Occasionally we have a worthy recipient of the Nobel Peace prize.
After the Al Gores and the Yassir Arafats of this world went home with peace awards I stopped following the farce.
However hope springs eternal.
Now we hear that a true hero is up for nomination: Malala Yousaf, the school girl from Pakistan, is the top nominee for this year.
So she should be. After been shot in the head at point blank range by the Taliban cave men she has now made a miraculous recovery and has become a champion of the rights of education for girls everywhere.
This morning I heard her, back from the dead, as sweet, eloquent and as courageous as ever, pleading for schools for her friends in Pakistan.
May millions of dollars be donated, not only for the best teachers but also for armed guards.
They will need both.
Jubilate.
Ian
Among the Catholic faithful there are mixed reviews concerning the new Pope.
The fact that Francis came from the Jesuit order was enough to cause shivers among the liberal wing of the church.
The Jesuits have long been the defenders of the age-old dogma of Catholicism; Francis has not disappointed them.
There will be no change to the church's anti-abortion stance; there will be no same-sex marriage, sodomy will still be held as a grievous sin, and the priesthood will continue to be celibate and all MALE.
One of the 39 articles of the Church of England reads thus:
"The Pope shall have no jurisdiction in this realm of England"
Seeing how far the Anglican church has moved away from it's founding articles I would suggest that a little "jurisdiction" from the Bishop of Rome may not be a bad thing.
And a few "walk abouts" by the archbishop in the city of London may also help to bring some reality to his ailing institution.
Jubilate.
Ian
Somebody once remarked that if a nuclear war ever began on earth it would be caused by some tin-pot nation, in possession of an atom bomb, who wanted to flex its muscles.
It looks like we have found our candidate in North Korea.
This week the rhetoric of war from this hermit kingdom has reached fever pitch.
"Chubs" (Kim Jong-un) has posted notice that his nation is in a state of war with South Korea and that he is ready to press the nuclear button and send his missiles against all comers.
Is there cause for alarm? Not if you are living 5,000 miles from Pyongyang, but if you are within range of this mad gun slinger you should find yourself a fall out shelter.
Along with your bottled water and canned soup pack your bible and a prayer mat. Anything can happen.
Jubilate.
Ian
