athiest", is one of the reasons that this website, in which the "true" catholic faith (different [?] from the other catholic faith) is promoted, gives as to claiming Benedict XVI isn't the true pope. And to make their point they have elected a "real" pope themselves: Pope Pius XIII His real name? Lucian Pulvermacher (wikipedia) (previously) [more inside]
posted by omegar on Jan 31, 2008 - 79 comments

Illustrator Rob Nance presents: The Do-It-Yourself Posable Paper David Hasselhoff and Pope Benedict.
posted by miss lynnster on Sep 26, 2007 - 10 comments

The Catholic Church is traditionally not seen as a progressive institution, but when it comes to global warming, Vatican City is aiming to become the worlds first fully carbon-neutral state, and the Pope is expected to use his first address to the United Nations next April to deliver a powerful warning over climate change in a move to adopt protection of the environment as a "moral" cause for the Catholic Church and its billion-strong following.
posted by stbalbach on Sep 22, 2007 - 81 comments

The Vatican's new document - "Guidelines for the Pastoral Care of the Road" - contains 10 Commandments for Drivers.
posted by chuckdarwin on Jun 19, 2007 - 28 comments

Habermas debated the Pope (pdf) when he was just Ratzinger. In German. In Spanish. In English. Summaries: 1, 2. Money quote: "Secular society must acquire a new understanding of religious convictions" (Habermas) while avoiding the "pathologies of reason and religion." (Ratzinger)
posted by anotherpanacea on May 14, 2007 - 23 comments

Jesus of Nazareth - a theological biography by Pope Benedict
posted by kyleg on May 13, 2007 - 63 comments

An entire realm chained and locked shut. Who shall inherit all the lost souls? (Especially since it apparently contains everyone who died before the coming of Christ.)
posted by aletheia on Apr 20, 2007 - 83 comments

One down and one to go.
posted by bobbyelliott on Mar 31, 2007 - 69 comments

The Cadaver Synod is a episode from Church history they don't teach you in Sunday school.

The trial began when the disinterred corpse of Formosus was carried into the courtroom. On Stephen VII's orders the putrescent corpse, which had been lying in its tomb for seven months, had been dressed in full pontifical vestments. The dead body was then propped up in a chair behind which stood a teenage deacon, quaking with fear, whose unenviable responsibility was to defend Formosus by speaking in his behalf. ... Stephen VII screamed and raved, hurling insults at and mocking the rotting corpse. Occasionally, when the furious torrent of execrations and maledictions would die down momentarily, the deacon would stammer out a few words weakly denying the charges ... The sentence imposed by Stephen VII was that all Formosus's acts and ordinations as pope be invalidated, that the three fingers of Formosus's right hand used to give papal blessings be hacked off, and that the body be stripped of its papal vestments, clad in the cheap garments of a lay person, and buried in a common grave.

Perhaps you prefer a cartoon version or the classic poetry of Robert Browning.
posted by nasreddin on Dec 15, 2006 - 31 comments

Pope Benedict XVI wants to bring back the latin mass. This could be the start of a return to the old Catholic traditionalism and the undoing of Vatican II.
posted by SansPoint on Oct 23, 2006 - 71 comments

Pope Benedict XVI makes his usual Sunday address during Italy's National August Holiday and about two-thirds in points out that "excessive activity" can lead to "hardness of heart", specifically recommending taking time out for prayer. It becomes the highlight of the speech, gets picked up all over, by Reuters and AP, and suddenly he's the Patron Saint of Slackers. Huh? Maybe that's why it's called The Protestant Work Ethic. Meanwhile, Americans are 'giving up' on vacations (voluntarily?) and in parts of Turkey a Muslim Protestant Work Ethic is emerging. And whatever happened to the Hacker Ethic?
posted by wendell on Aug 20, 2006 - 22 comments

The just ordering of society and the State is a central responsibility of politics. As Augustine once said, a State which is not governed according to justice would be just a bunch of thieves: “Remota itaque iustitia quid sunt regna nisi magna latrocinia?”.
Eros and Agape, Justice, Charity, Marxism, and the separation of Church and State in Pope Benedictus XVI's first encyclical letter, Deus Caritas Est.
posted by matteo on Jan 25, 2006 - 14 comments

It's looking like the Pope will abolish the doctrine of Limbo. The real story, of course, is how this change in cosmology will affect D&D players. What’s a Chaotic Neutral to do?
posted by Zed_Lopez on Dec 7, 2005 - 46 comments

When you write a letter to the Pope, be sure to end it: I have the honor to remain Your Holiness's obedient servant, but for a Cardinal, simply use: Yours very truly. And remember that Emperors are addressed Your dignified Majesty while Kings are just called Your Majesty. Titles can be quite fascinating, for example, Queen Elizabeth is also an official Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Gynecologists and is an Honorary Bachelor of Music at the University of Wales. Even if you don't have those impressive titles, you can definitely find one for you in the giant Dictionary of Occupational Titles (largish html file - my personal favorite is "Fancy packer"); or just go for some obsolete job titles.
posted by blahblahblah on Nov 7, 2005 - 40 comments

U2, the Pope, Bush, Blair and Oprah together -- doing head and shoulders! Yet more Flash Friday fun.
posted by Hot Like Your 12V Wire on Oct 28, 2005 - 23 comments

Articles of Faith "By inviting articles that covered different sides of disputed issues, Father Reese helped make America Magazine a forum for intelligent discussion of questions facing the Catholic Church and the country today." Thomas J. Reese's policy -- to present both sides of the discussion -- apparentlly "did not sit well with Vatican authorities". Reese, a Jesuit and a political scientist, had made a point of publishing both sides of the debate on a range of subjects, some of them quite delicate for a Catholic magazine -- gay priests, stem-cell research, the responsibility of Catholic politicians confronting laws on abortion and same-sex unions and a Vatican document (the Dominus Iesus declaration) which outlined the idea that divine truth is most fully revealed in Christianity and the Catholic Church in particular.
Reese, who had described last month the Vatican as behaving like the cranky owner of a good restaurant, resigned yesterday as editor of the magazine. More inside.
posted by matteo on May 9, 2005 - 17 comments

Did the new Pope swing the Presidential election last year? After brown-nosing the Vatican on the grounds of being pro-life President Bush convinced then-Cardinal Ratzinger to work on the American Catholic Church on his behalf. Ratzinger's response? This memo where Ratzi claimed that anyone (especially a Catholic politician - like Kerry) who campaigned and voted pro-choice was not only on the side of evil but was unworthy of receiving Communion and Americans probably shouldn't vote for him. According to Salon, this was perhaps what was behind Bush's 6 point increase in Catholic support from 2000, and the difference in the 2004 election.
posted by tsarfan on Apr 21, 2005 - 48 comments

BenedictXVI.com registered a few weeks ago by our very own rcade. He hedged his bets by registering six domains in all, and now is being called out for popesquatting.
posted by riffola on Apr 19, 2005 - 64 comments

Habemus Papam!
posted by orthogonality on Apr 19, 2005 - 342 comments

The Papal conclave will soon begin, and at least two blogs have appeared that offer news and commentary on the process.
posted by the_bone on Apr 13, 2005 - 24 comments

PopaPOOLooza – a capitalistic approach to Popapalooza (discussed here).
posted by pruner on Apr 9, 2005 - 1 comment

"Pope John Paul II is being reborn in a Colombian comic book as a superhero battling evil with an anti-Devil cape and special chastity pants." Well, of course he is.
posted by XQUZYPHYR on Apr 9, 2005 - 19 comments

Handshakes are an important: They've signaled new eras in international relations, but this week they reaffirmed the sad realities of our time.
posted by trinarian on Apr 9, 2005 - 15 comments

Dennis for Pope His name is "sinned" spelled backwards. He has a kick-ass platform. He's been hard at work on the campaign trail for the job since 2004. Heck, he even meets the criteria for being eligible for the gig (see Qui uxorem, 19, caus. 33, Q. 5). He's on a *cough* papabili list that puts him right up there with Bono and U.S. Senator Sam Brownback as potential candidates. On April 18, vote Dennis for Pope "and good things will happen!"
posted by runningdogofcapitalism on Apr 6, 2005 - 8 comments

The conclave of cardinals will soon start the process of choosing a new pope. Have you filled in your brackets yet?
posted by Davenhill on Apr 6, 2005 - 51 comments

Its official, Pope John Paul II has died at age 84 in Vatican City. "The Holy Father died this evening at 21.37 in his private apartment"
posted by SirOmega on Apr 2, 2005 - 327 comments

112 Popes Saint Malachy's "Prophecy of the Popes" holds that we only get 112 Popes before everything goes all "revert to saved", and John Paul the Second is #110. Although it's now thought to be a Jesuitical forgery (circa 1600), given the speed with which Popes can switch, it might not be long before we find out.
posted by paul_smatatoes on Apr 1, 2005 - 48 comments

"The 52 funniest things about the upcoming death of the Pope," by New York Press columnist Matt Taibbi, generated controversy that spread from conservative blogs outward. The Press was denounced by legislators, one of whom suggested New Yorkers throw the paper away; it was slammed by gossip columnist Lloyd Grove, possibly in retaliation for Grove's being named No. 20 on this list. After refusing a suspension, Press editor Jeff Koyen resigned and bashed his bosses, calling one a "spineless alt-weekly weenie." The public back-and-forth between erstwhile editor and former boss continues, but Taibbi's response to the whole thing is probably the best after the fact summary.
posted by jeffmshaw on Mar 16, 2005 - 64 comments

The real Vatican is in Kansas. "On July 16, 1990 the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Roman Church elected David Bawden as Pope Michael, ending an almost 32 year long interegnum."
posted by eustacescrubb on Sep 21, 2004 - 26 comments

The Pope to Women: "get back in your place" - The Vatican, fearing it may still share some semblance of the same reality as the rest of us seeks to rectify this problem by telling women that they should stop hoping for the same things as men have.

"The obscuring of the difference or duality of the sexes has enormous consequences on a variety of levels," the document said, asserting it has inspired ideologies that "call into question the family, in its natural two-parent structure of mother and father."

It also warned of challenges to fundamentals of church teaching, saying the blurring of differences "would consider as lacking in importance and relevance the fact that the Son of God assumed human nature in its male form."
posted by Space Coyote on Jul 31, 2004 - 128 comments

Another Worlds AIDS Day, another statement from the Vatican saying you should never use a condom. [via rc3]
posted by mathowie on Dec 1, 2003 - 83 comments

What do the pope, Bono, former Illinois Gov. George Ryan, and Michael Jackson have in common? They're all part of one of the weakest Nobel Peace Prize slates in history. Peace has been a commodity in such short supply recently that a Norwegian researcher has commented that "no political leaders have distinguished themselves in ways deserving of the prize." Another commentator said this time last year that the committee would send the strongest message to the world by selecting nobody.
posted by PrinceValium on Oct 6, 2003 - 28 comments

The Pope really disapproves of gay marriage. He says "people extending cohabitation rights 'need to be reminded that the approval or legalisation of evil is something far different from the toleration of evil.'" He "also described gay sex as inhuman and gay couples adopting children as 'doing violence'."And some people thought Bush was bad!
posted by Blue Stone on Aug 1, 2003 - 32 comments

Hey, It's Not Enough We Die Of Obesity without having to go to Hell too? Some enlightened Frenchmen are bending the Pope's ear, trying to spring Gluttony from the Deadly Sins blacklist. Well, even clever old Thomas Aquinas did his damnedest to narrow the seven buggers down. So: which sins would you excuse today's poor sufferers from and which ones would you insist on keeping, if any? [Something tells me MetaFilter is ideally suited to put in a good word for Sloth. I wonder why? Speaking of which, NYT reg. is required but you can read about it here instead. Via Arts and Letters Daily.]
posted by MiguelCardoso on Mar 12, 2003 - 19 comments

The Vatican's Pontifical Council for Culture releases a document on the surging interest in New Age thought (e.g., Zen Buddhism). They advise that Harry Potter is okay but that Deepak Chopra might be someone to be wary of. Evidently the Age of Aquarius isn't coming so that peace will guide the planets. Bummer. That might be nice.
posted by treywhit on Feb 16, 2003 - 11 comments

Hail Mary, full of.... um.... what was that, again? The only Pope many of us have known, John Paul II, has decided that a millenium is long enough to change a prayer. Odd that two millenia are not enough to revisit female and married priests.
posted by dwivian on Oct 14, 2002 - 39 comments

Today in Mexico, Pope removes chin from chest to canonize the first Indian saint.
posted by swift on Jul 31, 2002 - 27 comments

Patron saint for Internet users? The Pope has given the Internet his blessing (thanks!) and there's talk he is searching for a patron saint for Internet users. Who would you nominate for patron saint of the Internet? St. Berners-Lee of CERN? St. Metcalfe of Ethernet?
posted by billder on May 12, 2002 - 24 comments

An African Pope? Rock on. (Via Fark.)
posted by artifex on Apr 8, 2002 - 32 comments