Associated Press
April 3, 2010
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5g3clZqDn2lnpSCO7LhXC77ljHsnAD9ERR4L80
VATICAN CITY -- Pope Benedict XVI has celebrated Easter Vigil as the Vatican newspaper denounced what it called a "vile defamation operation" against him concerning the clerical abuse scandal.
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| Prelates and the faithful hold candles as Pope Benedict XVI celebrates an Easter Vigil Mass in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, Saturday, April 3, 2010. Photo by Paolo Cito |
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| Prelates hold candles as Pope Benedict XVI celebrates an Easter Vigil Mass in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, Saturday, April 3, 2010. Photo by Paolo Cito |
Benedict presided over the evening service in St. Peter's Basilica, which commemorates the night before Easter, when Christians believe Christ rose from the dead.
The pope didn't directly refer to the scandal in his homily. He focused on life, death and immortality, pondering what would happen if modern medicine could remove death altogether.
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| Pope Benedict XVI, at center, holds a candle during the Easter Vigil Mass in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, Saturday, April 3, 2010. Photo by Paolo Cito |
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| Pope Benedict XVI walks with a candle during the Easter Vigil Mass in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, Saturday, April 3, 2010. Photo by Paolo Cito |
In an article Saturday, the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano denounced what it called the "vile defamation campaign" against the pope and cited messages of solidarity from bishops from around the world.
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