3 Minute Roundup

Pope urges world leaders to tackle hunger at U.N. summit

VATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI urged international leaders to turn their attention to the growing problem of world hunger as they deal with the global economic crisis.
Looking ahead to a U.N. financial summit in New York June 24-25, the pope said the meeting should be carried out “in a spirit of wisdom and solidarity, so that the current crisis can be transformed into an opportunity.”
The goal should be to “promote an equitable distribution of decision-making power and of resources, with particular attention to the number of poor, which unfortunately is increasing,” the pope said June 14 at the Vatican.
The 82-year-old pontiff, who was preparing to release an encyclical on social and economic justice, said he wanted to remember in a special way the hundreds of millions of people who suffer from hunger.
“This is an absolutely unacceptable reality, and has been difficult to control despite the efforts of the past decades,” he said. (CNS) 

Priest who is new doctrinal chief praised as ‘incredible theologian’

WASHINGTON — Colleagues of Archbishop-designate J. Augustine DiNoia said they were pleased with his new appointment at the Vatican, calling him an “incredible theologian” and a man with a “brilliant mind” who can engage others in liturgical and theological discussions.
Pope Benedict XVI named the U.S.-born Dominican an archbishop and the next secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments June 16. He has worked at the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith since 2002.
Archbishop-designate DiNoia, known for his expertise in liturgical and doctrinal affairs, was praised for his knowledge as well as his warm personality. Cardinal Francis E. George of Chicago, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said the appointment of Archbishop-designate DiNoia is a “matter of pride” for the U.S. church and the Dominican order.  (CNS) 

MySpace, Facebook users at Vatican hit powerful firewalls

VATICAN CITY — Vatican employees are now banned from accessing some social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace while at work. People trying to poke a friend or post a status update on their Facebook page from a computer connected to the Vatican network will instead hit a powerful firewall that says the requested page cannot be viewed because it does not fulfill the network’s “access protection criteria.”
The Vatican spokesman said the move is a “normal and prudent” measure that reflects similar strategies taken by other companies around the world that have blocked employee usage of social networking sites on office networks.
Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, the spokesman, told Catholic News Service June 16 that “there is nothing surprising” about the new ban. Like many employers, the Vatican has long had firewalls installed on its network to block access to pornography, online gambling, and, according to the firewall warning page itself, any site that contains “inappropriate material.” (CNS)