Vatican Paper Calls TV Show ‘Useless and Parasitical’

ANANOVA.COM, April 30 — The official paper of the Holy See has gone after one of Italy's newest and most popular programs: “Big Brother” (“Grande Fratello"), the “reality TV" show imported from America.

L’ Osservatore Romano called the show “useless and parasitical,” characterized the housemates as “empty protagonists” and the viewers as “full of morbid curiosity,” reported Ananova.com, an online British news site.

The paper wondered how so many Italians could follow such a tedious show when dire world events — such as the war in Iraq — demanded their attention instead.

As if in answer, Ananova.com noted that within hours of the first program, two of the contestants had already joined each other on camera in bed.

Media in Spain Roused to Comment by ‘Papa’

BRITISH BROADCASTING CORP., May 4 — The visit of Pope John Paul II to historically Catholic (but frequently anticlerical) Spain has brought out a wide mix of reactions in the media, the British Broadcasting Corp. reported in a survey of Spanish media.

The daily paper El Mundo called the Pope a “peace campaigner.” It called his visit “inextricably linked to the rejection of violence in the face of those who consider war a valid method of resolving conflicts.”

Another issue that arose concerned the restive Basque regions. The Basque regional paper Deia quoted Inaki Anasagasti, leader of the Basque Nationalist Party, who suggested that the Holy Father has not been fully informed of his group's grievances against the Madrid government. Anasagasti cited a manifesto by 530 Basque priests issued in support of his demand for negotiations leading to greater autonomy.

John Paul's visit also recalled the legacy of cruel anti-Catholic pogroms conducted by the Spanish Republic during the 1930s. During his visit, the Pope canonized Father Pedro Poveda, one of nearly 4,200 priests killed in that persecution.

The leading daily paper El Pais noted that the Church was not emphasizing the martyrdom of Father Poveda so much as his works of charity: “[O]n this occasion, the Pope has sought to emphasize … the apostolic qualities and dedication" of Spanish clergy who educated the poor.

Pope to Lift Restrictions on Ancient Liturgy?

THE CATHOLIC HERALD (U.K.), May 2 — Pope John Paul II might soon lift the remaining restrictions on priests who wish to celebrate the pre-Vatican II version of the Roman rite, the British Catholic Herald reported, citing Vatican sources.

Currently, this rite requires special permission from local bishops. John Paul is said to be preparing to issue a universal indult sometime this year, permitting priests to choose freely between the 1962 and 1970 missals.

The indult would be connected with the publication of notations to Ecclesia de Eucharistia, the Holy Father's April 17 encyclical on the Eucharist, the paper suggests, and might be announced at the Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome on May 24, when Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos celebrates the older Tridentine rite.