Papal Trip to Spain: Here-we-go-again Media Coverage, Security Incident

Secular media coverage of Pope Benedict's weekend trip to Spain indicates that the Holy Father will be facing a "big challenge" in a "once-staunchly Catholic nation that has become one of Europe's most liberal." One observer notes that the Pope will be facing "the least Catholic Spain in history". Reminiscent of coverage preceding the Holy Father's September trip to the U.K., recent media coverage has highlighted the abuse scandal, papal protestors (one headline reads "Thousands protest pope's upcoming visit"), and the cost of the papal trip. [Heard it already.]

Also reminiscent of the Holy Father's U.K. trip are unsettling reports that a man walking his dog found confidential security documents relating to the papal visit to Spain. The documents were reportedly lost a month ago and plans have since been "adjusted". Confidential security documents were likewise found "lying around" in a pub before the Holy Father's trip to the United Kingdom (previous story here). Nevertheless, we are assured that security for the papal visit is "intense".

And, once again, we hear of coordinated efforts against the Holy Father via Facebook - this time a homosexual 'kiss in' is planned, last time there was an 'egg the Pope' effort.

However, we do seem to be missing reports of Islamic publications calling on Muslims to attend the Holy Father's events to preach Islam and tell the Pope "in no uncertain terms what Muslims think of his evil slanders" against Muhammad, so maybe there has been some progress. One can hope...

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Papal Security: The Sedia Gestatoria

In the wake of the Christmas Eve incident where Pope Benedict was knocked to the ground by a mentally ill woman - only one of a number of recent security incidents - there has been talk about bringing back the traditional sedia gestatoria ("portable papal throne for carrying the Pope on solemn entries"). The following is an excerpt from a recent Catholic Herald article:

"One only has to look at old black and white footage of pontiffs prior to Paul VI to see how popes always used to enter the basilica being carried shoulder high in the sedia gestatoria. Not only that, but there was always a throng of people around the chair, not only the actual bearers but numerous chamberlains and nobility and a large number of guards: Swiss Guards, uniformed Gendarmes, the Palatine Guard and Noble Guard. These comprised the old papal court which Pope Paul VI abolished and which formed a kind of buffer zone between the Pope and the crowds, no doubt as much a practical defence measure as a piece of ceremony.

The use of the sedia continued until very recently and many are unaware that the last pope to use the sedia was actually Pope John Paul I. While the abolition of this ancient form of transport may have since been considered appropriate in the context of the late 20th century and the [supposed] need to democratise the appearance of papal ceremonies, the reality has left the Pope an isolated and vulnerable figure separated from the deacons ahead and the MCs behind, one who appears all too often like the figure in the Third Secret of Fatima: a victim walking alone simply waiting to be attacked."

They also note that bringing back the sedia gestatoria would "save an elderly [Pope's] tired legs" and would allow people to see the Holy Father better.

Bring back the sedia gestatoria!

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