If the pope were stranded on an island... Top 10 pop albums

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In its continued effort to speak to the wider culture more frequently, the Vatican’s semi-official newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano, released a Top 10 list of rock and pop albums for all time. Here is their "semi-serious" guide, perfect if you’re stranded on a desert island, the newspaper said:

1. Revolver by The Beatles

2. If I Could Only Remember My Name by David Crosby

3. Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd

4. Rumours by Fleetwood Mac

Bring the bacon to church

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I love brunch. It has to be the best meal ever, but it is decidedly not a religious experience.

For some young adults, this Chicago Tribune article posits, brunch fills up more than their stomachs. "The meal is part sustenance, part social; a way for young, urban and, increasingly, secular adults to connect with one another on Sunday mornings."

Odd News round-up

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For your reading pleasure, a series of odd news links from this summer:

In Turkey, a new reality TV show this fall will pit religious leaders against each other in an effort to convert 10 atheists, CNN reports. Offensive? Entertaining? Probably neither.

St. Jude, patron of swine flu?

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Saint Jude, the patron saint of lost causes, is taking on the cause of swine flu, it seems.

See this picture from Mexico of a St. Jude statue with its mouth covered with a surgical mask. Mexicans wanted to pray to St. Jude for protection, but a monthly blessing of a St. Jude statue was canceled due to public health concerns, the Associated Press reports.

Don't go to church...

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If you're sick.

I've been wondering if swine flu worries were going to affect church in some way, and it seems it has. Across the country bishops are warning that if you're sick, you shouldn't go to Mass, and you definitely shouldn't receive from the cup. Parishes in Austin, Texas aren't offering the cup at all for the time being, CNS reports.

All in the Murray family

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The difference between liberals and conservatives

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I recently picked up my Northwestern alumni magazine to find an interesting little story called, "What if there were no God?"

A Northwestern study asked religious conservatives and liberals this big "what if" questions and they found that political conservatives fear chaos, while liberals fear emptiness.

An attack on Mary

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A statue of the Virgin Mary was beheaded in Santa Monica, California over the Easter weekend. Parishioners, ABC news reports, arrived at St. Monica Catholic Church on Easter morning to discover the holy Mother without a head. The head was found at the base of the statue.

It's not a good day for a baseball game

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Baseball is back, but not without controversy.

This controversy, however, has to do with bulking up fans with hot dogs, not bulking up players with steroids. Opening day in Detroit is scheduled for 1:05 this Friday. In other words, the Tigers will be stepping onto the field at the same time Jesus was hanging on the cross.

Don't let worry kill you off - let the church help

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I won’t try to fool you, but to add some levity to your April Fool’s day, here’s some real stuff that’s hard to believe.

First, some odd new stories—surprisingly true:

Nuns benefit from the recession, move into a McMansion.

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