Tag - vatican

 
 

VATICAN

Japan Times
WORLD
Oct 30, 2014
Vatican unveils new air, light systems to protect Sistine Chapel frescoes
The Vatican on Wednesday unveiled new high-tech, energy-saving lighting and air purification systems to protect Michelangelo's delicate Sistine Chapel frescoes from damage caused by ever-growing crowds of tourists.
WORLD / Science & Health
Oct 29, 2014
Pope Francis says big bang theory does not contradict role of God
Scientific theories including the big bang, which is believed to have brought the universe into being 13.7 billion years ago, and the idea that life developed through a process of evolution do not conflict with Catholic teaching, Pope Francis said on Tuesday.
Japan Times
WORLD
Oct 3, 2014
Pope Francis favored to win Nobel Peace Prize for poverty focus
Pope Francis, who has made the fight against poverty a focus of his tenure, and Congolese gynecologist Denis Mukwege are among the top contenders for this year's Nobel Peace Prize.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Aug 13, 2014
As pope heads to South Korea, alleged religious freedom in North is just a show for the outside world
Tucked between trees and paddy fields in a quiet suburb in the west of Pyongyang, Chilgol Church is one of four state-operated churches in the capital of a country that espouses freedom of religion but effectively bans it.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jul 9, 2014
Vatican restructures scandal-hit bank, puts French financier in charge
The Vatican said on Wednesday it will separate its bank's investment business from its Church payments work to try to clean up after years of scandal including allegations of money laundering and tax evasion.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jun 22, 2014
Pope blasts mobsters for their 'adoration of evil'
Pope Francis on Saturday issued the strongest attack on organized crime groups by a pontiff in two decades, accusing them of practicing "the adoration of evil" and saying mafiosi are excommunicated.
COMMENTARY / World
Oct 10, 2013
Past a papal-centric church
Pope Francis is raising eyebrows by criticizing the Catholic Church's obsession with 'small-minded rules' and narrow issues as well as its heretofore Vatican-centric view.
Japan Times
WORLD
Oct 2, 2013
Pope's plain talking stirs fresh debate
Pope Francis cranked up his charm offensive on the world outside the Vatican on Tuesday, saying in his second widely shared media interview in two weeks that each person “must choose to follow the good and fight evil as he conceives them.”
Japan Times
WORLD
Sep 21, 2013
Savvy pope wooing the Catholic middle
On Thursday, Pope Francis said in a historic interview that the Catholic Church talks too much about abortion. The following day, he gave his most forceful anti-abortion comments to date. What's the strategy here?
Japan Times
WORLD
Mar 22, 2013
Rise of Jesuit to papacy surprises cerebral order's membership
Pope Francis belongs to the Jesuits, a religious order whose members take an unusual — and at the moment seemingly ironic — vow: not to strive for a higher office.
EDITORIALS
Mar 17, 2013
New pope faces challenging times
It is hoped that Pope Francis will be successful in restoring and strengthening trust in the Catholic Church by squarely addressing problems plaguing it.
WORLD
Mar 15, 2013
Choice of saint's name signals solidarity with the poor
For his name as pope, Jorge Bergoglio chose one that harks back eight centuries to St. Francis of Assisi, a man who renounced a life of privilege, gave away everything he owned, wore a coarse woolen tunic, lived in a hut and took a vow of poverty.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 6, 2013
The Vatican needs a mystic to be the next pope
There's no need to rehash the recent disastrous track record of the all-male Roman Catholic hierarchy. The sordid abuse of children by priests, the sinister coverups, the callous treatment of nuns, the deaf ear turned toward Catholics who happen to be gay or divorced — it's all on the front page. The...
EDITORIALS
Mar 3, 2013
Pope Benedict XVI bows out
Big problems — from child sex-abuse cases to Vatican politics — probably proved too much for an aging academic theologian like the outgoing pope.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 27, 2013
Five myths about picking a pope
Misconceptions abound about how 117 cardinals, gathering from across the globe inside the Vatican's Sistine Chapel, will elect a new pope next month.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Feb 26, 2013
For China's Catholics, new pope is a cause for hope
Of the long list of problems the next pope will inherit once the white smoke rises in Rome, few on the diplomatic front can rival the bitter, intractable relationship between the Vatican and the Chinese government.
Japan Times
WORLD
Feb 13, 2013
Pope leaves legacy of impartial governance
Yes, Pope Benedict XVI came into the Vatican with the reputation as God's Rottweiler. Yes, he was an archconservative who seemed to care a lot more about liturgical orthodoxy than the plight of the church's progressives. Yes, he never escaped the shadow of the superstar and sanctified pope who preceded...

Longform

Sociologist Gracia Liu-Farrer argues that even though immigration doesn't figure into Japan's autobiography, it is more of a self-perception than a reality.
In search of the ‘Japanese dream’