Eureka Street

Keywords: Conclave

AUSTRALIA

Vatican secrecy ensures trivial media coverage
- Michael Mullins
- 11 March 2013
4 Comments
Channel 7's Weekend Sunrise mocked the Catholic Church during its papal conclave preview. The Vatican's culture of secrecy encourages journalists to act like children. Last week the US cardinals took a more open approach and got positive media. But they were slapped down and the coverage became trivial once again.
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RELIGION

The fable of Benedict's red shoes
- Philip Harvey
- 06 March 2013
14 Comments
It's hard to trace the rumour that Benedict's shoes were designed by Prada. Perhaps it was just a mischievous allusion to The Devil Wears Prada. Benedict is a wily fox, which is why we can be sure his red shoes were there to invite symbolic interpretations. Only thing is, red shoes have a life of their own.
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RELIGION

Anatomy of a papal scandal
- Andrew Hamilton
- 28 February 2013
17 Comments
Like sex, scandals in governance attract an avid audience. So the master story of the papal election has become one of governance in disarray — of Vatican departments riven by ambition, scandal and acrimony. Even if the reports are not true, hearers begin to wonder who leaked them, and in whose interest.
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RELIGION

A pope for hard seasons
- Neil Ormerod
- 18 February 2013
27 Comments
One of the major challenges facing the new pope will be to find creative and compassionate ways of addressing the issue of clergy sexual abuse. A proper response will require a change in heart and mind, to see the world through the eyes of the suffering and humiliated. Can we expect anything less from the next pope?
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ARTS AND CULTURE

Pope on the run
- Tim Kroenert
- 08 December 2011
3 Comments
The Catholic Church has more than a billion members worldwide. To lead it is an immense responsibility. Irreverence notwithstanding, We Have A Pope stands as a gracious gesture, free of Church politics, to those who accept that responsibility. Surely, none would do so blithely.
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ARTS AND CULTURE

Book reviews
- Godfrey Moase, Emily Millane, Tom Riemer sj
- 18 June 2006
Reviews of About face: Asian Accounts of Australia; Diplomatic Deceits: Government, Media and East Timor; The Complete Book of Great Australian Women—Thirty-Six women who changed the course of Australia and The Conclave: A sometimes secret and occasionally bloody history of papal elections
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