For this year’s celebration of Christ’s birth, Pope Benedict will remotely light a giant Christmas tree display attached to the side of a mountain, from 200km away. So, yeah, screw your lawn display.
But! Scandal! He’s doing it with the Lord’s fave new gadget, MSNBC reports, straight from the Vatican newswire:
Benedict XVI will activate the illumination from his apartments in the Vatican Apostolic Palace. He will touch the screen of a Sony “Tablet” with an “Android” operating system which, via the Internet, will transmit the command to switch on the electric current to the tree.
Will this alleged “Android” “Tablet” be a Sony S? It doesn’t matter. The heavens have parted, and the choice is clear: The Pope Chooses Android. If you are one of the world’s billion-plus Catholics, take note!
Also, kind of sad how far we’ve fallen since the days of the burning bush. Moses needed no “tablet”.
Original photo: Thomas Niedermueller/Getty
Well
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 11:39 AMMoses did get two tablets in the end, when he came down from Mount Sinai…
jack
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 11:45 AMMy day, you have made it.
Steven
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 10:54 PMI believe he got four, he broke the first two…
Mitch
Friday, December 9, 2011 at 10:23 AMYeah the first two were android.
Danny Allen
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 11:58 AMWell played sir. Well played
Luke
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 12:05 PMAt least you know those tablets have good security built in with the face melting features.
Try jailbreaking this OS Geohot…
Jake D
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 12:13 PMBeat me to it…
Mmmmm
Sunday, December 11, 2011 at 3:40 PMMaybe Steve has filed a case against God for patent infringement on the original tablets given to Mosses. God has put the word out to buy the Samsung
Commander Sheppard
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 12:05 PMwell region and intelligence have never been in harmony with each other!
wsDK_II
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 1:27 PMyour right, religion requires a higher state of mind then most have – it is easy to believe in what you can see, but requires a far greater mind to believe in what you can not.
LucasF
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 2:03 PMIt doesn’t require a great mind, it requires a completely deluded mind. The very concept of faith – to beleive without reason – is by definition insane.
Mikey
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 5:01 PMWhy? Creation implies a creator. Information needs a writer. Order needs an “orderer”. The precision with which this world is made gives strong reason for the faith you hate so much. I’d say it’s insane to believe that it all made and ordered itself.
Borganstein
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 5:45 PMReally its insane to “not believe” in something that you cant see, smell, taste, touch or test its veracity in any way? Why do you think that because there is order out of chaos there needs to be a thing that creates that order? that is fairly arrogant of you to think that this entire universe was created for you….
cayal
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 3:33 PMReligion requires a higher state of mind? LOL.
You and your kind have taken a story way too seriously.
Steve
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 4:27 PM“your” (sic) right. From someone trumpeting the superiority of religion. Fantastic.
Mitch
Friday, December 9, 2011 at 9:28 AMLol “‘region’ and intelligence” – nice work :)
Mitch
Friday, December 9, 2011 at 10:24 AMlolooolool
Commander Sheppard
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 12:05 PMI DID MEAN RELIGION! DAMM AUTO CORRECT OF MY ANDROID !
redartifice
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 1:34 PM*Damn
Wana
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 2:14 PMIronic, isn’t it?
cayal
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 12:25 PMPretty sure Steve Jobs sit above the Pope in the heirarchy…
Joel
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 12:43 PMConsidering I have no idea what the Pope actually does besides talk to God while Jobs at least helped create some industry changing technology, I’d back that.
Joel
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 12:44 PMNote: I know the Pope doesn’t actually talk to God..
wsDK_II
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 1:29 PMyou KNOW this?
well there we have it, god doesnt exist and atheism won in the end.
hang on….what if i say “i KNOW god exists”?
PARADOX!!!
Joel
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 2:09 PMWow, you’re still trolling? I didn’t say God doesn’t exist, I said the Pope doesn’t sit around talking to God, which he doesn’t. You’re a very damaged man aren’t you?
wsDK_II
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 3:29 PMI dont know, i dont feel damaged. But then, would i even know if i was?
no, not trolling, but i do have a soft spot for religion, and i dont like you.
cayal
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 3:35 PMWhat if you say you KNOW god exists?
I say prove it…oh wait, you can’t. Funny that you can’t prove your invisible friend is real, much like a child cannot do the same…at least children grow out of it.
DJ
Friday, December 9, 2011 at 11:39 AMI have a fun exercise for ya… keep in mind, it’s for fun.
You, specifically you, prove that atoms exist.
Atoms are things you’ve been told exist, but you’ve never seen them. You may say that many people have seen them, but you haven’t.
Many people say they have seen miracles, and you have to admit that there are a lot of things and events that science has not been able to explain (I know, you’ll say “not yet”). We can’t just say that at some distant future time science will explain everything and be content with that. Kinda silly.
So anyway, If many people claim to have seen both miracles and atoms but most of us just have to take their word for it… are we just as much sheep for believing that science is the “almighty reality?”
I look forward to this discussion.
P.S. Android rocks.
Ozoneocean
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 12:56 PMToo true- to some idiots Jobs is actually a god.
cayal
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 1:05 PMI hope people realise I was being sarcastic.
Commander Shepard
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 6:44 PMHelped by purchasing existing tech would be a more accurate description of Apple and Steve
noz
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 12:30 PMOperating system of peace…
demon
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 1:21 PMIs aware
John
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 12:49 PMSo Steve Jobs hasn’t taken over Heaven yet?
Ammusionist
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 3:44 PMNaww – He’s keeping quiet until the patent goes through.
Bahah
Friday, December 9, 2011 at 6:30 AMGold….
James
Friday, December 9, 2011 at 6:32 AMSo does that mean everyone will have to live up for 3 days before they will be let in the Pearly Gates?
Ozoneocean
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 12:58 PMI imagine the old guy just uses whatever’s handed to him. Android today, ipad tomorrow, Windows 8 next year. I doubt he really cares on e way or the other.
Ozoneocean
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 12:59 PMProbably a good lesson in that for all of us.
James
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 1:21 PMThe only lesson worth learning from religion, is ‘avoid it in future civilisations’
Joel
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 2:10 PMLOL
Ozoneocean
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 2:22 PM\ I wasn’t talking about his JOB, but how he relates to the tech. Grow up James.
tennesseetinman
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 3:03 PMthere is no such thing as civilization without religion. look at the modern west; all we’re doing is aborting, contracepting, and gay-marrying ourselves out of existence while the guys with four wives and fifty kids take advantage of our insane immigration laws, all in the name of tolerance. the west has lost its Faith, morally decayed, and is thus doomed.
cayal
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 3:48 PMOut of existance yet the population is growing…
jwenv
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 7:47 PMhhe nice trolling
i hope :\
Nick
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 1:08 PMStands to reason the Catholic church would go with the juvenile boy option of mobile operating systems.
James
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 1:23 PMAwww, someone a little sad their iPad didn’t get chosen?
Nick
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 2:37 PMNot particularly, troll, but I thought the analogy was too good to pass up. Carry on!
Shogun
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 1:29 PMActually, seeing as Catholicism is a walled garden in itself, you’d think iOS would be the perfect match. Not to mention the religious fervour both seem to generate…
cayal
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 1:27 PMOn the subject, Pope is a catholic, why the Christianity tag?
wsDK_II
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 1:30 PMchristianity is the top defining tag, everything sits below it.
Peter
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 2:10 PMCatholics are Christian.
Mitch
Friday, December 9, 2011 at 10:30 AMUm.. he has a christmas tree so he is pagan. Look it up.
Ozoneocean
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 2:25 PMAre you an idiot?
cayal
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 3:19 PMNo. Are you?
Dirk
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 1:28 PMIt’s certainly a big day for child safety if we can get all those “child-loving” priests on a platform that tracks their movements, keystrokes, and website preferences. Perhaps pervasive big brother platforms have a place in society after all.
wsDK_II
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 1:30 PMyea cause only priests are pedo’s?
how about we monitor your life for a while and see where you step out of line.
jamall
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 1:36 PMPaedophiles are vastly over-represented within the clergy. After your comments on gay marriage in The Age the other day I’m no longer surprised by your ignorance.
cayal
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 1:47 PMIt’s more that they are mostly protected despite being pedo’s/
Dirk
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 2:48 PMBe my guest. I practice what religions claim to. I treat others as I would expect to be treated. I don’t violate children, the most vulnerable of human beings. I don’t take other people’s children from their mothers, then indoctrinate them into a lifestyle of fear and guilt. I don’t spend my days trying to tell others how to live their lives. But most of all, I don’t try to convince children that there are fairies at the bottom of the garden. The fact that the church has lobbied our governments to include fairy tales as part of public school education curriculum is the height of evil. just because you were fooled as a child, why inflict that pain on stranger’s children?
jamall
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 1:32 PMMaybe if tablets start trickling down the hierarchy there’ll be less need to touch other things…
Andrew
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 1:52 PMFFS people. The Apple, Inc. logo is an apple with a bite out of it. It would be a PR nightmare. Ultimate sin much? Apple = Evil, both in practice and iconographically speaking.
Rossco
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 2:58 PMLOL awesome.
nkwong
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 3:54 PMwin
jwenv
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 7:40 PMCrap. I just bought a Tablet S and wrote a glowing review on Engadget. Now I have to buy something else :( I dont want to own somthing pedos use.
daryl
Thursday, December 8, 2011 at 7:53 PMMaybe God made an android shaped golem out of clay and he’d streamline it a bit.
Ron Van Wegen
Friday, December 9, 2011 at 11:36 AMThis has been a pretty sad comment thread.
jamall
Friday, December 9, 2011 at 9:33 PMAn army of social misfits, who encourage discrimination and intolerance based on religion, gender, ethnicity and sexuality, discourage measures to halt the spread of disease and contain unsustainable population growth, protect and employ child sex predators, who incidentally occur more frequently within this organisation than anywhere else, and whose tireless work to alleviate poverty, misery and suffering has somehow resulted in unimaginable wealth and undue political influence, is being led by an ex-Nazi who is revered by 1.2 billion people, and you think this comments thread is sad?