“ This encyclical of Benedict XVI on love does not in the least resemble the normative documents published by his predecessors, Paul VI and John Paul II, on sex and the ethics of husband and wife”, comments the French daily Le Monde (26/1) in its article under the title “ Love is the subject of the Pope’s first encyclical” signed by Henri Tincq. “ Not that the Pope is breaking ranks with them continues the author but he presupposes that their teaching is already known. He does not revolutionise anything, and yet the vocabulary of his encyclical is no longer the same. Resolutely philosophical and spiritual, it is situated at a different level of principles and profundity… The first encyclical of a new pope is a rite that is always eagerly awaited. Benedict XVI has not beaten any speed record in publishing this document … nine months after his election. Coming from the former Cardinal Josef Ratzinger, otherwise so prolific, this encyclical surprises by its relative brevity (45 pages). Instead of a blueprint for the pontificate, as is the tradition, Benedict XVI proposes a meditation, of high philosophical level, on the theme of human love”. “ Why are we still waiting?” is the title of the editorial in The Catholic Herald (20/1) in which the paper wonders why there is so long a delay in the English translation of the “Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church”. “ Its translation into Italian was in the bookshops the day after the discourse of Pope Benedict. And the versions in German, French and Spanish appeared last year. But, over half a year after its official launch, not a single copy of the English version has yet been sold in any part of the world”. Among the “rumours” circulating about the causes of this delay the paper seems to give credence to the following: “… Archbishop William Levada has allegedly postponed the date of publication because he wants to revise the text himself. In this way, it is said, the new Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith intends to give his own ‘imprimatur’ to one of the most important Vatican documents of the new millennium“. Apart from the hypothesis that Archbishop Levada himself “ wishes to superintend the translation … to prevent questions about the inclusive language of the document“, the Catholic paper wonders why “ English-language people should have to wait so long for the essential tool with which to teach the true Catholic faith?” The nuclear policy of Iran is still at the centre of the analyses in the German press. A comment in Die Welt (25/1) reads as follows: “ What are the alternatives to a policy of concessions? Is there a solution without the will of going to the edge before nuclear weapons are used by the Iranian leadership, in the best of hypotheses, as a means of blackmail, but very probably also for a military intervention? The risk of a military intervention could cause victims in numbers comparable to those of the First and Second World Wars; but the triumph of Islamic terrorism would exceed in brutality anything handed down in the annals of world history“. Writing in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (26/1), K.F. comments: “ The recent suggestion of Moscow to enrich the Iranian uranium on Russian territory was frostily rejected by Teheran. In the last analysis, this averting of the risk of nuclear conflict would have been linked to renunciation of the control of the fuel cycle. Now however that the time is approaching when this issue will be submitted to the UN Security Council, suddenly the Russian offer seems to be exciting the interest of Iran. […] We may bet that there will other manoeuvres of this type, since Iran is not negotiating in good faith. The five permanent members must not let themselves be duped“. And the weekly Der Spiegel (23/1) concentrates on the attitude of the new German Chancellor on the question: “ Angela Merkel couldn’t care less about the sabre-rattling of the French President, who has directly threatened Teheran with an atomic attack. The German government wants to curb Iran’s nuclear plans with globe-trotting diplomacy with a greater involvement of the Russians“. The proposal made by a political party to promote a referendum throughout Spain on the Catalan Statute is the argument of the day in the Spanish press, which mainly concern themselves with domestic issues this week. The Abc of 25/1 explains “the popular legislative initiative” proposed to approve the Catalan Statute by suggesting that “the project encloses a genuine reform of the Constitution of 1978, according to which it is Spanish society that should be given an ear”. According to El Periodico “the decision of Mariano Rajoy to promote a referendum throughout Spain on the Statute translates the decision of the PP to step up its escalating confrontation with the government. With it, he invokes the ghosts of the opposition between the two Spains, distances himself from the more immediate concerns of citizens who trust more in the ability of Rodriguez Zapatero to solve the reform of the model of State within the Constitution and distances his party from the normal life of the institutions… It is irresponsible to open the mirage of a referendum in this way”. ———————————————————————————————————– Sir Europa (English) N.ro assoluto : 1446 N.ro relativo : 6 Data pubblicazione : 27/01/06
