Pope shames Brazil church for losing faithful
RIO DE JANEIRO – Pope Francis issued blistering, soul-searching criticism Saturday of the Brazilian church’s failure to keep its flock from straying to evangelical churches, challenging the region’s bishops to be closer to their people to understand their problems and offer them credible solutions.
In the most important speech of his four-month pontificate, Francis drove home a message he has emphasized throughout his first international trip at World Youth Day: the need for priests and young Catholics to shake up the status quo, get out of their stuffy sacristies and reach the faithful on the margins of society or risk losing them to rival churches.
Francis took a direct swipe at the “intellectual” message of the church that so characterized the pontificate of his predecessor, Benedict XVI. He said ordinary Catholics simply don’t understand such lofty ideas and need a simpler message of love, forgiveness and mercy.
Kuwait conducts parliamentary election
KUWAIT CITY, Kuwait – Kuwaiti voters braved searing heat in the middle of the dawn-to-dusk Ramadan fast to cast ballots Saturday in parliamentary elections that leaders in the oil-rich Gulf nation hope can restore some stability after years of escalating confrontations between its Western-backed rulers and an Islamist-led opposition.
The outcome is likely to be strongly in favor of candidates allied with the ruling dynasty as opposition factions have pledged to boycott the voting – Kuwait’s third parliamentary election in 17 months.
But that is no guarantee of calming the political upheavals, which have touched off street clashes and widening crackdowns by authorities on social media. The ruling Al Sabah family – a close Washington ally – is facing criticism of overreaching and imposing heavy-handed tactics against a diverse array of foes that includes liberals seeking greater political openness and groups ideologically tied to Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood.
Polls closed Saturday night. Elections officials expect results to be announced today.
1,000-plus inmates escape Libyan prison
TRIPOLI, Libya – More than 1,000 detainees escaped from a prison near the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi in a massive jailbreak Saturday, officials said, as protesters stormed political party offices in Libya’s main cities.
It wasn’t immediately clear if the jailbreak at the al-Kweifiya prison came as part of the demonstrations. Protesters had massed across the country angry about the killing of an activist critical of the country’s Muslim Brotherhood group.
Gunmen outside the prison fired into the air as inmates inside began setting fires, suggesting the jailbreak was preplanned, a Benghazi-based security official said. Those who escaped either face or were convicted of serious charges, a security official at al-Kweifiya prison said.
Special forces later arrested 18 of the escapees, while some returned on their own, said Mohammed Hejazi, a government security official in Benghazi.
Spain train driver released from hospital
SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA, Spain – The injured driver of the Spanish train that derailed at high speed, killing 78 and injuring dozens more, was released from the hospital Saturday, but he was still being held in a police station as authorities increasingly focused on his culpability.
Francisco Jose Garzon Amo was to appear before a judge by this evening, a hotly awaited opportunity for him to give his explanation for Spain’s deadliest train crash in decades.
Garzon has been under the microscope, with the country’s railway agency saying it was his responsibility to brake before going into the high-risk curve where the train careered off the rails and smashed into a wall. It’s still not clear whether the brakes failed or were never used.
Protesters try to disrupt Lithuania gay pride
VILNIUS, Lithuania – A group of protesters tried to disrupt Lithuania’s second gay pride parade ever Saturday, defying an enormous police presence by throwing eggs at marchers and attempting to storm a stage.
Several hundred gay rights activists took to the grand main street of Vilnius to show their pride, waving Lithuanian and rainbow-colored flags, with some standing on top of buses decked out in colorful balloons.
They were met by hundreds of unruly protesters, 28 of whom were detained, police said. Among them was Petras Grazulis, an anti-gay lawmaker who rallied protesters with a bullhorn. He was thrown face-down on the ground and carried off in handcuffs by police, though the lawmaker soon reappeared at the protest after being released from police custody.
About 50 protesters tried to storm a concert stage where activists were to speak, but police forced them off. Protesters also threw eggs, hitting Lithuanian lawmaker Giedre Purvaneckiene and Sweden’s European Union Affairs Minister Birgitta Ohlsson, who were standing at the front of the parade along with other dignitaries.
The Associated Press
