Scottish Catholic Observer

VATICAN

Pope Benedict XVI (above) Madrid to Rio: “Whenever I bring to mind the twenty-sixth World Youth Day in Madrid, my heart fills with gratitude to God for the experience of grace of those unforgettable days.”

Pope John Paul II’s popularity grows seven years after death. (Video)

Vatican: Aid to Syrian people a priority, says Archbishop Michael Fitzgerald, delegate of the Holy See to the League of Arab States.

Vatican cancels stem cell research conference.

SCOTLAND

Alex Salmond under pressure to sack council candidate Lyall Duff over Catholic midwives comments.

Edinburgh churches fight back against the metal thieves.

UK

Archbishop Vincent Nichols risks row with Israel after lobbying Hague over Christians ‘displaced by security barrier.’

Devout Catholic senior citizen Maria Morrison, 75, forgives her attacker after she was repeatedly stabbed.

INTERNATIONAL

The proclamation of Zambia as a Christian nation is a non-event, says Lusaka Catholic Archbishop Telesphore Mpundu but Christian Coalition vows to defend it.

Distinguished biblical scholar Archbishop Mark Coleridge, a chaplain to Pope John Paul II, has been named the new Catholic Archbishop of Brisbane, Australia.

US Cardinal Dolan: President Obama promised to respect conscience.

Church leaders should take to heart reasons why Catholics have left the Church, according to a US priest who has conducted an ‘exit poll’ of former Catholics.

Victoria Kennedy, widow of the late-US Senator Ted Kennedy, loses invite by Anna Marie College over political views.

AND FINALLY

Vatican wants to revive Church’s role in fighting the Mafia.

-Cross Wires is The Scottish Catholic Observer’s blog