Opus Dei Bishop Álvaro del Portillo will be beatified on September 27, the Vatican confirmed yesterday. Blessed John Paul II's personal notes will be published on February 5 in defiance of his instructions to burn them. Former priest Roy Bourgeois has urged the Pope to "recognise gay marriage" in an open letter. David Gibson predicts that Pope Francis and Barack Obama will discuss abortion when they meet on March 27. George Neumayr says the idea that the "liberal Francis is a pure media invention" is a comforting myth. Fr Robert Barron argues that everyone should be concerned about outbursts of anti-Catholicism. And Jimmy Akin urges Cardinal Óscar Rodríguez Maradiaga to apologise to Cardinal-designate Gerhard Ludwig Müller. Follow me on Twitter @lukecoppen for updates throughout the day.