Six Miracles Already Reported During Pope's UK Visit
The Guardian is running a map during Pope Benedict's visit to the UK where people can report seeing the Popemobile, masses, protests and miracles. One user in north London reported seeing a "Cloud that looked like the Pope. I wept."
The Guardian CrowdMap has so far received 77 reports, 35% of which it says are verified. Well, the paper is getting what it asked for. Here are some more accounts from the CrowdMap:
As the popemobile drove down Princes Street in Edinburgh, one tweeter, @shrimpin, wrote: "Nothing says 'I have faith in God' quite like three inches of bulletproof glass."
Another, @gregjames, added: "Whatever you may think of the pope's visit, I think I speak for everyone when I say that we'd all like a go in his little car."
Others have sent in pictures and one person reported a "miracle" after seeing municipal workers in Birmingham painting dried up grass a brighter green. Another person found a pepper that looks like Jesus.
In other Vatican vacation news, the Pope has pissed off quite a few people by equating the spread of "atheist extremism" with the rise of Nazi Germany:
Even in our own lifetimes we can recall how Britain and her leaders stood against a Nazi tyranny that wished to eradicate God from society and denied our common humanity to many, especially the Jews, who were thought unfit to live.
"As we reflect on the sobering lessons of atheist extremism of the 20th century, let us never forget how the exclusion of God, religion and virtue from public life leads ultimately to a truncated vision of man and of society and thus a reductive vision of a person and his destiny."