Our Takes Daily

 For Iraqi Christians, survival came at a price

The New York Times

For Iraqi Christians who have stayed in their country during the years of violence and persecution, paying protection money has become a matter of life and death. The death of Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho last February is a high-profile example of the desperate measures Iraqi Christians have had to take to stay alive. Archbishop Rahho used collection money to pay a man who threatened to kill him and his congregation. After he stopped paying the money last year, he was kidnapped and his body was found in a shallow grave outside Mosul. Officials say the demands of Iraqi Christians could be hundreds of dollars a month per male member of a household. In many cases, Christian families drained their life savings and went into debt to make the payments. Insurgents also raised money by kidnapping priests. The ransoms, often paid by the congregations, typically ran as high as $150,000, several priests and lay Christians said. More info here>>

Newspaper: Pope prefers communion on tongue

Catholic News Agency

Pope Benedict’s new Master of Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations, Msgr. Guido Marini, has been quoted in L’Osservatore Romano, as saying that people receiving Communion kneeling and on the tongue will become common practice at the Vatican. Pope Benedict distributed Communion in that manner during his visit to Brindisi, Italy, last week. "In this regard it is necessary not to forget the fact that the distribution of Communion on the hand remains, up to now, from the juridical standpoint, an exception (indult) to the universal law, conceded by the Holy See to those bishops' conferences who requested it,” Msgr. Marini told the newspaper. More info here>>

Bishop seated on jury

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Bishop David A. Zubik of Pittsburgh is doing his civic duty this week, serving on a jury for a home-invasion case that begins today in Allegheny County court. Defense attorney James Sheets said the attorneys asked Zubik the same general questions they ask all jurors. A juror questionnaire asks, for example, if any religious, moral or ethical beliefs would prevent the prospective juror from sitting on a criminal case and reaching a fair verdict.  "The bishop answered no to that question," Sheets told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. "What someone does for a living factors in, but as a whole we want fairness. The bishop is a citizen of Allegheny County like anyone else." More info here>>