Vatican: Tiara on Pope's coat of arms unintentional

"Shouldn't the Vatican's PR staff be on top of this kind of stuff?"
No, I'm wondering why does the pope have a coat of arms at all? Isn't that more like empire rather than servant? For those of us "outside the inner circle," a new coat of arms is no change whatsoever; i.e. who cares?
By the way, what was Jesus' coat of arms?

It seems that Fr. Lombardi is the only person in the Vatican whose full-time job is PR. He alone could not possibly anticipate all the reactions to all the egregious words and deeds of Benedict.
Who was the donor of this banner? If somebody donates a Torquemada style Inquisitor hat, Benedict is not required to wear it in public. Same with this.

Boy, talk about a tempest in a teapot! Like it or not the Pope is still the monarch of the Vatican City State. And his role as ruler of the Church certainly does have a parallel with the concept of monarchy.

"Makes you wonder: Shouldn't the Vatican's PR staff be on top of this kind of stuff?"

I gaurantee the Vatican PR staff probably didn't even think a banner gifted to the Pope would make the progressives wail like little school children being refused cheerios in the pew on Sunday morning. But this type of behavior has become the new norm for anything the Pope does nowadays. What's with the insecurity?

Perhaps decisions such as this are made during siesta. Or, could it be that an institution which still uses smoke signals as a way of communicating to people at its front door explains it.

Thanks for the update. The previous news truly was a downer. Now we realize it's just one more example of a Curia and PR staff and Communications staff asleep at the switch.

Now, for me, the big question is why was the "gift" even used in such a public and official manner? Symbolic actions are just that - symbols - similar to (in Papal Masses) reception of the Eucharist on the tongue and absence of women eucharistic ministers in these same kinds of rituals. The old adage still rings true: "Actions speak louder than words."

Not only the tiara should have been dropped,but all the other useless, ridiculous trappings the drag queen hierarchy cling to so tenaciously, e.g thrones, coats-of-arms, cappa magnas,gaudy cocktail rings, jeweled pointey hats, silk and damask nighties, and the list goes on. This pope, in particular, seems to spend an inordinate amount of his time, not to mention the time spent by the pope's sacristans and liturgical mandarins, in beautfying Benedict's public image and the stage for his Constantinian-style Floor Show.

What we don't need is further attention to bringing back dead languages and dead liturgical practices , when the need is even greater for spending more time and effort on the education and training of the world's desperately poor, witnessing to the growing gap between the super rich and the penniless, and ending unjust wars which drain national treasuries and the the cost of providing for future generations.

I cannot understand what the fuss is about. Heraldry in the Church, besides being a tradition, even if of monarchical and noble origins not much at home with modern sensibilities, is much like logos for products. It says something, it refers to someone. But there can also be more than one interpretation of a coat of arms, like there can be various versions of a logo. Nobody seemed to criticise John XXIII, Paul VI, JP I and JP II for the tiara on the coat of arms, even after Paul VI when they no longer wore it. Benedict XVI gets rid of it and then everyone freaks out when it shows up again on a gift. It's a logo on a carpet that was a gift. To see it is as the restoration of, well, what exactly? or to see it as an un Christian practice is just American philistinism and liberal reactionism at its worst. Get a life! Besides, why does the Vatican PR team have to explain (away) everything. Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar . . .

God Bless Pope Benedict XVI and the Catholic Church.

I am happy to see it return. It was a gift, with stunning detail and beauty. The gift givers should be thanked for putting so much into it. Who cares that it has the Tiara on it? It still is the symbol of the Papacy. Do those who want it removed also want it taken from the Vatican Flag? Or other places where it is still seen? This movement to erase it from memory seems to have a much deeper agenda. As Catholics aren't we supposed to support our Traditions and the Pope? Not constantly pick him and his decisions apart? It is a gift for crying out loud!

Since the Vatican is a religious Disneyland, I'm all for coats of arms and the other trappings. They bring in the tourist dollar!

According to my own exploration, thousands of persons in the world receive the loan at well known banks. Thence, there's a good chance to find a short term loan in every country.