List of Famous Muslim Football Soccer Players

Football also Known As Soccer is the most Popular Sports of The World that is played and watched in almost every part of the World from Asia To America and From Africa To Europe. Recently FIFA Football World Cup 2010 also took place in South Africa that was won by the Spain. Football is also a Popular Sports in many Muslims Countries and their are some good Muslims Football teams and Players as well. Turkey, Iran, Saudi Arabia has good Football teams and thet have also took part in many World Cups There are Many Great Muslim Footballers as well that Plays in different Top Teams of the World. Mesut Ozil that is a famous Young German Player is also a Muslim and special thing about him is that he Recites Holy Quran before each match. According to him Reading Holy Quran Before matches gives him more power to play in match well. Following i am going to share the names of Some Famous Muslim Football Players. 1 Nicolas Anelka

He is French Footballer and was converted to Islam in 2004 and his Islamic Name is Bilal. 2 Franck Ribery

He is a famous French Footballer who also converted to Islam. His Islamic Name is Bilal Ahmed. 3 Zinedine Zidane

Zidane was also a great French Footballer who played Major role in France World Cup win in 1998. 4 Mesut Ozil

He is a Young Germany Footballer who is called next Diego. 5 Kolo Toure

He Plays For Arsenal Football Club and wishes to Become Role Model For British Muslim Youngsters. 6 Frederic Kanoute

He is a French Footballer and a Practicing Muslim. 7 Mehmet Scholl

He was famous Former Germany Football Player. 8 Christian Negouai

He is a French Footballer and a Muslim while having Name Christian. 9 Hakan Şükür

He was Former Great Turkish Football Player. There are many other great Muslim Football Players as well that are Practicing Muslim but above 9 are my Favourite ones. May Allah Swt Bless all these Players and give them more success.

BEIRUT — Army shellings and shootings raged in at least three insurgency hot spots across Syria

BEIRUT —

Army shellings and shootings raged in at least three insurgency hot spots across Syria on Tuesday, including what anti-government activists described as the deadly bombardment of a cemetery in a Damascus suburb during funerals for victims of a freshly discovered massacre.

The new violence was reported as Syria, backed by Russia, its most important foreign supporter, rejected warnings by President Barack Obama about possible intervention in the 18-month-old conflict if Syria were to move or deploy unconventional weapons.

Speaking to reporters in Washington on Monday, Obama said the United States regarded the movement or utilization of such weapons to be “a red line.” U.S. intelligence officials believe the Syrian government has a large quantity of chemical weapons. It is not known whether the Syrians have biological weapons.

After meeting Tuesday with a Syrian deputy prime minister, Jamil Qadri, in Moscow, the Russian foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, reiterated the Kremlin's longstanding opposition to foreign intervention and repeated Russia's desire to help the Syrian government and the rebels reach their own settlement. Qadri, appearing with Lavrov at a news conference at the Russian Foreign Ministry, said

Obama's warning about unconventional weapons was a pretext to justify interference. “The West is looking for an excuse to intervene directly in the affairs of our country,” Qadri said, adding a jab about claims by the Bush administration of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, used to justify the U.S. invasion of that country in 2003, that were never found.

While fighting continued around Aleppo and Damascus, Syria's largest cities, activists said the most serious violence appeared to be the shelling of a Damascus-area cemetery named Modamiyah, where large crowds had gathered to bury at least some of the 40 bodies found in the basement of a mosque following a raid by a newly formed militia of Alawites, the ruling minority sect of President Bashar Assad. “We knew we would find a massacre after they left,” said Ahmad, an activist in the area. It was unclear how many of the funeral mourners were killed. But the victims found in the mosque marked the third instance in the past week of a mass killing following raids by government troops or their supporters, fueling speculation that the Assad government has begun a new campaign of extrajudicial killings to weaken the opposition's support among civilians.

The Local Coordination Committees, an anti-Assad activist group, said at least 152 people had been killed on Tuesday around the country. That tally, which could not be independently corroborated, included 93 in Damascus and its suburbs, mostly in the Modamiyah cemetery.

Eid in Syria marred by fighting in Aleppo

New UN-Arab League envoy denies saying it is too soon for President Assad to step down as clashes continue across Syria.

Two children were among at least 19 people reported killed in shelling by the Syrian army, as clashes with rebels continued on the first day of the Muslim Eid al-Fitr holiday.

Activists said the children were killed on Sunday during continued shelling on the town of Maaret al-Numan in Idlib province.

The violence came as Lakhdar Brahimi, the new UN-Arab League Joint Special Representative in Syria, denied making comments that that it was too soon for Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president, to step down.

In other parts of the country, troops were also reported to have bombarded the besieged city of Rastan, in the central province of Homs, and the eastern city of Deir Ezzor.

Children across the Muslim world were set to receive new clothes and gifts for Eid,

but in Syria there was no respite from the bloodshed which the activists say has killed more than 23,000 people since March last year. "There is no holiday," said Mohammed Radwan, 34, standing near an apartment building in Aleppo's Tariq al-Bab neighbourhood, which was hit by an airstrike the day before. "The electricity comes and goes, the jets fire on us and no one has any work. All we'll do today is clean up the rocks and rubble." Elsewhere,

clashes raged in the Saif al-Dawla and Izaa districts of the northern city of Aleppo, a key battleground of the conflict since rebels seized large swathes from July 20.

Fierce fighting continued to rage between rebel fighters and government forces for control of Aleppo's international airport, a strategic target for both sides. Opposition forces said they were making gains in the city and were hopeful of capturing the airport, an important strategic target. Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt, a former US state department military advisor, told Al Jazeera that the rebels have managed to persevere largely because of the nature of urban warfare. "As we always see in urban terrain, the advantages that are held by a technologically superior military, such as the Syrian army, those advantages of aircraft, of tank, those are in many ways neutralised inside a city," said Kimmitt. At least 137 people were killed across Syria on Saturday, including 63 civilians, 31 rebel fighters and 43 soldiers, the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. 'Last chance to stay alive'

Amid the violence, Syria's state-run TV aired footage of President Bashar al-Assad performing Eid prayers in a mosque in Damascus on Sunday. It was his first appearance in public after a bombing in the Syrian capital last month that killed the country's defence minister and three other top security officials. The last time Assad appeared in public was on July 4 when he gave a speech in parliament. Assad's appearance comes amid much speculation on the whereabouts of Vice President Farouk al-Sharaa

, who was said by some members of the Free Syrian Army (FSA) to have defected to the opposition. On Saturday, his office denied the reports and said Sharaa "did not think, at any moment, of leaving the country". Sharaa did not appear in the footage at the mosque with Assad. Leaflet drop

Meanwhile, Syrian helicopters dropped leaflets over Aleppo urging residents not to shelter rebels and warning the FSA it had one last chance to surrender. Some of the leaflets dropped late Saturday, in what rebels and residents said was a first, were designed as official-looking checkpoints passes for supporters of the rebels wishing to surrender.

"The holder of this pass is allowed to cross security forces checkpoints to surrender. The holder of this pass will be well treated and reunited with his family after verifications are conducted," the leaflet read. Other more basic leaflets printed on pink or white paper urged the rebels to put down their weapons.

"Your last chance to stay alive is to give up your weapons because there is nothing you can do against the Syrian army," read one leaflet, in part.

The AFP news agency reported that fighters in Aleppo had laughed off the leaflets and continued to fight, saying that their next step is to take the out two remaining airforce bases, a radar station, and the new army headquarters in the province of Aleppo. UN mission The latest development came as the last 100 of 300 UN monitors who had been in the country prepared to leave Syria on Sunday. UN monitors wind up mission in Syria The UN observers' departure comes after the UN Security Council agreed to end the mission and support a small new liaison office that will support any future peace efforts. In an interview with Al Jazeera on Sunday, veteran Algerian diplomat Brahimi said that for him, it was "too early to have a say" on whether Assad should step down. "I could not talk about such a matter or any other matters unless I arrive in New York or Cairo to see what is the plan to be carried out," said Brahimi. Brahimi had been quoted by news agencies on Saturday as saying that it was too soon for Assad to step down, something he denies saying. Reports of the alleged comments had caused fury among Syrian dissidents and the opposition Syrian National Council (SNC) described the comments as "unacceptable". "The revolutionary Syrian people were shocked and dismayed by Mr Lakhdar Brahimi's statements," the SNC said in a statement. "We call on the international envoy - who has not yet consulted with any Syrians on his appointment or his mission - to apologise to our people for taking this unacceptable position," it added. Brahimi told Al Jazeera that he has asked the SNC for an apology. "They should call and ask me to make sure if I said so," he said.

Armed groups in Syria receive weapons from Israel

Armed gangs in Syria have been receiving Israel-made weapons found in Latakia Province near the border with Turkey, Press TV has learned. The revelation comes days after the Syrian army regained control over the northwestern Syrian village of al-Haffeh in Latakia, at the request of the local residents. Images taken from the strategic mountainous region show trenches constructed and used by the armed groups. Weapons made in Israel and imported ammunition chests were also found. Various weapons and uniforms belonging to the rebels were also confiscated by the Syrian army. The uniforms were said to be those of the Jordanian military. Locals said the armed groups burned electricity services building, sabotaged security installations, and attacked civilians, forcing them to join anti-government protests.

The developments also come days after Israeli President Shimon Peres put his weight behind armed groups in Syria. Peres said in an interview with Israeli public radio in early June that he respected the armed gangs, who “expose themselves to live fire and I hope that they will win.” The unrest in Syria began in March 2011. Many people, including security forces, have been killed in the turmoil.

The West and the Syrian opposition accuse the government of killing the protesters, but Damascus blames “outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorist groups” for the unrest, insisting that it is being orchestrated from abroad.

In 1844, Polk was elected president of the United States.

“Leopard” and “Linden”, General Grant’s Arabian Stallions

HISTORY IN BRIEF OF “LEOPARD” AND “LINDEN,” GENERAL GRANT’S ARABIAN STALLIONS, PRESENTED TO HIM BY THE SULTAN OF TURKEY IN 1879. ALSO THEIR SONS “GENERAL BEALE,” “HEGIRA,” AND “ISLAM,” BRED BY RANDOLPH HUNTINGTON ALSO REFERENCE TO THE CELEBRATED STALLION “HENRY CLAY” PRINTED FOR THE AUTHOR BY J.B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY, 1885. by Randolph Huntington GENERAL U.S. GRANT’S ARABIAN STALLIONS “Leopard” AND “Linden Tree.”

All my life, or for fifty years I had desired to see and examine genuine Arabian horses, such as I could know to a certainty were strictly thoroughbred Arabians. That they were rare indeed in any country I knew. Writers upon them were very superficial, being mostly tourists or travellers, interested in geographical matters, or in the people, customs, and relics, with traditional associations, seldom if ever being horsemen, capable of judging with just comparison, if I except Sir Wilfrid S. Blunt, of England, who, as an equine investigator of remarkable ability, in company with his wife lived with the Arabs of the desert for that express purpose, and to whom I am indebted for very much valuable information upon the subject. Different Presidents of the United States, also Secretaries of State, have at various periods received splendid horses as presents from Arabia or Turkey; the last President receiving such a gift previous to General Grant being, I believe,

James K. Polk. In 1860 the late William H. Seward, while Secretary of State, had two fine specimens sent to him from Syria; but after the novelty of their arrival wore off, none could tell what had become of them, while those loudest in condemnation or ridicule of Arabian horses could neither say they had ever seen one, nor speak with personal knowledge of the get by any thoroughbred Arabian stallion. In the matter of ex-Secretary Seward’s Arabians, while many were ready to condemn, few could remember having seen them; nor could any one point me to the get of either horse upon which to base credit or discredit. Persistent inquiry, oral and by letter, after five or six years’ time, gave me the first and last of Seward’s two Arab horses, now dating back twenty-five years; and the information I obtained may soon startle such as are interested in “time standard” breeding rather than blood. Suffice it to say, however, that this information determined me to become personally interested in the two Arabian stallions presented to General Grant. As General U.S. Grant outranked in the estimation of the people of the world any representative man America had produced, both as General-in-Chief of the victorious American army and as the unanimously re-elected President of our great Republic, it is but natural to suppose the Sultan of Turkey would honor himself and his Empire by presenting to the General the very choicest specimens of their idolized horses, the Arabian. At the time of their arrival in this country I was compiling a work devoted to Old Henry Clay, to be entitled a “History of Henry Clay;” and for the purpose of having correct sketches of representative sons and daughters of the horse, had engaged Herbert S. Kittredge (since deceased), whom in 1876 I had encouraged to make horse portraiture his profession. Young Kittredge resided with me, as did later Andrew J. Schultz, who was to study under him. When General Grant’s Arabians were thoroughly recovered from their voyage and acclimated, I sent Kittredge to sketch them, as frontispieces to my “Clay History.” also illustrative of blood influences; Henry Clay being a third remove from the Arabian upon the paternal side, and largely inbred to that blood maternally through imported Messenger, First Consul, and Rockingham, all of which were of Godolphin Arabian blood, and Messenger himself was inbred to it. Young Kittredge’s success was wonderful. I presented copies of his sketches to General Grant, to General E.F. Beale, to Paymaster-General J. Adams Smith, and to Hon. Erastus Corning, also to one or two other gentlemen friends whom I believed trustworthy. General Grant pronounced them “perfect to life.” General E.F. Beale wrote me: “I return you my thanks for the pictures of Leopard and Linden. They are the best horse pictures I have ever seen, and are the most faithful likenesses, being great credit to the gifted and talented Kittredge. “Very truly yours, “E.F.Beale. “Lafayette Square, Washington, D.C.” As General E.F.Beale received the stallions and kept them at his place, “Ash Hill,” near Washington, for three years, he was a competent critic of Kittredge’s work. In a similar manner wrote Paymaster-General J. Adams Smith, of the United States Navy. General Smith being an expert horseman, and long having Grant’s Arabs in charge, his opinion is of equal value. Then again, Major J.K.Levitt, for fifty years known in Philadelphia as an expert horseman and judge of horses, pronounced the two sketches by H.S.Kittredge as the most perfect likenesses of the two stallions which he had at any time seen of any horses. Mr. Levitt was the man who first received the stallions to exhibit, which he did for three months after their arrival. I am particular in quoting these criticisms upon my sketches as exhibited in this book, because I have seen numerous prints and photographs purporting to represent General Grant’s Arabian stallions, no one of which has been the least like them. My sketches are the horses to life, upon paper: and the proofs sent me by Messrs. J.B. Lippincott Company, of Philadelphia, were such excellent reproductions that I intrusted the publication of my work to them. HOW I CAME TO ISSUE THIS BOOK. Early in May, 1885, I received a letter from a gentleman, introducing himself as a personal friend of General Grant and his family and, as such, requesting that I give him a transcript of my papers pertaining to the General’s Arabian stallions; as to their shipment from Constantinople, date of shipment, name of vessel, commander, port of entry and date of arrival, also consignment; referring me to General Grant or either of his sons as to himself. By the next mail another letter came from the same gentleman asking permission to publish extracts from my private letters to General Grant and his son Ulysses regarding the two stallions, and my stallions by them; also asking pictures of my young horses by Leopard and Linden. While the refinement and courtesy of this gentleman’s letter was such as to assure me of his good intent, I felt obliged to decline his request. As pirating of my expensive sketches, with plagiarism of my public writings, had been the order of the day for the past three years, I had grown recluse. Upon reflection, and knowing the condition of General Grant, I felt that it might be some pleasure to him to see in print the information I had obtained; also the result of my experiments in breeding to his two stallions; hence I wrote two articles, which appeared during the months of May and June, 1885, in “Dunton’s Spirit of the Turf,” published at Chicago, and in the “California Breeder and Sportsman.” [...] I will now devote my pen to the two horses Leopard and Linden Tree. The two names as I give them are the English translation of the Turkish; but in speaking of them, the word Tree is left off, making the names as given the two stallions, Leopard and Linden. These two stallions arrived in this country May 30, 1879. They were first heard of in Philadelphia, where they were exhibited in General Grant’s name. Early in the spring of 1880 I went to Washington, D.C., to see and to examine them, also to learn if I could breed to them. General E.F.Beale, a lifelong true and warm friend of General Grant, also a great horse-lover, had the two horses upon his beautiful farm “Ash Hill,” just outside the city, and near to the Soldiers’ Home. Unfortunately, General Beale was in California, looking after his large interests upon the Pacific; but I learned that Paymaster J. Adams Smith, of the Navy Department, had the Arabs in charge, and was also a most thoroughly informed horseman. I called at the naval Pay-Office, found the officer disengaged, and enjoyed a long and interesting conversation with him upon Arabian as well as other horses in the East, and all over the world in fact, for they seemed to have been a special study with him at every port he had visited. It may surprise some of our so-called horse-breeders that a naval officer, who had spent most of his days at a naval academy or on board ship, should be better informed than some professional breeders upon land; but I have found it to be frequently the case with both naval and army officers. Men are born with the breeder’s gift, and no matter what their calling may be, that gift is there, waiting only the opportunity for development. Thus, Paymaster Smith was born with this gift, which had been cultivated somewhat in boyhood; then through years of observation, with comparison in the mind, at different ports of the world, he had stored away information far richer than that of men delving a lifetime in “one rut,” with one idea, “upon one side of the fence.” A breeder should be a liberally-educated man, and by nature a worker, which unfortunately few are. He should be a physical worker, also a mental worker, withal a thinker; and my word for it, there is not one moment for play or recreation, scarce even for social conversation. Some of my very best correspondents upon the questions of animal life in years gone by have been officers in the army and navy. The question of blood and breeding in horses, cattle, sheep, and dogs is of importance to all civilized nations, which these men know; and where a naval officer is interested, his opportunities for information are rare indeed. Naval officers, as a rule, are some of our best-educated men. The system of mental training in the navy tends to make strong-minded men with retentive memories. their restriction to confinement, I may say, in connection with study, breeds and encourages deep thought with after-reflection. Graduating from a naval academy, they visit by schooling-ships the different distant ports of the world, cultivating observation and memory. Curiosity prompts comparison, and the most important mental faculty, memory, is constantly worked. Cultivation of the three traits, observation, comparison, and memory, after the young mind and habits have been trained and cultured (refined), enhances the quality of the growing man, all being at any moment successfully applied to development of any special gift possessed, aside from the maybe forced legitimate calling. Thus, the merchant, the doctor, the lawyer, or the mechanic can become a successful breeder if he has the breeder’s gift; and his mental culture, with trained system, will give him a wonderful advantage over the yeoman who hates “book learning.” Paymaster (later Paymaster-General U.S.N.) Smith was by instinct a breeder and handler of horses; or, as the saying is, “was all horse” when not otherwise engaged. He was a splendid driver, and superior to most landsmen in the saddle; indeed, I considered General Beale fortunate in being able to leave General Grant’s Arabians in charge of so able a gentleman, during his trip to California. Remember, this was the spring of 1880, and the horses had been at “Ash Hill” only since the fall of 1879. I was impatient to see the Arabs; so after dinner Paymaster Smith ordered his light wagon, and as I write I think of that delightful ride to “Ash Hill.” Arriving there, the smiling, happy-faced little darkies greeted us with “massa” dis and “massa” dat, as in the old days, the happiest of my life. In front of the stables, upon a beautiful table-land overlooking acres of meadow pasturage, with scattered barns and hay-ricks, was a level spot of close, fine turf, splendid to show horses upon. Upon this the colored groom Addison led out first the Arab Leopard. He was a beautiful dapple-gray, fourteen and three-quarter hands high; his symmetry and perfectness making him appear much taller. As he stood looking loftily over the meadows below, I thought him the most beautiful horse I had ever seen. With nostrils distended and eyes full of fire, I could imagine he longed for a run upon his desert home. Addison gave him a play at the halter, showing movements no horse in the world can equal but the thoroughbred Arabian. He needed no quarter-boots, shin-boots, ankle-boots, scalping-boots, or protections of any kind; and yet the same movements this Arabian went through would have blemished every leg and joint upon an American trotting-horse, even though he had been able to attempt the to him impossible activity. He was now brought to a stand-still that I might examine him; not cocked on one leg, pointed in another, or straddled, as our horses would be after such violent exercise, but bold and erect on all fours, as when first led out. I began at his head. The ear was very small and fine, much as Old Henry Clay had. The muzzle was small and fine, the mouth handsome, and lips very thin, as were the nostrils. Between the eyes he was full and broad, while the eyes themselves were large, brilliant, and of the speaking kind. I lifted the lids, and they, too, were thin and delicate, not coarse and heavy, as in our big-mouthed, thick-lipped, long, heavy-eared American horse. The jowls were very deep, but wide between (so much condemned in Henry Clay). The windpipe was large and free, running low into the breast. The neck was beautifully arched, giving the impression of a thin crest, which I expected to find, from numerous writers’ reports. Imagine my surprise when, upon running my hand from between the ears down, I found a big, thick, hard crest, as if a three-or even four-inch new cable-rope were inside. This was exactly such a crest as was in Old Henry Clay, which lopped over like a bag of meal with old age; and I remembered having an old Messenger stallion, years ago, with exactly such a crest, which, falling over in the same way with age, was a great torment to my pride. How I do punish myself in these days, to think of the green sheep-pelt sweats I gave this noble old Messenger stallion to get the crest so it would stay up in place! Verily, boys and young men are fools, but they do not know it. Well, Leopard and his groom, Addison, remained perfectly still until I had run my hands over every part of the horse’s body, from the tips of his ears to the bottom of his feet, even to examining the texture of his skin or hide, to see if it contained any spots. No more perfect animal ever lived than General Grant’s Arabian stallion Leopard. Now for his gaits. I had Addison lead him on the walk to and from me, say a distance of two or three hundred feet, that I might see the position of the feet in walking. There was no twisting behind, nor paddle in front, but straight, clean, elastic stepping. I now had him pass me at the side, that I might see his knee, also hock and stifle action. From the walk I had him moved upon the trot, and at either walk or trot every movement was perfect. The knee-action was beautiful: not too much, as in toe-weighted horses, nor stiff and staky, as in the English race-horse, but graceful and elastic, beautifully balanced by movement in the hock and stifle. To make Leopard a very fast trotting-horse nothing was wanting but the training from colthood, as is done with our colts of to-day. One thing we should gain by training such a colt as Leopard was, and that would be in the saving of boots with other mechanical contrivances. I could but say to myself, truly, “God has made all things perfect.” I have been accustomed to handling stallions for the past thirty years, hence look first for the disposition. At this time Leopard’s disposition was excellent, or, as ladies would say, “lovely!” and “sweet!” Twice this horse has taken the first premium at the “National Horse Show of America” over his stable companion Linden. Linden Tree (or Linden, for short) was now led out. This horse has been called a “jet-black” by some papers, which was a mistake never corrected by such journals. At that time, the spring of 1880, Linden was a beautiful, smooth, blue-gray, which this summer of 1885 has changed to a white-gray. In height he is the same as Leopard, fourteen and three-quarter hands, which is the usual height of the thoroughbred Arabian. In build he was more compact than Leopard, being deeper and broader; of more substance, but with just as clean and fine limbs as Leopard had. The limbs, joints, and feet of both horses were perfect. The fetlocks could not be found; there were none. The warts at point of ankle were wanting, and the osselets were very small. Large, coarse osselets show cold, mongrel blood. The crest of the neck in Linden was thick and hard, the same as in Leopard. This fact will astonish some fancy horsemen, who are let to believe that a thin crest is evidence of fine breeding. My experience of late years is that a thin crest belongs to a long-bodied, flat horse, of soft constitution. When Job said the “neck of the horse was clothed with thunder,” he had reference to the Arabian horse. As the shoulder possesses the greatest strength in a horse, it is reasonable to believe the neck, to which it is joined, should have strength in harmony therewith; and this bold, stout crest of the Arab was just as God wanted it. The mane in both horses was very fine and silky, falling over so as to cause one to believe the crest was a knife-blade, with blade up, for thinness. The head of Linden was the counterpart of Leopard in all ways; as in fine, thin muzzle, lips and nostrils; also small, fine, beautiful ears, thin eyelids; deep, wide jowls, etc.; but the face looked much older, although Linden was a year younger than Leopard. There were two reasons for this difference in the countenance: First, the depression over the eyes in Linden was greater, which feature is said often to indicate advanced years in sire and dam when the foal was got. This would be evidence that the blood of Linden was very choice, for all breeders wish to get from their choicest-bred animals as long as is possible, even to extreme old age: and some of the finest horses I have ever seen have been produced by dams thirty-six and one thirty-eight years old. If I did not know these to be facts I would not repeat them in this book. To intensify the effect of depression over the eyes in Linden were large black markings or rings around them, which at a little distance made him look at this time very old; with me, from what I now knew of Arabian horses, these marks intensified his blood value. I quote from Sir Wilfrid S. Blunt, in Lady Anne Blunt’s beautiful work entitled The Bedouin Tribes of the Euphrates: “These black markings are held by the Arabs of the desert as evidence that the animal is of the thoroughbred Bint El Ahwaj breed, descending from the children of Ishmael, and from which breed came the Godolphin Arabian, and which Godolphin Arabian was in part founder of the French Percheron horse, also of the best strains of the English thoroughbred running-horse; and to which Godolphin Arabian imported Messenger was three times close bred, and very close at that in both sire and dam. Of course Arabian statements are traditionary, but facts in that country go strongly to support their traditions. This breed of which I am speaking, identified by the black markings around the eyes, are also known as the Kehilans, from these markings having the appearance of being painted with kohl, after the fashion of the Arab women; hence the desert name of Kehilans. “The name of Kochlani is credited to King Solomon’s stud, but they have a breed in Persia by this name, which, although they are Arabian horses are impure.” From all I have been able to learn from abroad, it is most likely that the two horses represent the two thoroughbred breeds of “Kehilan” and “Kochlani,” the two choicest of the desert. I have tried to impress the reader with the feeling that I considered Linden the better horse of the two, and will give my reasons. During the inspection of the Sultan’s choicest horses, General Grant, who had an excellent eye, with judgment, expressed great admiration for the beautiful colt Leopard, and it was presented to him by the Sultan. Of course General Grant did not understand the Turkish or Arabic language, and could not comprehend any breeding given to him. His choice or selection had been entirely governed by superior beauty with wonderful perfection in the colt. After having presented Leopard to the General, the Sultan desired to make a special present of his own selection; and holding General Grant in the highest possible esteem as General-in-Chief of the victorious United States army under him, and also knowing him to have been twice President of this great American people, the Sultan would naturally have an individual as well as a national pride that his special present should be the best possible specimen of blood and breeding to be had through his power; and he knew what General Grant could not understand, that Linden represented blood which time would prove of more excellence than in Leopard. Under the circumstances, does any man suppose the Sultan would insult himself and his power by presenting an inferior selection to General Grant’s necessarily ignorant choice? Every breeder can understand this argument from selections made by gentlemen fanciers from stock he has bred and raised. It is pretty hard work to tell a gentleman who at first sight “knows it all” that he knows very little; but General Grant was not of that class, to assume knowledge. Since arrival in this country, the superior beauty and grace of Leopard has had a tendency to dwarf Linden in public opinion, encouraged through the influence of printer’s ink. He has been credited with being vicious, which the newspapers were very noisy about at one time, in and over a suit brought against General Grant for keeping such a horse. During the early spring and summer of 1880, also in 1881, I handled the two stallions many times in and out of their boxes at “Ash Hill,” at which time I had my mares there to breed, but never at any moment considered Linden vicious. I knew that he was all horse, and that as a stallion his disposition needed watching and nursing with a kind but firm hand. Petulant words, with habitual scolding, makes many a stallion ugly; and many a groom is more at fault than the brute. Arabian stallions are very sensitive to words, quickly appreciating the kind, cheerful good-morning. The human voice has a wonderful influence over the brute, and cross, ugly words they will in time resent. As I have remarked, I put these two stallions through their gaits many times, finding Linden the best at walk or at trot, because more even and steady. At the “National Horse Show” in New York City, I have said Leopard was twice awarded a first premium over Linden, to which by individual comparison he was entitled. The judge who would pronounce otherwise before four or five thousand people would be called very incompetent: but looks are deceptive. I bred six mares to these two Arabian stallions in 1880 and 1881, getting three horse colts and one filly. I selected kindred blood as found in Old Henry Clay’s daughters and inbred granddaughters. I handled the foals from the time they were born. Three were by Linden and one by Leopard. Not one of them is ugly or inclined to be vicious. All are broken, and not one has at any time offered to kick or to strike, although the dams of each one were high-strung, high-tempered mares, two of them particularly so. I found these Arab colts, while very small, required different treatment from mongrels, hence haltered and handled them myself up to this present time, in and about the stable, for that is the place the disposition is improved or spoiled. When two years old, my daughter could drive the son of Leopard anywhere, for he was fearless and reliable. I will now speak particularly of the colors of Arabian horses. I have before said that one of General Grant’s stallions had been reported through a leading daily paper as “jet-black.” Hundreds who read that, will believe it and report it for fifty years to come, until it becomes traditional. It is a bad mistake, as a black Arabian is an unusual color, and denotes inferiority. I will quote again from Sir W.S.Blunt: “Bay with black points, and with generally a white foot, or two or three white feet, and a snip or blaze down the face, are prominent among the Anazeh or Bint El Ahwaj breed. Grays are also common, then chestnut of different shades. The spotted, or piebald, or parti-colored horses are unknown among the pure Arabs. The pure white is very highly prized.” At birth, the gray horse is black; and the true black horse is born of a brown shade. In the first moulting, the proper color shows itself to the breeder. the dapple-gray will carry a black coat into the second and third moulting, the black hairs always shedding first, so that the novice is frequently puzzled to tell what colored horse he is to have at maturity. The blue-gray grows to a white gray, but the dapple-gray holds its distinctive color longest, as a rule. Having bred my mares to General Grant’s Arabs in the spring of 1880, I became quite anxious to know all particulars relating to them, lest in future days some as yet unborn writer should tell his readers that General Grant’s horses were genuine imported Barbs, or maybe Andalusian horses, when any old man knowing to the contrary would be disputed into silence. The pedigrees of our horses credit Arabian blood frequently in some of the fastest and most valued animals; but attempt to unravel such breedings, and one lands among the “said to be’s,” which is not the case in England, or in Russia, or in France. They breed thoroughbreds of various kinds, and tell you how they are bred to a certainty; while with us, the time standard for the present generation settles it all, in which blood is of no value except in the black article known as printers’ ink. In fifteen years after Seward’s Arabs were imported, any authentic information as to their blood and breeding, their whereabouts, or their get, was a difficult matter to get at. The same was the case with those of James K. Polk, and so it has been in many instances where I have investigated. If Arabian blood was of value to England, to France, and to Russia, so it could be to America, for certainly we have not the self-sustaining types in horses to do credit to any civilized country as have the nations cited. Should we export our present horses? Having obtained all I could from Paymaster Smith, I awaited General E.F.Beale’s return from California. From him I did not get what I wanted. I then wrote to General Grant himself, and give below his reply. “Long Branch, N.J., July 28, 1882. “RANDOLPH HUNTINGTON, Rochester, N.Y. “DEAR SIR, — About my Arabian horses, I cannot answer all your questions, but what I know I will give you. “I was in Constantinople in March, 1878, and visited the Sultan, and with him his stables. “All of his horses were of the most approved and purest blood (and there were about seventy horses in the stables I visited). I was told that the pedigrees of all of them ran back from five to seven hundred years (in breed). “Two of the horses that I then saw were sent to me as a present from the Sultan by the first steamer directly to the United States from that port. I do not know the name of the steamer, nor the date of its departure or arrival. They (the horses) were consigned to General E.F.Beale, of Washington City, who can probably inform you upon those points. Leopard was five years old when I first saw him, and Linden four, I think. I am certain as to the age of the first, and think I am right about the age of the second. The fact of these horses being from the Sultan’s own private stables, and being a present from him as an appreciation of our country among the nations of the earth, is the best proof of the purity of their blood. “Very truly yours, “U. S. GRANT.” I now knew that neither General Grant, General Beale, nor Paymaster-General Smith could give me the identifying facts I wanted for fifty years hence. I remembered hearing my cousin, Mrs Dr. Anderson, of New Haven, Connecticut, say to me one day while visiting there, that General Grant had two horses arrive at that port by a foreign vessel, and that they were said to be Arabians. Upon which she went to the Doctor’s desk and took out some nails his blacksmiths had given him when they removed the shoes to re-shoe the stallions. As these remarks were incidental with other subjects at the time, I paid no special attention to them; but memory often comes to our help, so I addressed a letter to William D. Anderson, M.D., New Haven, Connecticut, and below give his reply: “RANDOLPH HUNTINGTON, Rochester, N.Y. “DEAR SIR, — I would say in reply that the Arabian stallions for General Grant were shod by my blacksmiths, Messrs. Palmer & Bishop, in this city of New Haven, Connecticut, on May 31 1879; that they (the horses) having arrived the day before direct from Constantinople by the steamer Norman Monarch, Dunscomb, commander. The steamer at that time was chartered to freight cartridges, guns, etc, to Turkey, from the Winchester Arms Company in this city. “She (the Norman Monarch) made the trip direct, entering and clearing at this port. My blacksmith went on board and removed the shoes from the horses, then took the stallions to his shop, where they were re-shod and kept in his stables until delivered to Mr. J.K.Levitt, of the Blue Bell, Darby Road, Philadelphia, Pa., and from where he exhibited them until delivered to General E.F. Beale at Washington City, for account of General U.S.Grant. “Truly yours, “WILLIAM D. ANDERSON, M.D. “NEW HAVEN, CONN., August, 1882.” I next called upon Major J.K.Levitt, of Philadelphia, who told me that in June, 1879, while driving a race at the Belmont Park, Mr. Edwards called upon him with a despatch from General Beale, requesting that he should go with Mr. Edwards to New Haven for two weeks at Suffolk Park, then at their fair, which association paid him for the exhibit. Next the fair at Dover, Delaware, gave him two hundred dollars and expenses to exhibit there. He then exhibited them a week at the Washington, D.C., Agricultural Fair; then at the fair at Alexandria, Virginia. Next at the fair at Cumberland, West Virginia, and lastly at the Doylestown Fair of Pennsylvania. It now being late in the fall of 1879, Major Levitt ceased to care for the horses, delivering them into the possession of General E.F. Beale at Washington, D.C., to remain. I have been particular in following up these two Arabian stallions presented to General Grant. I deemed their blood of important value to us. I would not condemn such breeders as ridicule Arabians, but would ask questions. If Arabian blood is of no value, why does England go back in her records to so many importations of Arabian horses to create and sustain her national thoroughbred running-horse? Why does Russia take pride in referring to her Orloff trotting-horse as of Arabian origin? Why does France, through government statistics, show that her famous Percheron draught-horse is moulded from the pliable blood of the Arabian? When men condemn Arabian horses, let them cease to extol Messenger, Diomed, Duroc, American Eclipse, Sir Archy, Boston, or Lexington, each of which owed its greatness to Arabian blood ; Diomed and Messenger being, as the reader knows, close-bred to the Arabian, and Messenger, which name has been the mouth-piece for our breeders and horsemen for seventy-five years, was three times inbred to the Godolphin Arabian.

As we celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr

analysis

In the name of Allah, the most beneficent, the most merciful Assalamu Alaikum! As we celebrate Eid-ul-Fitr, we ought to put it in mind that Sallah day is not merely a day of celebration alone, but it is also a day on which mankind should seek Allah's blessings and offer supplications to Him. Anas bn Malik (companion of the Prophet, pbuh) reported that Allah's messenger (pbuh) came to Madina while the people were engaged in an annual two-day game and the Prophet (pbuh) told the people of Madina that Allah has substituted something better for them, namely, the day of sacrifice (Eid-ul-Adha) and the day of breaking the fast (Eid-ul-Fitr). Accordingly, acts and celebrations of all kinds are allowed on Sallah day, provided they are in accordance with the Shari'a. Those that could lead to sin or contradict Allah's law or His Prophet's (pbuh) teachings are however not allowed. The Sallah after Ramadan Upon the sighting of a new moon on the 29th day of the month of Ramadan or after the 30th day of Ramadan fasting, the Eid-ul-Fitr celebration is held on the following day. Commenting on Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Adha, Umma Atiya (a female companion of the prophet, pbuh) enjoined young women, children, adult males and females, as well as menstruating women to participate in the goodness and supplications of Muslims by attending the Eid prayer; but the menstruating women are to refrain from the prayers. This means that no child or adult is exempted from the Eid prayer, which would normally be performed at an Eid praying ground on the outskirt of every town. This is the day of celebration when Muslims should come out en masse to show their number. The Eid prayer Eid prayer is two raka'at. The prayer is performed without Adhan and Iqama (the call to prayer and its beginning). Having formulated the intention (niyya), one utters Takbir - Allahu Akbar (Allah is great) seven times in the first raka'a and five times in the second raka'a. The recitation of the Qur'an (Fatiha and Surah) follows the Takbir. Bukhari reported in a hadith that the Prophet (pbuh) did not go out on the day of Eid-ul-Fitr, unlike the day of Eid-ul-Adha, until he had had some food or dates. Therefore, it is recommended that Muslims should eat before going to the Eid-ul-fitr prayer ground. The Prophet (pbuh) used to perform the ritual bath before going to the Eid prayer ground. He used to recite Allahu Akbaru-Allahu Akbar; La'ilaha'illallah. Allahu Akbaru-Allahu Akbar; walillahil hamdu. (Allah is great, Allah is great. There is no deity worthy of worship except him. Allah is great, Allah is great, All praises are due to Allah) on his way from his house up to the Eid prayer ground and back. The above recitation is to be continued upon arrival at the Eid prayer ground until the prayer begins. After the prayer, the recitation is to be continued until one return to his home. The Imam will offer the Khutba (sermon) after the Eid prayer. He will stand facing the people, who should remain seated in their rows, as he preaches to them and exhort them. Listening to the sermon is as much Sunnah for all in attendance as the prayer. Bukhari and Muslim reported this as the practice of the Prophet (pbuh). The Prophet (pbuh) used to offer two raka'at on his return home from the Eid prayer. Bukhari reported that Allah's Messenger (pbuh) would return home on an Eid day by a different route from the one he had taken when going out. The faithful are enjoined to follow the example of the Prophet (pbuh), that they may testify to the worship of Allah and make the splendor of Islam more prominent. The above rulings on Eid-ul-fitr are by no means exhaustive. Zakat-ul-fitr or Sadaqat-ul-Fitr (Fast breaking charity) This is an obligatory charity to be extended by all well-to-do Muslims before the prayer of Eid-ul-fitr. It is valid when given before the Eid prayer, or two or three days before the Sallah day. The essence is to enable the poor Muslims to participate in the celebration, who may otherwise have nothing to put on the table on a day that all Muslims should be celebrating. The Prophet (pbuh) enjoined Muslims to give out Zakat-ul-fitr to the poor, so that they are freed from going round begging on the day of Eid-ul-fitr. Allah's Messenger (pbuh) prescribed the Zakat-ul-fitr payable by a slave, freeman, a male and a female, the young and the old among the Muslims upon coming to an end of Ramadan fasting, before going to Eid prayers, as one Sa'i (about 2.5 kilogramme) of dried dates or barley for all the family members irrespective of age and commanded that this should be given out before the Eid prayer. Therefore, if there are ten members in a family for instance, it means ten Sa'i should be given. Zakat-ul-fitr is given out from the common food of a given community. We should fear Allah to give out Zakat-ul-fitr from what we can afford. The person that can afford rice, for example, should not give out maize. Ibn Abbas (companion of the Prophet, pbuh) reported that Allah's Messenger (pbuh) prescribed Zakat-ul-Fitr to purify the fasting person from empty and obscene talk and feed the poor. If anyone gives it before the Eid prayer, it will be accepted as Zakat. If given after the prayer, it is counted as sadaqa (alms). This hadith is considered sound by Al-Hakim. This implies that Sadaqat-ul-fitr (fast breaking charity) given after Eid prayer does not absolve one from the obligation of Zakat-ul-fitr, nor does one get the reward associated with it. However, the act shall not go in vain, as one will get the reward of an ordinary act of charity. Below are highlights of some mistakes which we might have committed during Ramadan and their rulings: • Anyone who eats, drinks, or engages in any other acts that break the fast - intentionally - between dawn and sunset during the month of Ramadan, has committed a grave sin (kabeera) and must repent before he dies. The punishment for this act is greater than kaffara (fasting for sixty consecutive days, feeding sixty needy people, or freeing a slave). Such a person must continue to seek Allah's forgiveness and has to sincerely repent and execute more nafil (voluntary worship) deeds, fasting, and other acts of worship to avoid shortfalls in his/her obligatory deeds, that Allah might accept his/her repentance. • Bukhari reported in a hadith that the Prophet (pbuh) said: "Whoever forgets while fasting and eats or drinks should complete his fast, for Allah has fed him and given him drink." He doesn't have to repay. • Having sexual intercourse during the day is a major offence during the month of Ramadan. Its punishment is either to fast sixty consecutive days, feed sixty needy people, or free a slave. If a person has intercourse during the day on more than one occasion during Ramadan, he must offer this expiation for each day as well as repeat the fast for each day. In line with questions of many readers; below are highlights of some permissible deeds in Ramadan, which may answer such questions: • The person that needs to break his/her fast to save someone whose life is in danger may do so, but should make up for it later. • It is permissible for one to kiss, hug, embrace, touch, or repeatedly look at his wife or concubine provided he controls himself. Bukhari and Muslim reported A'isha (wife of the Prophet, pbuh) in a hadith as saying that the Prophet (pbuh) used to kiss and embrace his wives whilst he was fasting, but firmly controlled his desire. Therefore a person that easily gets aroused and cannot control himself or herself is forbidden to kiss or embrace the opposite sex while fasting. • When the day breaks while a person is still in a state of Janaba (impurity following sexual intercourse), the person's fasting is not affected. • If a person that is fasting has a wet dream while asleep, the person's fasting is not affected. • The emission of wadiy or masiy (a thick and sticky substance emitted after urination with no sense of physical pleasure) does not break the fast. • According to a hadith reported by Tirmidhi, the Prophet (pbuh) said that, "whoever vomits unintentionally does not have to make up for the fast later on; but whoever vomits on purpose does have to make up for it." • Nose bleed does not break fasting because it is beyond one's control. • It is permissible to use siwaak (toothbrush) and is even Sunnah for the fasting person at all times of the day. If a person who is fasting uses siwaak, detecting and swallowing some taste from it does not break the fast. • Smelling pleasant fragrances, using perfume or applying scented creams and the like is permissible during fasting. • If a person breaks his/her fast thinking that the sun had set when it had not, the person must refrain from eating until the sun sets but it would not be necessary to make up for the fast. This brings our contribution on some rulings on the observances of the holy month of Ramadan, this year, to an end. We ask Allah to help us remember Him, thank Him properly, and earn His forgiveness with our Ramadan observances, that we may be saved from the hellfire and celebrate our Sallah peacefully with the fear of Allah. We also ask Allah to forgive us the mistakes we made in the course of writing this column and in our other deeds. We sincerely appreciate our readers' contributions to this work. Thank you very much; we shall, Insha’Allah, come your way next year.

10 Secrets of the Vatican Exposed

Vatican City may have fewer than 1,000 citizens and span only 110 acres, but it also has a multimillion-dollar budget and an unbelievably complex history. Understanding how it all works requires parsing through centuries of religious texts. Is the Vatican confusing and mysterious? Is the Pope Catholic? Here’s a look behind the scenes.

1. Regular Exorcise! Baudelaire once said that “the greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he doesn’t exist.” But in modern-day Vatican City, the devil is considered alive and well.

The former Pope John Paul II personally performed three exorcisms during his reign, and

the current Pope Benedict XVI is expanding the ranks of Catholic-sponsored exorcists throughout the world. In fact, Father Gabriele Amorth

, the Church’s chief exorcist,

claims to expel more than 300 demons a year from the confines of his Vatican office, and there are more than 350 exorcists operating on behalf of the Catholic Church in Italy alone.

Amorth also teaches bishops how to tell the difference between satanic possession and psychiatric illness, noting that those who suffer from the former seem to be particularly repulsed by the sight of holy water and the cross. 2. Where Thieves Go to Prey

With 1.5 crimes per citizen, Vatican City has the highest crime rate in the world. It’s not that the cardinals are donning masks and repeatedly robbing the bank, it’s just that the massive crowds of tourists make Vatican City a pickpocket’s paradise. The situation is complicated by the fact that the Vatican has no working prison and only one judge. So most criminals are simply marched across the border into Italy, as part of a pact between the two countries. (The Vatican’s legal code is based on Italy’s, with some modifications regarding abortion and divorce.) Crimes that the Vatican sees fit to try itself—mainly shoplifting in its duty-free stores—are usually punished by temporarily revoking the troublemaker’s access to those areas. But not every crime involves theft. In 2007, the Vatican issued its first drug conviction after an employee was found with a few ounces of cocaine in his desk

3. The Worst ConfessionsSome sins are simply too much for a local bishop to forgive. While priests can absolve a sin as serious as murder (according to the Church), there are five specific sins that require absolution from the Apostolic Penitentiary. This secretive tribunal has met off and on for the past 830 years, but in January of 2009, for the first time ever, its members held a press conference to discuss their work. Three of the five sins they contemplate can only be committed by the clergy. If you’re a priest who breaks the seal of confession, a priest who offers confession to his own sexual partners, or a man who has directly participated in an abortion and wants to become a priest, then your case must go before the tribunal to receive absolution. The other two sins can be committed by anyone. The first, desecrating the Eucharist, is particularly bad because Catholics believe that the bread and wine transubstantiate into the body and blood of Christ. Messing with them is like messing with Jesus. And then, there’s the sin of attempting to assassinate the Pope. That one’s pretty self-explanatory. The meetings of the Apostolic Penitentiary are kept confidential because they’re a different form of confession. The sinner is referred to by a pseudonym, and only the Major Penitentiary, Cardinal James Francis Stafford, decides how the sin shall be dealt with. Presumably, a bunch of Hail Marys doesn’t cut it. 4. Read the Pope’s Mail

The Vatican Library. (Image credit: Flickr user Francesco Costa) The Vatican’s secret archives haven’t been truly secret since Pope Leo XIII first allowed scholars to visit in 1881. Today, it’s even more accessible. Outsiders are free to examine the correspondences of every pope for the past 1,000 years, although there is one catch: Guests have to know exactly what they’re looking for. With 52 miles of shelves in the archives, the librarians prohibit browsing. The most famous letter there is probably Henry VIII’s request that his marriage to Catherine of Aragon be annulled, which Pope Clement VII denied. Henry divorced Catherine anyway and married Anne Boleyn (and four other women), leading to Rome’s break with the Church of England. The archives also contain an abundance of red ribbons, which were used to bind 85 petitions from English clergyman and aristocrats. 5. The Pope Likes to Text Message Pope Benedict XVI routinely sends text messages of his homilies to mobile subscribers around the world, and in 2009, the Vatican opened up an official YouTube channel to show various Papal addresses and ceremonies. The Vatican even released an iPhone application that contains multilingual versions of the Breviary prayer book and the prayers of daily mass. But the Pope’s enthusiasm for technology isn’t limited to cell phones and the Internet. The Vatican has also added solar panels to the roof of the Pope Paul VI auditorium as part of its commitment to fight climate change. 6. They Have the Finest Swiss Bodyguards

(Image credit: Flickr user Robert Young) Nowadays, the Swiss have a reputation for pacifism, but back in the 1500s, they were considered an unstoppable military force. Swiss armies were renowned for the their mastery of a weapon called the halberd, a deadly combination of a spear and an axe, and their ground troops were famous for routinely demolishing legions of enemies on horseback. After Pope Julius II witnessed their ferocity in battle 500 years ago, he recruited a few soldiers to become his personal bodyguards. Ever since, Swiss Guards have pledged fidelity to the Pope, sometimes dying for the cause. During the sacking of Rome in 1527, for instance, three quarters of them were killed while providing cover for Pope Clement VII to escape. Today, the hundred or so members of the Swiss Guard spend most of their time bedecked in Renaissance garb, twirling their halberds in ceremonies or manning checkpoints around the Vatican. When the Guards are actually protecting the Pope, they wear plain clothes and carry distinctly modern weapons. 7. The Mafia Dipped into the Collection PlateIn The Godfather: Part III, a shady deal between the mafia and the Vatican leads to the murder of the Pope. Was this based on a true story? Possibly. On the morning of September 29, 1978, Pope John Paul I was found dead, sitting up in his bed, after only 33 days in office. Although Vatican officials claimed the 65-year-old pope died of a heart attack, there was never an autopsy, and at the time, the Vatican definitely had ties to organized crime.

Sure enough, in 1982, Vatican Bank president Father Paul Marcinkus resigned from his post after a series of scandals exposed the bank’s ties to the mafia.

Eventually, the bank had to repay more than $200 million to its creditors. But Marcinkus was never indicted of a crime. And though he was suspected of being involved in several mysterious deaths, including Pope John Paul I’s, Marcinkus successfully claimed diplomatic immunity in the United States and retired to Arizona in 1990. 8. There’s No Vice-Pope Once a cardinal becomes the Pope, he’s the designated leader of the Catholic Church and God’s representative on Earth for the rest of his life. As with Supreme Court justices, he can resign before his death, but that’s unlikely. (It’s been more than 500 years since the last papal resignation.) Further, as modern medicine improves, even seriously ill people tend to stick around longer, meaning that a Pope could be alive but unable to perform his duties for years, as was the case with John Paul II. What happens then? Well, no one is really sure. A cardinal can take over the Pope’s responsibilities as the Vatican’s head of state, but no one else is allowed to carry out his ceremonial duties. In the end, many masses and benedictions simply go unperformed until the Pope either passes away or recovers. 9. Faith-Based EconomicsThe Vatican needs several hundred million dollars per year to operate. Its many financial responsibilities include running international embassies, paying for the Pope’s travels around the world, maintaining ancient cathedrals, and donating considerable resources to schools, churches, and health care centers. So where does that money come from? Catholics pay tithes to their local parishes and donate about $100 million every year to the Vatican itself. But collection plates aren’t the Vatican’s only source of money. The city-state also gets cash from books, museums, stamps, and souvenir shops. (Get your limited-edition Vatican euros here!) But that’s not always enough. By the end of 2007, the city-state was $13.5 million in the hole. Part of the problem was the weakened American dollar, which translated into less purchasing power. Another contributing factor was the lackluster performance of the Vatican’s newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano. To boost subscriptions, the Pope has asked the editor to spice up the layout with more photos and allowed him to cover world news stories in addition to the traditional religious fare. 10. Even the ATMs Are in Latin

(Image credit: Flickr user Seth Schoen) The Vatican Bank is the only bank in the world that allows ATM users to select Latin to perform transactions. That’s just one symbol of the Holy See’s continued devotion to the language. Pope Benedict XVI has been particularly passionate about reviving the language and purportedly holds many informal conversations in Latin. (Pope John Paul II generally spoke Polish.) The Vatican’s Latin Foundation tries to keep the language relevant by translating modern phrases into the ancient tongue. In 2003, they released an updated dictionary that included the terms “rush hour” (tempus maximae frequentiae) and “dishwasher” (escariorum lavatory). Interestingly, the translations can have serious consequences. A recent U.S. lawsuit was brought against the Vatican for conspiring to protect a child-molesting priest, and it was held up for months as the Church’s experts rejected the prosecuting team’s Latin translations of terms such as “conspiracy to commit fraud.”