Pope Francis
It was a story that had all the elements of a headline: The unconventional Pope Francis saying something unconventional.
A boy whose dog had just died asked the Pope whether animals go to heaven, and he responded with words that had great doctrinal significance: “Paradise is open to all of God’s creatures.”
The remarks caught fire, and very soon there was commentary from all over the world — from activists who took the words as a boon for animal rights to theologians who weighed in on whether animals had souls.
But here’s the rub: Pope Francis never said those words. There was never a boy who asked him that question. It was an urban legend all along, starting with a misquote from an Italian newspaper that started a “journalistic train wreck” that took newspapers worldwide for a ride, with the United Kingdom’s Daily Express even declaring that “all donkeys go to heaven.” Continue reading
Guyana Politics: PPP’s Irfaan Ali – A remarkable political decision- By Adam Harris
A remarkable political decision
There are some things that seem to defy logic. One of them involves an overseas-based Guyanese who took time off to call me, not once, but twice, to chide me.
A few weeks ago I did a column that examined the political situation in Guyana as it pertained to the selection of the presidential candidate for the political opposition. While there was no formal announcement, the media found out that there were five frontrunners.
I suggested that given the nature of local politics and the sharp divisions in the society, especially along racial and religious lines, it was unlikely that a Muslim would emerge the presidential candidate. I spoke of the People’s Progressive Party being predominantly Hindu; it was unlikely that the party would select a Muslim as its presidential candidate. Continue reading →
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