Category: Trends

Comment on this story Comment VATICAN CITY — Within minutes of the announcement of the death of Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI Saturday morning, a wealth of tributes poured in from around the world, while the Vatican revealed that the late pontiff would be given a “simple” funeral, celebrated by Pope Francis, in keeping with his […]

He announced it in Latin, which was like him. Because of that choice, and because the event on the morning of Feb. 11, 2013, had been scheduled as a routine piece of Vatican business, several of the Cardinals present didn’t immediately realize what they had just heard. Benedict XVI, the great traditionalist, had announced his […]

Comment on this story Comment VATICAN CITY — Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI had a long and illustrious career as one of the Roman Catholic Church’s pre-eminent theologians. For all his accomplishments and accolades, however, Benedict will forever be known as the first pope in 600 years to resign. The former German Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was […]

Comment on this story Comment VATICAN CITY — Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, the shy German theologian who tried to reawaken Christianity in a secularized Europe but will forever be remembered as the first pontiff in 600 years to resign from the job, died Saturday. He was 95. Benedict stunned the world on Feb. 11, 2013, […]

Comment on this story Comment KYIV, Ukraine — For millions of Ukrainians, many of them under Russian bombardment and grappling with power and water shortages, New Year’s celebrations will be muted as Russia’s 10-month war rumbles on with no end in sight. But for some families, it is a chance to reunite, however briefly, after […]

Comment on this story Comment VATICAN CITY — If ever there was a moment that embodied the surreal novelty created by the first papal resignation in 600 years, it came on the morning of March 23, 2013: Newly elected Pope Francis had traveled to the papal summer retreat south of Rome and was greeted on […]

VATICAN CITY — Benedict XVI broke with tradition when he became the first pope in six centuries to abdicate. His death at 95, announced by the Vatican on Saturday, has raised questions about which papal funeral traditions may apply to an ex-pope. For sure some customs aren’t relevant. There’s no need to destroy the Fisherman’s […]

Comment on this story Comment VATICAN CITY — Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI’s death Saturday is an epochal loss for a church that was defined first by his resolute conservatism and later by his radical decision to abdicate power. In a short bulletin, the Vatican said that Benedict had died at 9:34 a.m., local time and […]

VATICAN CITY — Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, the shy German theologian who tried to reawaken Christianity in a secularized Europe but will forever be remembered as the first pontiff in 600 years to resign from the job, died Saturday. He was 95. Benedict stunned the world on Feb. 11, 2013, when he announced, in his […]

Comment on this story Comment CAIRO — A vessel carrying at least 700 migrants was intercepted off the eastern coast of Libya, the coast guard said. It was one of the largest interceptions in recent months of migrants seeking a better life in Europe through the war-torn North African country. The coast guard said the […]