A toilet paper company based in Finland has pulled a line of rolls which featured quotes from the Bible, including the words of Jesus, after protests from a number of Norwegian pastors.

"People like to read small, happy messages while sitting on the toilet," said Christina von Trampe, a spokeswoman for Metsa Tissue, the company behind the Lambi brand.

"The vast majority of the feedback has been positive. Our intention was to spread love and joy, not religious messages," Trampe told Reuters. more >>

Nick Clegg, the deputy prime minister of the United Kingdom and the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party, who has spoken out about his lack of belief in God, said he will send his 11-year-old son to a Catholic school.

"In response to media inquiries, Nick and Miriam can confirm that they have decided to send their oldest son, Antonio, from September onwards to the London Oratory School, a state Catholic secondary school," said a spokesman for the deputy prime minister, according to The Telegraph.

"He is currently a pupil at a state Catholic primary school, Our Lady of the Victories in Putney, where he has been going for the last six years. Now that their decision has been made public, they hope that the privacy of their son will be respected." more >>

A senior cardinal, who has been mentioned as a papal candidate and will be influential in electing the next pope, said in an interview the Roman Catholic Church must allow women to have more leadership positions in the next pontificate and beyond.

"The role of women in the world has increased and this is something the Church has to ask itself about," Argentine Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, head of the Vatican's office for Eastern rite churches, told Reuters, even as the Vatican's central administration is to choose the man to succeed Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI.

"They must have a much more important role in the life of the Church ... so that they can contribute to Church life in so many areas which are now, in part, open only to men ... This will be a challenge for us in the future," added the 69-year-old cardinal, who was interviewed in his office just outside St Peter's Square. more >>

Cardinal Keith O'Brien, who resigned last week as the leader of the Roman Catholic Church in Britain over allegations of sexual misconduct, which he initially denied, has now admitted to having acted inappropriately.

"In recent days certain allegations which have been made against me have become public. Initially, their anonymous and non-specific nature led me to contest them," O'Brien said in a letter on Sunday, following news that he had resigned from his position.

"However, I wish to take this opportunity to admit that there have been times that my sexual conduct has fallen below the standards expected of me as a priest, archbishop and cardinal." more >>

Just ahead of his official retirement, Pope Benedict XVI delivered his final address to over 150,000 faithful at St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, where he recalled the joys and difficulties of his papacy.

"I took this step (resignation) in full awareness of its gravity and novelty but with profound serenity of spirit," the pope said before the hundreds of thousands that gathered to see the Roman Catholic Church leader one last time.

In his speech, the 85-year-old pontiff, whose papacy began in April 2005, recalled the "joy and light" of his service as well as moments of difficulty when "it seemed like the Lord was sleeping." more >>

Russia has defended a bill that seeks to outlaw what it calls "homosexual propaganda," arguing that the country should not be expected to comply with the European Union or international views on tolerance.

"We don't have a single international or common European commitment to allow propaganda of homosexuality," Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Tuesday, according to The Associated Press.

Russia is currently considering a bill that would make public events in support of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community illegal, with those deemed to be targeting minors subject to fines of up to $16,000. more >>