Morning Catholic must-reads: 06/09/10

Benedict XVI greets the faithful during a visit to Carpineto Romano yesterday marking the 200th anniversary of Leo XIII's birth (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Benedict XVI marked the 200th anniversary of Pope Leo XIII’s birth on Sunday with a trip to his predecessor’s birthplace (full text of homily).

Archbishop Vincent Nichols of Westminster has defended the cost of the papal visit on the BBC’s Andrew Marr programme.

Sensitive security details of the Pope’s visit to Britain have been recovered after being left in a pub.

Cardinal Keith O’Brien of St Andrews and Edinburgh has accused the BBC of displaying “a consistent anti-Christian institutional bias“.

The Holy See may intervene to save Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani, the Iranian woman facing death by stoning.

The Dominican order has elected a new Master General, the French bioethicist Fr Bruno Cadoré.

Thousands gathered in the Kosovan capital Pristina yesterday to mark the opening of a cathedral named after Mother Teresa.

Pope Benedict has told young people that he felt “hemmed in” under the Third Reich (full text of papal message for World Youth Day).

Fr Federico Lombardi reflects on the new push for a peace settlement in the Middle East

The Scotsman looks behind the scenes at the frantic preparations for the papal trip to Scotland.

Stephen Bates previews the exhibition of the Raphael Sistine Chapel tapestries at the V&A

Cristina Odone wonders whether Pope Benedict can win over his critics in Britain.

William Rees-Mogg pays tribute to Cardinal Newman, as does Conrad Black.

Fr Dwight Longenecker explores the parallels between Pope Benedict and Newman.

Fr Robert Barron is disappointed by Stephen Hawking’s latest pronouncement.

And Anglican blogger Giles Pinnock has announced that he is to be received into the Catholic Church.