March 2, 2009

Bishop-designate Gerhard Wagner has asked Pope Benedict XVI to withdraw his nomination as auxiliary bishop of Linz, in the face of fierce criticism. The uproar stemmed mainly from comments Wagner made implying that Hurricane Katrina in 2005 was a punishment from God for sins committed in New Orlean

Bishop Erwin Krautler of Xingu, Brazil, remembers the first time he received a death threat. “It was the exact day I completed 25 years as a bishop,” he recalled. Later that year, a local paper even announced the day his assassination would be expected. Bishop Krautler says there are sev