JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis used to regularly share a pub table in Oxford to discuss their work. The pair will now be honoured side by side in Westminster Abbey, which will celebrate the author of The Lord of the Rings with a memorial in Poets’ Corner, The Times can reveal. (Burgess, The Times)
Read MoreOur enduring belief that anything is possible — whether based in reality or not — has helped the nation become the world’s largest economy. It has also led us to fall head over heels for hucksters and charlatans, again and again. (Fahey, AP News)
Read MorePope Leo XIV is expected to make [an] appeal to protect life when he visits France this weekend and also prays at Lourdes. One of Christianity’s most-visited pilgrimage destinations is especially popular for sick people because of its association with miraculous cures. (Winfield, AP News)
Read MoreOne in five Britons believe it may be possible to communicate with the dead, according to YouGov, with younger people more open to the idea than older generations. (Ramazzotti, The Times)
Read MoreFor decades, the Roman Catholic Church in Cuba has served as a savior to many Cubans, operating as a de facto social safety net. Once the bane of Cuba’s communist, atheist government, the church has stepped in as a powerful advocate for the Cuban people. (Jerfis, USA Today)
Read More“The Force Awakens” had spent more than a decade as the biggest movie ever at the North American box office with $936 million. It has officially ceded the crown to Tom Holland’s latest Spidey adventure, which has surpassed that benchmark with $936.773 million after 47 days in theaters. (Rubin, Variety)
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