Word: vaticans
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...much-anticipated voyage to Turkey that kicks off Tuesday, Benedict trades in his Pilgrim-in-Chief hat for his helmet as the Roman Catholic Church's Diplomat Maximus. It is largely new terrain for the 79-year-old Pontiff, a trained theologian who spent two decades in the Vatican working on doctrinal matters. The terrestrial exigencies of diplomacy will touch on both geopolitics and inter-religious relations during the four-day visit, as Turkey is both 98% Muslim and the historic home of a competing Eastern branch of Christianity. Everything, of course, will be amplified in the wake of Benedict...
...affairs, Ali Bardakoglu, will be a chance for Benedict to try to definitively close the two-month fallout from his provocative remarks about Islam and the prophet Muhammad during a lecture at a German university. Many have tried to predict what the Pope might say about Islam, but most Vatican sources assure TIME that the Turkey trip will most definitely not be the occasion for a provocative follow-up to his University of Regensburg speech. Taking a cue from his predecessor, Benedict will try instead to speak with symbolic gestures. He has sought and received a last-minute invitation...
...aspirations to join the European Union. There were signs over the weekend that the Pope may be planning to tweak the position he'd set out while still Cardinal in 2004, when he'd suggested Turkey's history and culture put it "in permanent contrast to Europe." Several top Vatican officials have said in recent days that they would welcome Turkey into the E.U. if it met all the requirements that have been set out by Brussels. This opening on Europe may help explain why, after having originally said it was impossible, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyiip Erdogan confirmed Monday...
...itinerary. The focus on security has sharpened after an anti-Pope rally by a right-wing Muslim group in Istanbul on Sunday, as well as an incident last week when dozens of protesters invaded the Sophia Hague, a former Orthodox Church due to be visited by the pontiff. Vatican officials say they trust the Turkish authorities to protect Pope Benedict, though all expect at least some form of public dissent. Sometimes, the choice of ground transportation can say as much about a papal trip as the homilies and handshakes. On his first four voyages, Benedict was able to wave...
...media on Friday over a controversy related to a British Airways ban on employees wearing crucifixes on planes. Meanwhile Benedict, though certainly facing dissent both inside and outside his own Church, faces no real challenges to his authority. "Whatever you can say about the Catholic Church," notes one Vatican official, "at least you know where to go to when a decision must be made...