A US district judge has ruled that the Archdiocese of New York can proceed with a lawsuit challenging the Obama administration’s contraception mandate. The Irish bishops have said three of the four options proposed in an "expert group" report on the country's abortion law "can never be morally justified" (full text). Forbes has named Benedict XVI the fifth most powerful person in the world. Dylan Parry argues that the new apostolic letter on Catholic charities "will be regarded by future generations as Pope Benedict XVI's most important publication". Sister Mary Ann Walsh hopes that by joining Twitter Pope Benedict "can elevate the medium". Grant Gallicho and Austin Ruse mourn the jazz legend and Catholic convert Dave Brubeck. And on the feast of St Nicholas, Mgr Charles Pope explains how "Nicholas of Myra morphed into Santa Claus". Follow me on Twitter @lukecoppen for updates throughout the day.