As you may already know, the Vatican websites have been up and down for several days, and are down, in fact, as I write this column. vaticannews.va is down but vatican.va is up, although the English language site has not been updated since November 30.

A Vatican spokesman, Matteo Bruni, said Wednesday that the Holy See had taken down its main vatican.va website amid an apparent attempt to hack the site. Without expanding on what caused the problem, he said, “Technical investigations are ongoing due to abnormal attempts to access the site.” Numerous users online, in fact, noted that the site was unavailable as of Tuesday morning. The sites have been up and down since Wednesday afternoon, with many attempts producing “404” error messages.

The link you see below has nothing to do with what I normally bring you daily in this column but the World Cup is on, and it’s hard to ignore stories related to this global event that, every four years, mesmerizes most of the world’s population for a month!

I saw a story today that I found to be very interesting – all about the traditional Arab headgear that is taking the games by storm. It quotes one Swiss fan as saying he has “been surprised by how indulgent Qataris — and others from across North Africa and the Middle East — have been when it comes to foreigners adopting and appropriating local customs and clothing, something that is generally seen as disrespectful in Europe and North America.”

Being an American who lives in Europe, it was that soccer fan’s statement that drew my attention. I think you’ll enjoy this piece and perhaps even learn something new. It’s the World Cup’s Hot Accessory. But Should Fans Wear It? – The New York Times (nytimes.com)

VATICAN INSIDER: SERVANT OF GOD JOSEPH DUTTON: HAWAII’S THIRD SAINT?

This week, in what is normally the interview segment, I’ve prepared a Special Report on Joseph Dutton. The past two weeks, you heard Fr. John Paul Kimes of Notre Dame University, which has a lar