MetaFilter posts tagged with Pope

Multilateral Mahjong Madness

HotPants — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 22:49:42 -0800

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.

Pope 2.0

HumanComplex — Fri, 22 May 2009 08:13:38 -0800

The Pope is now on Facebook.

AIDS Prevention Strategies in Africa

Roach — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 15:32:52 -0800

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.

Bishop Richard Williamson in his own words

McGuillicuddy — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 18:27:08 -0800

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.

Constantine's Sword

empath — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 10:56:25 -0800

Constantine's Sword (google video) A former priest's personal journey through the tangled and sometimes violent history between Christians and Jews.

I'm telling you I was the king of Spain

Countess Elena — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 18:23:45 -0800

I am Charles A. Lindbergh, Jr. I am the Dauphin of France. I am, by the grace of God, Pope. I am particularly interested in people who, not out of any mental illness or any desire to run a scam, honestly believe themselves to be someone that the world will never believe them to be. Previously: Pope Earl.

Offending the honour of the sacred and inviolable person

ersatz — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 17:05:13 -0800

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. The July rally was called to protest against alleged interference by the Vatican and the Catholic Church in Italian affairs, from abortion to gay rights, but also to attack the Prime Minister for passing "ad personam" laws to protect his own interests and avoid prosecution on corruption allegations. Three years ago Ms Guzzanti released a widely praised film, Viva Zapatero!, about the suppression in 2003 of her late night show RAIot in which she had satirised the Italian Prime Minister. Antonio Di Pietro, a senator and former anti-corruption magistrate, who organised the rally, said that Ms Guzzanti had only "exercised her constitutional right to freedom of thought. [...] To put people in prison for what they think is reminiscent of a time when those who thought differently had castor oil poured down their throats" — a reference to the Fascist era, when the Lateran Treaty was enacted.

Art Good Enough To Eat

fearfulsymmetry — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 09:12:46 -0800

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)

Tu es Petrus

resurrexit — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 10:28:36 -0800

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. Popes traveling abroad rely largely on planning by the local dioceses they visit, which has proven unworkable at times for Pope Benedict's new Master of Ceremonies. (Because you just never know what the locals have planned for you to wear.) His visit to Washington includes plans for a visit to the White House; an interfaith gathering; a meeting with the bishops of the United States; an address to the presidents of Catholic colleges and universities at the Pope's own university, Catholic U., in what some are heralding as the key moment during B16's visit; and Mass at the new Washington Nationals baseball stadium. (There seems to be a fairly long tradition of popes--each pope is "Sovereign Ruler of the Vatican City State," after all--meeting with presidents.) His New York schedule includes plans to address the United Nations; meet with Jewish leaders at a NY synagogue; celebrate Mass with local priests, deacons and religious; meet with children with disabilities (video); participate in a rally with youth--who've designed a skate board for the pope--and seminarians; visit Ground Zero, where he will read a prayer for all the souls who perished on 9/11; and celebrate Mass at Yankee Stadium. Oh, and Papa Ratzinger will also be turning a spry 81 tomorrow. He returns to the Vatican on April 20, presumably to play with his cats.

Pope Benedict XVI hits NYC

These Premises Are Alarmed — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 06:29:44 -0800

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.

Papa Palmérino Sorgente, the Pope of Montréal

XMLicious — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 21:05:27 -0800

Papa Palmérino Sorgente, the Pope of Montréal Here's more photos of him and his art and here he is on YouTube in action and also on Google Video. More photos embedded in Flash in the Made in Montréal page for him. He's a bit dour in those but here he is smiling, straight out of Pixar's Geri's Game. I met this guy in the fall of Y2K while visiting “La Ville Aux Cent Clochers” / “The City of a Hundred Belltowers”. Flatluigi's recent post reminded me of him. He's a cool, talkative, and cheerful, if not entirely there, artiste of the grassroots genre. As you can tell by the frame of that first photo the Bedazzler was made for this man. It was quite confusing to try to carry on a conversation with him in my limited French until I realized that he didn't speak that language. (Or maybe his accent was so heavy I couldn't understand him.) According to the amusing anecdote on this page (in French) Papa Palmérino is a Kosovar. Though elsewhere it shows he emigrated to Canada from Italy. The YT video doesn't really do justice to what it's like being in his little shop, Le Musée de Papa Palmérino, but the Montréal Mirror says it best:

If religious collectibles are your thing, this place may be your little slice of heaven. The place is chock-full of Jesuses--statues big and small, crucifixes, key chains, mugs. Seems Papa is quite the Jesus fan, which makes sense, considering he believes himself to be his brother. Ask him to show you framed photos of himself mounted on a cross (I didn't ask if these were for sale). Papa Palmerino sells a wide variety of other religious doo-dads including rosary beads, candles and rings he claims cure arthritis. Even if the ‘Second Coming’ isn't quite the motif you're going for in decorating your house, this place is worth visiting for the browsing and... uh... conversation.

(Not sure if that's clear, but he actually has photos of himself mock-crucified, loincloth and crown of thorns and everything.) I don't know if he's still truckin' because he was 85 years old in 2003➚. I guess his shop burned down a couple of months after I met him! This person, Jona Pelovska, seems to have made a documentary about him. Her MySpace page says “in post-production.”

Two popes, two

omegar — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 11:35:12 -0800

"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) But, How can they elect a pope when they have one in the Vatican? you ask? Well, according to the FAQ, which is a tad outdated: "John Paul II is NOT the Pope and never was. Neither were the 3 other imposters, John XXIII, Paul VI or John Paul I." Of course, having two popes isn't news at all for the catholic church. There have been antipopes (wikipedia), a second pope unrecognized by the Vatican, intermitently for almost 1900 years now. Once there were even three popes at the same time, couresy of the Western Schism (wikipedia). (via)

Make them fight to the death! Wheeee!

miss lynnster — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 14:18:37 -0800

Illustrator Rob Nance presents: The Do-It-Yourself Posable Paper David Hasselhoff and Pope Benedict.

Catholic Church goes green

stbalbach — Sat, 22 Sep 2007 08:53:55 -0800

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.

Papal Beep

chuckdarwin — Tue, 19 Jun 2007 08:23:17 -0800

The Vatican's new document - "Guidelines for the Pastoral Care of the Road" - contains 10 Commandments for Drivers.

Kick your (a)theism up a notch: go "post-secular"!

anotherpanacea — Mon, 14 May 2007 14:21:32 -0800

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)

Jesus Christ!

kyleg — Sun, 13 May 2007 00:28:25 -0800

Jesus of Nazareth - a theological biography by Pope Benedict

Church banishes limbo

aletheia — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 20:33:01 -0800

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.)

Saint John-Paul

bobbyelliott — Sat, 31 Mar 2007 11:56:38 -0800

One down and one to go.

There was a ghastly Trial once/Of a dead man by a live man, and both, Popes.

nasreddin — Fri, 15 Dec 2006 14:10:42 -0800

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.

Dona eis requiem. Latin mass to return?

SansPoint — Mon, 23 Oct 2006 12:31:20 -0800

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.

Are Sunday Wire Service Editors Working Hard or Hardly Working?

wendell — Sun, 20 Aug 2006 19:14:48 -0800

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?

Benedictus XVI's first encyclical letter

matteo — Wed, 25 Jan 2006 04:08:38 -0800

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.

Won't somebody think of the thieves?

Zed_Lopez — Wed, 07 Dec 2005 13:03:11 -0800

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?

Your most obedient servant

blahblahblah — Mon, 07 Nov 2005 22:49:46 -0800

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.