Macron vows to rebuild a 'more beautiful' Notre-Dame in 5 years

Yahoo – AFP, Stuart WILLIAMS and Clare BYRNE, April 16, 2019

Notre-Dame's spectacular Gothic spire collapsed as fire engulfed the cathedral
(AFP Photo/Geoffroy VAN DER HASSELT)

Paris (AFP) - President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday vowed to rebuild Notre-Dame cathedral "even more beautifully" within five years, as France reeled with shock from the fire that gutted the great Paris landmark.

Macron announced the fast timescale -- for a process some experts said would take decades -- in an address to the nation where he hailed how the disaster had shown the capacity of France to mobilise and unite.

Pledges worth around 700 million euros ($790 million) have already been made Tuesday from French billionaires and businesses to restore the Gothic masterpiece.

Most of the roof has been destroyed, its steeple has collapsed and an unknown number of artifacts and paintings have been lost. The main organ, which had close to 8,000 pipes, has also suffered damage.

But the cathedral's walls, bell towers and the most famous circular stained-glass windows at France's most visited tourist attraction remain intact.

'Our history never stops'

Macron's defiant comments indicated he wants the reconstruction of the cathedral to be completed by the time Paris hosts the Olympic Games in 2024.

"We will rebuild the cathedral even more beautifully and I want it to be finished within five years," Macron said from the Elysee Palace. "And we can do it."

Macron said that the dramatic fire had brought out the best in a country riven with divisions and since November shaken by sometimes violent protests against his rule.

"What we saw last night in Paris was our capacity to mobilise and to unite," Macron said, hailing France as a nation of "builders".

"Our history never stops and that we will always have trials to overcome," he said.

Firefighters said the blaze had been extinguished after 15 hours (AFP 

Photo/Hubert Hitier)

'Saved in half an hour'

Images from inside the cathedral Tuesday showed its immense walls standing proud, with statues still in place and a gleaming golden cross above the altar.

However the floor was covered in charred rubble from the fallen roof and water while parts of the vaulting at the top of the cathedral had collapsed.

Junior interior minister Laurent Nunez told reporters at the scene that work to secure the structure would continue into Thursday, allowing firefighters access to remove remaining artifacts and artworks.

He said the building had been saved within a critical time window of 15-30 minutes by a team of 400 firefighters who worked flat out throughout the night.

Though "some weaknesses" in the 850-year-old structure had been identified, overall it is "holding up OK", he added.

President Donald Trump relayed Americans' "condolences" to Macron over the fire, the White House said.

French fire chiefs had earlier dismissed as "risible" comments by Trump that the fire should be tackled with water bombers, saying this risked destroying the entire edifice of the cathedral.

The Paris fire service said that the last remnants of the blaze were extinguished Tuesday, 15 hours after the fire broke out.

Renovation work on the steeple, where workers were replacing its lead covering, is widely suspected to have caused the inferno after the blaze broke out in an area under scaffolding.

Investigators interviewed witnesses overnight and began speaking with employees of five different construction companies that were working on the monument, said public prosecutor Remy Heitz.

"Nothing indicates this was a deliberate act," Heitz told reporters, adding that 50 investigators had been assigned to what he expected to be a "long and complex" case.

The world reacted in shock after the blaze enguled Notre-Dame (AFP Photo)

'For future generations'

A public appeal for funds drew immediate support from French billionaires and other private donors as well as from countries including Germany, Italy and Russia which offered expertise.

French billionaire Bernard Arnault and his LVMH luxury conglomerate, rival high-end designer goods group Kering, Total oil company and cosmetics giant L'Oreal each pledged 100 million euros or more.

Support came from outside France as well, with Apple chief Tim Cook announcing the tech giant would give an unspecified amount to help restore a "precious heritage for future generations."

But experts had warned a full restoration will take many years. "I'd say decades," said Eric Fischer, head of the foundation in charge of restoring the 1,000-year-old Strasbourg cathedral.

Treasures evacuated

Thousands of Parisians and tourists watched in horror Monday as flames engulfed the building and rescuers tried to save as much as they could of the cathedral's treasures.

Many more came Tuesday to the banks of the river Seine to gaze at where the roof and steeple once stood.

A firefighter suffered injuries during the blaze, which at one point threatened to bring down one of the two monumental towers on the western facade of the cathedral that is visited by 13 million tourists each year.

The Holy Crown of Thorns, believed to have been worn by Jesus at his crucifixion, was saved by firefighters, as was a sacred tunic worn by 13th-century French king Louis IX.

Rescuers formed a human chain at the site of the disaster to evacuate as many artifacts as possible, which were then stocked temporarily at the Paris town hall.

Firefighters were praised for helping save many of the most-celebrated treasures of Notre-Dame by dashing inside the burning cathedral, but officials warned that others were in a precarious state or entirely lost in the flames https://t.co/pF0qxYfXeL pic.twitter.com/MTeRjyI2dN

— AFP news agency (@AFP) 16 april 2019

Related Article:

"The End of History"- Nov 20, 2010 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) - (Text-Version)

".... Europe

Let's talk about Europe - Eastern and Western Europe. Look at the history. I want you to look at the history of the Europeans. What do you know about them? What did you study in school about them, American? You had to learn all those dates and facts. You sit in a country that's barely 200 years old and you had to memorize all the battles and all those conquerors and all those army specifics for hundreds of years! Fourteen hundreds, 1300s - all the way to the present century they seemed to be conquering each other on a regular basis. They warred with each other like the tides of the ocean, constant and predictable. When they got tired of that, they conquered other continents. The small country of Spain alone is responsible for conquering all of South America, middle America and well up into North America. Millions today are speaking their language who never did before they arrived.

The armies of Napoleon spread across parts of Europe like water flowing in a river, conquering everything in its path. There are some cities today in Europe that still don't know which country they belong to! This is because their borders kept changing so often! Now, that's history. I want you to look at it carefully. Still, there would be those who say, "This is just what men do. They create borders and cultures and they go to war. That's Human nature."

Fifty years ago, this new energy started to arrive. Oh, the alignments go slow, dear Human Being, but it was here. It was starting; it was beginning. Fifty years ago, something happened in Europe and you didn't hear much about it back then. Some very clear thinkers got together after World War II and said, "If we don't do something different and out of the box of today's thinking, it's all going to happen again because this is what we do. Men make war." Even the young country called America was involved in war. America itself almost split apart before that, because that's what men do. They split good things apart. It was obvious to these wise men that they could try something, something that might work - a uniting instead of separation. And so they formed an idea. Let me tell you what it was.

They said to themselves, "What if we could get as many countries as we can to agree to become a collection of 'country states'? If we start this now and go at it slowly, we could eventually have a system where we would trade together to the point where the borders come down, no checkpoints and no passports. All these cultures and former enemy countries would all trade evenly together, and for that to happen we might even have a common currency. Look at the United States, for this is how it works there. Europe would never go to war with itself again. It couldn't, since it would be allied financially."

Of course, they were laughed at! Everyone who heard it said it couldn't' be done and that there were just too many issues to solve. Those who objected said, "No, no, no. That's not what we do. We have too many different cultures. There's some with strong currencies, there's some with weak currencies. There are too many objections. Imagine going from one country to another without being inspected at the border? That won't work. Who are you to suggest something of this nature?" And the forward thinkers said, "We are unifiers. And we think it's a good idea so we will have strength and will never war again." That was two generations ago, 50 years.

Today, you have the European Union of States. There are more all the time, way past the original number of countries. Some are "standing in line" to be accepted! The borders are gone and the checkpoints are missing and the currency called the Euro is the strongest currency on Earth - stronger even than yours [the USA]. Now, let me tell you what did that. It's a consciousness shift that even 50 years ago was developing. Through two generations, it slowly allowed for free thinkers to unify things that had never been unified before. The result? These countries will never conquer each other again, because "history" ended at that moment. They started a new paradigm for Europe and one that has no historic profile known to man. The old history of the area is gone, and it will not repeat itself.

Those in the old Eastern Bloc of Europe, where there is still to this day very little unity, will still say, "History will again repeat itself. We are victims of it. It's only a matter of time." But not all of them feel this way. There are some who are starting to feel a unity of spirituality within their own cultures that they were never allowed to speak of before. So they are free thinking, out of the box of the old paradigm. It's new.

There are those who are standing on podiums and in pulpits and are proclaiming, "History is ended. It's the end of suffering. It's the end of dictatorships. It's the end of those who would put us in a low place. Instead, it's the beginning of discovering who we are." And although they don't say it in these exact words, they are discovering the creator inside - that which is the unity of God. So it's a full circle back to what the Angel told Muhammad, isn't it? For unity was the key to peace, and still is. It is a sacred principle and will never change.

Who would have thought this would have happened? The United States is what it is because 200 years ago the founders said, "Let us make a group of state countries without physical borders in a system that's never been tried. It's one of unity - the UNITED States of America." Oh, it had its tests, but the unifiers won. And it is why this country is what it is and is seen and respected for what it is and for what it's done. So young, it is, but representing the new energy, it is.

Your Declaration of Independence was channelled. Did you know that? It was collective effort channelling by those who had asked God for help. Go read it and feel that which is sacred inside, for it unifies and does not separate.

Russia transgender woman wins case in rare win for LGBT rights

Yahoo – AFP, Marina KORENEVA, April 15, 2019

Anastasia was fired from her job in a private printing press in Saint Petersburg after
she underwent a gender reassignment operation in 2017 (AFP Photo/Olga MALTSEVA)

Saint Petersburg (AFP) - When Anastasia, a Russian transgender woman, took her employer to court for firing her after a gender reassignment operation, she did not expect to win.

"I knew the chances were slim, I understand what country I live in," the 43-year-old told AFP in her native Saint Petersburg.

But in the first known case of its kind in Russia, a court in the former imperial capital last week ruled she had been unfairly discriminated against and ordered compensation.

Local LGBT rights groups hailed the decision as a small victory in a country where gay and transgender people are often persecuted.

A so-called "gay propaganda" law officially forbids the promotion of "non-traditional sexual relations" to minors but in effect stops most LGBT campaigning.

"It is the first time that this type of case is discussed (in public)," Anastasia's lawyer Max Olenichev told AFP.

"This case has made transgender people visible," Olenichev said.

"That is very important."

Banned professions for women

For a decade, Anastasia worked for a private printing press in Russia's second city.

In 2017, she underwent a gender reassignment operation, legally changing her name and gender in her documents.

After this, her employer suggested she resign and -- when she refused -- fired her.

The company said she could not continue her job in printing, one of 456 professions from which women are officially banned in Russia.

Under Russian law, women cannot work as welders, long-distance truckers, sailors, blacksmiths, aircraft mechanics or hundreds of other roles, including those in printing.

But she said her reassignment was the real reason behind her firing.

"They did not want a person like me working for them," she said.

Lawyer Olenichev argued in court that Anastasia had done her job for ten years without any problems.

To their surprise, the Frunzensky court in Saint Petersburg ruled the company's decision "illegal" and demanded it pay Anastasia 1.8 million rubles (around $28,000) in compensation.

'Lack of information'

Anastasia told AFP that Russian society has a "mostly negative attitude" towards transgender people.

"This is not surprising, given that all the media says it is not normal," she said.

Anastasia has been with her partner for twenty years, and also has a teenage daughter. She said her family "accepts and loves" her "no matter what my status is".

But she considers herself lucky, saying that is not the case for many transgender people in Russia.

Mark Kandolsky, of the "Our Coming Out" gay rights group in Saint Petersburg, said many transgender people in Russia are forced to cut ties with their families.

"Due to a lack of information, Russian society is hostile to transgender people," he said.

Authorities have banned gay pride parades and since 2017 gay men have spoken of persecution in the Russian republic of Chechnya.

Despite having good relations with her family, Anastasia does not want to reveal her real identity and asks for her face not to be shown on camera.

"After all this, I just want to live quietly," she said.

EU green lights trade talks with Washington to defuse tension

Yahoo – AFP, Lachlan CARMICHAEL, April 15, 2019

The EU's 28 member states had struggled for months to agree on a mandate to open
 trans-Atlantic talks, with some fearing the delay would restart a trade war with
President Donald Trump (AFP Photo/STR)

Brussels (AFP) - European Union countries on Monday overruled France and gave the green light for Brussels to open trade talks with Washington as soon as possible and defuse trans-Atlantic tensions.

The EU's 28 member states had struggled for months to agree on a mandate to open the talks, with some fearing the delay would restart a trade war with US President Donald Trump.

But EU ministers meeting in Luxembourg approved a mandate to negotiate "an agreement limited to the elimination of tariffs for industrial goods only" and another accord designed to remove non-tariff barriers.

The ministers said the mandate would exclude agriculture products, which EU trade minister Cecilia Malmstrom said amounted to a "red line" for Europe.

US officials have pushed for farm products to be included.

"I will now get in contact with our American partners with a view to organising a date for the first round as soon as possible," Malmstrom told a press conference in Brussels.

"If we agree to start, I think it can go quite quickly," the Swedish commissioner added.

Malmstrom underlined the determination of the European Commission, the EU's executive arm, to finish the talks before its five-year term ends on October 31.

'Climate chaos'

EU sources said France voted against the mandate and Belgium abstained during the Luxembourg meeting.

Pursuing a limited trade deal is a key element of a truce negotiated in July that came close earlier this month to imploding after the US threatened $11 billion in fresh trade tariffs against Europe.

Paris voted against the mandate over worries about domestic blowback just months ahead of European elections, set for May 23 to 26.

EU trade minister Cecilia Malmstrom said she w"ill now get in contact with our 

American partners with a view to organising a date for the first round as soon 

as possible" (AFP Photo/EMMANUEL DUNAND)

French President Emmanuel Macron has insisted the US first sign back up to the Paris climate accord after Trump dumped the pact in 2017, infuriating Macron.

But only a qualified majority of EU members was needed to support the talks, meaning France's "non" remained largely symbolic.

Greenpeace has called on the Commission and national governments not to enter into trade negotiations with any country that rejects the Paris climate pact.

"EU-Trump trade talks would seriously call into question the EU’s resolve on climate change," Greenpeace's Naomi Ages said, warning time was running out to prevent "climate chaos."

In a bid to win France over, its EU partners agreed to insist on environmental guarantees during the talks with Washington.

In another sop, they also made a specific mention that TTIP, a far more ambitious transatlantic trade plan that never materialised, be officially called "obsolete".

The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Paratnership talks stalled following widespread protests in Germany, France and Austria over fears it would undermine EU standards on food and health.

At France's demand, agricultural products are also off the table.

'Ease trade tensions'

Berlin wants the limited deal in order to placate Trump and avoid US auto tariffs that would punish Germany's cherished exports.

The mandate from the EU stipulates that the talks would end if the US pursued more levies against Europe, including on cars. It also says the EU cannot conclude the negotiations as long as the metal tariffs remain.

The limited deal concerns only industrial goods, excluding the automotive sector. Fishing is also included, but not agriculture, services or public procurement.

The US however insists its wants to discuss agriculture, while Europeans would like to include cars. Both sides will have to bridge the gaps before the start of talks.

At a meeting last July at the White House, Trump and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker pledged no new tariffs following those on steel and aluminium.

That peace was in danger earlier this month after the US threatened to impose tariff counter-measures of up to $11.2 billion on a host of European products in response to subsidies received by aircraft maker Airbus.

But Malmstrom said: "This is a welcome decision that will help ease trade tensions."

Ex-pope Benedict blames Church sex abuse crisis on '68

Yahoo – AFP, Charles ONIANS, April 11, 2019

Pope emeritus Benedict XVI said the 1960s sexual revolution also diagnosed
paedophilia as "allowed and appropriate" (AFP Photo/VINCENZO PINTO)

Vatican City (AFP) - Former pope Benedict XVI on Thursday blamed the Catholic clerical sex abuse scandals on the 1960s sexual revolution and a collapse in faith in the West, immediately drawing criticism from some theologians.

The ex-pontiff, who retired in 2013 and chose to be known thereafter as "pope emeritus", said responsibility for the crises rocking the Roman Catholic Church globally from Australia to Europe lay with the fight for an "all-out sexual freedom, one which no longer admitted any norms".

He asserted that paedophilia "reached such proportions" because of the "absence of God".

"Part of the physiognomy of the Revolution of '68 was that paedophilia was then also diagnosed as allowed and appropriate," Benedict -- born in Germany as Joseph Ratzinger and turning 92 next week -- wrote in a 6,000-word essay for Klerusblatt, a German monthly magazine for clergy.

Benedict, who was the first pontiff to resign in almost 600 years, said the direct consequence of the 1960s period of counterculture and sexual activism in Europe and America was the "collapse of the next generation of priests in those years and the very high number of laicisations" or priests leaving the Church.

Back before his elevation to the papacy in 2005, when he was Cardinal Ratzinger, he headed the Vatican department that investigates sexual abuse

Some theologians were quick to criticise Benedict's analysis of the causes of clerical paedophilia, which appeared to go against efforts by his successor Pope Francis to deal with the Church's global abuse crisis.

Julie Rubio, professor of social ethics at Santa Clara University's Jesuit School of Theology, said the letter was "deeply flawed" and "profoundly troubling".

'Embarrassing'

Catholic theologian Brian Flanagan described the letter as "embarrassing".

"The idea that ecclesial abuse of children was a result of the 1960s, a supposed collapse of moral theology... is an embarrassingly wrong explanation for the systemic abuse of children and its coverup," Flanagan tweeted.

Benedict's contribution comes after Pope Francis in February hosted a landmark conference on how to deal with paedophilia within the Church, vowing at the end of the meeting an "all-out battle" against abusive priests.

Vatican expert Joshua McElwee wrote in the National Catholic Reporter that Benedict's letter "does not address structural issues that abetted abuse cover-up, or Benedict's own contested 24-year role as head of the Vatican's powerful doctrinal office."

The German ex-pope said in his essay that the sexual revolution also led to the "establishment" in various seminaries of "homosexual cliques... which acted more or less openly and significantly changed the climate".

Benedict criticised a seminary in Germany where trainee priests and lay ministers lived together.

"At the common meals, seminarians and pastoral specialists ate together, the married among the laymen sometimes accompanied by their wives and children, and on occasion by their girlfriends," Benedict wrote.

"The climate in this seminary could not provide support for preparation to the priestly vocation. The Holy See knew of such problems, without being informed precisely."

Benedict recalled one bishop who "arranged for the seminarians to be shown pornographic films, allegedly with the intention of thus making them resistant to behaviour contrary to the faith".

Doris Reisinger, a German former nun and abuse victim, said "It's hard to believe he really wrote this."

"This letter is deeply disturbing on so many levels. Unbelievable," she tweeted.

The Church was first rocked by the child sex abuse crisis in the second half of the 1980s, particularly in the United States, and it has been repeatedly criticised for protecting paedophile priests and its reputation.

Lightning strikes St Peter's dome at Vatican on day

 the Pope announced resignation, by Filippo Monteforte

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"Recalibration of Free Choice"–  Mar 3, 2012 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - (Subjects: (Old) Souls, Midpoint on 21-12-2012, Shift of Human Consciousness, Black & White vs. Color, 1 - Spirituality (Religions) shifting, Loose a Pope “soon”, 2 - Humans will change react to drama, 3 - Civilizations/Population on Earth,  4 - Alternate energy sources (Geothermal, Tidal (Paddle wheels), Wind), 5 – Financials Institutes/concepts will change (Integrity – Ethical) , 6 - News/Media/TV to change, 7 – Big Pharmaceutical company will collapse “soon”, (Keep people sick), (Integrity – Ethical)  8 – Wars will be over on Earth, Global Unity, … etc.) - (Text version)

“ … Spirituality (Religions)

Number one: Spirituality. The systems of spiritual design on your planet are starting to change. This is not telling you that certain ones are going to go away. They're simply going to change. Some of the largest spiritual systems, which you would call organized religion on the planet, are shifting. They're going to shift away from that which is authority on the outside to authority on the inside. It will eventually be a different way of worship, slowly changing the rules while keeping the basic doctrine the same.

The doctrine of the Christ has always been to find the God inside. The teachings were clear. The examples of the miracles were given as an example of what humans could do, not to set a man up for worship as a God. So when that has been absorbed, the teaching of the Christ can remain the teaching of the Christ. It simply changes the interpretation. 

The teachings of the great prophets of the Middle East (all related to each other) are about unity and love. So once the holy words are redefined with new wisdom, the Human changes, not the words of the prophets. In fact, the prophets become even more divinely inspired and their wisdom becomes even more profound.

You're going to lose a pope soon. I have no clock. Soon to us can mean anything to you. The one who replaces him may surprise you, for his particular organization will be in survival mode at that point in time. That is to say that fewer and fewer are interested in starting the priesthood. Fewer and fewer young people are interested in the organization, and the new pope must make changes to keep his church alive. That means that his organization will remain, but with a more modern look at what truly is before all of you in a new energy. It is not the fall of the church. It is instead the recalibration of the divinity inside that would match the worship that goes on. It's a win-win situation. The new pope will have a difficult time, since the old guard will still be there. There could even be an assassination attempt, such is the way the old energy dies hard. That is number one. Watch for it. It's a change in the way spiritual systems work. It's a realignment of spiritual systems that resound to a stronger truth that is Human driven, rather than prophet driven.…”

"The Recalibration of Awareness – Apr 20/21, 2012 (Kryon channeled by Lee Carroll) (Subjects: Energy, Recalibration Lectures, God/Creator, Religions/Spiritual systems  (Catholic Church, Priests/Nun’s, Worship, John Paul Pope, Women in the Church otherwise church will go, Current Pope won’t do it),  Middle East, Jews, Governments will change (Internet, Media, Democracies, Dictators, North Korea, Nations voted at once), Integrity (Businesses, Tobacco Companies, Bankers/ Financial Institutes, Pharmaceutical company to collapse),  Illuminati (Started in Greece, with Shipping, Financial markets, Stock markets, Pharmaceutical money (fund to build Africa, to develop)), Shift of Human Consciousness, (Old) Souls, Women, Masters to/already come back, Global Unity.... etc.) - (Text version)

“… I gave you a channelling years ago when Pope John Paul was alive. John Paul loved Mary, the mother. Had John Paul survived another 10 years, he would have done what the next Pope [The one after the current one, Benedict XVI] will do, and that is to bring women into the Church. This Pope you have now [Benedict XVI] won't be here long.* The next Pope will be the one who has to change the rules, should he survive. If he doesn't, it will be the one after that.

There is a large struggle within the Church, even right now, and great dissention, for it knows that it is not giving what humanity wants. The doctrine is not current to the puzzles of life. The answer will be to create a better balance between the feminine and masculine, and the new Pope, or the one after that, will try to allow women to be in the higher echelon of the Church structure to assist the priests.

It will be suggested to let women participate in services, doing things women did not do before. This graduates them within church law to an equality with priests, but doesn't actually let them become priests just yet. However, don't be surprised if this begins in another way, and instead gives priests the ability to marry. This will bring the feminine into the church in other ways. It will eventually happen and has to happen. If it does not, it will be the end of the Catholic Church, for humanity will not sustain a spiritual belief system that is out of balance with the love of God and also out of balance with intuitive Human awareness.  …”

"Current" Events –  Apr 10, 2005 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll)

“… The Last and Next Pope

[Note that this was channelled right after the death of John Paul II, and before the conclave of Catholic Cardinals had selected the next pope.]

"Kryon, we just lost what appears to be a great religious leader, Pope John Paul II. What are the ramifications of this?" My partner eluded earlier to the man called Karol who became the pope [spoken of earlier within the seminar]. He discussed what his goals were and what he did on this planet that really had nothing to do with his religion. Oh, perhaps the hat he wore did, and the places he walked did, and the ceremony around him did. But this was only given to facilitate what he could do.

But you see, like you, we knew Karol. He leaned into the wind of birth, too - just as you did. He was no different. And Spirit said to him, "You're going to have a chance to change the earth because the energy of this planet has the potential of being very different. There are potentials when you get to be a certain age where there'll be something called the Harmonic Convergence on the planet, and things will begin to change. You can fit into this as a world leader. Are you ready for that?" And he said yes.

No angel asked Karol if he wanted to be a Catholic, as he leaned into the wind of birth. That was simply the vehicle that got him into the position where he could change the planet the way he did. You couldn't have had the absence of the Armageddon that you've experienced without Karol. Did you know that [speaking of his direct involvement in the influence of the fall of communism]? So his belief system not only served him well, but it propelled him to a special place that was his alone to be in, and one that allowed him to touch billions all at once. And so it was that this great religious leader, who also knew intuitively what he was doing, had a love of humanity. His favorite thing was to be among common people - and he was, every time he could be. When he got to the position where he could make a difference, he did.

Now, there's something you don't know about Karol. The last decade of his life, he was very frustrated. Go look at the pictures. Go look at the pictures of the first 16 years. Then look at those from the last ten. The last ten, he was suffering - not just with his health - he was anguishing over a situation that none of you truly know about. For in his last ten years this man wanted to make some more changes while the time was ripe, but he knew he was too old.

Karol didn't have the energy to make the changes he really wanted to make, and those around him fought him to keep things the way they were. It was all very political, and someday this information may come out into the open, and you'll hear about those who influenced him in the last ten years and helped to keep things on an even keel. He was too old to make a difference and he knew it.

Karol was not of a consciousness to make some of the changes that many cried out for - about poverty and the role of women in his organization (that will come later). But Karol cried out in his heart for the children that were abused by the priests, and he wanted to do something about this and make a difference. He believed that his Savior wanted him to make a difference, but he couldn't do it. So what might look to you like inaction was instead the pope suffering, for he was not allowed to do what he wanted - due to his lack of energy and those around him who made certain he didn't.

"Kryon, here we sit with conclave of cardinals about to meet and select a new pope. What's the potential based upon the energy right now of the selection? What's going to happen?" I'll give you two potentials of what might take place in the next few days, because your future is always about free choice. There is no entity who can tell you about the future, since it's totally in the hands of the free-choice of humanity. However, based on the energy of the moment, here's what we see: (1) You're either going to have an interim, temporary pope for only a short amount of time (relative to the last one), who will lead to a radical pope; or (2) You're going to go right to the radical pope. Either way, you're going to eventually end up with a man who's going to do things to shake up the establishment.

Let me give you some of the potentials of what the radical pope may be involved in: This religion he leads on earth has doctrines that no longer "square up" with what humanity is seeing around itself. He absolutely has to address this issue, for the sophisticated Humans will leave the church otherwise. There will be those who may even call him "the evil pope" because he's going to go against tradition when he slowly starts a process that honors the Virgin Mary more than any pope ever has - therefore honoring women within the church, elevating them to higher positions... even to priests.

He will speak about family planning, and start processes that will slowly justify it in the eyes of God [this will take awhile], but it must come from the man who "sits in the chair" [ex cathedra] to change the doctrine of the whole organization. Because of this, he will also be in danger and will have to have constant protection.

Then he'll talk about what to do with priests who abuse children. Watch for this. Even if you receive the interim pope, he'll set the stage for the radical pope in this area. For this is in the energy aura of what we would call the potential future around this grand event. The earth is filled with free choice and it can go any direction, but I've just given you the potentials of what is here and now. ..."

EU launches new action against Poland to protect judges

Yahoo – AFP, April 3, 2019

People demonstrate in support of Poland's Supreme Court judges in front of the
Supreme Court building in Warsaw on July 3, 2018 (AFP Photo/Janek SKARZYNSKI)

Brussels (AFP) - The EU on Wednesday launched fresh action against Poland over its controversial judicial reforms, saying a new disciplinary regime for judges would have a "chilling effect" on legal freedoms.

In the latest round of the bitter tussle between Brussels and the right-wing government in Warsaw, the EU said that under the new system judges would be punished simply for doing their jobs independently.

Poland has been at loggerheads with the bloc over the sweeping reforms its government insists are needed to tackle corruption and overhaul a judicial system still haunted by the communist era.

The EU has already launched unprecedented proceedings against Poland over "systemic threats" to the rule of law that could see its EU voting rights suspended.

European Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans said a new infringement procedure had been set in motion over disciplinary rules for judges.

"The main objective of this disciplinary regime is -- as with the rest of the judicial reform -- to systematically subject judges to the political control of the executive," Timmermans said.

Polish judges who have taken part in public debates or commented on the reforms have been targeted by disciplinary officers, Timmermans said, along with those asking for rulings from the European Court of Justice.

"All this has an obvious chilling effect on the activities of judges, and this is incompatible with the requirements of judicial independence as detailed by the European Court of Justice," Timmermans told reporters.

"The position of individual judges is at risk, with the careers and means of living being endangered for the mere fact of trying to do their jobs independently."

The commission, the bloc's executive arm, will write to the Polish authorities and expect a reply within two months, Timmermans said.

British PM asks for new Brexit delay to approve deal

Yahoo – AFP, Alice RITCHIE, April 2, 2019

Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May offered to work with opposition Labour
leader Jeremy Corbyn (AFP Photo/Jack Taylor)

London (AFP) - Prime Minister Theresa May said Tuesday she would ask the EU to again delay Brexit to avoid Britain crashing out of the bloc next week, signalling she could accept a closer relationship with Europe to break months of political deadlock.

After more than seven hours of talks with her ministers, May said she would request a delay that was "as short as possible and which ends when we pass a deal" through the British parliament.

In a move likely to enrage the Brexit-supporting wing of her Conservative party, she also offered to work with opposition Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, who favours closer ties with the European Union.

"This is a decisive moment in the story of these islands. And it requires national unity to deliver the national interest," May said in a televised address.

Brussels has set Britain an April 12 deadline to either pass the divorce deal it agreed with May four months ago, settle on an alternative, or depart the EU without an agreement.

In reality, the deadline is even closer as the EU has called an emergency leaders summit for April 10.

EU president Donald Tusk responded cautiously to May's statement, saying: "Even if, after today, we don't know what the end result will be, let us be patient."

The EU has called an emergency summit for April 10 to agree on the next 

steps (AFP Photo/ISABEL INFANTES)

Break the logjam

Britain voted by 52 to 48 percent to leave the EU in the 2016 referendum, but the exit process has only exacerbated divisions among the public and politicians, including May's cabinet.

Her statement follows weeks of turmoil, in which MPs rejected her divorce deal three times, but were unable to come up with their own plan.

"Today I am taking action to break the logjam," she said.

She noted calls in her own party for Britain to simply end its 46-year-old membership of the bloc without any agreement with the EU, but she said that "leaving with a deal is the best solution".

May said she believed her existing plan was still necessary for an orderly Brexit, but offered to talk to Labour about a new plan for future trade ties.

Corbyn has called for a new customs union with the EU and access to the bloc's single market, two things that until now, May has strongly opposed.

If they could agree on a plan that MPs supported, the prime minister said she hoped to take it to the Brussels summit next week.

Jeremy Corbyn favours closer ties with the European Union (AFP Photo/

ISABEL INFANTES)

If not, she promised to allow MPs to direct what she does, expressing hope that Britain could still leave with a deal before May 22, so it did not have to take part in European Parliament elections.

The political chaos has already forced May to ask the EU to postpone the original Brexit date of March 29, but European leaders have warned they will not delay Brexit indefinitely.

French President Emmanuel Macron said Tuesday that while he was "open" to a lengthy delay on certain conditions, it was "neither a certainty nor automatic".

The EU's chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, warned that the other 27 EU nations were prepared for a "no deal" situation, and "it becomes day after day more likely".

Future relationship

The EU has repeatedly refused to renegotiate the Brexit divorce deal it agreed with May last November after almost two years of negotiations but has said it could revise the accompanying political declaration on future relations.

The deal aims to smooth the divorce with arrangements for Britain's financial settlement, the rights of expatriate citizens, and the Irish border.

MPs have already rejected the Brexit divorce deal three times, shredding May's
authority (AFP Photo)

It also sets up a transition period until December 2021 to agree new trade terms -- but these are only loosely outlined in an accompanying political declaration, which the EU is open to changing.

"What we need to focus on is our future relationship with the EU," May said of her talks with Corbyn.

MPs have already sought to take control of the process by holding two rounds of votes on possible alternative.

Plans for a new EU customs union was the most popular option in Monday night's vote, although it fell just short of a majority.

Ireland won't be 'back door' into EU if no-deal Brexit: Irish PM

Yahoo – AFP, April 2, 2019

Irish Prime Minister (Taoiseach) Leo Varadkar speaks to the press after a meeting
with the French president at the Elysee Palace in Paris on April 2, 2019 (AFP Photo/
Ludovic MARIN)

Paris (AFP) - Ireland does not want to become a "back door" into the EU single market for Britain in the event of a no-deal Brexit, Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said Tuesday in Paris.

"We don't want Ireland to be a back door to the single market, anymore than anybody wants us to become a back door to the single market," Varadkar said after a meeting in Paris with French President Emmanuel Macron.

Varadkar said he was committed to preventing goods that do not meet EU norms from entering Ireland or the EU.

"In the unlikely event that we have a no-deal and the UK were to do trade deals with the US or China and we had chlorinated chicken or hormone beef, or products made by child labour in Asian countries, the last thing we would want is that coming south of the border into the Republic of Ireland.

"And we certainly wouldn't want it getting through the Republic of Ireland into the European Union," he said.

But he again reiterated his opposition to creating a hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland, for fear that it could jeopardise peace in the British province.

Varadkar said that while physical inspections would be necessary on imports like live animals, they could be done at ports in Northern Ireland rather than in the Irish Republic.

"That is the right and best place for them," he said.

But the British government has refused to envisage carrying out customs checks on goods arriving in northern Ireland from Britain, arguing that to do so would drive a wedge through the United Kingdom.

The EU's Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, said Tuesday that the EU was working with Ireland "on a unilateral basis in the event of no deal, to know where we can do these checks," but refused to elaborate further.