Pope goes on another tirade against the number seven
Okay, so Pope John Paul II probably didn't really attack the digit. But that's what it looked like when Weblog tried to translate a potentially controversial homily. As frequent readers know, Weblog is skeptical of many news reports summarizing statements by Roman Catholic leaders—especially when the statements aren't in English. So an Associated Press story reporting that John Paul II "renewed his appeal to the faithful Sunday to combat competition from evangelical sects" caught Weblog's attention—and suspicion. As the AP notes, the pope rarely harangues against "evangelical sects" unless he's in Latin America. In Rome, he's usually all about unity. So Weblog tried to translate the homily, delivered in Italian, using the Babelfish translator. Not so good. What the Associated Press had as the big controversial sentence, "In your neighborhood, in fact, the challenge of sects isn't absent," came out as "In your quarter, in fact, the challenge of the seven is not absent." And that's even one of the most understandable sentences Babelfish produced. Yikes. The Vatican has translated the homily into Spanish and French, both of which fare better through Babelfish, but why doesn't the Vatican offer an English translation itself? Of course, maybe the Pope just lost a bunch of Vatican money at a craps table lately, but that doesn't seem likely.
Italy threatens to cut power to Vatican Radio:
Stations of the Cross | Italy accuses Vatican Radio of emitting dangerous radiation (Time Europe)
Licentious clergy shaking Catholics' faith | It seems that the Church has yet again given its enemies a stick with which to beat it, handling this matter with an eye more toward protecting its reputation and its own bad priests than seeking justice for those upon whom the rogue clerics preyed. (Rod Dreher, New York Post)
A potentially historic choice | Cardinal Francis Arinze shares John Paul's conservatism, but he is also a champion of 'inculturation,' or incorporating African culture into Catholic worship. (Los Angeles Times)
Brigham Young University suspends gay students—but without allegations of sex
The Mormon school suspended two students last week for "homosexual conduct"—but not for gay sex. A sophomore was reportedly suspended for visiting gay-oriented chat rooms online, going on three "dates" with men, and embracing another man on campus (he disputes the allegations). A senior, meanwhile, says all he did was hold hands with another man (though his suspension reportedly also was based on charges of kissing). But at least one of the students thought the school's prohibition on homosexual conduct referred only to sex. The school won't elaborate on "how far is too far." "The Honor Code is not a laundry list of do's and don'ts," BYU spokeswoman Carri Jenkins told The Salt Lake Tribune. "It's not going to go through and spell out everything involved. Students have the maturity to decipher that and listen to what church leaders are telling us." (The Deseret News also has an article on the suspensions.) The suspension raises questions for other religious schools that have similarly vague prohibitions on homosexual conduct, and for Christians who believe that homosexual Christians should remain celibate. How far is too far?
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