Holy Smoke!

[Oh, crap. I see Bill beat me. Well, I ain't got nuttin' else, so enjoy the dueling posts, lol!]

Wonder Pope powers activate! Form of a pyrotechnic pontiff!

This fiery figure is being hailed as Pope John Paul II making an appearance beyond the grave.

The image, said by believers to show the Holy Father with his right hand raised in blessing, was spotted during a ceremony in Poland to mark the second anniversary of his death.

…The pictures were being broadcast continuously on Italian TV and also posted on religious websites, some of which crashed as thousands logged on to see for themselves the eerie figure formed by the flames.

Why did God let those websites crash when His believers were making their holy virtual pilgrimage to the images of the conflagrant cleric? Well, I guess God controls the universe, but Al Gore still controls teh internetz.

Anyway, the image of the fiery father is quite a mystery—and Catholics the world over are clamoring to find out more. Did he have a message? Is there a secret communiqué to be found about the nature of the afterlife? Was he just stopping by to say hi? The Vatican is being pretty tight-lipped about it, but one of my top secret spies has told me that they plan to send Monsignor Tommaso Stenico to check it out, since he's been refining his research of flamers for just such an occasion.

[Holy folks Gone Wild: Weeping and bleeding and appearing on baking sheets, pizza pans, doggy doors, ice, peanuts, x-rays, turtles, ultrasounds, chocolate, dying plants, sheet metal, trees, more trees, more trees, more trees, more trees, more trees, wardrobes, water stains, plates of pasta, drywall, fish, grilled cheese sandwiches, and potato chips.]