Inconvenient truths about Devon's loos
The implications of the supreme court's gender ruling regarding toilet access (Report, 22 April) remain academic in rural Devon. Many public toilets are under lock and key due to council cuts. 'Apologies for any inconvenience this may cause.' Dignity now has to be preserved behind a hedge.Dr William AdamsYelverton, Devon
Re potential successors to Pope Francis, your correspondent highlights the chances of nine men, seven of whom are aged between 67 and 79 (Report, 21 April). As someone who has just retired from the civil service aged a mere 65, I'm starting to wonder if I have gone too early.Matthew RyderSt Neots, Cambridgeshire
When I called one company to inform it of my husband's death, the bot said: 'Sorry for your loss. Can I do anything else for you' (Letters, 23 April)? Somewhat exasperated, I replied: 'Yes, get me a human being to talk to', at which point the bot said 'I will'. A minute later an actual man came on the line! Ariella ListerLondon
I too am frustrated with the AI (automated idiot) that attempts to replace humans for phone service. The best way to force it to transfer you to a real person is to keep asking more complicated questions until it gives up.Steen I PetersenNanaimo, British Columbia, Canada
Whether Bach's Ich Habe Genug is lyrically appropriate as hold music might be a matter of faith, but 'Ich habe genug' doesn't mean 'I've had enough', rather 'I have enough [having Jesus as my saviour]'.Michael AytonDurham
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The Independent
9 hours ago
- The Independent
Pope Leo XIV's fashion choices make waves, and many wonder what they mean
When Pope Leo XIV stepped out on the central loggia of St. Peter's Basilica to greet the crowd for the first time after his May 8 election, liturgical fashion aficionados around the globe took note: Gone was the simple white cassock and silver cross favored by Pope Francis. Back was the red satin mozzetta shoulder cape, the burgundy stola with gold embroidery and a gold cross held by a double-stranded silken gold cord. Over Leo's first few weeks, the excitement grew among liturgical fashion-conscious Catholics as they noticed new additions to the wardrobe, or rather a return to the old additions of the papal wardrobe: cufflinks, white pants, lace. After Francis' revolutionary papacy, Vatican watchers are now wondering if Leo's return to the past sartorial look means a return to the past on other things too, including more substantial policy issues. But for tailors at the elite handful of liturgical tailoring shops in Rome, there is hope that Leo's return to the fancier garb of popes past will mean a boon to business if Leo's traditional look has a trickle-down effect from the pope to priests and all those in between. The style is a return to form According to the Rev. John Wauck, professor of church communication at the Pontifical Holy Cross University in Rome, Leo's clothing choices are a 'return to form,' and his attire similar to that worn by Pope Benedict XVI, Pope John Paul II and other popes going back to the middle ages. They show 'a respect for tradition,' he said. Such respect for the papal office is important for many conservative Catholics. Many conservatives and traditionalists soured on Francis' informal style and disdain for tradition, which reached its pinnacle with his his crackdown on the old Latin Mass. The old liturgy was celebrated before the modernizing reforms of the 1960s Second Vatican Council; Francis greatly restricted access to the old liturgy, saying it had become a source of division in parishes. Leo has shown strong familiarity with Latin, and has taken to singing the Sunday noontime prayer in Latin. Some traditionalist Catholics are hoping Leo will take the pro-Latin path even further and reverse Francis to allow greater use of the traditional Latin Mass. Massimo Faggioli, professor of theology at Villanova University, where Leo went to college, said it's too early to tell if Leo will reverse Francis' reform. 'It remains to be seen if Leo's more traditional attire and liturgical style means that he will change Francis' strong decisions limiting the so-called 'Latin Mass,'" he said. That said, Faggioli said U.S. conservatives seems particularly happy with Leo's traditional attire, given Francis' disdain for the fashion pomp of the papacy. 'In this sense, Francis might have been a parenthesis or an interlude, more than a changer of the tradition in 'papal style,'' he said in an email. Leo has made other changes, too At his inaugural Mass on May 18, 2025, Pope Leo XIV reached out his arm to sprinkle holy water and revealed a shirt with cufflinks, which Francis had largely avoided. He was also wearing an amitto, and an alb held in place by a cingulum. For the non-experts, the amitto is a lacy linen cloth that goes around the neck, the alb is the white tunic worn under the ceremonial vestment, and the cingulum is a braided rope with tassels that serves as a belt. If it weren't for photographers' long lenses relentlessly trained on the pope's every gesture, Leo's switch from Francis's standard black pants to more traditional white papal trousers would have gone completely unnoticed. In addition to the clothing changes, Leo has returned to some other traditions of the Vatican that Francis eschewed. He has shown himself willing to accept the traditional 'baciamano' or kissing of his ring. Francis disliked having his ring kissed and often pulled his hand away if someone tried to kiss it. 'I think that what we see with Pope Leo is a willingness to embrace tradition, even if it risks seeming perhaps more formal than Pope Francis,' Wauck said. The idea is that 'seeing that tradition as a treasure to be conserved and embraced as opposed to something that makes one feel perhaps a little bit standoffish.' It remains to be seen whether Leo will move into the papal apartment in the Apostolic Palace, which stood empty during the 12-year Francis papacy. Francis shocked the world by choosing to live in a small room at the Santa Marta residence at the Vatican, eating his meals in the common dining room. For the Rev. Castro Prudencio, this is all much ado about nothing. "For Pope Francis it was simplicity. Always. And Pope Leo has taken up what Pope Benedict had and many others. That is what the church is like,' he said. ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
Powys County Times
17 hours ago
- Powys County Times
Kendall to add protections to welfare Bill amid backlash to cuts
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The Herald Scotland
17 hours ago
- The Herald Scotland
Kendall to add protections to welfare Bill amid backlash to cuts
The proposals include tightening of the eligibility criteria for personal independence payment (Pip), the main disability benefit in England, and cutting the sickness-related element of universal credit (UC). Dozens of Labour MPs last month urged the Prime Minister to pause and reassess planned cuts, saying the proposals are 'impossible to support'. Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall told the Guardian there will be extra protections added to the Bill when it is published next week. She said: 'When we set out our reforms we promised to protect those most in need, particularly those who can never work. 'I know from my 15 years as a constituency MP how important this is. It is something I take seriously and will never compromise on. 'That is why we are putting additional protections on the face of the Bill to support the most vulnerable and help people affected by the changes. 'These protections will be written into law, a clear sign they are non-negotiable.' A Government impact assessment published alongside the reforms warned some 250,000 people, including 50,000 children, across England, Scotland and Wales, could fall into relative poverty after housing costs as a result of the changes.
