Thousands pack airfield in southern Czech city as pope prepares to celebrate outdoor Mass

September 30th, 2009 Don't exclude God, pope tells thousands of CzechsBRNO, Czech Republic — Pope Benedict XVI told thousands of faithful on Sunday that societies exclude God at their peril, as he pressed on with a pilgrimage to nudge the Czech Republic — and by extension, the rest of Europe — back to its religious roots. "History has demonstrated the absurdities to which man descends when he excludes God from the horizon of his choices and actions," Benedict said.

September 30th, 2009 Pope urges Europe to remember Christian heritageBRNO, Czech Republic — Pope Benedict XVI said Sunday that all of Europe — and not only this ex-communist country — must acknowledge its Christian heritage as it copes with rising immigration from other cultures and religions. The second day of Benedict's pilgrimage to this highly secular country was marked by a joyous open-air Mass that drew tens of thousands of pilgrims and a sober message for the entire continent.

September 30th, 2009 Pope wraps up Czech trip with Mass near PragueSTARA BOLESLAV, Czech Republic — Pope Benedict XVI ended his three-day Czech pilgrimage Monday by declaring its martyred patron saint a model for leaders, saying the world needs God-fearing people prepared to follow the ethical principles of Christianity. At an open-air Mass for at least 40,000 faithful, Benedict issued a call for holiness as he wrapped up his three-day visit to this central European country two decades after the fall of communism.

September 30th, 2009 Czech trip was low-key, but pope is 'very happy'PRAGUE — Pope Benedict XVI wrapped up a low-key pilgrimage to the fiercely secular Czech Republic on Monday, reaching out to nonbelievers and calling on an increasingly diverse Europe to embrace Christian teachings. Throughout the three-day visit, the crowds were contained, and so was the pope's rhetoric.

September 30th, 2009 Pope wrapping up Czech trip with Mass near PragueSTARA BOLESLAV, Czech Republic — Pope Benedict XVI held an open-air Mass on Monday for at least 40,000 cheering faithful who packed a meadow as the pontiff wrapped up a three-day visit to the Czech Republic. The 82-year-old pope first made a stop in Stara Boleslav, 25 kilometers (15 miles) northeast of Prague, to bless relics at a shrine to St.

September 26th, 2009 Pope visits Czechs - but faith-wise, few are matesPRAGUE — Pope Benedict XVI begins a three-day pilgrimage Saturday to the Czech Republic, where people increasingly have become cool to religion since overthrowing a communist regime that ruthlessly persecuted the Roman Catholic Church. Scores of pilgrims poured into Prague on the eve of the nation's first papal visit in a dozen years.

September 26th, 2009 Pope decries Czech communist-era persecutionPRAGUE — Pope Benedict XVI criticized the communist era's fierce religious persecution Saturday as he began a three-day pilgrimage to the Czech Republic, and urged the heavily secular nation to rediscover its Christian roots. At a welcome ceremony at Prague's Ruzyne International Airport, the 82-year-old pope spoke of how the communist regime, which was overthrown in 1989, ruthlessly persecuted the Roman Catholic Church.

August 18th, 2009 PRAGUE - Russia has expelled two Czech Republic diplomats Tuesday, following a move by Prague to dismiss two Russian diplomats over suspicion of spying. The two countries have been at loggerheads over Czech accusations of Russian spying - mentioned in reports by the Czech BIS secret service - connected to US plans to place parts of a missile defence system in the Czech Republic.

July 27th, 2009 Vatican says pope fell looking for light switchROME — The Vatican says Pope Benedict XVI was looking for a light switch in the bedroom of his Alpine chalet when he tripped and broke his wrist while on vacation 10 days ago. Papal spokesman the Rev.

June 28th, 2009 Rains, flooding hit parts of Czech RepublicPRAGUE, — Heavy rains are flooding southern parts of the Czech Republic, with mudslides damaging houses and roads in the region. Rivers have been swelling in rural areas some 60 miles (100 kilometers) south of Prague, the capital, Sunday but no casualties had been reported.

May 30th, 2009 Pope Benedict says he was surprised to be chosenVATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI says he was surprised when he was elected pontiff, but accepted the role even though the challenge seemed greater than his strength. Benedict was asked by a curious child at a Vatican audience with thousands of children on Saturday if he ever thought he would grow up to be come pontiff.

May 10th, 2009 Pope celebrates mass in sports stadium in JordanAMMAN, Jordan — Pope Benedict XVI is celebrating an open air mass in a sports stadium in the Jordanian capital. Catholics from across the Middle East are attending the service.

May 2nd, 2009 Pope: I go to Holy Land as 'pilgrim of peace'VATICAN CITY — Pope Benedict XVI said Saturday that he is going to the Holy Land next week as a pilgrim of peace in a region marked by injustice, mistrust and fear. Benedict's eight-day pilgrimage, which begins Friday, will take him to Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian territories.

April 28th, 2009 Pope to visit quake-hit area in central ItalyONNA, Italy — Pope Benedict XVI will visit the region in central Italy devastated by an earthquake that killed nearly 300 people earlier this month. Benedict's first stop Tuesday will be the village of Onna, which was virtually leveled and where around 40 of the hamlet's 300 residents were killed by the 6.3-magnitude temblor that struck April 6.

April 25th, 2009 Former KKK leader ordered to leave Czech RepublicPRAGUE — Czech authorities have released former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke from detention and ordered him to leave the country. Police spokeswoman Katerina Rendlova says Duke must leave the Czech Republic by midnight Saturday after he was detained on suspicion of denying the Holocaust.