Online Statement Denies Vatican As Target
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An online statement posted Sunday in the name of an al-Qaida-linked group pledged that the Vatican would be spared, but repeated threats to "turn Rome into hell."
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ROME (Der Spiegel) - Echoes of an old culture war have been rippling through Europe, as a bishop in Germany calls for Catholics to keep their kids away from a sex-education musical and the Vatican condemns a new gay-rights campaign in Italy. A children's musical about sex and babies, organized by the German government, has been touring the country since 2003 without noticeable friction. But now it's arrived in the city of Fulda, near Frankfurt, and the local bishop has called for a boycott. The Fairytale of Nose, Belly and Butt should be avoided by right-thinking Catholic families, according to Heinz Josef Algermissen, because in the Church's view, "explanations about sexuality belong in the home," and "can't be left to a theater troupe." The show's Web site begs to differ, saying the theory behind the project is that humans are "sexual beings from birth onward," and that children experience "smooching and touching genitals as no less fun or significant than tickling their big toe." Uproar in Italy, too This notion of human sexuality is no doubt as offensive to the Church as the idea that humans might be wired from birth to be straight or gay - which is the assumption behind an Italian ad campaign protested recently by the Vatican. The regional government of Tuscany has planned to use a photo of a newborn child wearing a hospital bracelet with the word "homosexual" as part of a publicity push to combat homophobia. "Sexual orientation," reads the tag line, which will appear on billboards throughout Tuscany, "is not a choice."  Italy's political right, along with some Catholic groups, want the campaign to be withdrawn. The Church's declared position is that homosexuality is a psychological disorder, not exactly a sin - although indulging in gay sex is a sin.
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The Vatican used the stage of   the United Nations on Wednesday to try to make amends for   remarks by Pope Benedict that drew fury from Muslims worldwide.
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(InfoWorld) - When Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was elected as pope last year, some Internet users who logged onto Wikipedia to see what he looked like found a rather different image: that of the evil emperor from "Star Wars." The prank lasted only a minute or so before someone fixed it, but it highlighted one of the chief problems faced by the online encyclopedia: How to remain open enough that anyone can contribute entries and edit them while alsoÂ keeping pranksters at bay. In the coming days Wikipedia will begin using a new system at the German version of its Web site that it hopes will fix that problem. If successful, the system is likely to be introduced at Wikipedia sites in other languages. At the German site, users who have been registered for four days or more will be able to flag a recent entry as being correct and unvandalized, effectively locking it for a period of time. People will be able to update the entry with new material, but it won't be visible as part of the main entry until another trusted contributor has flagged the updates as being correct. Four days may not seem a long time to become "trusted," but it should be enough to deter troublemakers who come up with an idea to deface the site on a whim, said Jimmy Wales, Wikipedia's founder, at the IDC European IT Forum in Paris on Tuesday. The idea isn't to flag all of the half million or so entries on the German site, just the contentious or topical ones likely to attract attention-seekers, he said. People who visit the entry will be able to see that it's flagged as vandal-free, and have the option to click through and see the recent additions that have not yet been vetted. HeÂ unveiled the German planÂ in August at the Wikimania conference in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and it's likely to go live any day now. "I'm just off to look at the software to see if it's ready," Wales said Tuesday. The exact details are still being worked out and the flagging system may be updated even after it goes live, depending on what works best, he added. It's one of several measures that Wikipedia has taken to improve the quality of its content, some of which have drawn criticism for making the encyclopedia less open. At Wikimania, Wales also talked about creating "stable" or "static" pages for entries that are considered complete, to help people who want to cite them in published works. The plan being tested in Germany appears designed to root out mischief, as opposed to inaccuracies that may be harder to detect. The question of accuracy spurred Wikipedia co-founder Larry Sanger to unveil plans last week for a "progressive fork" of Wikipedia called Citizendium (a compendium created by citizens), which will enlist so-called experts to resolve disputes and verify that entries are correct. The experts will have to publish their credentials online to verify they are who they claim to be. Citizendium will begin life as a mirror of Wikipedia, the contents of which can be used by anyone under its GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL). But articles that have been updated at Citizendium will remain that way in the future, according to a descriptionÂ available here. Wales noted that the content of Citizendium will also be available under the GFDL, so if the new site is successful, Wikipedia will be able to incorporate the changes back into its own site. Asked about Citizendium in Paris, Wales said that he and Sanger had a "difference of vision," but he said the two men are "still friends." Some animosity seems to exist, however. One of the entries flagged as "disputed" at Wikipedia is Sanger's biography. Sanger calls himself a co-founder of Wikipedia, a claim that Wales disputes. "He used to work for me," Wales said in Paris. "I don't agree with calling him a co-founder, but he likes the title."
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BERLIN -- Pope Benedict XVI yesterday said he was ``deeply sorry" that his use of a quotation from a medieval text critical of the prophet Mohammed has stirred outrage across the Islamic world, insisting the words did not represent his personal opinion.
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The Vatican's top saint-maker said on Monday he was moving ahead with the cause of wartime Pope Pius XII, and defended him against accusations he was silent about the Holocaust.
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A conservative U.S. lawyer's attempt to enlist the Vatican in his drive to declare Senator John Kerry a heretic over his abortion views backfired Wednesday when the Holy See said it had been hoodwinked.
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The Spanish Roman Catholic Church denied that it had condoned the use of condoms as a legitimate way of fighting HIV/AIDS.
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TONY EASTLEY: The Red Cross has refused to publicly confirm whether the memo leaked to the New York Times accurately reflects its concerns, citing its longstanding policy of confidentiality.
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Â· Benedict tries to row back on 'colonial' speechÂ· Former colleagues sign petition against Vatican
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By Tom ArmitageBERLIN - German Chancellor Angela Merkel defended Pope Benedict on Saturday against allegations that he had attacked Islam as worldwide Muslim fury continued over a speech he made earlier this ...
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ROME -- The Vatican deployed diplomats to capitals of Muslim states yesterday in an effort to contain anger over Pope Benedict XVI's comments on Islam, as shadowy threats against the pontiff and Christianity multiplied.
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The Vatican on Wednesday defended the choice of Doubleday to publish Pope Benedict XVI's new book in North America, responding to an Italian newspaper's barb that the company is part of the publishing giant holding the rights to "The Da Vinci Code," which was assailed by the church.
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The Vatican says the Pope did not intend to offend Muslims, after he is accused of anti-Islamic remarks.
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Â· Barber denies part in Shia cult Soldiers of HeavenÂ· FO says it is unable to give full consular support
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A document that surfaced recently in church archives has revived debate about a contentious post-World War II issue: the Vatican's attempt to keep hold of some Jewish children who were protected from the Nazis by Christian families.
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Text of Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone's statement, issued Saturday in Italian, about criticism in the Muslim world over Pope Benedict XVI's remarks about Islam and violence. English translation is provided by the Vatican: