Prevost becomes first US pope as Leo XIV
VATICAN CITY (AFP)Prevost became the first pope from the United States on Thursday, picking the papal name Leo XIV after cardinals from around the world elected him leader of the world's 1.4 billion Catholics.Tens of thousands of people packed in St Peter's Square cheered as Prevost appeared on the balcony of St Peter's Basilica, waving with both hands, smiling and bowing."Peace by with you," he told the crowds.White smoke from the Sistine Chapel had billowed into the sky on the cardinals' second day of voting to announce his election in a secret conclave, while the bells of St Peter's Basilica and churches across Rome rang out.Crowds of people rushed towards the square to watch the balcony of the basilica, which has been fitted out with red curtains for the first address to the world by the 267th pope.
The new pontiff, who succeeds Argentine reformer Pope Francis, was introduced in Latin with his chosen papal name.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Filipino Times
20 hours ago
- Filipino Times
UP to review proposal to refine Latin Honors criteria amid questions on distinction's prestige
The University of the Philippines (UP) is reviewing the proposal to refine its Latin honors system following a record-high number of graduates receiving academic distinctions. For Academic Year 2024–2025, 61% of graduates from UP Diliman were awarded Latin honors. Of the 3,876 total graduates, 2,369 earned distinctions, 241 graduated summa cum laude, 1,143 magna cum laude, and 985 cum laude. In a statement to PhilSTAR L!fe, the UP Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs (OVPAA) partly attributed the significant increase to grading adjustments and academic leniencies implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic. 'It is important to consider that most students from this year's graduating batch started their first year in UP during the pandemic in AY 2021–2022,' the OVPAA noted. The office also cited broader structural factors, such as the implementation of the K-12 basic education program, which may have better equipped students for university-level academic work. In response to concerns that academic honors may be losing their distinction due to the volume of awardees, UP is evaluating a proposal to adopt a percentile-based honors system. A technical working group was formed to assess the potential implications of this shift. However, the group has recommended deferring any immediate changes, pending further data from the graduating cohorts of Academic Years 2025–2026 and 2026–2027. Currently, UP confers Latin honors based on general weighted averages: summa cum laude for a GWA of 1.20 or better, magna cum laude for 1.45 or better, and cum laude for 1.75 or better. The university emphasized that the review forms part of its broader commitment to upholding academic integrity and excellence. 'UP continues to affirm its deep commitment to its mandate of providing Filipinos with quality education that embodies not only the highest standards of honor and excellence, but also genuine service to the people,' the OVPAA said.
Sharjah 24
3 days ago
- Sharjah 24
Hiroshima teens relay atom bomb horror with art
It's one of many scenes from 80 years ago this August still etched in the octogenarian's memory -- and now depicted vividly by Japanese teenagers on canvas. For almost 20 years, Motomachi High School in Hiroshima has tasked its art students with interviewing hibakusha -- atom bomb survivors -- and turning their harrowing testimonies into paintings. Showcased recently by the school ahead of the August 6 anniversary were 15 new artworks, including of scorched soldiers writhing in pain, and a horror-stricken girl surrounded by an inferno. "I think the painting very accurately captures my feelings at the time," Hironaka told AFP, nodding with satisfaction at one such piece that immortalised an "unforgettable page of my life". "It's authentic, and very well drawn." Schoolgirl Hana Takasago's evocative art shows a young Hironaka looking up at his mother as they plod through what remains of Hiroshima on August 10, 1945, with fires still lingering. A few days before, his father had come home heavily burned by the blast and asked Hironaka to yank out a glass shard stuck deep into his flesh. He died soon afterwards. The widowed mother, clasping Hironaka's tiny hand and with his younger sister strapped on her back, is depicted gazing down and mumbling to him about her fears. "In that moment, I was gripped by the strong determination to help and support her, young as I was. That's the feeling captured here," said Hironaka. 'Inner struggle' The "Little Boy" bomb dropped on Hiroshima killed around 140,000 people, including many who died from radiation. Motomachi High is now an integral part of what was originally the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum's initiative, which has over the years birthed more than 200 artworks. The idea is to keep memories of the bombing relevant for younger generations. In the last eight months or so, witnesses including Hironaka sat down with students every few weeks to review their works in progress, sometimes requesting a drastic re-do. "I originally had Mr. Hironaka and his mother face straight ahead, but he told me that their looking ahead doesn't really convey her inner struggle at the time," Takasago, 17, told AFP. "Since I've seen none of these described scenes myself, I was never confident that my depictions were accurate," she said in the school's cluttered art room. The same went for Yumeko Onoue, 16, whose art depicts pumpkins that Hironaka remembers were covered in soot from radioactive "black rain". Having initially drawn the fruit's leaves to face upward with vitality, she "completely re-drew them to wilt," to match Hironaka's memory. "While photos from that era were mostly black and white, paintings can add colour and emphasise key elements, making them, I think, ideal for expressing intended messages," Onoue said. 'The last generation' Many of these teens relied on their imagination and perused historical documents. Immersing themselves in the carnage took a toll on some such as Mei Honda, 18, who described the "emotionally draining" task of depicting charred skin and flesh dangling from people's arms. Based on what one hibakusha witnessed, her painting showed one such woman gulping water. "I initially depicted her arms pressed against her torso, but skin contact would have hurt her badly because of the burns," Honda said. Recent data showed that the number of survivors from the bombings is now below 100,000, with the average age 86 years old. "We are probably the last generation to have the opportunity to listen face-to-face to the experiences of hibakusha," Aoi Fukumoto, a 19-year-old Motomachi High alumna, told AFP. This sense of crisis was instilled by the project in other participants this year -- including Takasago. "Before I embarked on this project, what the atomic bomb did had always felt distant to me even as a Hiroshima native," she said. But that changed after she lived vicariously through Hironaka's story. "I can no longer remain a bystander," she said.
Filipino Times
4 days ago
- Filipino Times
UP Diliman to confer latin honors on 2,369 graduates in 2025
The University of the Philippines has announced that 2,369 students from its Diliman campus will graduate with Latin honors, as announced by the Office of the University Registrar. Of these honorees, 241 will be awarded summa cum laude, 1,143 will graduate magna cum laude, and 985 will receive cum laude distinctions. The criteria for these honors are based on weighted average grades (WGA): summa cum laude requires 1.20 or higher, magna cum laude 1.45 or higher, and cum laude 1.75 or higher. In comparison, the 2024 graduation saw 286 summa cum laude, 1,109 magna cum laude, and 788 cum laude recipients. Altogether, more than 5,000 students are graduating from UP Diliman this year. The 114th General Commencement Exercises will be held at 7 a.m. at the University Amphitheater, carrying the theme 'Lunas', a call for healing through knowledge and public service. Broadcast journalist and GMA News anchor Jessica Soho, a proud alumna of UP's College of Media and Communication, will serve as the guest speaker. Graduating student Mark Andy Pedere, who earned a WGA of 1.066 under the Philippine Studies program, will deliver the valedictory address on behalf of the graduates. This milestone adds to the university's continued streak of excellence, including recent top finishes in the April 2025 Electronics Engineer licensure exam and its consistent recognition as the country's top university according to EduRank.
