TALIN DEROHANESSIANS WRITES –For the first time in nearly 40 years, a Catholic Pope visited Japan. The date was November 23, and the top items on the agenda were environmental protection and peace. While there Pope Francis met with Japanese Emperor Naruhito at the Imperial Palace and with Shinzo Abe,…
Full Article JAPAN: PEACE-MESSAGE BEARING POPE FRANCIS DAZZLES TOKYO TOWNTOM PLATE WRITES — You don’t have to be a saint to be a great and effective leader, but you do have to be audacious. So when an audacious leader comes along that a good many admirers suspect to be a saint, you probably have got something special in front…
Full Article CHINA AND THE POPE: HEAVEN ON EARTH?
MARY GRACE COSTA WRITES – The Sony Pictures hacking scandal and the Charlie Hebdo attacks in France have fueled a global dialogue on free speech. The Holy Father, Pope Francis, addressed the subject during an impromptu press conference on a Sri Lankan aircraft en route to Manila on January 15.…
Full Article PHILIPPINES: Pope Francis, Freedom FighterTOM PLATE WRITES IN THE SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST: Pope Francis, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, brings a much-needed freshness to the stale air of international relations. Where many nasty geopolitical arguments in world politics seem deeply encrusted, this Jesuit priest heading the Catholic Church relentlessly crusades for new approaches to…
Full Article POPE FRANCIS, CHINA AND THE DALAI LAMA: PEACE ON EARTH?STEPHANIE GARCIA WRITES – First a South American becomes the head of the Roman Catholic Church, and now he wants to bring an Asian onto his Council for the Economy? Oh, how times have changed! In all seriousness, we couldn’t be happier for George Yeo, who was just appointed as…
Full Article SINGAPORE: George Yeo Goes to the Vatican