Pontiff's Opposition to Condoms Slammed

A member of the secretive Nobel Peace Prize committee has lashed out at Pope John Paul's opposition to condom use to fight AIDS -- possibly showing that the pontiff has little chance of winning the award. The pope is often rumored to be among favorites for the Nobel Peace Prize, in part because of his contribution to the fall of communism a decade ago. Members of the selection committee never comment on possible winners.

But selection committee member Gunnar Staalseth, bishop of Oslo in Norway's Lutheran state church, said that religious leaders should accept condoms as a way to combat a killer disease that has infected an estimated 36 million people. "I challenge the Vatican to redefine its attitude to condoms," Staalseth told reporters after meeting with UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who is visiting Oslo.

"The current Roman Catholic theology is one that favors death rather than life. Religious leaders must be outspoken," Staalseth said. In Norway, where Roman Catholicism is a minority religion, many citizens oppose the pope's strict stance on birth control.

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