Latest news with #Crux
Mint
17-05-2025
- Mint
Holiday ideas in the southern hemisphere, neo-punk jewellery goes desi, new Kindle review, and other stories to read
We were heading back to the lodge in the Manyeleti Nature Reserve when the ranger called out 'Teapot!' and pointed to the sky. After a day of learning bush-walk signals and identifying edible plants and animal spoor—the giraffe's is 23cm long, the elephant's looks like stodgy table legs and the rhino's is surprisingly elegant—I thought the ranger was testing our knowledge and I'd forgotten some call. He'd been sweeping the skies looking for the Southern Cross, or Crux, a cluster of stars I'd asked to see, which can only be spotted south of the equator. It's a group of five stars that holds many stories of adventure and exploration, as it guided early sailors before the time of GPS, and many countries in the southern hemisphere have it on their flags. Instead, we see the more beautiful though prosaically named Teapot, again unique to the southern hemisphere. There's also a Teaspoon, apparently, but we couldn't find it. As humans we have this unique tendency for pareidolia, or finding shapes, images and meanings in random patterns—it's why we see dragons breathing fire in clouds, elephant faces in rocks, and teapots in the night sky. Being south of the equator is great place to indulge this (and many other interests) as the landscapes, weather, customs and experiences can be quite unusual—and Indians are discovering this. With climate change and over-tourism making much of Europe uncomfortable in the summer months, travelling in the southern hemisphere is a good alternative as the weather is cool and dry. As one of our writers points out, some of these destinations like the heart-shaped island of Tasmania are great for multi-generational family holidays too. If you're not planning to travel any time soon, we've still got you covered: We recommend Tom Cruise in the Mission: Impossible finale, which releases this weekend and other shows and films; delicious mango menus to sample and more. In a country that loves traditional jewellery, indie designers are crafting statement pieces like nail talons and teeth grillz. Designed mainly by 30-somethings, the jewellery collections exude a bold, individualistic aura reminiscent of the punk fashion era of the 1970s, reports Mahalakshmi Prabhakaran. Neo-punk jewellery meets Indian grandeur, handcrafting techniques and design in these maximalist, individualistic pieces. The skulls, razor blades and brashness have given way to embellished spikes and edgy high fashion but what remains is the attitude to experimentation. Read more. Piped icing, butter cream and pretty cake designs were probably what we were used to as children. Over the past few years, pastry making has become more like a craft—building elaborate worlds onto a cake tray. A number of bakers though are returning to vintage cakes—hearts, flowers, piping and bows—and customers love it. Mahalakshmi Prabhakaran meets the bakers bringing back swirls and flourishes to cakes. The wait is finally over. After months of speculation about why Amazon was not dropping the latest version of its popular e-reader in India, the 12th generation Kindle Paperwhite is now available in India—a new device after more than three years. Amazon's latest iteration of its popular Kindle Paperwhite e-reader series doesn't scream reinvention. Instead, it whispers refinement, decides Abhishek Baxi. The 7-inch glare-free display provides a more immersive reading experience while maintaining portability, and the addition of adjustable warm light enhances nighttime reading, allowing users to shift screen hues for a more comfortable experience. The new Paperwhite comes with 16GB of storage, double the capacity of its predecessor. Despite advances in medical treatment which include dopamine replacement drugs and deep brain stimulation, the emotional aspects of Parkinson's disease are rarely addressed. The disease chips away not only at the body but at relationships, agency, and the will to participate in life. Therapists are now beginning to focus on the anxiety, grief and depression faced by people diagnosed with Parkinson's and are trying novel solutions. Movement therapy programmes are tapping into Indian dance forms, combining incorporating Bharatanatyam, Garba and Koodiyattam with somatic movement, to heal and empower individuals as well as build a sense of community, reports Divya Naik. Each session is crafted around rhythm, repetition, and responsiveness, and participants are invited to improvise, co-create, and move within their own capacity. When was the last time you had an address book—or even saw one? Chances are it's more than a decade ago and you've been saving addresses on various delivery apps to make gifting faster and easier. A quick search by name in food delivery, quick commerce or e-commerce apps brings up the addresses of loved ones, tap to select the desired address, and you're ready to send everything from rakhis to no-occasion gifts. Earlier, sending gifts to different cities meant days of planning—asking around the neighbourhood if someone was headed that way, or queuing at the post office. The digitisation of address books has transformed locations from static coordinates into living proxies of connection, memory and meaning, concludes Shephali Bhatt. It's likely that you have recently completed a goal-setting exercise as part of your annual performance appraisal. The fundamental principle behind it is similar for most enterprises: help employees become more productive, accountable, and focused on meeting their targets in the new financial year. And most follow the SMART goals format, but there is a flip side to it. SMART goals tend to be overly focused on outcomes and leave you feeling triumphant or like a loser. Instead, suggest Somak Ghoshal, shift to setting non-linear goals and make a PACT focused on Purposeful, Actionable, Continuous and Trackable goals, based on Anne-Laure Le Cunff's new book, Tiny Experiments: How to Live Freely in a Goal-Obsessed World.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Robert Francis Prevost: the moderate, good-humoured first US pope
Robert Francis Prevost – who has chosen the papal name Leo XIV – may not be the Latin American Jesuit wildcard that his predecessor, Pope Francis, was, but his election is similarly historic. In the figure of the 69-year-old former head of the Augustinian order, the Roman Catholic church has its very first US leader. Until Thursday evening, the idea of the fisherman's ring being slipped on to a North American hand was seen as a fairly distant possibility. The Vatican's longstanding opposition to a US pope stemmed largely from the optics of having a pontiff from a political superpower and a country with such a hegemonic cultural and secular global influence. But all that changed after a short conclave that chose a man who had been a cardinal for only a little more than two years. While his appointment is likely to be welcomed by progressive factions within the church, it was probably not the news that some of his more conservative, Trump-aligned US brother cardinals had been hoping for. Despite being born in Chicago on 14 September 1955, Prevost has never been a typical US Catholic cleric – not least because he also holds Peruvian citizenship. After giving his solemn vows in 1981 and studying in Rome, he was sent to a mission in Peru. He would go on to spend many years there as judicial vicar and as a professor of canon, patristic and moral law at a seminary in Peru's third city, Trujillo, before being appointed bishop of another northern city, Chiclayo, in November 2014. Those who know him from his time in Peru – where the church has often been beset by tensions between leftwing proponents of liberation theology and uber-traditionalist Catholics – recall a calm and grounded leader who would sit down to breakfast with his fellow priests after morning prayers. 'No matter how many problems he has, he maintains good humour and joy,' the Rev Fidel Purisaca Vigil, the communications director for Prevost's old diocese in Chiclayo, told the Associated Press. As a recent profile in Crux noted, Prevost acquired a reputation over the years as a hard-working and 'moderating influence' among Peru's ideologically disparate bishops, a talent that will prove invaluable during his papacy. In September 2023, Francis – who himself had to manage competing theological strains during his time as leader of the Jesuits in the turbulent, violent and oppressive Argentina of the 1970s – made Prevost a cardinal. Until Thursday evening, Prevost's most high-profile Vatican roles had been as president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America and as prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, which oversees the selection of new bishops from around the world. His strong connection to Latin America, combined with his more recent roles at the top of the church, may have gone a long way in endearing him to those who would not usually countenance the idea of a US pope. Prevost's recent CV also makes clear his proximity to Francis and he will doubtless be seen by many as a surprise, if welcome, kind of continuity candidate. Donald Trump, who hailed the appointment, calling the arrival of the first US pope 'a Great Honor for our Country', seldom saw eye-to-eye with Francis. The late pope was forthright in his criticism of Trump's border and immigration policies – not least his desire to wall off Mexico. 'A person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not of building bridges, is not Christian,' Francis said in February 2016. 'This is not the gospel.' The blunt rebuke did not land well with Trump. 'For a religious leader to question a person's faith is disgraceful,' he said in response. 'No leader, especially a religious leader, has the right to question another man's religion or faith.' Whether Trump is right to be looking forward to meeting Pope Leo XIV – 'it will be a very meaningful moment!' – will depend on the degree to which the new bishop of Rome emulates his predecessor. Towards the beginning of his widely admired papacy, Francis insisted that the church should not be remote, nor cloistered, nor complacent in its relationship with the world. ''Mere administration' can no longer be enough,' he wrote. 'Throughout the world, let us be 'permanently in a state of mission'.' Francis was adamant that the church he led for 12 years would be a church for 'todos, todos, todos' (everyone, everyone, everyone). He also said he preferred a church 'which is bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security'. More than a decade on, the streets – from Gaza and Ukraine to Sudan and Kashmir – have only become more bloody and more violent. As he addressed the world from the loggia of St Peter's Basilica on Thursday, Pope Leo XIV's first words were: 'Peace be with you.' His subsequent message, stressing the importance of peace, dialogue and missionary evangelisation, befitted the former leader of a mendicant order dedicated to poverty, service and pastoral work. But in his plea for peace to 'enter your hearts, to reach your families and all people, wherever they are', there was also, perhaps, more than a trace of his much-loved and much-missed predecessor. • This article was amended on 9 May 2025. Robert Prevost was made a cardinal in September 2023, not January as an earlier version stated.
Irish Examiner
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Irish Examiner
Robert Francis Prevost: the moderate, good-humoured first US pope
Robert Francis Prevost – who has chosen the papal name Leo XIV – may not be the Latin American Jesuit wildcard that his predecessor, Pope Francis, was, but his election is similarly historic. In the figure of the 69-year-old former head of the Augustinian order, the Roman Catholic church has its very first US leader. Until Thursday evening, the idea of the fisherman's ring being slipped on to a North American hand was seen as a fairly distant possibility. The Vatican's longstanding opposition to a US pope stemmed largely from the optics of having a pontiff from a political superpower and a country with such a hegemonic cultural and secular global influence. But all that changed after a short conclave that chose a man who had been a cardinal for only a little more than two years. While his appointment is likely to be welcomed by progressive factions within the church, it was probably not the news that some of his more conservative, Trump-aligned US brother cardinals had been hoping for. Despite being born in Chicago on 14 September 1955, Prevost has never been a typical US Catholic cleric – not least because he also holds Peruvian citizenship. After giving his solemn vows in 1981 and studying in Rome, he was sent to a mission in Peru. He would go on to spend many years there as judicial vicar and as a professor of canon, patristic and moral law at a seminary in Peru's third city, Trujillo, before being appointed bishop of another northern city, Chiclayo, in November 2014. Cardinals following the election of Cardinal Robert F. Prevost as the 267th pope, choosing the name of Pope Leo XIV, at the Vatican, Thursday, May 8, 2025(AP Photo/Andrew Medichini) Those who know him from his time in Peru – where the church has often been beset by tensions between leftwing proponents of liberation theology and uber-traditionalist Catholics – recall a calm and grounded leader who would sit down to breakfast with his fellow priests after morning prayers. 'No matter how many problems he has, he maintains good humour and joy,' the Rev Fidel Purisaca Vigil, the communications director for Prevost's old diocese in Chiclayo, told the Associated Press. As a recent profile in Crux noted, Prevost acquired a reputation over the years as a hard-working and 'moderating influence' among Peru's ideologically disparate bishops, a talent that will prove invaluable during his papacy. In January 2023, Francis – who himself had to manage competing theological strains during his time as leader of the Jesuits in the turbulent, violent and oppressive Argentina of the 1970s – made Prevost a cardinal. People react after Cardinal Dominique Mamberti announced the election of Cardinal Robert F. Prevost as the 267th pope, choosing the name of Pope Leo XIV, at the Vatican, Thursday, May 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) Until Thursday evening, Prevost's most high-profile Vatican roles had been as president of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America and as prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, which oversees the selection of new bishops from around the world. His strong connection to Latin America, combined with his more recent roles at the top of the church, may have gone a long way in endearing him to those who would not usually countenance the idea of a US pope. Prevost's recent CV also makes clear his proximity to Francis and he will doubtless be seen by many as a surprise, if welcome, kind of continuity candidate. Donald Trump, who hailed the appointment, calling the arrival of the first US pope 'a Great Honor for our Country', seldom saw eye-to-eye with Francis. The late pope was forthright in his criticism of Trump's border and immigration policies – not least his desire to wall off Mexico. 'A person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not of building bridges, is not Christian,' Francis said in February 2016. 'This is not the gospel.' Newly-elected Pope Leo, Robert Prevost, second from left, alongside his fellow Augustinians Fr Jerry Horan, Fr Pat Moran, and Fr Michael Brennock at St Augustine's Church in Cork in Easter 2007 to honour Peg Bolton and Marie Finn for their 50 years singing in the choir. Picture: Gerard Bonus The blunt rebuke did not land well with Trump. 'For a religious leader to question a person's faith is disgraceful,' he said in response. 'No leader, especially a religious leader, has the right to question another man's religion or faith.' Whether Trump is right to be looking forward to meeting Pope Leo XIV – 'it will be a very meaningful moment!' – will depend on the degree to which the new bishop of Rome emulates his predecessor. Towards the beginning of his widely admired papacy, Francis insisted that the church should not be remote, nor cloistered, nor complacent in its relationship with the world. Newly elected Pope Leo XIV, Robert Prevost stands on the main central loggia balcony of the St Peter's Basilica for the first time, after the cardinals ended the conclave, in The Vatican, on May 8, 2025. Picture: TIZIANA FABI/AFP via Getty Images ''Mere administration' can no longer be enough,' he wrote. 'Throughout the world, let us be 'permanently in a state of mission'.' Francis was adamant that the church he led for 12 years would be a church for 'todos, todos, todos' (everyone, everyone, everyone). He also said he preferred a church 'which is bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security'. More than a decade on, the streets – from Gaza and Ukraine to Sudan and Kashmir – have only become more bloody and more violent. As he addressed the world from the loggia of St Peter's Basilica on Thursday, Pope Leo XIV's first words were: 'Peace be with you.' His subsequent message, stressing the importance of peace, dialogue and missionary evangelisation, befitted the former leader of a mendicant order dedicated to poverty, service and pastoral work. But in his plea for peace to 'enter your hearts, to reach your families and all people, wherever they are', there was also, perhaps, more than a trace of his much-loved and much-missed predecessor. - The Guardian
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Cardinals to begin choosing new pope in largest ever conclave
Catholic cardinals from all over the world will begin casting their votes for a new pope under Michelangelo's The Last Judgment ceiling fresco in the Sistine Chapel on Wednesday afternoon in what is the largest and possibly the most unpredictable conclave to ever take place. One of the legacies of Pope Francis, who died last month aged 88, was to leave behind a widely diverse but divided college of cardinals, with some in harmony with the progressive church he promoted and others wanting to overthrow his changes and turn back the clock. Related: How does the conclave work and when will a new pope be chosen? The 133 cardinals with the power to vote have been getting to know each other and sharing visions for the future of the church during daily pre-conclave meetings since 28 April. However, the challenge of the task in hand appeared to be summed up by Ignatius Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo, the archbishop of Jakarta, who was the last cardinal to arrive in Rome and was playing catch-up on Monday. 'There's a lot of confusion,' he told journalists after hearing addresses from 50 cardinals. 'We have heard many voices, it's not easy to draw conclusions.' The men met for a final time on Tuesday morning before moving into their lodgings in Casa Santa Maria, where they will be required to hand over their mobile phones and remain sequestered from the outside world until a new pope is chosen, only venturing outside for the bus ride between the guesthouse and the Sistine Chapel. The cardinals swear an oath to secrecy, as do all Vatican staff assisting them, from cooks and cleaners to drivers and medics. There are two rounds of votes each day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Smoke is emitted from the chimney installed atop the Sistine Chapel at the end of each voting session – if it is black, it means the vote has yielded no decision, if it is white then a new pope has been chosen. If the election drags on, the cardinals will take a day off for reflection after three full days of voting. Speculation over who will succeed Francis was rife even before his death, and with each passing day a new papabile, or papacy candidate, is added to the speculative list of more than 20 potential popes. The rising star in recent days is Robert Prevost, a moderate cardinal from the US known for his 'solid judgment and a keen capacity to listen', according to the Catholic newspaper Crux. Prevost appears to have taken the shine off another moderate frontrunner, Pietro Parolin, the Vatican's secretary of state who is considered to be a stellar diplomat but perhaps too boring to lead the world's 1.4 billion Catholics. Another favourite is Luis Antonio Tagle, a reformer from the Philippines nicknamed 'the Asian Francis'. But, along with Parolin, he has been criticised for mishandling cases of clerical sexual abuse against children. Alongside Tagle, others in the progressive camp include the Italian cardinals Matteo Zuppi and Pierbattista Pizzaballa, a peace-seeker who has lived in Jerusalem for years, as well as Jean-Claude Hollerich from Luxembourg, Timothy Radcliffe from the UK and Michael Czerny of Canada. On the traditionalist side are Hungary's Péter Erdő and Robert Sarah, a cardinal from Guinea who criticised Francis's papacy. Although not on the frontrunner list, among those lobbying for a conservative successor to Francis are Raymond Burke, a Donald Trump-supporting US bishop, and Gerhard Müller, a German who warned that the church could split if an orthodox pope is not elected. But as the old papal election saying goes, 'he who enters the conclave as pope, leaves it as a cardinal', few frontrunners at the start of the process make it through the successive rounds of voting. A key example of that was Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who in 2013 was not considered a contender but by the end of the conclave became Pope Francis. Related: Fist fights, ghostly pranks and schism: a brief history of conclaves past One thing the cardinals seemed to agree on in the run-up to the conclave was the need for a new pope to be capable of 'being a bridge and a guide for a disorientated humanity marked by the crisis of the world order' while reaffirming their commitment to 'support the new pope', a Vatican official said during a press briefing on Monday. 'These men of faith are entering [the conclave] believing that God has already chosen the next pope,' said Andrea Vreede, the Vatican correspondent for NOS, the Dutch public radio and TV network. 'Now they have to figure out what that choice is. It is unpredictable because there are many new electors who do not know each other very well, because Francis never organised cardinal meetings, so they were never invited to assist or advise the pope. So the one thing they can agree on, whether they are far left or far right, is that they all want more involvement in the government of the next pope.' Another thing they all seem to agree on is that the conclave must be kept short, perhaps lasting no more than three to four days. 'I think they already have someone in mind,' said Severina Bartonitschek, the Vatican correspondent for KNA, a Catholic news agency in Germany. 'And the main job for the new pope will be unifying the church. This is always a job for any pontiff but it will be especially critical for the next pope. Yes, he will have to handle evangelisation but also issues like the abuse cases. We need to have a pope who is not afraid to fight against this issue.'
Irish Examiner
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Irish Examiner
Cardinals to begin choosing new pope in largest ever conclave
Catholic cardinals from all over the world will begin casting their votes for a new pope under Michelangelo's The Last Judgment ceiling fresco in the Sistine Chapel on Wednesday afternoon in what is the largest and possibly the most unpredictable conclave to ever take place. One of the legacies of Pope Francis, who died last month aged 88, was to leave behind a widely diverse but divided college of cardinals, with some in harmony with the progressive church he promoted and others wanting to overthrow his changes and turn back the clock. The 133 cardinals with the power to vote have been getting to know each other and sharing visions for the future of the church during daily pre-conclave meetings since 28 April. However, the challenge of the task in hand appeared to be summed up by Ignatius Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo, the archbishop of Jakarta, who was the last cardinal to arrive in Rome and was playing catch-up on Monday. 'There's a lot of confusion,' he told journalists after hearing addresses from 50 cardinals. 'We have heard many voices, it's not easy to draw conclusions.' The men met for a final time on Tuesday morning before moving into their lodgings in Casa Santa Maria, where they will be required to hand over their mobile phones and remain sequestered from the outside world until a new pope is chosen, only venturing outside for the bus ride between the guesthouse and the Sistine Chapel. The cardinals swear an oath to secrecy, as do all Vatican staff assisting them, from cooks and cleaners to drivers and medics. Cardinals arrive at the Vatican for a College of Cardinals' meeting on May 05, 2025 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by) There are two rounds of votes each day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Smoke is emitted from the chimney installed atop the Sistine Chapel at the end of each voting session – if it is black, it means the vote has yielded no decision, if it is white then a new pope has been chosen. If the election drags on, the cardinals will take a day off for reflection after three full days of voting. Speculation over who will succeed Francis was rife even before his death, and with each passing day a new papabile, or papacy candidate, is added to the speculative list of more than 20 potential popes. The rising star in recent days is Robert Prevost, a moderate cardinal from the US known for his 'solid judgment and a keen capacity to listen', according to the Catholic newspaper Crux. Prevost appears to have taken the shine off another moderate frontrunner, Pietro Parolin, the Vatican's secretary of state who is considered to be a stellar diplomat but perhaps too boring to lead the world's 1.4 billion Catholics. Another favourite is Luis Antonio Tagle, a reformer from the Philippines nicknamed 'the Asian Francis'. But, along with Parolin, he has been criticised for mishandling cases of clerical sexual abuse against children. Alongside Tagle, others in the progressive camp include the Italian cardinals Matteo Zuppi and Pierbattista Pizzaballa, a peace-seeker who has lived in Jerusalem for years, as well as Jean-Claude Hollerich from Luxembourg, Timothy Radcliffe from the UK and Michael Czerny of Canada. On the traditionalist side are Hungary's Péter Erdő and Robert Sarah, a cardinal from Guinea who criticised Francis's papacy. Although not on the frontrunner list, among those lobbying for a conservative successor to Francis are Raymond Burke, a Donald Trump-supporting US bishop, and Gerhard Müller, a German who warned that the church could split if an orthodox pope is not elected. ROME, ITALY - MAY 05: Cardinal Claudio Gugerotti faces the media as he arrives at the Vatican for a College of Cardinals' meeting on May 05, 2025 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by) But as the old papal election saying goes, 'he who enters the conclave as pope, leaves it as a cardinal', few frontrunners at the start of the process make it through the successive rounds of voting. A key example of that was Jorge Mario Bergoglio, who in 2013 was not considered a contender but by the end of the conclave became Pope Francis. One thing the cardinals seemed to agree on in the run-up to the conclave was the need for a new pope to be capable of 'being a bridge and a guide for a disorientated humanity marked by the crisis of the world order' while reaffirming their commitment to 'support the new pope', a Vatican official said during a press briefing on Monday. 'These men of faith are entering [the conclave] believing that God has already chosen the next pope,' said Andrea Vreede, the Vatican correspondent for NOS, the Dutch public radio and TV network. 'Now they have to figure out what that choice is. It is unpredictable because there are many new electors who do not know each other very well, because Francis never organised cardinal meetings, so they were never invited to assist or advise the pope. So the one thing they can agree on, whether they are far left or far right, is that they all want more involvement in the government of the next pope.' Another thing they all seem to agree on is that the conclave must be kept short, perhaps lasting no more than three to four days. 'I think they already have someone in mind,' said Severina Bartonitschek, the Vatican correspondent for KNA, a Catholic news agency in Germany. 'And the main job for the new pope will be unifying the church. This is always a job for any pontiff but it will be especially critical for the next pope. Yes, he will have to handle evangelisation but also issues like the abuse cases. We need to have a pope who is not afraid to fight against this issue.' - The Guardian
