From a story in Yahoo! this morning: (Although there is not even a slight hint of frustration in the Pope’s message, we can only imagine what he feels as he realizes that the scope of his political authority (he is powerless) is not nearly equivalent to his moral authority (he is powerful). After more than 400 years of church and state separation, perhaps the time has come to unite church and state once again. Dare anyone say it? “VATICAN CITY – Pope Benedict XVI warned in his Christmas message Thursday that the world was headed toward ruin if selfishness prevails over solidarity during tough economic times for rich and poor nations. The traditional papal Christmas Day message "Urbi et Orbi" — Latin for "to the City and to the World" — usually covers the globe's hot spots, but this year Benedict also addressed the economic conditions worrying many across the planet amid near-daily news of layoffs, failing companies and people losing homes. Benedict told tens of thousands of people in St. Peter's Square that God's saving grace could "alone transform evil into good" and "change human hearts, making them oases of peace." Benedict dedicated part of his message to Africa, singling out Zimbabwe, where hunger is spreading and deepening. He said that people there were "trapped for too long in a political and social crisis which, sadly, keeps worsening." Millions of Zimbabwe's people need food aid, and a cholera epidemic has sharpened problems in a country once considered Africa's breadbasket. Suffering also continues in the war-ravaged region of Kivu in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and in Darfur, the pope added. In Somalia, people are weighed down with "interminable sufferings" as "the tragic consequences of the lack of stability and peace," he said. The girl at left is happy about something but we don't know what.
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